While Brunei DPMM is fighting tooth and nail to fend off the chasing pack for the S.League title, another fight is threatening to take centre stage as we enter the final stretch
Warriors FC’s golden boy Fazrul Nawaz is leading the charge on the local front, to snatch the S.League top scorer award from the claws of Balestier Khalsa’s Croatian hotshot Miroslav Kristic and Brunei DPMM’s Brazilian marksman Rafael Ramazotti.
The three strikers were tied on 14 goals each before last week’s fixtures. With the rescheduled roster for the upcoming weeks, the lead for the race to Golden Boot supremacy is expected to alternate between the three until the very end.
History Awaits Fazrul Nawaz
Since the inception of the S.League in 1996, the top scorer award has gone to a foreign player with the notable exception of the naturalised trio of Aleksandar Duric, Egmar Gonçalves and Mirko Grabovac.
Should Fazrul hold his own and go on to finish the season with the golden boot, he will become the first-ever local-born striker to win the coveted award. This is a huge feat when you consider that legends such as Indra Sahdan have come within touching distance but have never clinched the award.
Fazrul’s misadventure with Sabah FA earlier this year has seen him return to the S.League like a man on fire. If he can keep his scoring form up from now until the end of the season, his name will be etched in local football folklore.
Kristic & Ramazotti: Pure Scoring Machines
Standing in Fazrul’s way is Kristic, who has banged in almost half of Balestier’s 33 goals. He and DPMM’s Ramazotti have both been vital to their clubs’ title fortunes throughout the season.
Kristic may find it tough to keep up his hot streak as Balestier’s lack of depth has started taking its toil as we come to the tail end of the campaign. Meanwhile at DPMM, with Paulo Sergio and Azwan Ali providing the ammunition down the flanks, Ramazotti appears to be Fazrul’s biggest competition — if the Brazilian can finish off the many opportunities that come his way.
With just a handful of fixtures to go before we crown the 2015 S.League champions, the race to become the top scorer is providing an exciting subplot for all local football fans.
By Kelvin Leong
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About Kelvin Leong
Kelvin Leong is Associate Editor for ESPN FC, and a former media officer for the Singapore national football team.[/su_note]
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