BBU net 3 without reply

BBU striker Phin Pheara scored the game's opening goal

Build Bright dropped their influential skipper Prom Putsethy to the bench and his replacement, Phin Pheara came up trumps with the opening goal for BBU against Wat Phnom in the scorching heat of the Olympic Stadium. Teammate Chea Sophany's bye-line cross was fumbled by Wat Phnom's stand-in keeper and Phin Pheara poked it into the empty net. Ou Hong Ly had replaced Sin Pisal between the sticks after the Wat Phnom custodian suffered a mouth injury that needed ten stitches, just twelve minutes into the Metfone C-League match. BBU just about deserved their halftime lead. RefereeYien Kivatanak made his mark after the break with six yellow cards and a red one for Wat Phnom's sturdy midfielder Henry Asonibe, who scored a hat-trick last week. This week he turned villain with two bookable fouls according to the card-happy match official and went for an early bath on 79 minutes. BBU had already netted a second goal with Nuth Sinoun adding the final touch to good work from Chhun Sothearath and Oum Chandara eight minutes earlier. They added a third two minutes after the red card when Chhun Sothearath's 25 yard free-kick was turned past his own keeper by Sun Sovanrotha. Three points for BBU and back to the drawing board for Wat Phnom.

The students from BBU earned themselves a 3-0 success this afternoon

Wat Phnom went down 3-nil and lost Henry Asonibe (8) to a red card

Lucky for Samnang

Chea Samnang (Samnang means lucky in Khmer) netted the winner for Preah Khan Reach

Again credit must go the the players in today's two matches, who will have each lost pounds through sweating in the almost unbearable temperatures. Football in these conditions is no easy ride. In the first Metfone C-League action of the day, Build Bright won a close fought game against Wat Phnom 3-0, though the game was much closer than the score suggests. Wat Phnom also lost last week's hat-trick hero Henry Asonibe to a red card, with referee Yien Kivatanak making sure he kept up with his quota, issuing another 6 yellow cards in the game. The second match was just as close with Preah Khan Reach just managing to pip Kirivong Sok Sen Chey with a solo goal from Chea Samnang five minutes after the break. More later.

Vatanak finds his touch

2-goal Teab Vatanak re-found his goalscoring form against the Army

With injuries affecting both sides before kick-off, the game could've disappointed but didn't. Instead the 2-2 draw was a fair result as both teams remain unbeaten in the Metfone C-League and were neck and neck throughout the 90 minutes. The Ministry of National Defense took the lead on 4 minutes with the goal of the season so far. Suong Virak danced his way around Samuel Oseika and swerved past two more defenders before guiding his low shot wide of keeper Mak Theara. A great piece of individual skill. Naga perked up and on 12 minutes were level with a confidence-boosting goal from Teab Vatanak. The striker has been out of sorts this season, so this first time swivel and shot from eight yards came as a welcome relief. Sin Dalin should've put the Army back in front when he raced away from the Naga backline but he dithered in rounding Mak Theara and Oseika got back to clear off the line. Five minutes after the break and Vatanak got a second goal for Naga, heading in Pho Sophy's cross. The Army showed their character and togetherness this season by pulling it back again, when Phuong Soksana darted in front of everyone to meet a corner with his flick header on 63 minutes. Honours even as the game petered out for the draw. The Army missed the injured trio of Nov Soseila, Khim Borey and Lorn Sotheara, whilst Sun Sovanrithy's knee injury kept him out of Naga's team. Om Thavrak was lucky to stay on the pitch after a tangle of legs with Sin Dalin on 11 minutes. The Naga stopper, who has handed over the skipper's armband to Sovanrithy this season, aimed a kick at Dalin's head but missed, which the referee also failed to spot.

The Army took the lead and then had to fight back in the 2nd half

Naga got their noses in front but had to hang on to the 2-2 draw

Black Cats fail

Matchwinner Ek Vannak speaks to the CTN cameras after the 1-nil victory

In the first of Saturday's Metfone C-League matches, Khemara beat Chhmao Khmao 1-0 but made heavy weather of it and looked out of sorts throughout. Ek Vannak scored the game's only goal, five minutes before the interval, just after I'd announced the first half as the worst of the season so far. Ouk Chhenghat had set up the chance and Vannak lashed the ball into the roof of the net from six yards. He also missed a hat-trick of other very straightforward chances. In the 2nd half the Black Cats carved out a couple of very good openings but failed to pull the trigger and will rue their misses, falling to their third straight defeat. This was perhaps their best chance of a league point and they blew it, after crushing defeats against Preah Khan 6-0 and Phnom Penh Crown 9-0.

The Khemara coaching duo join their starting XI before the kick off, which earned them an official rebuke from the football federation. Only the starting XI are allowed to line up for the pre-match photo.

The Black Cats of Chhma Khmao sink to their 3rd successive defeat

Saturday's round-up

Goal of the season so far goes to Defense Ministry's Suong Virak

Saturday's Metfone C-League games were played in scorchingly humid weather and the players deserve medals for playing as well as they have. Nevertheless, the first half of the opening game was the worst 45 minutes of the season as Khemara Keila struggled to overcome the Black Cats from Chhma Khmao before eventually taking the points with a 1-nil win. Certainly the least enjoyable of the season's matches so far. Honours were even in the 2nd game with the Army levelling after Naga got their noses in front with two goals from Teab Vatanak. The former national team striker has been suffering with an acute lack of confidence so far this campaign, so his two goals will do him a power of good. The game's opening goal from Suong Virak was the best of the season so far, with the tiny winger dribbling and swerving his way into the Naga box before planting a neat finish, just 4 minutes into the game. It was perhaps fitting that two of the three teams with a 100% record before the game, should share the points. More later.
I was a bit stunned at the game today when I heard something that made me cringe. It seems that if the football federation or anyone calls a press conference to announce something to the sports press, then the federation has to pay the individual press journalists to attend. Yes, you read that right, the journos expect payment to attend and report on the breaking news. That's the Khmer journalists I might add. The foreign-language press aren't included on the payroll. This smells really bad to me. That the press expect to be paid to report the news just doesn't sit right whichever way I look at it. Of course they should be paid by their newspaper, that goes without saying, but to be paid by the federation as well... I'm speechless.

Press talk

In today's Phnom Penh Post newspaper.

Baby-faced assassin

Oum Kumpheak in national team colours

Baby-faced Army assassin Oum Kumpheak was my choice as Player of the Week this week and will get his own column inches in the Phnom Penh Post's Khmer-language Sports edition with a photo. Good for him. He's only 18 and is definitely a very bright prospect. The more that the Khmer fans can identify with their own players, especially the youngsters, the better. Naga's Joseph Oyewole won it in week 1. So that's two midfield players in the first two weeks. That's an encouraging statistic that the strikers aren't getting it all their own way given that the goals have been rattling in thick and fast in the first two weeks of new Metfone C-League competition.
There's a shortened C-league programme this week because of Khmer New Year. We'll have the usual 4 matches on Saturday and Sunday, but the Wednesday midweek game will be held over for another week until 21 April. There are no games at all next weekend. The Naga versus Army match tomorrow looks to be the juiciest encounter of the four matches. Army are going great guns whilst Naga have won twice but didn't look convincing on Wednesday - but who would in that heat. Naga are lacking firepower up front and Sun Sovanrithy, the national team skipper, is not the answer. He's a great attacking full-back or wide player, not a central striker and with Teab Vatanak looking like a man desperately devoid of confidence, they could find it tough against a resurgent Army team, who have begun the season like a mini-whirlwind. I'd also like a weekend where I don't need to mention the men in the middle. That would make a nice change.

Too hot to trot

Naga Corp, 1-nil winners in the scorching heat at Olympic yesterday

No person in their right mind would play in the conditions which greeted the players at Olympic Stadium yesterday afternoon. It was like a bleedin' furnace. At least 38 degrees. For the sole Metfone C-League midweek match, credit must go to the players and officials from both teams for doing their best in the situation. The heat and humidity soon took its toll on the two teams and the first half was eminently forgettable. On the hour, Naga broke the heat-induced stupor when Joseph Oyewole outjumped the Build Bright defence to steer Chin Chom's corner over the line with a well-directed header. A minute later BBU's Augustine Ogbni should've levelled but failed to pull the trigger quick enough from a yard out before keeper Mak Theara came to the rescue. That was about the sum of the action with Naga just deserving their win but not looking anything like the team that won the championship last season. One man who did a lot of damage for them last term, 17-goal Nigerian striker Sunday Okonkwo has reportedly linked up with Thai Premier team TTM Samut Sakhon for the new season. Another familiar face missing from the Preah Khan Reach team at the weekend was Sok Rithy, the national team defender, who has had an operation on a nagging ankle injury in Vietnam.

The BBU students wilted in the heat against Naga Corp

Khemara have it in hand

This is what it meant to Khemara keeper Ly Sok Heng to win, as he celebrates towards an empty stadium. Pic: nicksellsphotography

Whoops, nearly forgot the Preah Khan v Khemara match report in my rush to flog the match referee. With PKR fielding a makeshift back-four with San Narith at centre-half, it didn't augur well though both sides gave it their all in the first half and each carved about half a dozen chances apiece, with no-one adept enough to add the finishing touch. So no goals and no yellow cards by half-time. PKR re-organised their back four at the break and it blew up in their face within five minutes when Ek Vannak thumped in a loose ball after the military police team failed to clear their lines. Khemara were down to ten-men at the time and defender Peter Olajide, with a cut above his eye, never returned. PKR levelled when Sam El Nasa headed back across the face of goal and Tum Saray bundled in from a yard, my gran could've scored that one. Referee Thong Chankethya was just warming up on the yellow card front and was only too happy to show a second yellow, and a red, to PKR's Lay Raksmey for a high foot when a finger wagging would've sufficed. From the free-kick, Kuoch Sokumpheak's shot was blocked but Sophal Udom followed it up to score. Two minutes later and Khemara were left scratching their heads when the man in black spotted a handball which no-one else saw and Sam El Nasa, who rarely misses such opportunities, stuck home the penalty. 2-2 sounded right to me but between them the referee and his assistant had other ideas. As the ball bounced in the PKR box, Suon Thuon was adjudged to have handled it (in my opinion, only the yellow-jerseyed arm of Ouk Mic touched it) and Ek Vannak capped a busy performance with a cool-as-you-like penalty. A crucial decision by the match officials, and from my lookout in the main stand, a very poor one. I hope tv replays will give a better view of it.

Eye eye

Peter Olajide experiencing the doctor's sewing skills at 1st hand. Pic: nicksellsphotography

This picture by Nick Sells of Khemara defender Peter Olajide receiving treatment for a cut above his eye in Sunday's Metfone C-League clash, had me reminiscing about my own war wound sustained whilst on SEA Games duty in Laos at the back-end of last year. For Olajide it was three stitches in a small gash, for me it was five stitches and a scar that will forever remind me of following Cambodia's footballers to Vientiane for the SEA Games.

What memories are made of - forever etched onto my face

Card happy

Thong Chankethya is a card-wielding member of the referee's union. Bryan Edem (4) of Kirivong is the recipient on this occasion.

This is referee Thong Chankethya doing what he loves to do best. Brandishing a yellow card is something which this match official is developing a real taste for. In the last three matches he has officiated in the middle, he has seen fit to show a yellow card on six occasions in each game. Now that is a statistic that needs looking at more closely in my view. In each of the games I would personally have brought the card out no more than twice and just lectured the players on the other occasions. But not Thong Chankethya. It's a yellow card or a red one if the player has already been booked by this pernickety referee. With the clubs getting fined for each infringement this season, it seems Thong Chankethya is on a one-man mission to improve the coffers of the football federation. I couldn't get a straight answer to whether the fines are being funnelled into the referee's end of season party fund! But it's not just the cautions that worry me. Thong Chankethya was the referee in Sunday's 3-2 Khemara win over Preah Khan. This evenly-matched game was decided from the penalty spot in the last minute for a handball, which the linesman and referee said they saw committed by PKR defender Suon Thuon. Now I must admit I am sat in the stand and far from the action but I would stake my reputation (which doesn't amount to much) that it was the arm of goalkeeper Ouk Mic (in his bright yellow jersey) that came into contact with the ball, not Thuon, who of course, was booked. I really need to see if the television replays support me or the referee. If the referee is wrong, I think the federation need to take some action as the decision was so crucial. If I'm wrong, I'll shut up, for five minutes. It was only a few weeks ago that the same referee flashed fourteen, yes 14, yellow cards in a Hun Sen Cup semi-final. He should get some advertising booked for the back of his yellow and red cards, he'd make a fortune. Photo courtesy of nicksellsphotography

Press talk

All of my weekend match reports are in today's Phnom Penh Post. You can read them here and here.

Khemara snatch it

2-goal hero for his new team, ex-BBU baby-faced striker Ek Vannak

Here's the pictures from the Preah Khan Reach versus Khemara Keila encounter on Sunday, with Khemara snatching a dramatic last minute winning penalty, that never was, to win 3-2. More on the game itself later.

This Khemara Keila line-up scored a last minute penalty to snatch the points

Preah Khan Reach will feel aggrieved at the manner of their defeat on Sunday

Match referee Thong Chankethya admiring his toss-up handiwork as captains Sam El Nasa (9) and Kuoch Sokumpheak look on, unimpressed. I'm bored with toss-up pics so this will be the last for the forseeable future.

A lightweight thrashing

Hong Ratana took the opportunity of a rare start to net himself a hat-trick

Let me begin yesterday's round-up of the Metfone C-League with Phnom Penh Crown's thrashing of Chhma Khmao. It was so one-sided that 9-0 doesn't really do Crown justice for their dominance. For Crown fans they'll love that type of game. For genuine football fans, such lopsided games don't get the juices flowing and for the C-League, well, its a continuation of the domination by teams like Crown, who can afford the best squad of players, whilst the provincial minnows from Svay Rieng, rely on homegrown talent and will find it tough going this season. Crown fielded a lot of their fringe squad players in the game, which was a good opportunity for them to see game-time and with his hat-trick, Hong Ratana got himself a few brownie points. On the other hand, The Prince Justine spent most of the time shaking his head and stamping his feet after missing chance after chance. He was simply trying too hard. The pressure is on him now as last season's top scorer, he's with a new club and expectations are very high. A tenseness in front of goal, taking that extra touch just to make sure, are a striker's nightmare and The Prince needs to get back into playing with the carefree abandon of last season. When it clicks into place, watch out. He did eventually find his goalscoring boots yesterday, netting a hat-trick in the last twenty minutes, but he knows he could've scored a lot more. Crown led 3-nil at the break with Friday Nwakuna, Hong Makara (Ratana's brother) and Chan Chhaya on target. Nwakuna's was a tap-in, Makara's a 20 yard grubber and the ball hit Chhaya on the side of his head after Nwakuna whacked over a bye-line cross. He couldn't get out of the way.
After the half-time oranges, it was the Hong Ratana and Prince Justine show. Ratana got his trio of goals first, with a lovely diving header and two cool finishes. Very well-taken goals. With a series of near misses in his wake, The Prince got his first with a low drive into the far corner, his second was a thunderous, and I mean unstoppable, drive that nearly took the goalkeeper's arm off. His third, in injury time, was a visible relief for the striker who sets himself high standards and will be working hard on improving his finishing. Crown have now won their opening two games, 8-1 and 9-0 and meet the other newboys Prek Pra Keila in their next match. I recommend you bring a calculator with you.

An unfamiliar line-up for Phnom Penh Crown but it made no difference as they went onto win 9-0

The Black Cats of Chhma Khmao play in a blue kit! Someone told me its the name of a beer.
Prince Justine on another of his solo runs on goal. Pic: nicksellsphotography

Local flavour

My old Bayon shirt is modelled by a friend

A few months after I came to live in Phnom Penh I began training and playing friendly matches with local expat/Khmer team Bayon Wanderers. I'd still be playing if it wasn't for my annoying skin rashes. I finally stopped playing more than a year ago. Nevertheless, Bayon are still going strong and are in the middle of organizing their annual 11 a-side football tournament - The Bayon Challenge - on the weekend of 5 and 6 June, this being the weekend before the World Cup kicks off. The tournament which has been held since 1996 will be played in the Old Stadium as was the case last year, when Bayon were second best in the penalty shoot out of the final to the Acleda Bank team. Two expat teams from Vietnam have confirmed their participation and other SEA expat teams are expected to join. The deadline for registration is mid-May. Find out more here.

More of the same

Sunday's Metfone C-League games couldn't help themselves. There have been goals galore already this season and Sunday was no different as Phnom Penh Crown whipped the backside of newcomers Chhma Khmao 9-0, whilst Khemara beat Preah Khan Reach 3-2 with a last minute winning penalty kick that in my view was a shocker of a decision by the referee. I'll post more tomorrow on the matches themselves, a couple of photos and my opinion on the match officials.

Old friends

Happier times with the Peanut Princess

Regular readers of my football blog posts maybe disappointed that the Peanut Princess has not appeared so far this season. Well so am I. It looks like she has changed her pitch to another location and has not been seen around the Olympic Stadium to-date. Although I seem to recall that I had decided to stop taking candid pictures of her once I found out she was married with a baby. Though her presence certainly did liven up proceedings on a hot and humid afternoon last season. I miss her. In addition, the police/authorities/whoever have banned the sale of cold drinks/nuts/anything in the main stand and you have to go into the public areas underneath to get your refreshments now. Which is a pain. I also had to pay 500 riel yesterday for a piss. I thought about doing it Cambodian style on the side of the pitch, but with the television cameras showing live action, I didn't fancy being named and shamed on national tv. Joking aside I have a real bee in my bonnet about the pissing-in-the-full-view-of-the-public thing and come the revolution, that will be the first thing I will abolish.

Sentiment is not dead

Wat Phnom registered their 1st win with a 6-3 thrashing of Prek Pra

The first man on the pitch to congratulate the Wat Phnom players after their 6-3 success over Metfone C-League newboys Prek Pra Keila on Saturday was Prince Justine. Although he left his former Spark FC colleagues in the close season to join Phnom Penh Crown and scored twice against them in last week's opening match, he was as pleased as punch when they registered their first win of the new season. Sentiment and camaraderie still has a place in professional football. As for Prek Pra, who brought along a vociferous crowd with them, their defending was so woeful, that they will struggle badly this season without some serious shoring up. They've conceded eleven goals in two games and next week they face Crown, who might just rattle up a cricket score. They were down 4-1 at the interval yesterday, contributing much to their own downfall. They did equalize Phlong Chanthou's opener when stand-in striker Philip Ali headed in a corner but after that they collapsed. Uche Henry Asonibe scored a couple of goals in quick succession and the smallest player on the pitch, the diminutive Phoeurn Saorum dived full-length, which isn't much, to head in before the break. Wat Phnom continued to dominate after the restart with Asonibe completing his hat-trick from the penalty spot before a late rally from the newcomers, who scored through Ali and substitute Feut Soulkiply was small consolation to their supporters. Saorum lashed in a sixth goal for Wat Phnom, who are still waiting for visa clearance for two of their Nigerian imports.

Prek Pra Keila seem to be destined for a long hard season ahead

Wat Phom skipper and goalscorer Phlong Chanthou

The Army in command

The Army go from strength to strength, beating Kirivong 4-0

The Ministry of National Defense are on a roll. They won the Hun Sen Cup in the prelude to the Metfone C-League season and completed their 2nd successive league success against a dispirited Kirivong side on Saturday. They are 100% Khmer in their line-up, all of their players are in the Army, they are young, super fit and eager for more success. Next week they face a much sterner test against Naga and it will be a good indicator of how realistic their chances are of greater success in this season's league campaign. On Saturday they weathered some early pressing from Kirivong, who failed to capitalize on their possession, and Oum Kumpheak fired them into the lead on 28 minutes. His 20 yard drilled shot clipped the post on its way in. They'd lost skipper Khim Borey to a foot injury early doors and his replacement Sin Dalin went close with a couple of efforts before the break. Eight minutes into the 2nd half and it was teenager Kumpheak, who is growing in stature with every game, who extended their lead. Pheak Rady's free kick to the near post gave the young midfielder a simple headed goal as Kirivong simply watched. Though Him Salam leathered the ball against the cross-bar, Kirivong were never in it after that and Phuong Soksana and Sin Dalin only added to their misery with more goals. A word on referee Thong Chankethya. He simply can't help himself. He cannot get through a game without flashing at least 6 yellow cards. He repeated the feat on Saturday and in my opinion, only two of them were warranted. Someone please have a word with him. The club's are fined for every yellow and red card this season - I'm guessing the fines are going into the referee's end of season celebration kitty.

Kirivong suffered their 2nd consecutive defeat on Saturday

Sin Dalin (9) and his coach get the press treatment from the CTN tv cameras on Saturday

Player of the week

Oum Kumpheak celebrated his 18th birthday two months ago and was the best player on show on Saturday

Every week of the Metfone C-League this season, I will select a player of the week and this will be featured in the new Khmer-language sports section of the Phnom Penh Post every Friday. Last week the choice was easy enough with Naga's Joseph Oyewole standing head and shoulders above everyone else in terms of their contribution to their team's performance. He was outstanding. Yesterday it was the turn of two players to shine in the two games played. For National Defense Ministry, teenage national team player Oum Kumpheak scored a couple of goals and is clearly relishing his team's improvement in form. With a Hun Sen Cup success under their belt already this season, the Army boys have now won their first two C-League matches and are looking confident and together as a team. In that unit, the baby-faced Kumpheak is beginning to really stand out. He has a good touch, his workrate is high and he has an eye for goal. His tackling can improve but he just 18 so he has lots of room to grow. Definitely one for the future and his showing on Saturday was the best of the day. The other performance of note came from Wat Phnom's Nigerian midfielder Uche Henry Asonibe. Playing in a deep and often defensive midfield position like Asonibe occupies doesn't usually give you the opportunity to get on the scoresheet. But as Prek Pra Keila were so bad and the goals were rattling in, Asonibe headed in a corner, slotted in a loose ball for his second and then completed his hat-trick with a 2nd half penalty. Not a bad day's work for the well-built stopper.

A very happy Uche Henry Asonibe moments after the end of Wat Phnom's 6-3 success

More than a dozen

The scene at the Olympic Stadium during today's first match. By the way that's Gold Tower 42 in the top right of the picture, which will be the city's tallest building when complete.

There is no stopping the ball hitting the back of the net in the Metfone C-League this season, which is good news for the supporters in the stadium and the CTN armchair fans at home. In today's two matches, we saw 13 goals as National Defense Ministry put Kirivong to the sword by 4-nil, and then Wat Phnom demolished newboys Prek Pra Keila 6-3. The floodlights stayed on after the teams left the field as CTN had gathered the Cambodian national team squad together for some promotional work, though Khim Borey missed it after suffering a painful foot injury in the day's opening game, and Kuoch Sokumpheak was limping and looks likely to miss tomorrow's Khemara match. More match details later.

Members of the Cambodian national football team wait for instructions from the CTN executives during their promotional film shoot

BBU edge close encounter

2-goal Nuth Sinoun from BBU. He's been the only player to refuse a portrait photo so I took this one at the aftermatch press interviews

It needed a large helping of good fortune for Build Bright to succeed in the solitary midweek Metfone C-League game at Olympic Stadium on Wednesday. They rattled Kirivong Sok Sen Chey with two goals in a first half that was much closer than the scoreline would suggest. Wily old campaigner Nuth Sinoun, a recent capture from Prek Pra Keila, netted twice. The former Navy, Military Police and Phnom Penh Crown player strolled around the pitch as if he owned it. In the second period, Kirivong sought some justice but struck the woodwork no less than 4 times before Julious Chukwumeka netted ten minutes before the end. In truth he should've scored a hat-trick in this game and sealed the result for the Takeo-based team but it was not to be.

The successful BBU line-up, usually to be seen in white but a kit reversal with Kirivong on Wednesday

Kirivong will kick themselves for not getting a point from Wednesday's game

The two captains share a pleasant handshake before kick-off. It was a placid sort of game but ref Thong Chankethya still managed to book 6 players.

Spotlight on The Prince

When he's not scoring goals, defenders will try to keep him off the pitch and receiving treatment. Pic: nicksellsphotography.com

Everyone will have their eye on the progress of The Prince - Uche Prince Justine - as he starts life with his new club Phnom Penh Crown. Last season's top goalscorer and Golden Boot winner in the CPL, with 21 goals in 18 games and aged just 18 years old, the powerfully-built Nigerian-born striker looks set to rule the roost again this time around, with two goals in his team's 8-1 demolition of Wat Phnom on Saturday. And if truth be told, I reckon he had his foot slightly off the gas pedal against the club that gave him his Cambodian opportunity last term. He admitted in his post-match interview for the tv cameras that he felt sad to score against his former family. Crown, his new team, look destined to begin the season with a flourish, with their opening six games against what most will term the C-League's also-rans, and I fully expect six wins from those matches before they start facing some of the better line-ups. Whoever they play, The Prince showed he's a match for anyone last season and I don't expect this campaign to be any different. The photos here are from the camera of Nick Sells, who's a regular at most of the C-League matches throughout the season.

Another attempt by Wat Phnom to keep The Prince at bay. Pic: nicksellsphotography.com

The Prince turns Wat Phnom defender Nathan Nwaowu inside out. Pic: nicksellsphotography.com

Devastating on the pitch, he's a nice guy off it too, as he explains his sorrow scoring against his old team. Pic: nicksellsphotography.com