Hougang United centre-back Kunihiro Yamashita is determined to help his side end what has been a difficult 2015 on a high, when they take on Albirex Niigata (S) at the Jurong East Stadium on Friday.
Having begun the year with high expectations, it has been a season to forget for the Cheetahs as they are destined to finish bottom of the Great Eastern-Yeo's S.League.
Their disappointing displays saw the club hierarchy make the bold decision to change four of their five import players during the mid-season transfer window, while coach Salim Moin eventually paid the price as he was replaced by K. Balagumaran at the start of this month.
Yamashita, the only foreigner to survive the club's mid-season cull, has been one of their brightest lights this year, once again establishing himself as one of the S.League's best centre-backs.
Although his side have little to salvage from the campaign, the Japanese is adamant there will be no shortage of desire when they finish off against his former employers Albirex.
"This year has been difficult for the club, but that makes us want to win our last game even more," said Yamashita.
"It is now nine games since our last win, so I will really try my best to help us end this streak.
"Our final match is against Albirex and we know they are a team with all Japanese players.
"As a Japanese too, I don't want to lose against them so there's always even more motivation in such games."
In addition to his steady displays at the back, Yamashita has also been a real presence at the other end of the field and is the Cheetahs' joint-leading scorer -- alongside striker Vuk Sotirovic -- in the S.League with six goals.
The 29-year-old was quick to shift the credit to his teammates but, while stopping goals remains his priority, he admits he would not mind another goal on Friday.
Yamashita added: "Of course, one of my strong points is my heading and whenever there's a set-piece, I try my best to help the team by scoring.
"It's not just me that deserves credit because all my teammates have helped me achieve this with their good deliveries.
"At the end of the day, my job is to help keep a clean sheet.
"But maybe on Friday, I wish to do both which is to keep a clean sheet and score as well, only because it's against Albirex!"
Yamashita is not the only former Albirex star that will be lining up for Hougang on Friday, with midfield general Atsushi Shimono also set to take on his old side.
The White Swans won the first meeting of the campaign with a 2-1 triumph back in May, before the two sides played out a 1-1 draw three months ago.
Albirex Niigata (S) Probable Lineup: Yosuke Nozawa, Mikiya Yamada, Takahiro Saito, Kento Fujihara, Itsuki Yamada, Hikaru Mizuno, Shun Inaba, Fumiya Kogure, Kento Nagasaki, Atsushi Kawata, Rion Taki.
Hougang United Probable Lineup: Ridhuan Barudin, Faizal Amir, Kenneth Chang, Kunihiro Yamashita, Delwinder Singh, Ruzaini Zainal, Taufiq Ghani, Atsushi Shimono, Fazli Jaffar, Vuk Sotirovic, Diego Gama.