BOUNCING BACK
(Cubs Erase Pain Of Semi Final Loss With Win In Bronze Medal Match)
By Jason Loke
Picture By Zainal Abdul Halim For SSC
Singapore’s football boys, buoyed by Hanafi Mohamed Akbar and Midfielder Ammirul Mazlan who scored two goals each, clinched a well-deserved Youth Olympic Games bronze medal yesterday (Wednesday, 25 August) after an emphatic 4-1 win over Montenegro.
Rock Bottom
The Cubs were expectedly overcome with emotions during post match interviews. Defender Jeevamani Dhukhilan could hardly contain his joy. He said: "We had to pick ourselves up from rock bottom after our loss to Haiti in the semi finals on Sunday." Things looked bad for a while in today's match at Jalan Besar Stadium when team captain Jeffrey Lightfoot sustained a head injury early in the first half and had to be sent to hospital.
Not Distracted
Instead of being distracted by the drama, the boys kept their focus.“We felt really down because the captain was injured and we told ourselves that we had to win the bronze partly for him,” said Ammirul Mazlan. Coach Kadir Yahaya was too happy to say anything much. Choking back tears, he said: “Today I am very happy. I have no words.”