Football fans paint TNP's EPL mania red

Arsenal fans (centre) celebrate the Gunners' win against Liverpool on Sunday morning at The New Paper's EPL mania event, held at The Wine Bar at St. James Power Station.

The Wine Bar at St. James Power Station was painted a bright red during the wee hours of last Sunday, as a crowd of 80-odd football fans gathered from midnight to catch the clash between top-of-the-table English Premier League teams Arsenal and Liverpool.

They had turned up for the EPL mania event organised by The New Paper.

It was evident which side garnered more support in the bar that night as majority of the viewers turned up in the Gunners’ red jerseys.

And they were not disappointed as their team went on to score two beautiful goals, trumping Liverpool 2-0.

Never mind that the match took place at 1:30 am in the morning - the fans' enthusiasm was not marred and the bar echoed of 'oohs' and 'ahhs' throughout the night.

The match result was not the only thing worth celebrating. The audience also came to life when prizes for predicting the first goal, half-time and full-time scores, sponsored by L'Oreal Men, were given out.

Student Josiah Ang, 19, was all smiles as he received a cash prize of $190 for correctly predicting the first goal of the game, which was scored at the 19th minute.

As a neutral party he was not pinning hopes on either team, but he predicted the Gunners to triumph and they did. "I just felt Liverpool deserved at least a consolation goal," he said. "They were playing well in the second half."

Undergraduate Nicholas Ong, 24, who was at the event for the first time with his friends, did not think so.

"Arsenal have been in superb form this season, and they were excellent today. Liverpool, on the other hand, were lacklustre and they were flustered after Arsenal scored."

He also added that he would want to attend another EPL mania event. "The atmosphere is great here and the food is good too."

The football fans were treated to a free flow buffet and two free drinks at the venue. They also each received a TNP goodie bag, which included gifts from the sponsors and finger food.

Amidst the predominantly male crowd, retail consultant Anna Chong, 28, stood out. Clad in the Reds' black away kit, she was also one of the few left disappointed by the match result. "Arsenal were the better team today though," she admitted.

"If only there were more Liverpool fans, the event would be more enjoyable!"