Lions produce stale performance in 2-2 draw with Papua New Guinea

SINGAPORE – Lions coach Takayuki Nishigaya would have hoped for his first match at the National Stadium to be a happy homecoming.

But, for all of his team’s perspiration, there were few moments of inspiration as the Lions were held 2-2 by Papua New Guinea in Friday’s international friendly.

The proceedings ended with sections of the crowd chanting “sacked in the morning” in the Japanese tactician’s direction.

About three hours before kick-off, the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) announced that tickets for both this match and Sunday’s friendly with the Solomon Islands at the 55,000-capacity venue had been “fully snapped up”.

But, inside the stadium, the atmosphere was as flat as the Lions’ display. The 4,918 fans were seated in the three sections that were available and even then, there were plenty of empty seats.

Goalkeeper Hassan Sunny, who captained the Lions, rued his team’s missed chances, saying: “We are all disappointed with the result. We could have won the game easily.

“We have to be honest with ourselves and see what went wrong and we have to improve because we only have few days before the next match.”

Nishigaya commended the Papuans for their performance and felt that his men “played to the best of their ability”.

On the fans’ chants and frustrations, he said: “I fully understand their feelings. We know that we need to do more. We want to make our fans happy again.”

The Lions, ranked world No. 158, were the favourites heading into the clash with the Papuans, who are one rung below and had a less-than-ideal preparation.

This friendly was originally slated for Thursday but was postponed by a day, as the Papuans’ Tuesday flight to Singapore was cancelled. They arrived just after 9pm on Thursday.

Their sluggishness was apparent in the opening stages and the Lions sought to seize the advantage with plenty of balls over the Papuans’ static defence.

But it was a goal from a set-piece that did the trick eventually. In the 22nd minute, a corner from Hafiz Nor was headed into the danger zone by Shakir Hamzah before Adam Swandi headed the ball in from close range.

The Papuans equalised in the 42nd minute when the Lions defence failed to close down Ati Kepo, who fired past Hassan from just outside the box.

But the Lions sprang into action just a minute later, when Hariss Harun, who had come on earlier to replace the injured Zulfahmi Arifin, sent Shawal Anuar clear with a ball over the Papuan backline.

The Lion City Sailors attacker duly chipped the on-rushing Papuan goalkeeper Ronald Warisan to make it 2-1.

And just when it seemed that the Lions would go into the break with the lead, they conceded again, this time in comical fashion.

A clearance in his own box from Shakir hit Papuan forward Raymond Gunemba before nestling into the net, beyond a hapless Hassan.

In the second period, when the Lions needed to up the ante, no one stepped forward to grab the game by the scruff of its neck.

The crowd was subdued as well, with more groans than cheers when Singapore’s attackers were caught offside when they tried to pour forward.

Both sides had chances to win it, with the best opportunities falling the Papuans’ way, as Lionel Tan and Glenn Kweh were forced into crucial interventions to save the Lions’ blushes.

Faris Ramli also had chances to win the match for the hosts late on, but squandered them. But not many got to see those close shaves, with the match also not being broadcast in Singapore while stadium capacity was capped.

The Straits Times understands that there were no takers for the broadcast rights offered by FAS while the production expenses for the match broadcast were too costly.

In response to ST’s queries, FAS deputy general secretary Gerard Christopher explained that the booked capacity of 5,000 was fully utilised with 75 per cent of them being purchased tickets.

He added: “The option to further open sections, while explored, was unattainable due to the extensive lead time required for logistical and manpower preparations for a safe environment for the fans...

“We note the late demand of tickets and will take this into consideration for future international matches.”