Bezecourt salvages dramatic draw for the Eagles in six-goal thriller against the Jaguars

Nine-men Eagles had a stoppage-time equaliser by Vincent Bezecourt to thank for helping them maintain their unbeaten record against Tanjong Pagar this season after they battled to a pulsating 3-3 draw against the Jaguars on Sunday. 

In a match where both teams were locked in a battle to take fourth place in the AIA Singapore Premier League, the Eagles’ second consecutive draw at Our Tampines Hub (OTH) meant they still have a mathematical chance of ending the season in fourth place despite remaining in fifth place. 

The Eagles started brightly with Sime Zuzul having the opportunity to put them ahead as early as the ninth minute. But he was unable to poke the ball past the onrushing Zharfan Rohaizad into goal.

Seven minutes later, Tajeli Salamat was also presented with a chance to get the early advantage for the Eagles but blast his shot wide over the post from the far right.

A long pass from Zaiful Nizam to Zuzul in the 31st minute then brought the game to life as the Croatian raced through the left flank before laying off the ball squarely for Vincent Bezecourt, who outwitted the Jaguars’ defence before unleashing a voracious shot that found the back of the net.

It was the Frenchman’s fourth goal against Tanjong Pagar this season and also his ninth so far.

Shakir Hamzah almost made an immediate impact after coming on as a substitute for the injured Raihan Rahman in the 37th minute.

Shakir’s header off a corner crashed into the bar which would otherwise have given Tanjong Pagar the equaliser.

Barely four minutes later, Shakir found the net on the wrong end as his attempted clearance off a cross by Tajeli was deflected into his own net, leaving the Eagles to head into the break in the driver’s seat.

Geylang International were however made to play with 10 men after Huzaifah Aziz was sent off for his second bookable offence in the 57th minute. 

The Jaguars immediately took advantage of their numerical advantage as Blake Ricciuto pulled one goal back with a firm header off a cross from Faritz Hameed in the 64th minute. There were back on level terms eight minutes later after Zaiful failed to stop another powerful header from Khairul Nizam.

It would have been the last slice of the action for Zaiful as the skipper came down with an ankle injury. Having already made all his outfield substitutions, a decision was then made for Joshua Pereira to take his place as the stand-in keeper, leaving also Geylang International to see out the match with nine men.  

Reo Nishiguchi then seemed to have sealed victory for the Jaguars when his looping header put Tanjong Pagar ahead for the first time in the match with a minute of regulation time left to play.

However, the drama was not over as Bezecourt would have the last laugh for Geylang International after he drilled home a spectacular well-placed free-kick to bottom left corner, ensuring both teams share the points in their six-goal thriller.

Geylang International Head Coach Noor Ali said: “Well, this is definitely a match that has all the elements of drama and is worthy of great entertainment value for all fans. It was a game of two halves. We dominated the first half and the second half saw Tanjong Pagar make their comeback. We still have a mathematical chance of finishing fourth and we will try our best to do that with two games to go.”

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