Hougang United lifted themselves off the foot of the Great Eastern-Yeo's S.League table after claiming an emphatic 4-1 victory over defending champions Warriors FC at the Hougang Stadium on Tuesday evening.
Warriors went down to ten men in the fourth minute before goals from Kunihiro Yamashita, Diego Gama and two from Vuk Sotirovic sealed the win for the home side. Fazrul Nawaz managed to get the visitors on the scoreboard but his effort could not be matched by his teammates.
Defender Marin Vidosevic's red card for swearing at the referee allowed Hougang to seize the initiative as they pushed forward in numbers.
It took them 11 minutes to open the floodgates when Yamashita latched on to compatriot Yuki Uchiyama's deep cross into the box before finishing underneath the outstretched arm of Warriors keeper Daniel Ong.
However the Warriors restored parity on 26 minutes as Fazrul nipped just in front of Hougang custodian Ridhuan Barudin to tap home Kevin McCann's low cross from the right.
The Warriors introduced Miroslav Pejic for Hamqaamal Shah at half-time, but the Croatian forward proved to be as ineffectual as the latter.
Instead, it was Hougang who managed to dictate play via the increasingly influential Sotirovic as he duly fired Hougang back into the lead on the 63rdminute.
Collecting a pass from the middle of the park, the Serbian hotshot cut inside Daniel Bennett before firing home a crisp left-footed effort.
It was double delight for the 32-year-old some 15 minutes later, as he benefited from Delwinder Singh's flick-on from substitute Fareez Farhan's corner to nod past the hapless Ong.
The rout was completed four minutes before the end as Gama dusted himself off, after being fell by Warriors substitute Andy Ahmad inside the area, to slot home from 12 yards out.
The result lifted Hougang two places into eighth in the 10-team table, while the Warriors stayed in second spot -- a point behind leaders Albirex Niigata (S) with a game in hand.
Speaking to ESPN FC after the game, Hougang winger Fazli Jaffar believes his side fully deserved the three points despite playing against 10 men for the majority of the game.
"We won this game through hard work and not because of the sending-off," said the 32-year-old, who played for the Warriors in the first half of the season.
"We came into this game with the right attitude, wanted it more from the start and took our chances well. I've said before that every game from now is an important one and I hope this victory can help us climb up the table."
The result took Hougang up into eighth place, pushing Geylang International and Courts Young Lions back below them in the league table.
Hougang United: Ridhuan Barudin (GK), Yuki Uchiyama, Kunihiro Yamashita, Tengku Mushadad (Lau Meng Meng 82'), Delwinder Singh, Nurhilmi Jasni (C), Carlos Delgado, Taufiq Ghani (Fairoz Hasan 80'), Fazli Jaffar (Fareez Farhan 67'), Vuk Sotirovic, Diego Gama
Warriors FC: Daniel Ong (GK), Emmeric Ong (Andy Ahmad 85'), Daniel Bennett (C), Marin Vidosevic, Irwan Shah, Syaqir Sulaiman, Kevin McCann, Karlo Ivancic, Hafiz Rahim (Shi Jiayi 72'), Hamqaamal Shah (Miroslav Pejic 46'), Fazrul Nawaz