With a swing of her right foot, Lion City Sailors striker Josephine Ang curled the ball over the defensive wall and past the despairing dive of Mika Haziqah in the Albirex Niigata (S) goal to give her side a 2-1 lead.

With the net still rippling from her shot, Josephine ran and leapt into the arms of teammate Sarah Zu’risqha to celebrate her 10th goal of the season.

With a wide grin on her face, it was clear for all to see at the Choa Chu Kang Stadium that Josephine was truly in her element and enjoying her football.

Josephine’s goal – her third from a free-kick this season – ultimately set the Sailors on their way to a 3-1 victory over Deloitte Women’s Premier League (WPL) title rivals Albirex last Saturday (20 July) evening.

For the 18-year-old, however, the moment was especially meaningful as she had entered the game determined to make a statement following her omission from the recent Singapore Women’s National Team squad that defeated Macau in an international friendly. 

“It hurt for a few days when I didn’t get the (national) call-up despite how well I’ve been performing in the league,” admitted Josephine, whose 10 goals in the WPL makes her the third-highest scorer in the league.

“But I didn’t let that bring me down. Instead, I used it as motivation to keep improving, and I think the results showed on the pitch.”

Indeed, while Josephine has scored plenty of memorable goals during her time with the Sailors, she believes that this goal against Albirex might be one of her favourites.

She recounted, “To be honest, I didn’t even think about the score being tied at 1-1 at that moment. I just knew I had to capitalise on any chances I had. Initially, I wasn’t going to take the free-kick, but Sarah encouraged me to do so. I struck it as well as I could, and I’m so glad it went over the wall and into the net.”

Another Sailor who caught the eye in the win over Albirex was 15-year-old full-back Seri Nurinsyirah, who only joined the first team from the Sailors’ Girls Academy at the start of the year.

While Seri has enjoyed an encouraging start to her Sailors career, she acknowledges that she has to stay grounded and continue working hard to maintain her performance and contribute effectively to the team.

Seri, who opened her WPL account with a goal against Tiong Bahru in the first match of the 2024 WPL season, explained, “Given my age, it’s a huge honour to be training and playing alongside such experienced players, let alone be starting games. The transition from the academy to the WPL team has been smoother than I expected, thanks to the support of my coaches and teammates.”

When asked what her personal goals for the rest of the season were, Seri replied, “I hope to get stronger and continue improving my defensive abilities. I’m very grateful for the opportunity to be part of this team, so I will keep my head down and work hard.” 

Next up for the Sailors Women is a potentially tricky clash against fourth-place Hougang United at the Choa Chu Kang Stadium on Saturday (27 July) evening.

The Cheetahs will head into the fixture full of confidence following a draw against Geylang International last Sunday (21 July) in which they rescued a point after being two goals down, and they will undoubtedly be aiming to cause an upset against the Sailors.

While Josephine is wary about the threat that Hougang pose, she remains confident in the Sailors’ ability to put up a strong showing and overcome the Cheetahs.

She said, “Hougang’s mentality and fitness are really strong, and we know they will keep coming at us until the final whistle. It’s going to be a very tough game, and we cannot afford to be complacent. However, I believe in the team’s ability to overcome any odds, just as we did against Albirex.”

Echoing Josephine’s sentiments, Seri added, “The win against Albirex was hard-fought and meant a lot to us, but that’s now in the past.

“We are focusing on the Hougang game while also preparing for the upcoming Asian Football Confederation Women’s Champions League (AWCL) in August. I have confidence in the team to secure the three points on Saturday. We will stick to Coach Daniel Ong’s game plan and do our best as always.”