Dateline 24^th June 2017 – Match day 19.

 FT NRFC 5 Chonburi Sharks 2

The Swatcats welcomed the high flying Chonburi Sharks to the 80^th Anniversary Stadium with the hosts desperate for points to help them pull away from possible relegation woes.

In front of 5163 fans, Chonburi opened brightly with the Swatcats seemingly unable to “get into gear” and unsurprisingly after some shambolic defending from the hosts the Sharks raced into the lead when Prince Amponsah slotted home in the 6^th minute.

My early thoughts were “oh heck we’re in for a good beating tonight” - how wrong could I be!!

The hosts tried to settle but too many passes were going astray. Early on, the Sharks looked the stronger team and with the absence of suspended skipper Chalermpong, the Swatcat’s defence looked vulnerable.

In the 29^th minute a well taken free kick from Pina evaded the keeper and Victor Igbonefo tapped in to equalize. The goal seemed to bring the home side to life and minutes later a sharp counter attack led to a shot on target from Chakrit. Sensing blood, the hosts pushed forward and Chanatphon’s excellent angled shot was well saved by the keeper.

The Swatcats went 2-1 up in the 45^th minute when Adiyiah slotted home after he was put clear by a superb through ball from Pina.

The second half began with an excellent end to end passing move culminating in an angled shot from Chanatphon cannoning off the foot of the post. With the hosts finally moving into top gear, the Sharks looked weary and lacking in confidence.

In the 51^st minute, a though ball drew the Sharks keeper out of his area to challenge and Chakrit lobbed the ball wide with an empty net beckoning.

The Sharks managed a rare chance on 54 minutes but Igbonefo scrambled the ball clear. Almost immediately Adiyiah played in Rangel who turned into the box and shot home from 8 yards - a sharp piece of forward play from the Brazilian to put the hosts 3-1 up.

In the 72nd minute Dominic Adiyiah put the game to bed when he finished off a fine solo run with a 20 yard drive that curved deliciously into the far corner of the net. The demolition was completed on 78 minutes when Chakrit latched onto a cross from Rangel and netted from 10 yards.

In the dying embers of the encounter Renan Marques added a consolation goal when he tapped in after a decent move

Football is a “funny old game” as ‘Arry Redknapp once said. This was by no means the best Swatcat performance at home this season and yet they bang in 5 goals - and it should have been 7. It is easy to say that the Sharks, in all honesty, did not put up much of a fight but the host’s finishing was clinical and of course Paulo Rangel does give us more firepower up front.

So, let’s enjoy the moment - my mind is made up, this team will not be relegated and at the moment the signing of Rangel seems to be a masterstroke - why it took so long for the coaching staff to see the problem is something to be discussed.

However, my caution now kicks in - one swallow does not make a summer and there were problems tonight. If I may nit-pick, some of the passing tonight was inept - especially early on and we gave the ball away needlessly on many occasions.

We will not be playing teams like Chonburi every week and our next two home games are against Muang Thong and Buriram. It is vital that we get something on Wednesday against struggling Pattaya United.

Match day 19 stats