My Local Football Oscars 2009 (ala Serie A style)

Top 5 Impressive Foreign Players:

Ojimi Obatola (Gombak) – Not much is needed to justify this selection. 24 goals and a key member to Darren Stewart. Once again, he led the Bulls’ attack well, even though sometimes from left midfield. An area of improvment I have for him is about his mental attributes. If OJ can stay calm and keep his emotions in check for a full 90 mins, he will definitely be a better player.

Miro Latiak (Geylang) – The Eagles midfield engine room. His high workrate and penetrative runs are a joy to watch. Has built on his debut season in ’08. A similar player to 1999’s Player of the Year, Zsolt Bucs.

Gabriel Obadin (Young Lions ) – A calm, composed defender who commands the young team’s defence. Also among the top goalscorers of the team, especially during the start of the season where the team was struggling for goals.

Murphy Wiredu (Sengkang) – Fiesty, determined attacking midfield player with an eye for goal. Win challenges in midfield too. His workrate is infective. Has been the delight of the Hougang faithful this season.

Choi Dong Soo (Super Reds) – Lively winger cum forward who was highly involved in his team attacking moves. Delight to watch when he is in dazzling form trying to leave defenders in his wake. One of those who have kept up with his standard the previous year and built on it.

*players who did not last a full season are not considered

Some Notably Disappointing Foreign Players:

Benoit Croissant (Tampines) – Having played for Sheffield United and in the Bahrain league previously, I thought the Frenchman was rather disappointing this season. Initially, heard he had problems settling in due to communication with his teammates at the Stags (Jap import Seiji Kaneko) and was benched sometimes. Was generally ordinary in his performances. But recovered towards the end when he played more and even scored a good goal in Stags’ last home game.


Zakaria Yousif a.k.a Mido (Woodlands) – I guess we couldn’t have expected too much from a budget player, but his strike partner Moshee proved otherwise. Basic problem was not scoring enough. But in the limited times I have seen him, his touches hadn’t impress me.

Teerawekin Seehawong (Gombak) – The midfield maestro used to be a key clog in the Bulls midfield with his workrate and key passes. Hampered by injuries during pre-season and never really found his true form.

Anthony Bahadur (Sengkang) – This young player started well but faded as the season went on as he became a benchwarmer. Not sure of exact reasons, but his performances faded as a result. Do not seem likely to be seen around next season.

*players who did not last a full season are not considered


Most promising foreigner:

Mamadou Diallo (Sengkang) – Has shown a bag of trickery that have bamboozled even Dan Bennett and the league’s best defence in Tampines. Done well making a step up from the Prime League. Playing alongside his brother, ex-Gombak starlet Abdoulaye, has certainly helped. Needs to work hard on his final passes and composure in front of goal. A crowd thriller that guarantees your ticket price.



Season to forget for:

Home United & PN Sivaji – In my view, Home U had assembled a team of such depth which could have easily gone on to win the title of if not push SAF all the way. The fact that it did not is unbelievable. Coach Sivaji admitted he had 2 teams of 11 which he rotated quite a bit. There was also mid-season addition of Isa Halim to the ranks. Although, they had the distraction of the AFC Cup, the fact that Home Utd players (i.e. Jiayi, Kengne, Peres did not light up the league in a way they should have is still really disappointing.


Season to remember for:

Yazid Yasin (Geylang) – After moving from Woodlands, Yazid played a tremendous role throughout the campaign, especially the later part of the season where the Eagles were embarking on their cup run which to Yazid’s consecutive cup final appearance. In many of the games, he was simply majestic.

Jamil Ali (Woodlands) – From a usual squad player status, the dimunitive winger/fwd became an indispensible player to the Rams this season as he stepped up, playing in central midfield in a couple of matches too. Generally had a good season under the tutelage of Coach Nenad and has rightly earned a move to the big guns in the East for the new season (he’s heading to be a Stag right?).

Zulfadli Zainal Abidin (SAF) – The Warriors’ only major transfer deal at the start of the season besides Park Tae Won provided balance and added quality on the wings. Initially brought in to complement Shaiful Esah, his performances actually relegated Shaiful to the bench for a period of time.

Shukor Zailan (Tampines) – The central midfielder was one of the most improved player I have seen, especially towards the end when he stepped in for Mustafic who left for the ISL. Plucked from the substitutes of Home U, he was initially playing second fiddle to Aki & Farra but has since established himself well enough for him to be treated as an integral part of Tampines’ spine in their rebuilding efforts next season.

Masrezwan Masturi (Geylang) – This is a classic story. Having been dwindling on the sidelines for the past few years, the Venga-discovered former Woodlands wonder boy finally seemed to have hit his true potential after recovering from a serious injury. His form coincided with the Eagles’ good run in the second half of the season and subsequently earned a national recall. Hopefully he stays injury-free next season and we could see the best form for club and country.


Players who seemed to have gone backwards: Razaleigh k, S.Fadhil, Tengku M (I should not dwell too much about them, basically their standards seemed to have dropped over the past few seasons. same could be said of a certain player-coach who turned coach mid-season)

**(Opinions are purely personal, hope no offence is taken. those awarded must not be too proud too and should continue to work hard)