Kean on the treble
Philippines side left reeling after Wasps' red-hot second-half performance
PRELIMINARY ROUND
GLOBAL FC 0
BRUNEI DPMM 7
(Rodrigo Tosi 58, 71, Roy O'Donovan 59, 78, 90, Azwan Saleh 80, Shahrazen Said 90+3)
There is still a long way to go, but there are some who are already wondering if Brunei DPMM FC can be the first team in Singapore football history to win the S.League, Singapore Cup and League Cup treble this season.
Based on last night's devastating victory over Filipino league leaders Global FC in the RHB Singapore Cup, don't bet against it.
DPMM coach Steve Kean thinks that the treble is on, after a superb second-half show of firepower at the Jalan Besar Stadium.
The Wasps were lacklustre in a goal-less first half, which left some fans wondering if they were still hung over after last week's 1-0 defeat by Warriors FC in the battle of the top two of the Great Eastern-Yeo's S.League.
Adding to the sub-plot was the fact that Global had beaten DPMM 5-4 on aggregate in last season's Singapore Cup quarter-finals.
This time, though, the Bruneian outfit simply stepped up a gear after the break to plunder an astonishing seven goals in just over half an hour as they booked their spot in the quarter-finals.
Rodrigo Tosi grabbed a brace with two thumping headers, while Roy O' Donovan took home the match ball after firing in a hat-trick as DPMM's star strikers destroyed Global FC.
While teams would normally have eased off the pedal after taking a big lead in a knockout match, the S.League leaders pressed on and there was even time for substitutes Azwan Saleh and Shahrazen Said to add to the scoreline late in the match.
"We've got a competitive squad, and the substitutes want to play and challenge for a place in the starting 11," said Kean, who has never seen any of his former clubs score seven in one half.
"This is a good response to a not-so-good first half, never mind last week's loss. It's always nice to score so many and to keep a clean sheet, too.
"If we manage to steer clear of bad injuries, touch wood, and with performances like these, there's no reason why we cannot get the three of them (titles)."
PLEASED
The, Scotsman, who guided Blackburn in the English Premier League, was clearly pleased with his side's second-half performance.
As the match wore on, it became clear that Global FC were suffering without their trio of Philippines internationals -Amani Aguinaldo, Daisuke Sato and Jason De Jong - who were away on international duty.
The only time they tested DPMM goalkeeper Wardun Yussof was through Mark Hartmann's 48th-minute free-kick that was tipped over.
But Global coach Leigh Manson refused to give any excuses and laid the blame for the extraordinary defeat squarely on some of his defenders.
He said: "It wasn't fatigue, we were our own enemies in the second half.
"We showed our quality in the first half... then came the shockers by players who are normally composed and who have done well this season, like our Mexican defender (Raul Martinez).
"DPMM's finishing was of a high calibre and we just fell apart physically and mentally.
"We'll just have to go back and try to finish our league season on a high, and we will do better if we come back next season."
GLOBAL FC: Jose Pascual, Charles Pettys, Raul Martinez, German Rodriguez, Jerry Barbaso, Angel Guirado, Jeffrey Christiaens, Yu Hoshide (John Kanayama 80), Misagh Bahadoran, Mark Hartmann, Curt-Jordan Dizon (Reuben Silitonga 74)
BRUNEI DPMM FC: Wardun Yussof, Subhi Abdilah, Sairol Sahari, Boris Raspudic, Abdul Aziz Tamit, Helmi Zambin (Rosmin Kamis 63), Joe Gamble, Hendra Azam (Azwan Saleh 71), Najib Tarif, Roy O' Donovan, Rodrigo Tosi (Shahrazen Said 83)
TNP Man-of-the-Match: Rodrigo Tosi (Brunei DPMM)
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