Middle Rangers FC ‘A’ 3-1 Arion WFC : Arion draws first blood

Despite the bad weather and water-logged pitch, Arion settled into the game quickly with some fast movement and passing. Close to the 10 min mark, striker Noor Azean makes it 1-0, flicking in a low cross from Lim Shiya.

Middle Rangers were finding it difficult to penetrate Arion’s defense and were forced to take long range shots. However, they looked very dangerous on set-pieces and came close to scoring twice in the first half.

As the rain subsided, Arion came out to play again. Jennifer Allen showed who was queen of the jungle when she held-off her marker and rolled the ball past the opponent keeper. As Ganga made a desperate tackle to stop Jennifer, she slid into her own keeper causing injuries to both herself and her team-mate. With Arion’s confidence growing, Lim Shiya hit a half cross-shot that eluded the Middle Ranger’s keeper to make it 3-0 at half-time.

In the second half, the rain got heavier and both teams struggled to make meaningful attacks. Middle Ranger’s play-maker Huraizah kept the pressure on Arion’s defense with long diagonal balls behind the full-backs but Gan Hwee Fern did a good job covering her defenders.

Middle Rangers clawed one back with 25 mins to go through a penalty. Gan Hwee Fern was penalised for handling a cross in the 6-yard box and Huraizah made no mistake from the spot.

Suddenly, the game was alive again and Middle Rangers were determined to make a comeback. The game turned very physical and it was a surprise no players were sent off in the ‘battle’. Arion kept it’s cool and the score-line to take home the precious 3 points. The two teams will meet again 4 days later at Queenstown stadium.

Scoring Summary

Middle Rangers FC ‘A’ :    Huraizah

Arion WFC:    Noor Azean, Jennifer Allen, Lim Shiya