A mixed night for Singapore: Stylish Flamengo douse under-15s' fire, but under-16s advance to the final after penalty controversy

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Jun 25, 2011 Football

23rd Canon Lion City Cup

SINGAPORE - They displayed a brand of football that was pleasing to the eye, and with a new star in the making in Adam Swandi, they captured the imagination of local fans, attracting bigger audiences at the Jalan Besar Stadium than even some of the professional teams in the S-League.

In the end, though, it was a step too far for the Singapore under-15s at the 23rd Canon Lion City Cup.

The home fans willed an all-Singapore final tomorrow.

The older under-16 boys held their nerve in the first semi-final last night, beating Juventus 4-3 on penalties after playing out a 2-2 draw in regulation.

But Dejan Gluscevic's under-15 team fell 3-0 to a Flamengo side that finally turned on the samba beat expected of the Brazilians.

Takuma Koga's under-16 side will face Flamengo in the final, while the under-15s will face Juventus in a battle for third place in the curtain-raiser.

Fast out of the blocks against the Italians, the Singapore under-16s stormed into a 2-0 lead after just 13 minutes, with Hazim Hassan scoring twice. Juventus came out firing after the break and hit back with goals in the 59th and 70th minute. Penalties beckoned, and with the scores tied at 2-2 after three attempts, referee Sukhbir Singh controversially called for a retake of Singapore's fourth penalty after Jonathan Tan had put his effort wide.

The Italians were livid as Tan scored at his second attempt, and Singapore earned their spot in the final after Lorenzo Zarmanian saw his shot hit the crossbar.

"We were a little bit lucky to win in the end, but what's important is that the boys kept fighting till the end. They worked very hard and did well," said coach Koga.

The Japanese coach wanted a date with the under-15s, but Flamengo's boys, who had been disappointing in the pool games, turned it on when it counted.

Playing to an incessant samba beat drumming from the stands, they displayed slick passing moves and even more silky individual skills as they kept the Republic's under-15s quiet for most of the match.

A Mulhelmy Suhaimi own goal (61st) was sandwiched between a Jorge Marco strike six minutes from the break.

Caio Rangel's 80th minute finish ended the dream of an all-Singapore final.