Sutee (in blue) in action for the national team
 

14 May 2004
S-League

THE Protectors have always struggled against Sinchi. Last season, they scrapped past the Qilins twice and were held to a draw on the third occasion enroute to the league title. Early this season, the trend continued with a scrambled win over the Chinese club.
       This time however, Home United were far more convincing in the 5-1 trashing of Sinchi. J. Surachai, Peres de Oliveira and Indra Sahdan bulged the net while defender Aide Iskandar grabbed his first goal of the season. Skipper S. Subramani stepped up to take his first-ever penalty kick and converted from the spot.
 

16 Apr 2004
S-League

HOME United found themselves down to ten men and could only manage a draw at Tampines Stadium. The new-look Tampines Rovers side have impressed many peoplee this season, but found themselves 2 goals down inside the opening 30 minutes, courtesy of Egmar Goncalves and Indra Sahdan. However, goalkeeper Ridzuan Fatah Hassan was sent off in the 73rd minute, sparking the Tampines revival. Mirko Grabovac converted the resulting penalty. Ex-Protector Aliff Saffein hit the killer blow with an injury-time equaliser.
 

11 Apr 2004
S-League

WHILE the attention was on Egmar Goncalves and last season's top-scorer Peres de Oliveira, young SAFFC striker Ashrin Shariff stole the thunder when he netted twice in the second half to send Home United to their second defeat of the season. Goncalves pulled a goal back for the defending champions but it was too little, too late.
       Both teams did not have the best start to the season they wanted. Home United suffered a shock defeat to the Young Lions and were held to a draw by Albirex Niigata last week. SAFFC had trouble putting the ball in the net, scoring a miserly 3 goals in their 4 games so far.
       Home United had Aide Iskandar suspended for this game, after his dismissal against Albirex. Sean Roberts was dropped to the bench after his indifferent recent form. Ridzuan Fatah Hassan, who performed admirably towards the end of last season, was given the chance to fight for first team place. A pre-season goal-keeping musical chair among the S-League teams saw the man he ousted, Adi Salleh, start between the sticks for arch-rival SAFFC. 
       The teams were eager not to give away an early goal. Steve Darby had more cause for concern when Thai international Sutee Suksomkit had to leave play in the 33rd minute. He was replaced by Fahmie Abdullah.
       The moment Home United fans dreaded came in the 56th minute. Ashrin Shariff gave the visitors the lead. Azhar Baksin came on for Ratna Suffian as Home United reverted to a 3-man defence. However, the move backfired when Ashrin scored his 2nd goal in the 64th minute.
       Brazilian-born wizard then showed that his final season will be anything but subtle when he pulled a goal back for the Protectors in the 69th minute, shortly after ex-team-mate Gusta Guzarishah came on for Basri Hasli.
       However, it was not enough. The elusive equaliser never came as SAFFC emerged the better team of the night. Home United remained in mid-table after the defeat, 8 points behind Woodlands Wellington.
 

10 Apr 2004
AFC Cup

ON-FORM striker Egmar Goncalves continued his superb start to the season as he led the Protectors to a valuable 2-2 draw against M-League defending champions Perak. The result left Home United on the top of the group table as joint-leaders with Perak.
       Playing in front of a partisan 18,000 crowd at Stadium Perak proved to be no obstacle to Steve Darby's men as they took a shock 3rd-minute lead through Goncalves. The Protectors kept up their early pressure. With the home side still reeling from the early deficit, Thai international Sutee Suksomkit added a second goal for the visitors in the 18th minute. 
       Home United lost Goncalves in the 2nd half of the game to a head injury. The talisman's absence blunted the Protectors' attacking prowess and allowed Perak to launch waves after waves of offence. The pressure paid off when they grabbed a goal in the middle of the half and then subsequently the equaliser. Perak then went for the jugular but Home United held on to return home with a precious point.
       Despite failing to hold on to their two-goal lead, coach Steve Darby was nonetheless pleased with the single point, describing the match as "a difficult away game". When Perak travels to Bishan Stadium in the next match, Darby will have speedy striker Indra Sahdan back in action, who sat out this game due to suspension.

HOME United striker Indra Sahdan (left) scored a memorable goal as the Lions put up a battling display against Japan in a narrow 1-2 defeat at the Jalan Besar Stadium. The Asian giants needed a 84th minute goal to edge out the hosts.
       As expected, Japan, parading their Europe-based stars, started the stronger of the two sides. However, horrendous finishing prevented the visitors from going at least 2 goals up in the opening 20 minutes. Singapore though, nearly took the lead against the run of play when Japanese goalkeeper Seigo Narazaki fumbled with a clearance. Unfortunately, Indra Sahdan's follow-up was cleared by a Japanese defender.
       Japan continued to attack at will, using the flanks to great effect. However, it was a foray down the middle which broke the dead-lock in the 34th minute. Striker Naohiro Takahara twisted and turned his way just outside the penalty box. His shot took a deflection and crept past Hassan Sunny's outstretched right hand into the bottom corner of the net.
       Agu Casmir and Ahmad Latiff came on in the 2nd half for the ineffective Nazri Nasir and Mirko Grabovac. The duo instantly created an impact with their trickery and explosive pace. Baihakki Khaizan made a rare run to the right touchline. His cut-back found Casmir lurking near the goal-line but Narazaki dived bravely to block his shot.
       Indra Sahdan then brought the stadium to its feet when he emulated Takahara's run through the Japanese defence and drilled a shot beyond Narazaki into the bottom corner of the net. The shock equaliser boosted the Lions' confidence. For a while, it looked as though Singapore could pull off a historic win.
       Alas, it was not to be when Japan scored a late winner. Hassan Sunny fumbled a corner kick under pressure from a Japanese player, allowing substitute Toshiya Fujita to lash home from 5 metres out. The immense sense of relief was immediately felt in the Japanese squad when coach Zico punched the air as the goal-scorer sprinted away in delight.
       The floodgates did not open tonight. While the ever-vocal Japanese supporters sang their hearts out, the visiting players on the pitch could only look back at their numerous goal-scoring chances and wonder how they failed to come away with a thumping win. On the other hand, the Lions' courageous display in the midst of criticism about their abilities finally gave their long-suffering fans much to cheer about. Surely, now they can look forward to the days when Oman and India come visiting.

VETERAN defenders Aide Iskandar and S. Subramani, plus striker Indra Sahdan were named in Radojko Avramovic's squad to face Japan on 31 March 2004. The qualifying match for World Cup 2006 will be played at Jalan Besar Stadium. Tickets are already sold out. However, fans can still catch the match at the former Christchurch Secondary School which is adjacent to the stadium. A giant screen will be set up there.
 

30 Dec 2003

Home United Expected to Crush Valencia
No, the football world has not gone crazy. Neither has Singapore qualified for the World Cup. The Protectors will indeed take on Valencia, of the Maldives that is. The inaugural Asian Football Confederation Cup will kick off during the post-season. Home United are in Group D with Perak, Happy Valley and Valencia. Steve Darby will take his boys to Thailand for a series of gruelling warm-up matches. Looks like the Englishman is bent on winning everything in his first season at the helm.

Indra and Sutee Receives Glowing References from Chelsea Coach
Don't be surprised to see Indra Sahdan and Sutee Suksomkit gracing the fields of Millwall and Nottingham Forest in the near future. Chelsea reserve coach Mick McGiven has no doubt that they will make the cut in the English Nationwide Division 1. The duo trained with the Chelski super-stars for two weeks under Home United and Emirates' sponsorship. The latter also sponsors the blue team from London. Indra and Sutee both impressed in a reserve game against the second-stringers from Division 2 outfit Brentford. But for the moment, they will be happy to win the post-season AFC Cup for Home United.

South African Goalkeeper Joins the Fold.
Steve Darby has recruited South Africa's former Olympic goalkeeper Sean Roberts. The youngster is expected to wear the number one jersey next season following the departure of out-of-favour Adi Salleh and ORDed Ridzuan Fatah Hassan. Roberts, formerly of Tottenham Hotspurs and Sheffield Wednesday, should have no problem acclimatising as he had played in Vietnam before travelling south. Rizal Rahman was also signed from Balestier Khalsa to provide cover to the South African. Ex-team-mate Ali Imran Lomri surprised all when he chose to sign for Home United following his one-year ban from the S-League. Ong Leong Koen, Harun Juma'at and Anuar Shah have been released to seek greener pastures elsewhere.

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