The VDB connection made the difference in Hebiguchi Cup QF
It was one of these days where players were bailing-out of the match for various reasons like flu, work or injuries … Still, senior team was opposed to Kickers FC in the quarter-final of Hebiguchi Cup.
When the game started, we had our President (59 yo) in a rare starting eleven appearance and Jay (our youth goalie) in stand-by to eventually play in the field. Our opponent Kickers FC were also low on players… So at least, that helped a bit.
In the first half, we got plenty of possession but the speed of the match was slow. We tried to use the speed of our wingers to create chances. It resulted in 3 good scoring opportunities but our headers were either not precises or strong enough.
Kickers FC had no shot on our goal but 5 minutes before half-time, we let one of our opponent slip-in our penalty box where he outplayed 2 of our players to pass the ball to a team-mate who scored from close range.
The half time talk was simple… Play to win or otherwise lose the game. We started much better and moved the ball quicker looking for the equalizer. Fifteen minutes in, we scored a great goal! Nolann found Seiwa on the rightwing who outplayed the kicker’s defender and found Louka our youngest player (14 yo) who scored with a great header.
It lifted our spirit but within 2 minutes… we conceded again as we gave the Kicker left winger a free pass to outrun our defense and score.
We didn’t give up and thought we would get awarded a penalty when FL got kicked in his face but the referee pretended not to have seen it. We kept fighting for the equalizer and scored another great goal thanks to the VDB connection. With a good pass into Kickers’ box, FL found Louka who set up his father David to finish the Job. An historic goal for the Lions as it’s the 1st time a father and son both score in the same match.
We tried to go for the win in the last minutes but could not managed to score another goal. As this was a cup game, we were up for penalties when the final whistle was blown. Marcel our goalie was very motivated to get us the win especially as we felt let-down by the referee a couple of times.
[ SIFL H Cup ] Shanghai Kickers FC 2-2 Shanghai Lions FC
He showed fine form and stopped 2 penalties while we scored all of them. Great team performance from the team and the VDB connection. With a very small squad, we managed getting into the semi-final of the Hebiguchi Cup.
Well done Lions!
Cheers
Freek
