Charity Match: S.League All-Stars vs Albirex Niigata Singapore All-Stars [2-7] Video/Highlights/Report

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Stars shine for Japan relief in evening of joy

Hugo Ng
info@sleague.com

Jalan Besar Stadium was turned into a mini-Japan on Saturday evening as the locally-based Japanese community turned out in force for the sell-out charity game between the S.League All-Stars and the TAKE ACTION with Albirex Niigata (Singapore) Selection side in aid for the recent disasters in northeastern Japan.

The entertaining game was played in friendly spirit and ultimately ended 7-2 in favour of Albirex – but it was not just the usual suspects who gave everyone in the stands something to celebrate.

Amongst the goalscorers was FAS President, Mayor Zainudin Nordin, and a young local boy by the name of Dean Martin. Albirex’s chairman Daisuke Korenaga also made a cameo appearance late in the game, along with a major Japanese donor whose name remained a mystery to all but those who already knew him.

Sources sleague.com spoke to revealed that the young boy is an orphan under the Muslimin Trust Fund Association, who had been kindly sponsored by media company Comm Pte Ltd.

In the buildup to the game, three former Japan internationals – Hidetoshi Nakata, Masaaki Sawanobori and Masakiyo Maezono – had been announced to the part of the Albirex selection.

While Nakata was saved for the second half after flying back to Singapore less than 24 hours ago, Koichi Sugiyama pulled off a surprise by bringing a fourth ex-Blue Samurai onto the field, 42-year-old Tsuyoshi Kitazawa, who promptly started the game alongside Sawanobori.

The technique of both men was evident and they, together with the trickiness and pace of their younger compatriots Bruno Suzuki Castanheira and Tatsuro Inui, caused the S.League All-Stars plenty of problems in the first period.

The opening goal of the game came ten minutes in courtesy of Inui’s lob, after All-Stars goalkeeper Shahril Jantan had blocked Castanheira’s initial attempt.

All ten players in the orange and blue of Albirex, as well as black-topped goalkeeper Yoshito Matsushita, then got together to dedicate the goal to victims of the recent events in Japan.

Richard Bok’s All-Stars team had Vitor Borges and Fazrul Nawaz up front from kickoff, and the latter seemed to be in determined mood, possibly trying to prove himself in front of national coach Radojko Avramovic, who was in the stands.

Fazrul did well in a number of occasions in the first half, and it was his blocked shot on 19 minutes which led to the corner that resulted in his team’s equaliser.

From the uncleared set-piece, Carlos Delgado’s centre was met by Obadin Aikhena’s glancing header to tie the score at 1-1.

Shahril’s involvement in the match was cut short after he had saved a penalty on 28 minutes, conceded after Afiq Yunos had fouled Castanheira in the area.

Having got down smartly to parry Sawanobori’s attempt, the SAFFC custodian was then accidently hurt in the ensuing rebound, and was replaced by Izwan Mahbud soon after as a precautionary measure.

Eight minutes later, the S.League connection worked wonders for the Selection team as Shimpei Sakurada and Inui sliced the All-Stars’ defence open for Castanheira to score. This time round, the players ran towards the bench and celebrated together in a sign of solidarity.

The All-Stars then stepped up their game, but hesistant defending on the stroke of half-time allowed Kazuki Kobayashi to make it 3-1.

The second period saw the introductions of Nakata and Maezono amongst others for the Japanese aces, while Bok made ten changes to his side without batting an eyelid.

With so many players moving on and off the field during and after the half-time interval, figuring out teammates and opponents became something of a tricky task for everyone, and even the stadium announcer was struggling to track the changes.

As the All-Stars were still finding their feet, Albirex forward Shotaro Ihata notched the fourth for his side despite Izwan’s best efforts.

Then on 62 minutes, the volume at Jalan Besar went up by three notches as Nakata got his name on the scoresheet from a half-volley after good work by Ihata to make it 5-1.

The former golden boy of Asian football showed glimpses of his glory days, and even showed a couple of back-flicks to keep the fans entertained during his 45 minutes on the field.

On the All-Stars’ front, Hougang United winger Jordan Webb unleashed some skills of his own – something he had promised the day earlier – as a couple of stepovers on the counterattack drew a free kick which Frenchman Hicham Bouchemlal sent into the side-netting.

With his side looking for consolation goals, captain Paul Cunningham was pushing on from his defensive position to initiate a few moves, as he occasionally does with club side Balestier Khalsa, but without much success this time around.

The sixth and seventh goals for the Albirex Selection for the evening then came late on from the young Martin. His first came from the penalty spot, firing an effort which Izwan never really moved to save, and the second came after Nakata himself had put a cross in from the right.

It might have been generous from the All-Stars, but this was not your regular competitive fixture, so it was no surprise the men in white applauded the boy’s strikes against them.

In fact, the only ones who appeared not to have read the script were the ever-professional linesman manning the All-Stars’ half, who twice flagged Martin offside to mock complaints from everyone on the Albirex Selection bench.

Between Martin’s two goals, the All-Stars hit the woodwork twice in quick succession through Webb and Mayor Zainudin, who himself had come on as a substitute in the second half.

The Mayor eventually put his name on the scoresheet with a left-footed grounder after picking up a half-clearance from the Albirex Selection defence, but far from complaining, everyone in the stands applauded all the way to the final whistle as both sides joined hands in thanking all present for their tremendous support for Japan.