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League's Best Meet Again
The Straits Times
|May 31, 2025
Sailors seek to cap standout season while Tampines aim to end title drought
A staggering 392 days after last May's Community Shield curtain-raiser, two teams who have proven to be the best in this long domestic campaign will get another shot at glory when they meet in the Singapore Cup final at Jalan Besar Stadium on May 31.
Retaining the cup will be a "cherry on top" of a landmark season for Singapore Premier League champions Lion City Sailors, while BG Tampines Rovers will be seeking to lift their first major piece of silverware since they last won the knockout tournament in 2019, during Gavin Lee's debut season as coach.
Lee will be hoping that his men can reprise their high-octane display from the semi-final, second leg on May 27, when they prevailed 3-2 in extra time over a BG Pathum United side featuring the likes of Thai veteran Chanathip Songkrasin and Singapore internationals Ikhsan and Ilhan Fandi, to seal a 4-3 aggregate victory.
Describing that showing in which they registered 16 goal attempts to the Thai outfit's eight as being "close to our best", Lee believes that ending their silverware drought will come down to "maintaining our principles and finding the best solution".
"It's really about us and our ambition," added the 34-year-old. "The final will be against the most consistent team in the league, so we relish the challenge and are looking forward."
This story is from the May 31, 2025 edition of The Straits Times.
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