From heartbreak to heroics: Five times the Lions played with everything on the line

HONG KONG: Singapore face Hong Kong in a winner-takes-all Asian Cup qualifier at Kai Tak Stadium on Tuesday (Nov 18).

If the Lions win, they will qualify for the tournament on merit for the first time. Lose, and they're out.

Should the match end in a draw, qualification will come down to the final matchday in March next year, when Singapore host Bangladesh and Hong Kong travel for an away tie against India.

Singapore’s only appearance at the Asian Cup was in 1984, when it qualified automatically as the host nation.

But this is not the first time the Lions are playing in a high-stakes match at the Asian level.

Apart from at the SEA Games and AFF football championship, there have been a few other occasions where the Lions have taken to the field with much on the line.

CNA looks back at five matches when the national football team's fate hung in the balance.

Singapore v Jordan (2011 Asian Cup qualifiers) 

The year was 2010 and the Lions travelled to Amman to face Jordan.

At King Abdullah Stadium, a draw would have been enough to send Singapore through to the following year's Asian Cup after Thailand lost 1-0 to Iran.

But Singapore, missing key players through injury and suspension, conceded an early Odai Al Saify goal. Up against the wind, the cold and the home support, the Lions could have gone further behind, if not for goalkeeper Lionel Lewis.

But in the second half, the Lions came roaring back courtesy of striker Noh Alam Shah, who prodded home after latching on to a pass from Aleksandar Duric.

But a 58th-minute Bani Yaseen free header off a corner saw Jordan take all three points, breaking Singapore hearts. Radojko "Raddy" Avramovic's men finished bottom of their group, while Iran and Jordan booked their spots in the regional showpiece.

Ten of the starting eleven from that match have since retired. The last man standing: Hariss Harun, now the Lions’ skipper.

Singapore v Thailand (1996 Asian Cup qualifiers)

The heartbreak in Amman was not the only time the Lions came agonisingly close to outright qualification for the Asian Cup.

In July 1996, Barry Whitbread's team hosted Thailand at the old National Stadium, needing a victory in their final group game to make history.

Striker V Selvaraj scored twice in the second half, giving the Lions a healthy 2-0 lead over 10-man Thailand, who had a player sent off early on. 

With goalkeeper David Lee putting in an inspired shift, the home team were well on course for victory. 

But with less than half an hour to go, the Lions collapsed. Goals from Natipong Sritong-In and Kiatisuk Senamuang sealed Thailand's qualification to the tournament in December that year.

"I am completely sick. We threw away the game with two poor goals," the Straits Times reported Whitbread saying at a post-match press conference. 

"The goals were practically gifts to the Thais."

Singapore v Hong Kong (1978 World Cup qualifiers)

In 1977, Hong Kong played party poopers when they faced off against the Lions in Singapore.

At stake was a place in the final round of the World Cup qualifiers, and the team that topped the group in that round would advance to the tournament in Argentina.

The two sides met earlier in the qualifiers and played out a 2-2 draw in Singapore. But unbeaten Hong Kong topped the group, while Singapore had lost one game even as they eliminated more fancied opponents such as Malaysia.

At a packed National Stadium, it was the away side's Lau Wing Yip who made the difference. Receiving the ball in the penalty box, he cut inside his man and hammered the ball past the despairing dive of goalkeeper Eric Paine in the 32nd minute.

At the final whistle, the Hong Kong team and staff celebrated exuberantly, while Choo Seng Quee's men in blue collapsed on the turf.

Despite the defeat, fans praised the Lions' spirit. "Our players were just great," one supporter told the Straits Times. "They gave everything but luck was not with them."

Singapore v Malaysia (2014 World Cup qualifiers)

Compared to the first three matches, the Lions were in this case much further away from qualification for a major tournament.

But up against Causeway rivals Malaysia in 2011, it was a game in which they needed to hold their nerve.

After a 5-3 win at Jalan Besar stadium, the Lions headed to Kuala Lumpur knowing that a win, a draw or a one-goal defeat would seal their progress to round three of the 2014 World Cup qualifiers.

At a jam-packed Bukit Jalil Stadium, Malaysia took the lead in the 58th minute, courtesy of a Safee Sall strike.

Undeterred, the Lions drew level 20 minutes later. A flick on from the towering Duric found the onrushing Shi Jiayi, who took a touch and slotted home.

But in the next round, Singapore could not sustain the momentum and finished bottom of the group.

Singapore v Tajikistan (2010 World Cup qualifiers)

Just like their game against Malaysia, Singapore had a two-goal cushion going into the second leg against the higher-ranked Tajiks in 2007.

In the home leg, a Duric double, on his international debut no less, had put the Lions in the driving seat.