03-05-2007, 07:43
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STEAMER
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Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 885
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Singapore Cup (03.04.2007)
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| Competition: | Geylang United FC vs Singapore Armed Forces FC | | Date & Time: | 3 May 2007 7:45:00 PM | | Venue: | Bedok | | Preview | View Probable Line-Up | Firdaus Khan
info@sleague.com
Geylang United will host SAFFC for the second time this season when they clash in a Singapore Cup tie at the Bedok Stadium.
The two sides met earlier last month in an S.League game, where SAFFC ran out 2-0 winners.
Geylang have never won the RHB Singapore Cup but they have finished runners-up twice in 2001 and 2003.
Last year, Geylang crashed out of the preliminary round after losing 3-2 to Albirex Niigata (S).
Coach Lim Tong Hai will be looking for a different denouement against the Warriors this time around, after seeing his side spurn a series of chances in the 2-0 defeat.
“It is always going to be tough in cup matches. We have to do our best to qualify for the next round,” said Lim.
“This is our second meeting with SAFFC and they are a good team and we might have to throw ourselves forward and get the win."
As for SAFFC, they have tasted success once in the competition, in 1999. The Warriors also appeared in two other finals in 1998 and 2000 but lost.
Another interesting fact about SAFFC’s history in the Singapore Cup is that all teams who had defeated them have gone on to compete in the final.
Tampines Rovers defeated SAFFC in the quarter finals last year and went on to lift the trophy in an extra-time thriller against Thai side Chonburi.
Warriors’ coach Richard Bok is feeling confident ahead of the game after gaining a close 3-2 victory over New Radiant in the AFC Cup last week.
“We have been training very hard after returning from Maldives and we are very positive,” he said.
But the coach did not write off his opponent’s chances in the match. Geylang have made a decent start in the league compared to last year’s forgettable campaign, sitting eighth.
“They are a much better team this season. Their new acquisitions, (Abdelaziz) Dnibi and (Kim) Grant, have played well and the team as a whole is very hardworking," said Bok.
The winner of this clash will meet Gombak United in the quarter finals.
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