The Lion City Sailors Women scored 12 unanswered goals against Tiong Bahru in their penultimate Women’s Premier League (WPL) match of the season at the Choa Chu Kang Stadium on Saturday (20 June) evening.

The emphatic victory sends the Sailors above Albirex Jurong to the top of the standings, with Daniel Ong’s charges holding a commanding 18-goal advantage in goal difference heading into the final round of fixtures next weekend.

The manner of the win will further boost the Sailors’ confidence, as they produced another dominant display from start to finish. The irrepressible Ami Takeuchi struck six times, while Ami Kawase, Farah Nurzahirah, Siti Nurerwadah, Eri Kitagawa, Umairah Hamdan and Venetia Lim also found the net.

“Coming into this game, the girls were determined to do our best and score as many goals as possible to gain an advantage over Albirex in terms of goal difference,” shared skipper Umairah after the match.

“We knew we had to keep attacking throughout the game, so we enjoyed most of the possession. Overall, we stuck to our game plan.”

It took the Sailors just 10 minutes to break the deadlock, as Dhaniyah Qasimah’s low cross was swept home by Kawase for her 11th goal of an impressive debut season.

Three minutes later, the lead was doubled when Farah curled a superb effort into the top corner for her 17th league goal of the campaign. The forward came close to adding another shortly after, only to be denied by Tiong Bahru goalkeeper Lynse Sng.

The third goal soon followed after Takeuchi was brought down in the box. The Japanese forward calmly converted the resulting penalty, sending Lynse the wrong way to reach the landmark of 50 league goals this season.

In the 37th minute, Siti Nurerwadah added her name to the growing list of Sailors goalscorers this season, reacting quickest to head home after a rebound.

Priscille Le Helloco missed a good chance to make it five in the 39th minute, but Takeuchi made no mistake moments later with a composed finish to give the Sailors a 5-0 lead at the break.

After a brief respite for Tiong Bahru, the floodgates opened in the second half as Takeuchi continued her scoring spree. Eri’s corner was met by the prolific striker, who powered home a header to complete her hat-trick and showcase yet another facet of her goalscoring repertoire.

“My role in the team is to score goals, and I’m happy to have reached the 50-goal mark today,” said the former Urawa Red Diamonds Ladies starlet. “Regardless of the opponent, I always try to perform to the best of my ability.”

Arguably the move of the match arrived in the 52nd minute, when Farah, Eri and Takeuchi combined brilliantly before the latter smashed the ball into the roof of the net to make it 7-0.

Takeuchi’s predatory instincts were on display again seven minutes later as she controlled Dhaniyah’s cross before poking home her fifth goal of the evening.

Eri then got in on the act with her 27th goal of the season, weaving past defenders with a mazy run before applying a stylish finish to make it 9-0.

The Sailors reached double figures once more in the 69th minute when captain Umairah’s long-range free-kick deceived Lynse and found its way into the net.

“I would usually go for goal, but I initially thought the kick was too soft,” said Umairah. “However, Ami (Takeuchi) managed to block the goalkeeper’s view, which helped the ball go in. I’m really grateful for the teamwork and proactiveness.”

Remarkably, it was the eighth time in 15 league matches that the Sailors had hit double figures, with 18 different players getting on the scoresheet across the season. Yet they were not done.

Venetia rifled home from distance in the 76th minute, before Takeuchi rounded off the scoring 10 minutes later with a jinking solo run and finish to cap a memorable evening.

The six-goal haul meant the latter is now on 55 goals for the campaign – 15 ahead of nearest challenger Ruriko Takashima of Albirex in the race for the WPL Golden Boot.

There was also a significant milestone late on as Kayla Lim replaced Eri. At 13 years, 9 months and 17 days old, she became the 22nd Sailors Girls Academy graduate to feature for the senior women’s team.

The result leaves the Sailors firmly in control heading into their decisive final fixture against Hougang United next weekend (27 June), while Albirex will face Tiong Bahru in the corresponding match as the title race goes down to the wire.

“We are confident that today’s game has helped us move a step closer to reclaiming the WPL title, but we are not complacent,” said Umairah. “We will approach the final game ready to fight, play good football and do everything we can to win.”