Balestier Khalsa produced an early upset result in this season's TNP League Cup on Monday night as they thrashed Warriors FC 4-0 at the Toa Payoh Stadium.
Marko Kraljevic's side lost both league encounters with their Group B opponents earlier this year by a lone goal, but they completely turned the tables on them in this game.
The Tigers were helped by top scorer Miroslav Kristic, who plundered a hat trick to take his tally to 10 goals in 17 games this season.
It was the visitors who saw more of the ball in the opening stages though, with Hanafi Salleh required to make well-timed interventions on two occasions to clear dangerous crosses.
But the hosts grew in confidence thereafter and would have entered the break with a bigger lead than 1-0, had it not been for wasteful finishing.
Robert Pericic somehow side-footed his finish against the bar from six yards on 14 minutes, after Kristic had cut the ball back perfectly.
Kristic, who tormented the Warriors from start to finish, was the creator again on 33 minutes when he played in Zulkiffli Hassim, who blazed his finish wide from an angle.
The next two chances fell to Kristic himself but first his point-blank header was well saved by Daniel Ong, then he scuffed a shot at the goalkeeper from 10 yards.
Third time was the charm for the Croatian forward as he broke the deadlock two minutes before the break.
Latching on to Tarik Cmajcanin's floated pass, the 25-year-old controlled the ball well before lashing a clinical low drive past Ong from 12 yards.
It was a deserved half-time lead for Balestier -- one that would be doubled just three minutes into the second period.
Ong flapped at Ahmad Syahir's cross from the right and the delivery fell kindly for Kristic, who had the simple task of nodding the ball into an unguarded net from six yards.
That appeared to have taken the wind out of the Warriors' sails, as Alex Weaver's charges struggled to create any sort of openings apart from a couple of pot-shots from range.
With their opponents running out of ideas, two substitutes then combined to seal victory for Balestier in the 74th minute.
Hazzuwan Halim, on the pitch for less than three minutes, surged into the box from the left and unselfishly squared the ball for fellow substitute Ignatius Ang to tap in his first goal of the campaign.
Pericic hit the woodwork again with a header shortly after, with Poh Yi Feng then squandering the chance to set up Kristic during a two-on-two situation with an awful cross.
But Kristic was not to be denied and he claimed the match ball by firing home from close range after a scramble in the 90th minute to seal a well deserved victory.
Unsurprisingly, a delighted Kraljevic hailed his team's efforts after the game, saying that they had learnt from their previous two defeats.
"This is our best performance this year," the German-Croat said. "It was hard work and nothing happens by chance; you can't beat them by chance. The boys have worked very hard and that always pays off sooner or later.
"Winning against Warriors is a big thing, they are top of the table and a good team and we played well; not only just beating them, but I think we dominated the game mostly from the beginning to the end."
On the other hand, a disappointed Weaver acknowledged his team had not been good enough and conceded at crucial moments.
"We didn't defend well enough and we conceded four bad goals," he pointed out. "Any goal that you concede so soon after coming out in the second half is very difficult as it distracts your thinking...
"We conceded just before half-time and straight after half-time, so [those were] two big moments in the game. We haven't done ourselves justice tonight."
Balestier Khalsa: Zaiful Nizam (C), Ahmad Syahir, Igor Cerina, Hanafi Salleh, Ho Wai Loon, Zulkiffli Hassim (Hazzuwan Halim 71'), Poh Yi Feng, Tarik Cmajcanin (Ridwan Jamil 82'), Fadhil Noh (Ignatius Ang 66'), Robert Pericic, Miroslav Kristic
Warriors FC: Daniel Ong, Kevin McCann, Marin Vidosevic, Daniel Bennett (C), Irwan Shah, Azlan Abdul Razak (Hafsyar Farkhan 71'), Emmeric Ong, Miroslav Pejic (Shi Jiayi 79'), Hafiz Rahim, Nicolas Velez (Hazim Faiz 79'), Fazrul Nawaz