After the first leg at home ended dramatically in favour of the defending champions, thanks to a hotly-debated penalty, Radojko Avramovic's side turned in another gritty performance in Bangkok yesterday to seal the title for the third time.

The hosts had only themselves to blame after squandering a host of chances.

Thailand's national team coach Chanwit Pholchivin accepted the result and paid tribute to his opponents.

"Congratulations to Singapore. They played very well. We played a fair game today," said Chanwit.

"We were one point behind so we were a bit under pressure. After we scored the first goal, we were trying for the second one. But all of a sudden Singapore got a chance and they scored the equaliser.

"This is soccer. Just one goal changed the situation. I had to accept that. But my players tried their best. They showed good spirit," Chanwit said.

The game had captured the attention of the entire nation, with reports about the two-leg final dominating headlines in the Thai media last week. The excitement was thick in the air as thousands of fans - some arriving five hours before the kick-off - thronged the stadium, creating an electric atmosphere that has long disappeared from the venue.

The match was played under tight security given the current uneasy relationship between the two countries and the row over the controversial penalty, which caused an uproar in Thailand.

The spectators had to pass three rows of security checks. Police used sniffer dogs and some 600 officers were deployed to ensure security.

With most of the supporters donning yellow shirts, the stands were covered in a sea of yellow.  

Chants of "Thailand, Thailand" reverberated across the stadium soon after the opening whistle.

However, the Singapore Lions almost silenced the boisterous fans in the ninth minute when they managed to put the ball into the net, only for the offside flag to abort their celebrations.

The Thai team managed to break the deadlock in the 37th minute through a classy goal from Pipat Thonkanya, who had scored a consolation goal in the first-leg.

The forward nodded Datsakorn Thonglao's looping pass ahead to evade his marker before leaping to lash home a volley in spectacular style, sending the fans into a delirium.

However, the game took a shocking twist for the hosts nine minutes from time when Singapore, who had mostly been on the defensive, delivered a sucker punch through Khairul Amri to even the score and virtually shatter Thailand's hopes of regaining the title they last won in 2002.

Chanwit's men did make some more attempts but failed to conjure up another goal that the fans deserved, leaving them with a night to forget.

Kitinan Sanguansak

The Nation