SINGAPORE – They may have lost their opening Great Eastern-Hyundai S.League match against reigning champions Albirex Niigata (s) in controversial fashion last Sunday at the National Stadium, but Tampines Rovers put that disheartening defeat firmly behind them as they overcame Hougang United 2-1 at the Jalan Besar Stadium on Friday (Mar 3).

Tampines, who could only name five players on the bench instead of the usual seven due to a raft of injuries and suspensions, were expected to struggle against a Hougang side that was coming off the back of a comfortable 2-0 win over Geylang International.

Instead, it was the Stags who started the game the brighter of the two teams as they dominated proceedings against the surprisingly insipid Cheetahs.

Predictably, Tampines created the first real goalscoring opportunity of the game in the 18th minute when striker Ivan Dzoni’s cut-back found an unmarked Khairul Amri in the box, but the national striker contrived to blaze his effort over the bar with just the keeper to beat.

Hougang however, grew into the game and came close to breaking the deadlock in the 28th minute through defender Atsushi Shirota’s header, but Tampines custodian Izwan Mahbud made a superb point-blank stop to keep the scores level.

That save proved the turning point of the match, as Tampines then went onto launch a counter-attack which eventually led to Amri being illegally brought down in the box by Hougang defender Zulfahmi Arifin.

Dzoni, who missed a penalty against Albirex, stepped up to take the spot-kick and was unerring as he placed the ball right down the middle to give Tampines the lead and record his first competitive goal since signing for the club during the off-season.

Hougang began to push further up the pitch in the second half as they chased the equaliser, but apart from a few half-chances, were unable to really trouble Izwan in goal.

And Hougang’s lack of ruthlessness in the attacking third was duly punished as Tampines doubled their advantage in the 60th minute, with Amri pouncing on a loose ball in the box to head home from close range.

Hougang head coach Philippe Aw then threw striker Iqbal Hussain into the fray eight minutes later in a bid to add some attacking verve to his side.

It nearly paid dividends in the 79th minute when Iqbal shimmied past two challenges to get himself into a dangerous position, but his shot was bravely charged down by Tampines defender Mustafic Fahrudin.

Iqbal’s trickery proved to be a thorn in Tampines’ side, and in the 90th minute, the 23-year-old earned his team a penalty after being brought down in the box.

Playmaker Fumiya Kogure coolly dispatched the spot-kick to give Hougang a glimmer of hope, but it was too little, too late as Tampines held firm in the final minutes of the match to earn their first win of the season.

In his post-game interview, Tampines head coach Jurgen Raab pinpointed Izwan’s wonder save in the first-half as the key moment of the match.

Raab, who joined Tampines just last month, said: “We had one very lucky situation with a great save from Izwan. This one save was especially important because if we were 1-0 down, I'm not sure how we would react. These things make the difference between a win and a loss.

“But big compliments over to my team on being able to achieve this victory. I said to the players that we have a big squad and all the players must take their chances when they come along, and I’m glad the players who came in today did just that. I was very satisfied with how we played and I think it’s a well-deserved win for us.”

Despite the defeat, Aw believes there were some positives he could take out from the match.

“I'm disappointed that we're going home with zero (points) because I thought we could have at least earned a draw,” he said.

“I think the start of the game was good when both sides went at each other. But the turning point came with Izwan making that save…but that’s football, when you get a chance at one end and the next moment we concede a penalty.

“Overall though, I felt that we could match them (Tampines). In the last 15 to 20 minutes, we showed that we can play football. To match the big teams who have a better roster is not easy, so we have to take it step by step. Yes, we want to challenge (for the title), but it's not going to be easy.”

In the other S.League match that was played tonight, Home United secured their second consecutive victory as they beat Brunei DPMM 3-1 at the Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Stadium in Brunei.