9-man Eagles go down to the Tigers in battle for fourth spot

Geylang International’s chances of securing a top-four finish in the Singapore Premier League (SPL) are all but over after a 6-2 loss to Balestier Khalsa at Our Tampines Hub on Saturday.

This outcome leaves the Eagles trailing the fourth-placed Balestier by six points with only two games left in the season.

A stellar brace from Iqbal Hussain couldn’t save the home side from unravelling, especially after they were reduced to just nine men for the final 20 minutes after Ahmad Syahir and Naufal Azman received their marching orders.

Within the opening four minutes, the visiting Tigers were on the scoreboard, courtesy of a close-range strike by Daniel Goh. But their lead was short-lived, as Iqbal fired back, piercing a potent shot past the keeper Hairul Syirhan from inside the box in the 22nd minute.

But the Tigers would restore the lead thanks to Shuhei Hoshino’s screamer in the 29th minute before Goh made it 3-1 just before the half-time whistle.

As Geylang sought a foothold in the match, their task became even more daunting with Ahmad receiving a straight red for his 63rd-minute tackle on Daniel.

Yet, despite being a man down, the home side reduced the deficit just five minutes later, thanks to a moment of magic from Iqbal.

But everything went downhill when Naufal became the second Geylang player to receive a red card, following a harsh tackle on Alen Kozar.

Balestier took full advantage of their numerical superiority, with goals from Syukri Noorhaizam (75′), Masahiro Sugita (82′), and Ryoya Taniguchi (84′). This heaped more misery on the Eagles, coming on the heels of a 6-1 drubbing by Albirex Niigata last week.

A dejected head coach Noor Ali said: “We didn’t start the game well; we conceded two to three easy goals. I believe we could have done better in that regard.

“We began the second half much stronger, but the two send-offs completely changed the dynamic of the game.”

“Even with 10 men, we continued to attack and hold up the play, which was commendable, and we secured the second goal. However, after the second red card, the challenge magnified, as we were effectively playing 10 against nine.

“There’s little we could do once the card was shown. Our focus shifted to reacting and adapting. The boys certainly wanted to rally and get back in the match, though that was an uphill task.

“Kudos to Balestier, they performed consistently well throughout the game.”

Noor has urged his team to remain resilient and continue the fight in their last two fixtures: against Young Lions on August 19 and Lion City Sailors on September 16, aiming for a top-five finish.

“We need to cut out the mistakes in the last two games. We’ve let in 12 goals, and that’s not acceptable.

“We also need to focus on team discipline. Throughout this season, we’ve had numerous games where we received a red card.

“We’re going to go out there and aim to finish at least in the top five.”

Ends.