By Song Sung Hai

Last season’s results
• ANFC 1-1 TPUFC
• TPUFC 0-0 ANFC
• TPUFC 0-2 ANFC

Jaguars fans wanting to see this season’s team can see them in action this Wednesday at Queenstown Stadium as the Jaguars take on one team they did not manage to beat last season; the White Swans.

Patrick Vallee’s charges have played two games prior to this, mauling SCDF with a whopping 11-0 scoreline and registering a comfortable 3-2 win over a visiting team from Penang, PBAPP FC, in an encounter which saw the Jaguars hardly needing to step the gear up a notch.

Newcomer Sebastien Etiemble, also a Frenchman in from Union Sportive Quevillaise to replace Ishmael Benahmed, appears to have fit in rather quickly with the team, already getting his name onto the scoresheet in the last two games. The early signs have shown him to have struck a fine understanding on the pitch with both Kamel Ramdani and Monsef Zerka.

New local additions, Firdaus Idros, Masrezwan Masturi, Nor Azli Yusoff, Tengku Mushadad and Shafiq Noh who was promoted from the Prime League team, have also impressed and gave us a glimpse of the force that the Jaguars can be this season but the friendly game tomorrow will be a crucial gauge of the Jaguars’ preparations for this season.

Under new coach Tatsuyuki Okuyama, who joined from Albirex Niigata Japan’s Ladies team, the White Swans look to be a formidable outfit this season. Alex Weaver’s Warriors team will attest to that when they found themselves at the wrong end of their encounter with the White Swans last Friday at Jurong East Stadium. Braces from Keisuke Ota and Kazuki Sakamoto, their top scorer last season, condemned the Warriors to a 4-0 defeat.

Besides Kazuki Sakamoto to look out for, another player the White Swans will rely on is Hotta Shuhei, who is already in his fourth season with a team constantly changing players and that speaks a lot for itself.

The result of Wednesday’s game may not carry any points for the victor but it sure is shaping up to be a cracker of a match with both teams surely wanting to give a good account of themselves as the season draws nearer.

So, see you there!