Before kickoff, Global FC needed to win by a three-goal margin against Singaporean side Tampines Rovers after they lost the first leg 1-3 last June 29, 2016 (Wednesday) in order to qualify for the 2016 Singapore Cup semi-finals.
That itself proved to be a tall order for the Dan Palami-owned club as they succumbed to a 1-2 loss at the hands of the Rovers tonight at the Jalan Besar Stadium in Singapore. Hikaru Minegishi (20′) scored Global’s solitary goal of the game while Billy Mehmet (41′) and Hafiz Sujad provided the goals for the Rovers. The result eliminated Global from the competition as the Rovers advanced to the semi-finals with a score of 2-5 on aggregate.
Hoping to pull off a miracle, Global were understandably hungry for goals in the first half. Serge Kaole had a sniff at goal, only for his attempt to go over the Rovers’ bar. Nonetheless, Kaole contributed to one when his cross was converted by a determined Minegishi as the 20th minute mark of the game.
Minegishi’s goal galvanized Global and Omid Nazari could have doubled the Filipino side’s lead but Rovers’ goalie Izwan Mahbud performed a fine save to keep the scores as it is. Tensions boiled, though, and both teams were down to ten men each as Nazari along with Rovers’ Yasir Hanapi were sent off for an in-game incident.
Things then became worse for Global before the break as Mehmet scored at the 41st minute to restore the Rovers’ two-goal aggregate cushion and virtually seal the tie. It finished 1-1 at the break and the Rovers can smell the semi-finals.
Come the restart, the Rovers bombarded Global with attempt after attempt. Similar to the first leg, Global goalie Patrick Deyto became a busy man and successfully limited the damage the Rovers sought to inflict. That resilience, however, lasted as long as the 71st minute as a wicked deflection allowed Sujad’s attempt to curl past Deyto and give the Rovers a 1-2 lead.
Sujad’s goal ended the contest between the Rovers and Global. The Rovers held on to reach the final four of the competition. As for Global, they now only had the 2016 United Football League to worry about.
The Philippines’ participation in the competition doesn’t end here as Ceres-La Salle FC will face Brunei DPMM FC tomorrow (July 3, 2016; 8:00PM) at the Jalan Basar. Ceres-La Salle holds as huge 3-0 advantage over DPMM and look well on their way to the semi-finals.
