Monday, June 14, 2010

Vathanak on the money

Naga Corp move ominously back to the top of the table with their win on Sunday. Top scorer Teab Vathanak is centre back row, number 10.
Moving onto the Sunday matches in the Metfone C-League, we now have new league leaders in the shape of Naga Corp, who brushed aside Prek Pra, but not without the odd missed heartbeat. Joseph Oyewole was head and shoulders above every other player on the park as he bossed Naga's midfield and in Teab Vathanak they have a man with the knack of being johnny-on-the-spot more often than most. Vathanak scored both Naga goals to join Julius Chukwumeka at the top of the scorers chart with 11 goals to-date. His first was a volley from six yards out, his second was a free header from the same distance. He does his best work inside the penalty area and can be relied upon to take a tumble in every game, accompanied by the appropriate piercing scream, though in this match the referee didn't fall for his antics. However his goals, one in either half, were enough to win the day for Naga and send them back to the top of the table. They aren't playing particularly well but they are grinding out results as they march relentlessly to retaining their championship title. Prek Pra's consolation was scored by Put Sothera just after half-time. A quick word on Naga keeper Mak Theara. This boy needs to be taught a lesson and I hope one of the strikers in the league will do that soon enough. He has developed a distasteful habit of fly-kicking strikers when he collects the ball and referees are turning a blind eye to his antics. Someone needs to stop his nasty little game.
Why are teams near the bottom always called plucky? Anyway, here's the pluckmeisters from Prek Pra Keila.
An unlikely hero, Suon Makara who netted twice in Khemara's 3-2 victory
The Army boys are a team in disarray. They need to re-assess and recapture their early season form before they are too far off the pace, with back to back defeats against teams in the bottom half of the table. This time around it was Khemara, who just about deserved their 3-2 victory, courtesy of a bit of luck and defender-turned-striker Suon Makara as their unlikely 2-goal hero. Suong Virak walloped a 25 yard screamer to give Army the lead but in the closing stages of the 1st half, Khemara fluked a goal from Paris Zidougha when the ball cannoned in off his head, and then Makara composed himself to score at Sou Yaty's near post in time added on. Om Thavrak came on for his Army debut after the break but it was his clearance that Suon Makara returned with bells on it, that gave Khemara their third goal. Army couldn't find any reply until the last kick of the game when Phuong Soksana scored but it was too late. Another keeper, Khemara's Hong Visokra also made a name for himself on his return to the team. He received 4 stitches in a chin wound in the 1st half, dropped every single ball that came near him, karate-kicked Suong Virak just after the break but got away with it and then clearly brought down an Army player late on, again escaping the ref's whistle. Referee Sreng Haody must've been a goalkeeper in a former life, that's the only explanation for his one-eyed decision-making.
Khemara will hope their 3-2 win will turn around their awful season to-date
Lots of work on the training ground is needed by the Army boys to halt their recent decline

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