Republic Polytechnic, Monday, 6 April 2009 - National University of Singapore (NUS) made history as the first university to win the S R Nathan Challenge Trophy after beating former champions Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP) 1-0 in the final at Republic Polytechnic.
Vincent Wong scored the only goal of the game in the 31st minute to seal the win for the varsity team against their more illustrious opponents who boasted three S.League players in their line-up.
Their victory also ended the previous duopoly of the tournament between NYP and Institute of Technical Education in the last five editions.
Former champions NYP were without the services of key players Anantha Rajan and Zulfadli Zainal Abidin (both on club duty) heading into their title defence while a full-strength NUS came highly motivated and brimming with confidence.
From the first whistle, it was NUS who had the upper hand as they pinned NYP back in their area for much of the first half.
They battled hard to win loose balls, capitalized on the opponents’ errors and forced them into conceding fouls at dangerous positions near to their penalty box.
NUS’ early dominance in the game had NYP coach Sudiat Dali concerned that he sacrificed Choo Wee Kiat for Michael Goh after 29 minutes.
Fong Xiongkun signaled his side’s intent when his volley off Sudhershen Hariram’s free kick forced NYP goalkeeper Nur Azreen to turn it away for a corner at the half-hour mark.
Wong latched on Fong’s subsequent short corner on the left and launched a long lob shot past the stranded Azreen to give NUS the lead they never relinquished.
Stunned by the goal, NYP woke up and tried to find their way back into contention. Midfielder Raymond Kwa almost provided an immediate response when his cracker just outside the box beat NUS goalkeeper Harpreet Singh but not the left post.
After dominating the first half, NUS took a more defensive approach in the second half as NYP continued to search for the goal to level the match.
NYP’s frustrations were telling early after the break when two players were booked in quick successions for their rough challenges on the NUS players.
Faritz Abdul Hameed was at the heartbeat of his polytechnic’s attacks as they tried to break down the NUS resistance.
The Young Lion came close in the 65th minute when he rounded up Harpreet in the box and proceeded to shoot from a very acute angle, only for NUS substitute Lim Dao Wei’s diving chest block to deny him.
Seven minutes later, he supplied a cross from the right for forward Irfan Gani who saw his header well-saved by Harpreet.
Urged on by their supporters, NUS hung on to their lead under constant NYP pressure as the minutes ticked away.
NYP were reduced to ten men late in the game when Goh was dismissed on a second yellow for repeating his studs challenge on NUS midfielder Fabian Tan.
Despite the one-man disadvantage, Irfan almost leveled the score for his institution in dying minutes of the final after stretching the NUS backline in the box, only to see his shot hit the side netting.
With NYP unable to make their attempts count, NUS repeated their semi-final celebrations at the final whistle.
The winning coach M S Arasu hailed his side’s positivity and resilience for their major football success.
“With the long break between the semis and the final, we had a good period of preparation and worked positively towards the big game,” he said.
“NUS rose to the occasion tonight and played really well to win the cup.”
Relishing his finest moment as a coach, he rated the class of 2009 to be the best NUS side he had guided in his decade-long service with the university.
“They were the best in terms of tactical discipline and desired. They stayed focused throughout the campaign and they wanted what they really wanted badly.”
His NYP counterpart Sudiat Dali lamented the absence of his key men in his side losing the title.
“Not to have Anantha and Zul was a very dear loss for us at this late stage of the tournament. Their experience could have made a difference."
“The one chance they had, we failed to close them down and they scored. They are a very fit team and deserved to win tonight."
“I am still proud of the boys who put in a credible performance even though we lost.”
He refused to criticize Goh although the midfielder saw red after coming on as an early substitute.
“We were losing grip in midfield early on, so I sent Michael on to strengthen the area."
“He worked hard as a ball-winner in his first final, but the lack of experience led to the dismissal.”
NUS captain Gerald Pang was delighted his side’s hard work behind the scenes paid off handsomely with the cup win.
“The cup win was justification to the whole team as we are quietly putting in so much effort and time to work hard in the training sessions,” he beamed.
“This year we have had a lot of injuries and the reserves stepped up commendably when called upon. We do not have individuals but a team where everybody played his part.”
He was also happy his side showed their stuff against stronger opposition in the final.
“Previously in the group match (when NUS lost to NYP 2-0), we showed too much respect to our opponents, but today we showed them what we were made of as we started off really well.”
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