Competition: Woodlands Wellington FC vs Tampines Rovers SC
Date & Time: 7 May 2005 7:30:00 PM
Venue: Woodlands
Showtime for S-League aspirants Tampines Rovers SC
They have made their intentions clear of joining the S-League. What better way for Tampines Rovers SC to prove themselves on Saturday night when they face a weakened Woodlands Wellington side.
With Woodlands playing their second match in four days and having four S-League players out, it has paved the way for amateur outfit Tampines to claim the scalp of an S-League side.
Although there may be tired legs amongst the ranks of the Rams, coach Karim Bencherifa cannot afford to rest any of his players due to injuries to several others.
He said: “I cannot give any of my players a break. If you watched our last game, I had only 10 S-League players that I can use. The rest are from the Prime League.
“We have injuries in our squad now. Gusta Guzarishah is out injured and Jaslee Hatta will be out for six to eight weeks. Our two foreigners are out also.”
While coach Karim may not have the depth in squad to rotate his squad, they have the undoubted quality.
With the likes of Daniel Bennett, Goh Tat Chuan and Ahmad Latiff Khamarudin, Tampines, the NFL Division One side, will have their work cut out.
While Woodlands come into this match after a heavy 3-0 defeat in the S-League, Tampines earned themselves a morale-boosting 4-1 win over Police SA last week.
Not surprisingly, Bencherifa was at the game to gather intelligence for this Singapore Cup clash.
Although the Moroccan coach does not underestimate the NFL outfit, he wants his team to put up a solid performance and earn a good result.
He said: “It is important to get a good win. A comfortable win will allow us to build on it for our next league game.”
A comfortable win will also give any side a psychological advantage for the quarterfinals of the Singapore Cup should Woodlands Wellington or Tampines advance.
Last year, the Rams only managed to get to the quarterfinals as they were stopped in their tracks by Geylang United. The Eastern side beat them over two-legs to deprive the Rams of a semi-final place.
The NFL side's involvement in last yearÂ’s Singapore Cup was restricted to just one match as they crashed 4-1 to Sinchi despite putting up a brave performance.
Tampines will certainly want to see themselves go beyond the first round this time and prove their mettle against the big boys of the S-League. And for that, Woodlands Wellington better not expect it easy from them.
Probable Team Line-Up
Woodlands Wellington FC
Jersey No. Name Position
1 Yazid Yasin GK
4 Azmi Mahamud DF
7 Ahmad Latiff Khamarudin MF
8 Goh Tat Chuan MF
9 Jonathon Angelucci FW
10 Daniel Bennett DF
13 Ratna Suffian DF
14 Sazali Salleh MF
16 Jaslee Hatta DF
17 Masrezwan Masturi FW
18 Park Tae Won FW
Tampines Rovers SC
Jersey No. Name Position
1 Syed Mazhar Hussain GK
5 Razali Ishak DF
6 Nathaniel K Naplah DF
7 Norisham Musahar MF
9 Yu Bingtao MF
10 Woong Joo Thiam MF
13 Syed Alwi Ali DF
15 Iqbal Nawawi MF
18 Hafizkhan Aziz DF
24 Sharifuddin Mahmood DF
25 Mamia Marcel FW