December 8, 2004

Tiger Cup Group A (Vietnam)

Singapore	1	1	Vietnam
Indra Sahdan 70'			Thach Bao Khanh 51’

 

Indonesia	6	0	Laos
Boas Salossa 26, 53’ Ilham Jaya Kesuma 29’, 34’ Elie Aiboy 60’ Kurniawan Dwi Yulianto 87’

Singapore gained a valuable opening point in Group A as the Republic fought back from 1 goal down to hold overall favorite Tiger Cup 2004 co-host Vietnam  

The Vietnamese was expected to run away from the group from past experiences with Vietnam reaching 2 regional Finals - the 1998 Tiger Cup Final against Singapore & 2003 SEA Games Final against Thailand - when they hosted.

Also with 7 of the players promoted from the 2003 SEA Games U23 team, the Vietnamese were seems to be a class above the Republic & both Vietnamese media & local media agreed with them stating Singapore could only hoped to keep the score down.

However it did not went according to the written script of the press as Indra, the hero of Singapore so many times in the past, came out top once again with a goal against the Vietnamese.

The 25-year-old Home United striker scored after a freekick pumped into the Vietnamese box was half –cleared with the Vietnamese defender heading the ball into the path of Indra who was on the edge of the box & the striker, with no defender covering him, needed no invitation to shoot. That was what he did as he drove the ball with a right-footed shoot past the out reaching Vietnamese keeper.

It took the wind out of the Vietnamese play with the Vietnamese boasted by an early goal in the second half from Thach Bao Khanh.

The Vietnamese had taken the lead after a superb cross from the Vietnamese left was met by an equally superb close-post header from Thach Bao Khanh that gave Singapore keeper Lionel Lewis no chance whatsoever.

With that goal the Vietnamese had pinned Singapore back with them controlling play but once Singapore level the game it was the turn of Vietnamese backline to be pinned back & Indra would well have a second but his weak lob over the keeper after the keeper clashed with his defender was cleared over the line. 

As no breakthrough can be found, the game ended in a draw.

In the other game, Indonesia had a blistering start to their Group A campaign when they fired 6 goals without reply against Laos in the 2004 Tiger Cup curtain raiser.

Singapore team - Lionel Lewis (GK), S. Subramani, Baihakki Khaizan, Aide Iskandar (C), Daniel Bennett, Ridhuan Muhamad (Khairul Amri, 65’), Shahril Ishak, Hasrin Jailani (Goh Tat Chuan, 53’), Itimi Dickson, Indra Sahdan, Agu Casmir (Noh Alam Shah, 87’)