Underperforming Dolphins face tough Japanese test
Gerald Lee
info@sleague.com
Star-studded underperformers Sengkang Punggol will be looking to put forward their best side on national television this Friday evening, when they take on Albirex Niigata (Singapore) at Jalan Besar Stadium.
While the Dolphins attempt to iron out their leaky defence after a 0-3 drubbing at the hands of S.League co-leaders Gombak United, Albirex head into the game buoyed by a 2-0 victory over Geylang United FC last Friday – suggesting that the vulnerable Dolphins backline will face yet another tough test.
Goals from Taisuke Akiyoshi and Kenji Adachihara in the fourth and 83rd minutes respectively indicate that the younger, faster Japanese will be working their socks off the entire 90 minutes, and the Dolphins will be counting on the experience of ex-national skipper Aide Iskandar, Jerry Bartholomeusz and Noh Rahman to keep them at bay.
Yet for all the big names in what on paper seems a formidable Sengkang teamsheet, statistics so far scream of their under-performance: conceding 26 goals this season has made theirs the worst defensive record in the country.
While critics have been guilty of over-hyping this irony, the Dolphins have, to their credit, proven capable of turning in impressive performances and delivering the goods.
Victories over Woodlands Wellington and the Young Lions have lifted the Dolphins off the bottom of the league table – a worrying situation that was devastatingly familiar just last month.
Moreover, if previous results count for anything, the Dolphins might just have an advantage: with national striker Indra Sahdan Daud scoring the only goal of the game in the corresponding fixture at Jurong East earlier in the season to beat Albirex 1-0.
In terms of individual performances, both Indra and Adachihara – top scorers for their respective sides – are tied at six league goals this season, five shy of the top spot currently occupied by Gombak United’s impressive Ojimi Gabriel Obatola.
However, Dolphins coach Jorg Steinbrunner might be worried by the fact that all 12 of their goals so far have come from merely three players. Apart from Indra, only Canadian duo Anthony Bahadur and Murphy Wiredu have hit the target with three each.
Compared to Albirex’s record of 14 goals from seven different individuals, it does seem as if Sengkang is suffering from an over-reliance on their “Three Musketeers”, a delicate situation that might spell problems in the long term.
And even though Adachihara and Akiyoshi will be suspended against Sengkang, together with first-choice custodian Yoshito Matsushita, that still leaves five people who have scored before for Steinebrunner and his men to deal with.
One final and stark difference between the two sides is age. Of the 20 players registered on the Dolphins’ teamsheet, eight are aged 30 and above with three more hitting the big three-zero next year.
This equates to more than half the Sengkang squad entering or approaching the twilight of their careers; compared to Albirex, whose oldest registered player, centreback Takatoshi Uchida, turned 27 at the beginning of this year.
While SAFFC and national goal machine Aleksandar Duric, who turns 39 three months from now, is testimony to the claim that age is not a limiting factor, Sengkang will be hoping that their wealth of experienced players let their football do the talking on Friday.
Will Sengkang get their act together and better their defensive record? Will coach Steinbrunner be able to inspire his other players to find the net, taking the burden off hit man Indra?
Or will Albirex’s youth and energy deal the Dolphins yet another blow?
Wait no more. Find out this Friday at Jalan Besar Stadium.
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