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REWIND 8/11/2009 - Eagles overcome all odd to end 8-year barren spell

2012-01-14T14:35:00.002+02:00

Date: 8 November 2009
Location: Jalan Besar
Match Attendance: 5,870

8 November 2009 has earned itself a place in Geylang United’s history books after the Eagles rounded off a fine 2009 campaign in style by overcoming their underdog tag to clinch the Singapore Cup.

It was the first piece of silverware that the once all-conquering giants of local football took home in eight long years.

In front of a vociferous crowd of 5,870, the Eagles showed character, resilience and discipline to outwit the smooth passing Thai outfit Bangkok Glass through a solitary strike from substitute Hafiz Rahim in the 82th minute.

Man-of-the match Yazid Yasin was in the form of his life, proving to be a one-man wall on many occasions as he repelled the Thais repeatedly to keep his team in the game. His performance was capped by a superb penalty save in the 87th minute.

Coach Mike Wong made one change to his previous starting eleven as he reinstated club captain Noor Ali into a packed midfield.

The Eagles started the match tentatively as they allowed the Thais the early possession. It was only in the 13th minute that the team put together their first inventive move of the night through a counter attack involving Syed Thaha, Miroslav Latiak, Kim Jae Hong and Noor which led to a corner.

From the ensuing set-piece, the Thais broke swiftly to the other end as dangerman Gbenga Ajayi warded off two challenges before unleashing a shot which Yazid palmed away.

Five minutes later, Masrezwan Masturi (Mas) picked up a loose ball and drove at the Thai team backline. As the defence closed him down, Mas laid the ball out wide to Noor who then picked him out with a first time cross but the latter could not make a clean connection.

Ajaki was proving to be a handful for the Eagles and in the 33th minute, the Nigerian raced into the box and pulled the ball back for his strike partner. Luckily, Walid Lounis managed to deflect the effort to safety.

Geylang was getting into the game gradually and two freekicks either side of the half-time break almost provided the breakthrough.

As the game headed to first half injury time, Kim went on a solo run after being played through by Adrian Dhanaraj before being chopped down unceremoniously by the Thais’ captain Amnart.

Off Latiak’s powerpack attempt which deflected off the wall, Kim stole in and tried to nick the ball past keeper Klisana but the angle was just too tight.
The Korean then curled a brilliant left-foot set-piece attempt himself which narrowly missed the goal three minutes after the break.

Through another counter in the 63th minute, Latiak raced down at goal after Noor had played him in with a delightful chip, however, an unexpected bounce off the artificial turf allowed the Thais’ defence to recover and clear the danger.

It sparked Bangkok Glass into action as they started a series of intense bombardment of the Eagles’ goal soon after with playmaker Peeraphong in the thick of things.
The No. 23 gave the slip to both Adrian and Rastislav Belicak in the 64th minute before testing Yazid with a stinger from inside the box which the keeper responded with a brilliant save.

Eight minutes later, Peeraphong’s fierce drive from the edge of the box again needed the intervention of the increasing busy Yazid.

Next, a far post header back across goal from a corner situation for the Thais soon after bounced dangerously just in front the Eagles goal. Once again Yazid showed great agility to punch clear as the Eagles sought to weather the storm.

Geylang rode their luck and their determination was rewarded in the 82th minute. Klisana flapped at Kim’s corner and a goalmouth melee ensued.
Within the space of seconds, Noor and Hafiz Rahim – who had come on ten minutes earlier for Mas, saw their efforts cannoned off the woodwork.

As it is, Lady Luck smiled at the Eagles in the pinball situation as the ball fell at the feet of Hafiz a second time and this time, the striker who had been unlucky with injuries the past few seasons, produced an unerring finish as the fans in green roared in absolute joy.

A controversial decision from the match officials minutes later then had the Eagles’ fans up in protest.

Referee Kenny Ng had waved play on when Ajaki went down under a challenge inside the box. However, the referee overruled his decision when he saw the linesman flagging and instead gave the Thais a penalty kick.

Geylang players disputed the decision and Kim was booked for carrying his arguments too far.

The stage was set for Yazid to play hero yet again and the Geylang custodian obliged by pulling off a stunning save from Supachai.

Frustration soon took over the Thais and substitute Nantawat was given a straight red card in the 90th minute for a tackle from behind on Kim.

The Eagles held on for the remaining three minutes of added time and joyous scenes soon broke out at the final whistle.

Coach Mike Wong post-match attributed this tremendous cup run to the fantastic team spirit in the dressing room and revealed that he is hoping to build on this success for next season which will also see a return to the AFC Cup for the Eagles.While the Eagles celebrate this latest success, we all hope that this will be the start of a new dawn for Geylang United in the coming seasons.

Report by: Hugo Ng

When everyone is taling about 12Lions

2012-01-12T15:37:00.003+02:00

Now that the media and fans have warmed up to 12Lions, think I can take a break about talking about local soccer for awhile.

Ultimately I am on the side of the realists who are concerned about our own local league - S.league!

We will hope for the spillover considering in many sense S.league standard is actually comparable to the M League.

Well just have to strive harder to bring our own league up 1 level when the season begins!

Uniform Derby (S.league) - 31/12/11

2012-01-12T15:30:00.001+02:00

A phone call between the coaches was all it took as the country’s two uniformed teams put their recent work on the training pitch to test on New Year’s Eve at Jalan Besar Stadium.

In the end, the game went in favour of the side which have had a solid week of pre-season training – SAF FC, by a 2-0 scoreline.

In contrast, Home United had just started work three days earlier. Coach Lee Lim Seang’s main intention was to check on the condition of his charges after having spent the past weeks back in Korea to attain his UEFA Pro Licence.

During the game, the Warriors paraded their two new signings from Tampines - Shukor Zailan and Hassan Sunny, along Eddie Chang and a bunch of promising young boys who have been promoted from their Prime League team.

Lee, on the same note, took a first look at promising Hafiz Nor (from Tanjong Pagar) and compatriot Chang Jo Yoon (from Gombak), while checking out a new look defence consisting of seasoned campaigners like Sofiyan Abdul Hamid, Jeremy Chiang and Zahid Ahmad along a Korean trialist.

However it was in midfield where the attention was as it featured former Warriors Rhysh Roshan Rai and the ever industrious John Wilkinson, who was returning from his Thai adventure.

New signing Shotaro Ihata was carrying a minor injury, thus did not feature, as were key men Shi Jiayi and Frederic Mendy who were still on holiday.

Earlier on in the game, it was Shahril Jantan in the Warriors goal who was the busiest as he was tested fully by Hafiz, Roshan Rai and Qiu Li. Wilkinson also had a trademark long range blaster crashing against the woodwork.

But it was the returnee in the Warriors’ camp - Ruzaini Zainal (on loan to Young Lions), that was instrumental in the final result as the winger were involved in both moves which saw the strike duo of Fazrul Nawaz and Erwan Gunawan finish off in the 30th and 33th minute.

Notably, the second period saw the return to action of Hassan in the Warriors’ goal and the national custodian impressed in his run-out with a couple of good saves.

Post-match, SAF coach Richard Bok expressed satisfaction with the game as he maintained the priority in making his team gel quickly before the season begins.

“We still have five players who are not back with us”, referring to Daniel Bennett, foreign signings Mislav Karolgan, Shimpei Sakurada, Tatsuro Inui and former Japanese youth international Seiji Saito.

With his recent acquisitions, Bok is hopeful that the reshaped team will be able to play the ideal type of football he is envisaging.

“We are trying to move towards a passing game, to keep the ball as much as possible. Hopefully, with these new guys, we can build a more balanced game to challenge for honours”.

While Bok has settled on his squad and strategy for the coming season, it is obvious the same cannot be same with Lee.

Quizzed about his defence which seemed vulnerable on many occasions during the game following the confirmation of defensive rock Valery Hiek to Thai outfit Bangkok Glass, it seemed Lee had already in place a partial solution.

“As you saw today, we got a big problem (in defence)!” he quipped.

“So I have called Kenji (Arai) and he is coming back next week to be with us”.

The experienced Japanese defender had earlier left the Protectors after not being offered an extension to his deal.

“People can worry about our defence now, but we train as a unit and let’s see what we can show when the season starts”, he smiled confidently.

Comment: If we are to stand a chance against China..

2011-11-12T09:00:00.004+02:00

Yes some players have been dropped before the first qualifier began.

But as 4 matches gone by, we have seen some players really being out of depth on the Asian level. They may be stars in the local S.League, but would it be wise in persisting with them?

We all note the incredible absence of Qiu Li & Khairul Amri. But have we forgotten about Noh Alam Shah?? NAS may have underperformed in the Suzuki Cup (when he was partnered with Duric). But during the WC qualifiers where we need a battering target-man against the bigger teams, NAS I believe would have been useful. His international goals against big teams includ include strikes against West Asia's Kuwait, Iraq, Iran, Jordan (as far as I remember). This is a man who can compete against the giant Asian defenders. Duric, to be trueful, have struggled to
find form somewhat when pitted against them. Duric's strike-rate on a bigger stage would probably be just against Tajikistan?

How I wish NAS can be at JBS to bully the over-the hill Li Weifeng out of his game on Tuesday.. Lets hope Duric can raise his game in probably what will be his last home international game & kick the China skipper's ass off before his sunset with the Lions.

With Khairul Nizam still a distance away to inherit the No 9 shirt, I do think among all eligible Singaporean men, NAS is still our option to go. His finishing may not be 20/20, but his other attributes make him a good leader up the field.

Anyway, if I am in the Lions' hotseat on Tuesday, I will pump forward with this line-up. The onus is for the 2 front men to deliver, while the 2 wide men try their best to support..

Lionel Lewis

Ismail Yunos (RB)
Jumaat Jantan (LB)
Sevki Sha'bban (LCB)
Daniel Bennett (RCB)

Hafiz Rahim (RM)
Isa Halim
Mustafic Fahrudin
Firdaus Idros (LM)

Shahril Ishak

Aleksander Duric

Supersub: Shi Jiayi

"I am neither an expert nor a die-hard fan, but I am Singaporean"

Full Time report : Hougang United vs Tanjong Pagar (6 Oct)

2011-10-08T07:37:00.002+02:00

Seven goal thriller ends Hougang favour

The fire in the cauldron of the Hougang Stadium was almost extinguished, not by the rain, by a gutsy Tanjong Pagar side on Thursday night as the Jaguars were minutes away from snatching a credible point after coming from three goals behind only to be denied by an injury-time Jordan Webb winner.

The final score of 4-3 in favour of Hougang was not on the script for much of the game. A header from veteran winger Noor Ali off a corner had given the Cheetahs a 7th minute lead which Carlos Delgado doubled on 24th after great set-up work from Webb, who went on a mazy run down the left wing.

After racing to a two-goal lead, the home side then slowed the tempo a little which allowed the Jaguars to start fashioning a few moves through Frenchman Cyril Bagnost and rising starlet Hafiz Nor.

However, Brazilian Diego Oliveira should have added to Hougang’s tally before the break but for Jaguars’ keeper Ng Jia Fa and journeyman Azlan Alipah.

Midfield general Azhar Sairudin also had an outrageous lob attempt from half-way field which just landed on the top of the Jaguars’ net.

Tanjong Pagar came out of the second period looking for a way back in the game with the introduction of Patrick Paran to partner Takaya Kawanabe upfront. Both were to have something to cheer about as the game went on.

On 64 minutes, another assist from Webb allowed another half-time substitute Sobrie Mazlan to find the bottom corner for 3-0 and the Jaguars looked dead and buried.

Two minutes later, Bagnost pulled his team straight back into the contest. The former Etoile man showed great enterprise and determination to get into position before fortune benefited him as his left footer, which appeared to have been intended as a cross, sneaked in via Fadhil Salim’s near post.

The impressive Hafiz then almost got his third goal in three games but he hesitated in a one vs one situation which allowed Fadhil to smother the danger.

A counter-attack on 76 minutes saw Kawanabe calmly slotted it in for 3-2 after a brilliant through ball from Jaguars’ substitute Shamil Sharif was controlled immaculately by the Japanese.

Hafiz, who had been threatening all night, finally stamped his mark on 79 minutes as he showed a combination of skill and determination to set up Paran for a simple finish to tie the game up at three apiece.

The away side could have easily sank the hearts of the Hougang diehards on 85 minutes Bagnost showed great feet and balance to trick his way down the left flank and squared the ball to Kawanabe. However the diminutive forward’s volley was met by the wonderful reflexes of Fadhil.

This laid the platform for the home win in stoppage time as Webb met Fazli Jaffar’s freekick and flicked the ball home to ensure late drama at Hougang.

Cheetahs’ coach Aide Iskandar was a relieved man at the end.

“I knew they were on a high and could spring a surprise. They have improved a lot since the start of the season and credit to them and Terry, who has done a good job”, he said.

While he lamented the lapse of concentration and defensive errors that almost cost his side, the former national skipper showed pragmatism in the end, “I am glad that my boys kept pushing. At his stage of the season, I guess the most important thing is three points”.

On the other end, with regards to the comeback which nearly materialized, Jaguars’ team manager Steve Nathan noted the emphasis on being focused and the increased confidence of the players following Aide's substitutions at half-time of Noor Ali (tactical) and Delgado (illness).

He remarked, “ I thought the team’s performance was excellent, considering it was the first time that we have played in the kind of weather”.

“You can see we took awhile to adapt. But I am pleased with the fight back, the spirit displayed and I thought we deserved to win”, he added.

Hougang next travel up to Jurong West to face off with Gombak on 12 Oct while the Jaguars renew ties with their old adversaries Geylang a day later at Bedok.

~extracted from sleague.com~ hugo boss

s.League 4/9: Hougang 2-1 Etoile - Azhar marks comeback with winner

2011-09-05T16:53:00.003+02:00

A moment of improvisation from Azhar Sairudin earned Hougang United a morale boosting 2-1 victory over defending champions Etoile FC as the league schedule resumed on Sunday evening.

The 25 year-old had missed his club’s last couple of matches due to suspension but showed again on his return how much his market value has risen this season.

In the 67th minute, not long after Etoile has cancelled out Vitor Borges’ first half opener, Azhar pounced on a loose clearance off a freekick, evaded a challenge, before firing in a half-volley with the outside of his right boot to give the Cheetahs’ the initiative for a second time on the night. It was a lead which they never relinquished.

The game was even from the start as Azhar and his partner Carlos Delgado sought to tussle against the ever-improving Theo Raymond in the centre of the park. On the wings, Cheetah Jordan Webb and the Etoile’s Sirina Camara were also looking in menacing mood.

Hougang took the lead in the 23th minute as Delgado’s smart distribution left Webb one-on-one with an Etoile defender. The fleet-footed Canadian proceeded to storm his way down the by-line and setup Borges for an easy finish.

The French side tried to hit back with a couple of in-swinging corners that caused the home team a few scares. However it was only in the 40th minute through Raymond’s freekick that Fadhil Salim was really tested. The Hougang custodian’s steady hands proved vital in neutralizing the threats in this instant and many others during the match.

Early in the second period, Etoile upped their tempo and coach Guglielmo Arena followed up by unleashing his wild cards in the form of Aly Doumbouya and Hicham Bouchemlal at the 59th minute mark.

Five minutes later, the game was levelled as defender Selim Kaabi nodded home from close range after good work from Jonathan Toto off a Raymond corner.

Next came the moment of improvisation from Azhar, which went in off Etoile’s keeper Antonin Trilles’ left post. This sparked jubilant scenes as the players celebrated the delightful goal right in front of their die-hard faithful.

Doumbouya, Bouchemlal and Raymond all had decent chances at goal but none managed to seriously test Fadhil after that.

Thus, it was left to Trilles to produce the save of the night as the French keeper tipped over from Brazilian substitute Diego Oliveira’s flying header in the 89th minute.

At the other end, Cheetahs’ captain Shariff Samat and his defence worked effectively to repel the French attempts late in the game to hang on for the three points.

Speaking to sleague.com after the game, Cheetahs’ coach Aide Iskandar was evidently a happy man.

“This is a result of good team discipline and everyone taking responsibility, it was never an easy game against a well-drilled team, especially after three weeks’ break”.

“But it is good to see us start winning against the top teams again, which is good for team morale leading to the semi-finals of the Singapore Cup”, he explained.

The former national skipper also had kind words for his match winner, “No doubt Azhar has potential, his technical abilities allow him to make those good passes”.

With his side’s recent good form having been halted by this defeat, Etoile coach Arena was visibly unsatisfied.

“Our individual mistakes cost us. Hougang did not have that many good chances to score, except the header at the end”, he commented through his translator.

He then vented his frustration at the absence of proper facilities and a perceived unfairness in the way the league fixtures were rescheduled.

“We did not have goalposts at Queenstown for training till three days ago”.

He added, “This weekend is a FIFA date for internationals, but Etoile had to play, minus our two players”, referring to the absence of Franklin Anzite and Serge Souchon on national duties.

“It is not correct”, as he lamented the fact that other title challengers were not scheduled for action.

Next up for Etoile will be a tough battle against the Albirex side on Wednesday night and Arena will certainly hope his team can rediscover their winning mentality then.

~credits: Pohui from Bolasepako.com and s-league.com~

Causeway Aftermath ST 29/7: : Never more proud - Poor refereeing and tough fouls did not faze Lions, says Avramovic

2011-07-30T03:31:00.004+02:00

'That was the most important goal of my career. It was so sweet to score in front of the Malaysian fans.'

SHI JIAYI, Singapore's goal-scorer

Singapore players tossing coach Raddy Avramovic into the air after the drawn match, which sent the Lions through to the third round 6-4 on aggregate. -- PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
View more photos

Malaysia 1
Singapore 1
(Singapore win 6-4 on aggregate)

KUALA LUMPUR: Two Malaysian defenders, 85,000 fans at the Bukit Jalil Stadium, and millions more watching on television, had their eyes glued on Singapore midfielder Shi Jiayi.

The 27-year-old glided past his markers and, with the weight of a country on him, slotted the ball past goalkeeper Khairul Fahmie, ending any hopes Malaysia had of qualifying for the next stage of the World Cup.

As the sell-out crowd fell into stunned silence, the tense Singapore bench erupted.

'That,' an exuberant Shi said, 'was the most important goal of my career. We were all really nervous because we had a lot of chances to score but their goalkeeper was amazing until then.

'It was so sweet to score in front of the Malaysian fans.'

Shi's 73th-minute strike made sure that Singapore went through to the third round 6-4 on aggregate, and that any complaints about Malaysia's controversial opening goal yesterday were moot.

After a scuffle outside the penalty box in the 58th minute, Japanese referee Takayama Hiroyoshi raised his hands as if to signal for a free kick to the Lions.

The Singapore players halted.

But Malaysia winger S. Kunanlan did not stop playing, threading a pass through to striker Safee Sali.

The Tigers captain made no mistake as he put the ball past Singapore goalkeeper Izwan Mahbud to spark wild celebrations in the stands.

Another goal without reply for Malaysia in the remaining 32 minutes would have knocked Singapore out.

Lions coach Raddy Avramovic was so livid, he had to be restrained by his staff from going onto the field.

'It was really poor refereeing because he put the whistle to his mouth. I don't know if he blew or not but all our players stopped,' the Serb later said, his composure restored but the anger still simmering.

Another sore point for Singapore was the way Izwan was seemingly targeted by the Malaysians for some rough treatment.

'They whacked my head, ribcage and even my back whenever I jumped for a cross,' said the 20-year-old. 'But I kept my cool and took it as motivation to fight harder each time to stop them.'

In only his third international game, he pulled off some crucial saves, including a point-blank block to deny Malaysia's tricky winger Kunanlan in the opening minutes.

As Izwan walked gingerly to the dressing room after the final whistle, he was mobbed by his teammates, reward after a performance that Avramovic described as 'simply oustanding'.

Malaysia coach K. Rajagobal had a different view.

He felt that the Lions goalkeeper, along with several of his teammates, went down too easily to waste time.

Singapore captain Shahril Ishak was even steadily pushed off the pitch by Malaysia's Ahmad Fakri when he was substituted in the 78th minute.

'They disrupted our tempo and rhythm because of the injury stoppages every few minutes in the second half,' Rajagobal complained.

'To me, it wasn't a fair result; we deserved to win this game.'

Try telling that to the Singapore players, who came back out onto the field after the home fans had cleared out to applaud the 300-strong Lions supporters left in the stands.

Or to Avramovic, who was thrown into the air three times by his charges to kick off what was likely to be a long night of celebration.

'I've never been more proud of my players,' said the 61-year-old, as a rare smile made its way onto his face.

'They were real fighters for 180 minutes and did their country proud.

'Now, we all need a break.'

*****************************************************************************

IMO, plenty of work to be done though. Yes they have redeemed themselves, they have got much of Singapore excited again. But can this last the course? Will Singaporeans desert the team again when they struggle against Asia's best?
Why Raddy not utilise his subs more? Is he lacking confidence in them? Are they not ready yet?
I thought we do have decent players on the bench as well.

But bottomline is, We need every Singaporeans' effort in moving Singapore football forward thats for sure.

Majulah Singapura!

Buildup to Causeway Derby: Shahril's free role (ST 21 Jul)

2011-07-21T15:49:00.002+02:00

S'pore captain given licence to roam and harass Malaysia

'(It) has toughened me up because I get whacked and tackled many times during a game. I'm a smarter player now, knowing when to release the ball and how to deal with tight defences.'
SHAHRIL ISHAK on the benefits from his Indonesian stint
Midfielder Shahril Ishak (right), in action against Chinese Taipei on Monday, revelling in his new free role. -- ST PHOTO: NURIA LING

BARELY five months ago, Shahril Ishak feared that he had played his last game for Singapore.

His future with the Lions appeared to be in limbo after he joined the Medan Chiefs in the breakaway Indonesian Premier League (LPI), which was then not recognised by world football's governing body Fifa.

Fortunately, the 27-year-old playmaker received clearance from Fifa earlier this week, and is back in the national fold and raring to go for the crunch 2014 World Cup two-legged qualifier against Malaysia.

Said the former Home United player: 'I'm so relieved. I had given up all hope at one point.

'It was tough just training with the guys but not getting a chance to play out there with them.'

His return is a welcome one for Singapore as they prepare to face Asean champions Malaysia in the first leg at the Jalan Besar Stadium on Saturday night.

For he not only wears the captain's armband, but is also the Lions' midfield linchpin, embracing a new free role which coach Raddy Avramovic has entrusted to him.

Shahril said: 'I used to play left wing in the past, which was a bit tough as I didn't get the ball much.

'Now, I have the freedom to go wherever I want and create trouble for the opposition.'

He did just that in a 3-2 friendly win over Chinese Taipei on Monday, linking up well with fellow midfielders Shahdan Sulaiman and Shi Jiayi to create openings for themselves and front-man Aleksandar Duric.

He has revelled in a similar position for Medan, supplying more than half of league top scorer Laakkad Abdelhadi's 13 goals in 18 games.

Armed with a bag of tricks and a keen eye for threading through balls, Shahril has also benefited from Singapore's new, short-passing game in a 4-2-3-1 set-up.

But this playing style, he says, could come undone if the Tigers adopt an offside trap by pushing up their backline.

'We have to find a way around that, by timing our runs well to spring the trap,' he added. 'It's important to keep things simple - pass to the player in space and then find an opening to receive the ball back.'

Shahril believes his overseas playing experience puts him in good stead to thrive as the main creative spark.

'Playing in Indonesia has toughened me up because I get whacked and tackled many times during a game,' said Shahril, who also played for Persib Bandung in the Indonesia Super League last year.

'I'm a smarter player now, knowing when to release the ball and how to deal with tight defences.'

Skills aside, he also has a wealth of experience. With 83 international appearances since his debut against the Maldives in 2003, he is the second most-capped player in the squad, behind only Daniel Bennett (97).

Along with Shahdan and Shi, Shahril feels Singapore's hopes of victory against their Causeway neighbours will rest on their shoulders.

He said: 'Our main job is to supply and support Duric up front. If we do that well, we've got a great chance of beating Malaysia.'

By Sanjay Nair (ST)

Buildup to Causeway Derby: Mustafic's eye firmly on Safiq - ST (21 Jul)

2011-07-21T15:47:00.000+02:00

By Lee Min Kok (ST)

THE unenviable task of stifling Malaysia's midfield will likely fall to a Lion who has filled the defensive role with distinction over the last five years.

And midfield enforcer Mustafic Fahrudin - back in Singapore after a two-year spell in the Indonesia Super League (ISL) - has warned that it is Tigers' captain Safiq Rahim whom his teammates will have to watch closely during Saturday's clash with their Causeway rivals.

He said: 'Safiq's free kicks are superb. If not for him scoring twice in the first round, we would have been playing Chinese Taipei, not Malaysia, this Saturday.

'We will try not to concede any free kicks around the penalty area, because he is deadly in those situations.'

Safiq, 24, scored from a free kick in both legs of the 2014 World Cup qualifier against the Taiwanese, ensuring that the Tigers scraped through on away goals (aggregate 4-4).

He also enhanced his reputation as a man for the big occasion, netting a superb curling effort from 20m against English giants Liverpool last Saturday.

Set-piece prowess aside, the Selangor man, who is just 1.67m-tall, is expected to provide the ammunition for star striker Safee Sali.

But Safiq is only one weapon in the Malaysians' midfield arsenal, pointed out the Serbia-born Mustafic.

'Their wing-men are very fast, very skilful and we will need to find a way to stop them. I will try my best to protect the back four,' he added.

Call him the midfield destroyer, water carrier or hatchetman - each name less glamorous than the last - for the Lions, but the 'Claude Makelele' role (named after the hard-tackling Frenchman) is one of the most under-rated in modern football.

Against Chinese Taipei on Monday, coach Raddy Avramovic deployed his former compatriot in his favoured position, giving fellow midfielders Hariss Harun and Shahdan Sulaiman the licence to roam forward.

But Mustafic, 30, whose wife recently gave birth to their second child, insists that nothing gives him more satisfaction than snapping at opponents' heels and launching into bone-crunching tackles.

'It (the role) suits me well, I feel comfortable playing there and best of all, it allows my teammates the freedom to attack,' he said.

Buildup to Causeway Derby on 23 Jul: Malaysia's Safee longs for 1st goal against Lions - ST (21Jul)

2011-07-21T15:45:00.004+02:00

'Bennett is a very intelligent player and he reads the game well.'
SAFEE SALI, Malaysia striker, on being a marked man of the Singapore defender

HE HAS scored 13 goals in 29 games for Malaysia since his debut in 2006, but top striker Safee Sali has so far failed to find the net against bitter rivals Singapore in three friendly meetings.

And the 27-year-old, whose reputation is fast-growing within the region, is planning to erase this blot on his CV come Saturday, when the Tigers meet the Lions in the second round of the 2014 World Cup qualifiers - his first competitive outing against the Republic.

'Yes, I've scored against Singapore at the Under-23 level (in the Merdeka Cup in 2007), but never in a full international or a friendly,' Safee told The Straits Times in a phone interview yesterday.

'If I score on Saturday, good. It will be even better if we win.'

The stocky 1.70m forward will first need to overcome veteran centre-back Daniel Bennett, 33, who has vowed to give Safee a tough time.

But having netted a brace in Saturday's 3-6 friendly loss to English club Liverpool on his comeback from injury, the Pelita Jaya hitman is confident that he can get the better of the Singapore defence.

Said Safee: 'Bennett is a very intelligent player and he reads the game well. I'm getting close to my full fitness and that will be important.'

Safee, along with skipper and midfield general Safiq Rahim, can expect to be marked men when they face their long-time adversaries in front of a sell-out 6,000 crowd at the Jalan Besar Stadium.

But Safiq, a key threat for Malaysia with his deadly free kicks, is banking on his teammates to rise to the occasion.

Said the 24-year-old: 'Everybody has their own weaknesses and strengths, I'm sure the rest of the team will have something extra to give on Saturday.'

Tigers coach K. Rajagobal's young charges are due to arrive this morning and will have two days to get used to the artificial pitch at Jalan Besar.

LEE MIN KOK

El Fenomeno's Final Preview

2011-05-28T08:54:00.003+02:00

Long since I did a proper blog piece and today seems the correct time to do one.

Though a Barca fan, I have not been following them as closely this season due to the cancellation of StarHub. Even in the UCL, I have been catching more highlights shows than live games. The feeling is such that everyone seems like an expert or fan of Barca now (prob since 2009 and the Spain effect) that this I feel no longer as exclusive. With so many new supporters, I have been taking a back seat. However, my knowledge is still very DARE.

Anyway as per in 2009, there are defensive problems in the Blaugranas tonite. Abidal, who missed the game through his red card at Stamford Bridge, may miss out again due to fitness problems. Dani Alves, however is eligible after missing 09 due to suspension as well.

Hopefully, Abidal is rendered fit so as to allow Puyol to be deployed in the middle. This is not to say I dont trust Mascherano. Anytime anyday, I would love YAYA TOURE to be back. He played a starring role in defence towards the end of the 2009 season. Strength, pace, ability, he is superb. Similarly, I rate him better and more crucial than Busquets, whom I often criticised. Sergi has a tendency of giving away balls in danger areas and hopefully he has improved on it.

Still Yaya would be my choice in DC or DMC.

Indeed, the missing African connection could be the undoing of Barca. Samuel Etoo was crucial in 06 and 09 while Yaya's physical strength could be missed. But the absence of CR7 also reduces the aerial power on MU's side. David Villa has also showed his class.

Revenge? No doubt with Jose having failed to stop Barca, the onus now is on SAF. It will definitely be a much tougher game than in 09 with revenge on their mind. But hopefully this revenge mentality would prove a little too much and work in my team's favour.

I remain hopeful. Wembley will crown the fourth title to either team. Hopefully its mine. Visca Barca, Visca Catalunya.

First upset of Sleague 2011 - 19 May: Resolute Cheetahs stuns Stags with first loss of the season

2011-05-20T03:12:00.000+02:00

The buzz at Hougang Stadium continued on Thursday evening despite the end of the General Election as the Cheetahs of Hougang United put on what coach Aide Iskandar termed “probably their best collective performance of the season” by coming up 2-0 triumph against high-flying Tampines Rovers.

It was the first league defeat the Stags had suffered this season, meaning they are now just a point clear of challengers Home United.

Rarely have Tampines been made to look so ordinary this season as they hardly tested Fadhil Salim in the home side’s goal throughout the game. Even league top-scorer Aleksander Duric did not get a proper sniff at goal for the entire match, another sign of the work the Cheetahs put in on the night.

Hougang sounded their warning early in the fifth minute when Canadian Jordan Webb chested a long ball before squaring to midfielder Azhar Sairudin whose left foot effort flew just over.

Webb then had an attempt palmed clear by Tampines’ keeper Hassan Sunny two minutes later after outwitting defender Park Yo Seb on the right flank.

Tampines picked up their game soon after but had little to show for in the first period other than a freekick attempt on target from playmaker Shahdan Sulaiman just before the break.

By then, the home side had already taken the lead.

In the 34th minute, off a quick freekick from Carlos Delgado, rising star Basit Hamid muscled his way to Hassan’s goal but was denied by a smart save from the national custodian.

From the resulting corner, defender Syaqir Sulaiman glanced a header towards goal which caused confusion at the Tampines’ goal. Despite the defence and Hassan’s best efforts, the ball somehow crept into goal, sending the Hougang fans delirious.

The Stags tried to find a way to level the game after that but were lucky not to go two down within ten minutes of the second period themselves.

In the 53th minute, an alert Basit intercepted a back-pass but was slid down in the box by Hassan, who did not seem to mange contact with the ball.

To the amazement of the crowd who had expected a penalty and possibly a red card, referee Sukhbir Singh and his assistant saw nothing wrong with the incident and only awarded a goalkick in Tampines’ favour.

However, Hassan’s luck ran out ten minutes later as an early shower for him did finally occur.

Hougang’s Sobrie Mazlan bamboozled two Tampines defenders and found his way into the box, where his initial shot was parried by Hassan.

The rebound fell to substitute Noor Ali who sidestepped Hassan but was brought down by the Stags No. 1 for an apparently dangerous tackle.

Hassan was sent straight off and Hougang was awarded a spotkick which Delgado coolly slotted home past substitute keeper Hafez Mawasi for 2-0.

Stags’ coach Steven Tan responded by pushing Park into an advanced role along Duric as he looked for a way back for his team.

The tactical switch proved somewhat useful as his team began to cause some minor scares to their opponents in the closing stages but to no avail as the Hougang backline stood tall, leaving Fadhil’s gloves pretty clean at the end of fulltime.

Speaking to sleague.com after the game, Aide commended his boys’ performance, while admitting the Stags did look lethargic tonight.

“It was obvious to see we were the hungrier side. We showed determination and perseverance throughout the game and I am proud of my boys”, as he beamed in delight.

Quizzed about the impact their boisterous fans made, the former national skipper expressed his gratefulness.

“The fans have been superb. They raise out energy levels everytime.”

“It clearly showed today as the boys was motivated, whenever their names were sung or the team was being chanted. So we have to thank them”, he added.

Tampines coach Tan was frank in his post match interview, crediting the hungry Cheetahs for a job well done.

“They played very well today. They didn’t give us a chance to play, closed us down and broke up our rhythm.”

Reflecting on his team’s performance, the former national forward added, “The boys gave their all, their commitment was there, so I can’t ask for much more”, while admitting fatigue could have finally caught up his team.

Tan’s team would now switch focus back on the continent stage as they prepare to leave for Iraq on Saturday to faceoff with Arbil for the second round of the AFC Cup three days later.

Hougang, on the other hand, take on Etoile on Monday back at their own Hougang caludron.

GE2011 - Don't discount Mr Chiam for his appearance

2011-04-23T04:06:00.012+02:00

At first glance of the Straits Times below, the writer might seem to be publicising his "poor" health condition and appearance. But read in depth to find out that his condition isnt a big deal and the mind of the man is still sharp even in TV interviews that I have seen

He may talk slower, but don't discount him, because of his frail appearance. Judge him, and what his team, some of whom have pretty decent credentials can offer.

Bishan need a change after 24 years perhaps under DPM Wong Kan Seng? Surely 5 years w/o upgrading isnt much a BIG DEAL there?

Prime News
Home > Prime News > Story
ST, Apr 19, 2011
I'm fit to run, says Chiam

Opposition veteran Chiam See Tong, 76, says doctors have given him the go-ahead to stand for elections. Since a stroke in 2008, his posture is stooped and his movement slower but, in an interview yesterday, he said he exercises regularly, goes for walkabouts at least weekly and is ready for campaign action.

Chiam: I can still contribute like any ordinary person
Veteran MP had stroke but keeping fit through exercise and medication
By Jeremy Au Yong

Mr Chiam (centre) on a walkabout last Saturday with fellow Singapore People's Party candidates (from left) Wilfred Leung, Benjamin Pwee, Jimmy Lee and Mohamad Hamim Aliyas. The veteran MP, who had a stroke in 2008, says he has what it takes to go one more round. -- ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN

VETERAN opposition leader Chiam See Tong has been given the green light by his doctors to do battle at the next general election.

But the 76-year-old, a stroke victim, accepts that he could face another medical condition in the coming years: Parkinson's syndrome.

He revealed yesterday that he is fending it off by exercising regularly and taking medication to delay its onset.

Once a week, a fitness trainer comes to his home in Bukit Timah to strengthen his muscles. He rides an exercise bike for half an hour each day and swims regularly.

Said his wife Lina Chiam, 62: 'Strokes lead to Parkinson's. But how do you go about it? Do you wait for it?

'At the moment, he doesn't have Parkinson's or his hands would be shaking. But you have to exercise to defer it.'

Then, in reference to his plodding pace, she added: 'His movement is slower but after a stroke, people also have this kind of movement.'

The couple spoke candidly to The Straits Times about his health, showing no signs of being dispirited.

Indeed, Mr Chiam is optimistic about his health, saying he has kept going because of his confidence in his own body.

'I have a feeling I will get well, this is something which is a passing phase. So I didn't bother to stop doing politics,' he said.

A person with Parkinson's syndrome displays the symptoms of someone with Parkinson's disease but does not have the nerve disorder.

The symptoms include having a stooped posture and slower movements.

Doctors The Straits Times spoke to said a stroke in the same area of the brain that is affected by Parkinson's disease can cause the syndrome.

During the near two-hour interview, the Chiams stressed that the long-serving MP who suffered a stroke in 2008 has what it takes to go one more round.

'He went to see doctors. Doctors did not advise him not to stand for election, they just leave it to him,' said Mrs Chiam.

Added Mr Chiam: 'I feel fit. I don't feel sickly, but you must remember I led a very active life when I was young.'

He was a school swimmer while at Anglo-Chinese School and an avid badminton player in university.

As Mr Chiam steps up his public appearances as election fewer heats up, his frail physique and hunched posture have come under the media spotlight, prompting questions on whether he is fit enough to mount a proper election bid.

Others have suggested that he should have stepped away from politics on a high, after winning in single-seat Potong Pasir at the 2006 polls.

Mr Chiam plans to lead a five-member team to contest the Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC while his wife is taking over the reins in Potong Pasir.

In shrugging off the doubters' comments, Mr Chiam showed a mind that was still sharp and lucid.

He did not stop after his stroke in 2008 because 'I seriously think I can contribute like any ordinary person'.

He added: 'I don't feel like I'm in a disadvantaged position. In fact, I still contribute as an MP quite fully. I still attend my Meet-the-People Sessions (MPS). I still go to Parliament. I still speak in Parliament.'

In fact, two weeks after the stroke, he was on his feet again, seeing to the needs of his constituents at his MPS.

He acknowledged his health has affected his work, 'but I don't let it bother me'.

In recent weeks, Mr Chiam has been showing just how much fight he still has in him.

During a walkabout in Thomson a month ago, he walked up a flight of about 30 steps unassisted. Since then, he has gone on walkabouts at least once a week, often staying on his feet for up to three hours.

'I do politics because I like it,' he said. 'It comes naturally to me. I enjoy meeting people. And I like competition. That is also part of my nature.'

When conversation turned to the topic of his political plans and how far ahead he was planning, Mr Chiam simply smiled and offered a cryptic answer: 'I'm thinking of the fine time I could have, the last few years of my life.'

jeremyau@sph.com.sg

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NO STOPPING HIM

'I don't feel like I'm in a disadvantaged position. In fact, I still contribute as an MP quite fully. I still attend my Meet-the-People Sessions. I still go to Parliament. I still speak in Parliament.'

Mr Chiam

Fadhil the hero as Hougang nicks the win

2011-04-21T08:38:00.003+02:00

Ratna Suffian’s 84th header may have won the game for Hougang United but it was the name of teammate Fadhil Salim that Cheetah fans were chanting at the end of the game as the home side defeated the visiting Albirex Niigata (Singapore) side on Monday night by a solitary goal.

Hougang coach Aide Iskandar had high praise for his custodian, “For me, he was top class today. He was everywhere!”

“I think he made about five saves which kept us in the game. That gave a lot of confidence to the defence.”

Indeed, the Hougang custodian was kept busy by the visitors right from the start.

He showed good reflexes to deny a goalbound shot by Tatsuro Inui in the 11th minute as a quick freekick allowed the Albirex dangerman in.

Six minutes later, he went one better by pulling off a double save. Inui’s curling freekick was punched clear and the follow up header by Keisuke Matsui was again thwarted by Fadhil.

Albirex fans were left disappointed yet again in the 27th minute as the Hougang custodian once again got down well to his right to stop Inui’s freekick attempt.

Four minutes before the break saw Fadhil pulled off what was probably his best save of the night.

Again, Inui was in the thick of action as he laid a quick pass into the danger area to striker Shotaro Ihata, whose left foot volley brought out a stupendous save from the Cheetahs’ keeper.

Though they were outplayed for most of the first period, Aide’s men continued to stay focused and displayed a high level of concentration in their defensive duties.

They never really tested Yoshito Matsushita’s goal in the first period other than a freekick attempt by Argentinian Carlos Delgado which required the keeper’s intervention.

Other than that, the only danger the Japanese side encountered was the occasional counter attacks which relied largely on the pace of Mamadou Diallo and Jordan Webb.

Albirex continued their pressure on the Hougang goal early in the second period.

A flowing move in the 49th minute involving Inui, Ihata then saw teammate Yosuke Saito’s deflected shot off a defender almost loop into goal, only to be denied by a back-pedalling Fadhil who got his fingertips to the ball.

Aided by Fadhil’s inspiring performance, the Hougang boys began to up their performances.

Diallo tried to lift the spirits of the home crowd with a chip from 35 metres out in the 57th minute but to no avail.

Just as the Cheetahs were beginning to stamp more authority on the game, defender Syaqir Sulaiman’s two moments of madness almost caused his team.

He had just gotten a caution in the 73th minute for a late tackle before another rash challenge, which looked like a slap on Inui, saw him got receive a straight red from the referee.

There was much debate as to where the second offence took place but referee W.Ravisanthiran only awarded a freekick on the edge of the box, much to the frustration of the Albirex bench.

A smart save off the resulting setpiece situation and another from substitute Bruno Castanheira’s in the 80th minute ensured Fadhil was the undoubted man-of-the-match.

Then, the moment the suffering Hougang fans had been waiting for came.

Delgado swung in a freekick into the danger zone and Ratna got the decisive touch which left Matsushita gasping in mid-air.

Hougang was rocking. Led by Ratna and captain Shariff Samat at the back, the Cheetahs gallantly guarded their lead for the rest of the game to clinched full points.

Speaking to the sleague.com crew after the game, Aide was clearly delighted with his side’s overall performance.

He said, “I am very pleased with the defending, especially with only 10 men.”

“The boys played above themselves, noting the fact we had only 48 hours of rest from our last game.”

“If they can put up this kind of performance defensively as a team, I think we will be able to get a few more good results”, he added.

Despite the praise he had for Fadhil, the former national skipper did acknowledge that consistency has been a problem for his man and is something he has to help him with.

On the other end, the Albirex players were visibly gutted out by the result and perhaps all the more with the men in black.

White Swans’ coach Koichi Sugiyama said, “We prayed that we do not need to say anything against the referees this season.

“We wanted to be patient. But this is very regrettable”, he said in an unusually serious tone, while declining to elaborate further.

Despite the setback, credit must go to Coach Sugiyama as he got his troops back on the field to shake hands with their opponents, just as his charges were heading back to the dressing room in utter disappointment.

{Photo credits to Gale'11 facebook page}

Footy week-in-review: April 4-11

2011-04-11T04:26:00.004+02:00

Time to update some thoughts after so long:

S.League
-Jordan Webb with another winner for Hougang United as Cheetahs steals a win
-I thought SAF would win and they did. Indra is king but supposed absence of Qiu Li was crucial.
-Tampines come back, yet again, against Etoile. Again it was 2-1.

Europe
-Nagatomo started his first game for Inter.
-Roma reignite their European chase at Udine despite being underpressure for much of 1H. 90th minute winner from Totti.
-Juve come from behind in another goals galore afternoon kickoff fixture as Luca Toni finds the winner (first for Juve?)
-my Milan maintains chase but Ibra is off again
-Los Che whacks the hell out of a european overdosed Villarreal. Yellow submarines were never in the game.
-Young Boys, Rosenborg played good assists
-Lyon wakes up from slumber, so does Lisandro Lopez with a late late late^100 goal! surprisingly they still could afford a missed PK from Ederson, himself coming back from a 9 mth absence with a fully torn hamstring sustained on 1st cap with Samba boys

UCL
The UCL earlier in the week were mostly a no-brainer but not having a stronger will to participate in the action was the only sore point. Well looks like El Classico will play out a record no. of times this season. My Barca is defintely a shoo-in for La Liga, but i won't be surprise if Jose has something to show when he gets a another shot against his rivals. He's good at knockouts. But the man usually takes 2 seasons to whip up his team into contention of European glory, but the strong base of Real initially might shorten that time frame needed? Im sure he would have seen the 5-0 demolition more than 100 times, with that being his biggest defeat to his biggest rivals. Fireworks expected.

Charity Match: S.League All-Stars vs TAKE ACTION with Albirex Niigata (Singapore) Selection

2011-04-03T07:23:00.002+02:00

Jalan Besar Stadium was turned into a mini-Japan on Saturday evening as the local Japanese community turned out in force for the sell-out charity game between the S.League All-Stars and an Albirex Niigata Selection (ANS) side in aid for the recent disasters in north-eastern Japan.

The entertaining game was played in friendly spirit and ultimately ended 7-2 in favour of ANS. Amongst the goalscorers was FAS President - Mayor Zainudin Nordin and a 14-year old local boy by the name of Deen Martin. Albirex Singapore’s chairman Daisuke Korenaga also made a cameo appearance late in the game along a major Japanese donor who was unnamed.

Sources sleague.com spoke to revealed that the young boy is actually an orphan under the Muslimin Trust Fund Association who had been kindly sponsored by media company Comm Pte Ltd.

In the buildup to the game, three former Japan internationals – Hidetoshi Nakata, Masaaki Sawanobori and Masakiyo Maezono had been announced to the part of the ANS team. Joining them in the team on match day was another ex-Blue Samurai, 43-year old Tsuyoshi Kitazawa, who promptly started the game along Sawanobori. The technique of both men was evident and together with the trickiness and pace of compatriots Bruno Castanheira and Tatsuro Inui, caused the All-Stars side plenty of problems in the first period.

The opening goal of the game came courtesy of Inui’s lob in the 10th minute, after All-Stars keeper Shahril Jantan had blocked Castanheira’s initial attempt. All 11 players of ANS then got together to dedicate the goal to those who had lost their lives in the recent events.

Richard Bok’s All-Stars team had Vitor Borges and Fazrul Nawaz upfront from kickoff. The latter seemed to be in determined mood, possibly trying to prove himself in front of national coach Raddy Avramovic who was in the stand, after the Serb’s recent comments regarding the progress of the national forward.

Fazrul did well in a number of occasions in the first half and it was his blocked shot which led to the corner that resulted in his team’s equalizer.
From the uncleared setpiece, Carlos Delgado’s centre was met by Obadin Aikhena’s glancing header to tie the game up on 20 minutes.

In the 28th minute, ANS was awarded a spot-kick after Afiq Yunos’ foul on Castanheira. However, Shahril got down smartly to parry Sawanobori’s attempt. The SAFFC custodian was then accidently hurt in the ensuing rebound and had to be replaced by Izwan Mahmud soon after as a precautionary measure.

Eight minutes later, the Albirex Singapore connection worked wonders for the Selection team as Shimpei Sakurada and Inui sliced the All-Stars’ defence open for Castanheira to score. This time round, the players ran towards the bench and celebrated together in a sign of solidarity.

The All-Stars then stepped uo their performance but hesistant defending on the stroke of halftime allowed Kazuki Kobayashi to make it 3-1.

The second period saw the introductions of Nakata and Maezono amongst others while Richard made ten changes to his side.

As the All-Stars were still finding their feet, ANS’ Shotaro Ihata notched the fourth for his side despite Izwan’s best efforts.

Then in the 62th minute, the volume at Jalan Besar upped a notch as Nakata got his name on the scoresheet from a half volley after good work by Ihata to make it 5-1.
The former golden boy of Asian football showed glimpses of his glory days, as even showed a couple of backflicks to keep the fans entertained during his 45 minutes on the field.

On the All-Stars’ front, Jordan Webb unleashed some skills of his own – something he had promised the author the day earlier, as a couple of stepovers on the counter attack drew a freekick which Frenchman Hicham Bouchemlal took but could only find the side-netting.

With his side looking for some consolation goals, captain Paul Cunningham was pushing on from his defensive position to initiate a few moves but without much success.

The sixth and seventh goal for ANS for the evening then came late from the young Dean Martin. His first came from the penalty spot which Izwan never really moved and the second came after Nakata himself and put in a cross from the right.
In his short cameo, Deen was also flagged offside twice by the ever serious linesman, which denied the boy a clean run towards goal, as all on the ANS bench stood up and “complained” in disbelief to the official.

Between Deen’s two goals, the All-Stars hit the woodwork twice in quick succession through Webb and Mayor Zainudin.

However, the Mayor was not to be denied as the ANS defence half cleared the ball nicely to the path of Mr Zainudin who finished off a left-foot grounder to add to the All-Stars’ account for the evening.

Post match thoughts
Quizzed about the chance to play in this charity match, All-Stars’ Cunningham said, “It is a good opportunity to show that we care. “I think every continent was represented in this game, which shows that football is a global sport and that is great.”

Teammate Hariss Harun added, “I am happy to be here for a good cause. Everybody did their part and it is an honour to be here.”

ANS and Tampines' Japanese international, Akihiro Nakamura, himself a seasoned campaigner in the league said, “We cannot do big things, but we can play then people come and donate which is good for Japan.” His compatriot beside him, Home’s Kenji Arai, nodded in agreement.

With regards to the eventual scoreline, Hariss commented, “There were no crunching tackles. We played to have fun, to let the goals flow. You could see that with the little boy scoring.“Most importantly, we all had good fun and a good laugh”.

A replica Japan flag, with the message, “We will never walk alone” was unleashed at the final whistle by chairman Korenaga.

Hopefully the recent efforts of the FAS, S.League, TAKE ACTION Foundation, Albirex Niigata (Singapore) and the local community would have communicated this message across.

S.League All-Stars: Shahril Jantan (Izwan Mahbud 33’); Jeremy Chiang (Emmeric Ong 46’), Obadin Aikhena (Paul Cunningham 46’), Afiq Yunos (Walid Lounis 46’), Shaiful Esah (Sirina Camara 46’); Hariss Harun (Armanizam Dolah 46’), Carlos Alberto Delgado (Maxime Belouet 46’), Fazli Jaffar (K Vikraman 46’), Mustaqim Manzur (Jordan Webb 46’); Vitor Borges De Souza ( Fazrul Nawaz 70’, Zainudin 85'), Fazrul Nawaz (Hicham Bouchemlal 46’)
Sub not used: Jonathan Toto

Protectors starting to flex their muscles

2011-03-03T04:33:00.004+02:00

Home United showed their title credentials on Tuesday night as their short trip to Hougang yielded a win by five goals without reply.

The result meant Home provincially went top of the league while for the Aide Iskandar-led Hougang United, it is back to the drawing board as the team has now shipped five goals in each of their last two games.

His team was not aided by the sending off to defender Ratna Suffian for two bookable offences in the first half.

Protectors coach Lee Lim Saeng made two changes to his starting lineup from the last game, introducing Qiu Li and the hardworking Firdaus Kasman into the team. Both were to go on to make their mark in the game.

Hougang was missing their foreign legion upfront as Diego Gama and Mamadou Diallo were both sidelined with injuries and Jordan Webb was only fit to make the bench.

In their absence, Aide fielded a makeshift strike force consisting two of his more impressive players so far this season in rising star Basit Hamid and former Protector Azhar Sairudin.

Basit, though still raw in the professional league scene, did well against Kenji Arai and Valery Hiek as he caused the seasoned duo into making a few defensive errors.

One of it happened in the 30th minute as Basit stole the ball from an innocuous situation and set up Azhar who could only slot it into the side-netting.

It was a let off for Home. However, by this time, the Protectors had already taken the lead.

In the 18th minute, from a good 30 metres out, Firdaus unleashed a stunning blaster to the top corner which left Hougang keeper Fadhil Salim grasping thin air.

Qiu, cheered on by this family in the stands, was slowly coming into the game. A mazy run from his own half to the danger area in the 38th minute almost reaped rewards till he lost his footing just as he attempted to shoot from outside the box.

A minute later, centreback Ratna was shown a second yellow card following a tangle with Home’s Sufian Anuar and subsequently sent off.

There was still drama in the first period as Hougang was awarded a spotkick on the stroke of halftime after winger Fazli Jaffar was tripped in the box.

However, Argentinian import Carlos Delgado’s decent effort was equaled to by Lionel Lewis as the national custodian parried it clear.

Despite the setback, Hougang came out of the dressing room looking to tie the game up but Carlos’ volley in the 53th minute was again denied by Lionel after good work by Noor Ali.

Not to be outdone, Fadhil also showed his class by superbly denying Qiu twice in the 55th and 64th minute.
Home had got their second for the night in the 68th minute after a mixed-up in the Hougang defence following a Qiu cross off a corner situation resulted in an own goal ultimately credited to Azhar.

Fadhil was again called into action in the 78th minute to deny Jumaat Jantan.

A minute later however , the Hougang goalkeeper undone his good work as a blunder off a corner allowed substitute Firdaus Idros to head home for 0-3.

Home was comfortably in control at this stage and starting to display some flowing moves as they sort to take advantage of the space granted to them by a Hougang side searching for some scant consolation.

Qiu then got his name on the scoresheet in the 86th minute, coolly slotting home after cutting in from the left wing and playing a neat one-two with substitute Asraf Rashid.

Then in injury time, Asraf capped a flowing team move by curling home a sweet left footer from the edge of the box to seal the victory for his team.

Hougang almost gave their fans something to shout right at the end but Webb’s volley just missed the post after excellent play from Fazli.

In his post match interview, Coach Lee credited his players for the morale-boosting victory.
“Our play is not yet perfect, but hopefully we can improve it in training and go on to be champions”, he commented.
Lee also expressed satisfaction by the minutes contributed by his bench.

“They(substitutes) are beginning to understand my instructions, and how I want them to play”.

On the other end, Hougang coach Aide Iwas visibly dejected.

“I’m not happy with the result, especially with the shape of our defence tonight.”
“It is unacceptable to be conceding goals off comer situations, which is something we have worked on a lot in trainings.”

He also lamented on the penalty miss just before halftime, “If we had made it one all, Home would have been forced to come out to attack us. In the end, it really was not our day”, he added while accepting responsibility for the defeat.

The former national captain would have a few days to sort things out before bringing his team to take on Etoile next Monday night.

~ orginal text from source~

~picture sourced from Gale's fb~

Sundram's Sizzler: How to do a Bicycle kick

2011-02-18T03:54:00.004+02:00

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT: Following Sundram's instructions, Fairoz Hasan executes the perfect bicycle kick. TNP PICTURE: CHOO CHWEE HUA

WEEKEND warriors with a sudden urge for that overhead-kick wonder goal, don't try this at home, or on the unforgiving concrete surroundings of the street soccer court.

Or without the supervision of an expert exponent of the acrobatic art of the bicycle kick like V Sundramoorthy.

The Dazzler, who has been immortalised in the collective memories of Singaporean football fans thanks to his spectacular bicycle-kick goal against Brunei in 1993, took The New Paper through the paces of executing the perfect overhead kick.

In the interest of not injuring the now 45-year-old national footballing icon, Young Lion Fairoz Hasan was the man tasked to perform the demonstration at Jalan Besar Stadium on Monday, under the tutelage and watchful eye of Sundram himself.

As the Dazzler was keen to point out, the bicycle kick is usually executed when the simpler task of heading the ball is ruled out due to the height or trajectory of the ball.

He freely admitted that his glorious goal at the National Stadium in the 8-0 Division Two Semi-Pro League win against Brunei was a result of him 'overunning the ball'.

Explaining how to execute an overhead kick Sundram said: 'First, you have to adjust your body position so your back is facing goal.

'From there you have to judge the flight of the ball.

'For me, I usually lift my left leg up first before jumping and leaning backwards so that my back is flush with the ground while my right leg is straightened ready to connect with the ball.'

Balance

The 45-year-old explained that the reason behind the dual leg movement is that it helps with balance and generating power in the shot.

'You need to try get a clean connection with the instep because when you are in this position, you can't really direct the ball, you just need to hit it hard towards goal before the goalkeeper can react.'

The final step is the least glamorous, hitting the ground flat on your back, unaware if you've 'done a Sundram' or skied the ball towards the nearby lamp post.

In the Dazzler's case, it was an action that etched him into the consciousness of a nation, but in your case, please ensure it doesn't end up with you losing consciousness.

By DILENJIT SINGH (Feb 16 TNP)

*****************************************************************************

The tonic for weekend warriors. Something to try on a Sunday!

Brilliant 2 articles by TNP focusing on a EPL moment with a local touch. Great idea to start with!

Sundram: Mine was harder (TNP Feb 16)

2011-02-18T03:47:00.003+02:00

But former Lions star admits that Rooney's bicycle kick was on a completely different level
By Dilenjit Singh
February 16, 2011

MORE than any of the skilful moves he was renowned for, it is the one enduring memory fans have of the player they dubbed The Dazzler.

That V Sundramoorthy bicycle-kick goal against Brunei in 1993 during a Division Two Semi-Pro League match at the National Stadium. (the match finished 8-0 to Sgp and Sundram's BICYCLE KICK was i believed the last goal of the game)

It's a memory that has been recently re-invoked by Wayne Rooney's winning strike in Saturday's Manchester Derby.

That definitely was the case for the patrons at the Dog and Bone Pub where he watched the match, who told him as much after the goal.

But which goal is better?

Sundram refused to be drawn into picking a winner in this epic overhead kick face-off, but did suggest to The New Paper that his goal was more difficult to execute.

Said the 45-year-old: 'They are both good goals, but it's not for me to say which is better.

'Rooney's was a great goal, scored at a completely different level.

'In front of a full crowd, in a tied Derby match, with all the pressure he's been under, he changed the game in a split second.

Different

'Compared to mine they are different deliveries - his was executed from the side which, technique wise, is easier than when your back is facing goal (like against Brunei).

'When your back's to goal you can't really direct the ball, you just have to get it on target and hope it's powerful enough to beat the goalkeeper.'

Sundram's observations on the differences in technical difficulty of the two goals is further enforced by the fact that unlike the Manchester United man who seemed to connect with the ball with his shin, the Dazzler's hit the ball clean and true with his instep.

The Dazzler added that unlike Rooney who seemed, by his arms outstretched ta-dah celebration, to understand the magnitude of what he had just accomplished, the 45-year-old didn't know how good his goal was until he saw it on television later.

'When you do an overhead kick like mine you can't see the flight of the ball at all, I only knew it was a goal when I saw Malek (Awab) celebrating.

'You can't tell from the crowd's reaction because their shouts could mean it was just a good shot.

'So I celebrated it like a normal goal, it didn't occur to me how good it was until I saw it being replayed on TV numerous times afterwards.

'Rooney was sideways when he shot, and that's why he knew how good his goal was - you can see it in his celebration.'

Uni grads shun rat race to chase dreams - ST(7 Feb 2011)

2011-02-08T17:03:00.002+02:00

ONE has an economics degree and is working at the Ministry of Law. The other is an aerospace engineering graduate with no lack of options in the aircraft industry.

But, as far as NUS graduate Sudhershen Hariram and NTU alumnus Benedict Low are concerned, the future can wait.

Later this month, the pair will chase their S-League dream with Tanjong Pagar United, leaving behind potentially lucrative careers in their fields of study.

Their decision - derided at first by both family and friends - is a considered one. Football may not pay as much as their potential careers, but for them, passion is a priceless commodity.

'I've spent most of life doing what's expected of me, studying in a junior college, serving my national service and going to university,' said Low, who graduated from the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) last year. 'It's about time I did something I want to do, and that is to play football professionally.'

Low, a tough-tackling centre-back who models himself after Japanese World Cup midfielder Yasuhito Endo, and Sudhershen, a flying winger with both pace and stamina, were playing for their respective university sides when they were spotted by Jaguars coach Terry Pathmanathan.

In Sudhershen's case, he will make time for football while undergoing his internship at the Ministry of Law. He has applied to study law at the National University of Singapore later this year, and will be stretched for time as he juggles work, study and sport.

But the 24-year-old is inspired by the example of his friend Fabian Tan, the Gombak United defender who also grappled with university studies while playing professional football.

'He said it's tough, but worthwhile,' said Sudershen. 'This is an opportunity for me to realise my dream and I get paid while doing it. I have to give it a shot.'

The S-League is a road less travelled for better-educated Singaporeans. Since the league's inception, only a handful of players - like Home United goalkeeper Lionel Lewis and Tan - can boast university credentials.

In committing his future to sports, Low - the eldest of three children - had to overcome resistance from his father. Said the 25-year-old: 'His initial reaction was that it wasn't the best move for me. But he said it's my life and I had to decide what to do with it.'

Neither player would reveal their salary package with Tanjong Pagar, but the two S-League newbies are keen to put football ahead of monetary rewards. Said Low: 'You won't be rich, but you won't go hungry, and I'm okay with that.'

Both Sudhershen and Low are untested qualities in the league, but they have fitness and desire on their side. According to Pathmanathan, the duo passed their mandatory Beep Test at the first try, with Low securing the best score in the squad.

'Both of them work very hard and they mingle very well with all the other boys,' said the former national captain.

'I'm very impressed with their work attitude. Technically they can improve over time, but the important thing is that they are willing to work for the team.'

-article taken off ST 7 Feb 2011

Round up notes - Jan 2011(Asians, Milan, SLeague)

2011-02-02T16:42:00.003+02:00

1. What a signing, absolutely stunned that Inter swapped for Yuta Nagatomo (長友佑都),from Cesena in exchange of Davide Santon, who was given exposure by Senor Jose in his spell there but he has since faltered a bit.

Still a step up for Inter to swap for the stocky Japanese defender. excellent signing.

2. Similarly, Wolfsburg got SK's Koo Ja Cheol (具子哲) for something like under 2mil pounds? Based on his perfomances in the Asian Cup, McClaren could have gotten a steal.

3. Gracias Mr Galliani. brilliant work by the Milan VP to bring in 4 decent players at a very low combined fee. Van Bommel to ease the injury problems, 'Peter Pan' Cassano, versatile Urby Emanuelson and a promising Didac Villa. hopefully we can kick Spurs out of the UCL first b4 crashing out so that we can focus on the Scudetto! Forza Milan!

4. Our Sleague is kicking off soon. Scratching my head in recent days how Woodlands Wellington managed to bring in foreigners with decent/good CVs considering their supposely lower budget. Nonetheless may 2011 season turn out well.

Door reopened, time to treasure it Stags' No. 19

2011-01-09T08:57:00.005+02:00

Jan 9, 2011 Sunday Times
Going straight
Aliff has vowed to stay away from alcohol, be early for training and get home by midnight
By Chan U-Gene

Aliff Shafaein, who was released from jail on Tuesday, is happy that his former club Tampines Rovers have agreed to take him back if he passes the Beep Test. -- ST PHOTO RAJ NADARAJAN

No more alcohol. A midnight curfew. Show up for training half an hour early. And no more negative headlines.

S-League player Aliff Shafaein has vowed to turn over a new leaf after spending two weeks in jail for drink-driving offences.

'It was the lowest point of my life,' a solemn-looking Aliff told The Sunday Times.

The 28-year-old midfielder, who was released from jail on Tuesday - a week early for good behaviour - made all the wrong headlines when he was sentenced for a series of traffic offences, which culminated in a crash on the morning of the Singapore Cup final, last month.

The former Tampines Rovers vice-captain was unlicensed and uninsured.
He kept his club in the dark, and played in the match which saw Tampines beaten 0-1 by Thai club Bangkok Glass.

He also came under intense criticism from the public after his lawyer Mohamed Muzammil Mohamed said that the footballer hoped his 'ardent fans' would help him settle his fine of $10,500 to avoid another 48 days in jail.
But Aliff denied making such a comment.

'I was upset when I read the news reports. The people who know me well, they know that I would not ask for such a thing. This is my problem and I have to deal with it,' he said before a training session with Tampines, where he has played for the last seven years.
'Now I just want to put an end to the whole thing, get back to my simple life and concentrate on my football.'

Prison was a shock to his system.

He had to share his cell with six others, whom he believed were armed robbers and rioters.
'I thought that I would be placed with people with similar offences. Thankfully, we got along okay. Sometimes I gave them my food when I couldn't finish it.'

He thought he could cope with the situation and avoid paying the fine. But it did not take him long to change his mind.
Aliff asked his father to withdraw his (the player's) savings. But relatives also had to pinch in with another $5,500.
He intends to return the loan through monthly instalments of $1,000.
'I want to keep just enough money for myself to pay for bus and food allowances. I also want to go home as often as I can for meals to cut back on my expenses.'
Aliff, who lives with his parents and younger sister at a flat in Yishun, used to earn between $3,000 and $4,000 a month.

Tampines' chairman Teo Hock Seng has given him a second chance by offering him a new contract if he is able to clear the mandatory Beep Test, a fitness test which all S-League players are required to pass.
Aliff is pencilled in for his first attempt tomorrow.

He said: 'I am very grateful to have been given another chance. I am disappointed with myself for bringing disrepute to my family, friends, club and management.
'My mother now calls me after every training session. I have to assure her not to worry and that I can take care of myself.'

Said Tampines' chief striker Aleksandar Duric: 'I'm sure he is now a changed man. It is good that the club take him back. Personally, I am happy because we had a good partnership last season.'

Added former team manager Syed Faruk, who stepped down before the start of the coming season to expand his business: 'Aliff is not a bad person. He has a few bad habits, but is a mild-mannered boy who respects his elders and gets along very well with all the players.'
ugenec@sph.com.sg

Self-sufficient
'I knew I had to pay the fines on my own. This is my problem and I have to deal with it. The people who know me well, they still support me and they know that I would not ask for such a thing.'
Aliff Shafaein, refuting reports he asked his fans to pay his fines for him

Good at heart
'Aliff is not a bad person. He has a few bad habits, but is a mild-mannered boy who respects his elders.'
SYED FARUK, former Tampines team manager

Warm welcome

'I'm sure he is now a changed man. It is good that the club take him back. Personally, I am happy because we had a good partnership.'
ALEKSANDER DURIC, Tampines striker

---article off Sunday Times 9 Jan 2011-----

Afterthoughts:

A piece of pleasant news finally about local football after a calamitous week.

So did he or didnt he? Was something lost in translation? Anyway, I suppose its time to move on and hope the man can relight his career and win fans back with his football..

Previous blog entry: http://dreamteamsteam.blogspot.com/2010/11/if-you-get-another-chance-dun-waste-it.html

As stated, whoever can get Aliff's attention on my previous entry, please do so. I will be satisfied if my rummage through my old magazines to find his teenage years can help motivate "The naughty-Little Master" and inspire him to turn for the good.

~El Fenómeno, 9 Jan 2011~ signing off

Dream 2014 @ New Kallang

2010-12-30T17:46:00.004+02:00

Simple.

That I will be a part of a full capacity regularly doing a BOISTEROUS Rendition of Majulah Singapura sang with true passion when a TRUE RED-BLOODED Team Lions play each football game at the new Kallang in time to come.

Actually I won't mind a decent crowd, as long at magical atmosphere that is created by a singing crowd is there.

THE POWER OF NATIONAL ANTHEM

It might be the musical instruments involved.

But singing a country's national anthem together with a passionate crowd in a large capacity ground simply gives me goosebumps.

Nothing beats it i think, not even singing the Barcelona himne or Inno Milan at Camp Nou or San Siro. Even if it was against Real or Inter. Nothing.

Lets hope really, one day, we can do a better performance then how our neighbours do their Negaraku and Indonesia Raya.

In fact, the tunes of their national anthems are already well drilled in my mind, except for the lyrics. Even the French and Italian tunes are pretty nice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfyQT0BhJ1s (Bukit Jalil, 2010)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0PVvpZcWmI ( Bung Karno, 2007)

Untuk Bangsa dan Negara!

I am not a traitor December. Majulah Singapura!

2010-12-28T04:02:00.005+02:00

1) Well done Malaysia, we see the determination of the Tigers and the organisation and discipline instilled by K.Rajagopal. Too bad I didnt back them as I did in last year's SEA Games after I thought the missing players would affect them. Even in group stages, I felt Norhsharul and Safee are already the deadliest duo in SEA. They proved it further in knock out phases and can walk straight into the SEA Best XI. By the way, i somehow have a soft spot of national anthems and Negaraku is one of them.

2) Somehow I am not angry with Leonardo's appointment at Inter. Actually I think Moratti has made a smart move. He was instrumental in extending Milan's attacking play last season. Think he will fine tune Inter into a better offensive unit. Defensively they are no slouch just that The Wall's injury has caused a hole currently plugged by Cordoba whos decent. But hopefully Leo will still show respect to Allegri's team. Forza Milan!

3) 2010 S.league XI

Fadhil Salim (consider his defence is not of the top teams standard)

V. Hiek
Kenji Arai (stabilised team’s defence with his leadership in midseason)
Paul Cunningham

C. Bagnost (toss up between Bagnost or Yann, but Cyril seemed to cover more ground for me)
K. Boudjema
Imran Sahib (looks like for than one named him in their squad, so how Raddy?)
Chun Jae Woon
(A former Korean youth international, this mid-season signing showed his class in Home’s resurgence. A simple effective ball player with no fancy frills, Chun brought memories of former midfield maestros Vlado Bozinoski and Zsolt Bucs back to the league. A set-piece specialist adept with either foot, one of his classic attempts proved a decisive assist in Home’s 1-0 win against Etoile in September. The fact that some teams had to man-mark him in midfield speaks volumes of his influence)

Shahril Ishak

Mamadou Diallo(nifty footwork to kill any defence, but finishing still raw, to be improved)
F. Mendy

Hope all players raise their game for 2011! Oh it gotta be better, for everybodys' sake, especially Zai's head!

The Prodigal Son of Lion City speaks up

2010-12-19T06:33:00.005+02:00

It's time for Raddy to go

Former national star Ahmad Latiff opens up on the Lions, coach Raddy Avramovic and the recent criticism of the ISL

BEFORE Ahmad Latiff spoke on the subject of the national team and its current under-fire coach, he made sure to set the record straight:

'My disagreements with Raddy (Avramovic) aside, he's a good coach. He's won two Tiger Cups and brought fame and recognition to the national team.

'But after what happened at the AFF (Suzuki) Cup, why are all the other coaches saying he shouldn't go?

'When you know something is wrong, why don't you change it?'
Latiff, who recently signed a two-year contract with Tampines Rovers, has never been one to mince his words.

Once touted as the bad boy of Singapore football, the 31-year-old has had his share of falling-outs throughout his 14-year career - most significantly, the bust-up with Avramovic in 2006.

Latiff was dropped from the national team for swearing at Avramovic when he substituted him in a match against Iraq after just 25 minutes.

Immediately after the incident, the coach said he would never pick Latiff for the national team again, and has since kept his word.

Latiff has his side of the story of course, and while he never explicitly said that he regretted the incident, he still wants to play for Singapore, in the belief that he could still contribute to the team.

'Sometimes I think of calling Raddy, and asking him to let bygones be bygones, but I just can't do it.

'My (SAFFC) coach Richard Bok has also asked him about picking me, but maybe Raddy has his ego also.'

For now at least, Latiff finds himself in the viewer and critic's chair. And he sees many things amiss with the national team and local football on the whole.

Referring back to The New Paper article on how most coaches here insist Avramovic should stay, he said: 'All those coaches who said that are inside FAS (Football Association of Singapore).

'The only one who said he should go is Tohari Paijan, who is not under FAS. Think about it.

Young talent
'I just feel that somebody should speak up. I mean, how can he (Avramovic) say there are no talented young players here? If you don't try (new players), you will never know.'

Latiff also questioned the coach's decision to play defender Safuwan Baharudin in midfield during the AFF tournament when he had natural midfielders like Isa Halim in the squad.

He said: 'I was surprised to see the same players again. What's the point of having all those training tours and trying out so many new players when you still choose the same team in the end?

'It's not that those players are not good, but you also have to see who really wants to play.
'The problem is that some players have been in the team too long, and they have a tendency to think that the coach will always pick them.

'Even when they show up late, they get fined but nothing else happens - they still get chosen in the end.'

Having played in the Indonesian Super League (ISL) in 2001, Latiff also shared his opinions on whether the ISL clubs' sub-standard training regimes affected the players' (eight of them) fitness heading into the AFF tournament.

'Training over there is not standardised. There is no proper equipment or a gym and I don't think the club trainers are too advanced.

'But the travelling part is what really affects the players. The arrangements are not very proper.
'Once, we travelled a whole day on a ship because the club could not get a flight.'

But Latiff refused to say if the standard of football in the ISL was higher than the S-League.
Instead, he raised question marks over the recent trend of local players moving there.

He said: 'Indonesian clubs now have this Asean quota to meet. Singaporean players are cheaper than the other countries.

'If the clubs didn't have this quota, do you think they will look at our players? I don't think so.
'But our players should get better playing there. They play in front of a bigger crowd and under bigger expectations, because they are there as foreign players.

'Whether they bring that (improvement) to the national team is up to them. Everyone can demand 110 per cent from them, but there's no point if they don't want to give it.

'And this is what the coach must see. You can't just select the players with names and who play overseas - you have to choose the ones who really want to play.'

Credits TNP article by Ali Akbar Kasim, Image by Jovan Lim (soccerofsingapore.blogspot.com)

Lookback: Former kingpins of Singapore football

2010-12-10T14:58:00.006+02:00

Recollection of my younger days as an Eagle fan..

100 Goals Award: Mohd Noor Ali - The ever smiling joker of the pack

2010-11-22T15:18:00.009+02:00

Recapturing S.League everpresent Mohd Noor Ali's 15 year stint in our local league which cumulated in his 100 goal achievement in 2010.

Geylang United: 2000-2004
Champion in 2001

Geylang United: 2008-2009

Champion: RHB Singapore Cup 2009

Two S-League titles & 1 Singapore Cup with SAFFC (2005-2007)

Winner of Tiger Cup 1998

We often hear that a hardworking man will be bound to get his due reward. On S-League Awards Night 2010, a man who has given almost all his playing career to the S-League since its inception - Mohd Noor Ali, finally got his dues.

“It is always a dream for a player to come to Awards Night and receive an award. It is something that I have been looking forward to and it is nice to get it exactly at the age right now”, he beamed.

Then in his usual tongue-in-cheek style, he added, “I definitely can’t wait another 14 years to score another 100 goals right?”

Despite a paltry return of just three goals this season in all competition, the evergreen attacker was helped by his work in his earlier years as he became the tenth player to join an exclusive club of names who have notched 100 goals in the local game.

Noor Ali started out as a raw winger on the roster of Tampines Rovers when the league was formed in 1996. Impressive performances in the following seasons for the Stags earned him his international break which hit a high when he was part of the Tiger Cup winning squad of 1998. In 2000, eastern giants Geylang United came calling and along with his best friend Azhar Baksin, Noor Ali made the switch to Bedok.

A year later, with the Eagles under the tutelage of Malaysian Cup stalwart Jang Jung, Noor Ali clinched his first S-League medal as Geylang finally broke the stranglehold of the uniformed groups that year.

It proved to be his only piece of silverware at club level before his SAFFC stint between 2005-2007. Along the way, he also suffered a low when he was suspended for the entire 2003 season due to breaking of the players’ conduct rulebooks.

However, the man came back hungrier and with a point to prove, he raised his performances as he captained SAFFC to two more titles and a Singapore Cup trophy. Noor Ali then spent his next two seasons back at Bedok where he clinched another RHB Singapore Cup in 2009 before heading north to Woodlands for this recently concluded campaign.

Revisiting his goalscoring exploits in the earlier seasons, the man was adamant that it was his first stint with the Eagles which ultimately led him to this award.

“The best period for me was during my time at Geylang. That was the time where I scored a lot of goals, between 2000 and 2004”, Noor Ali said.

Over the years, we have seen less of his aggressive nature on the field that was common in his younger days. Perhaps married life and the captain’s armband has calmed him down more. Nowadays, Noor Ali is always seen as an easy going personality, the joker among the pack.

“I am always happy wherever I go, even at Woodlands now”, he quipped.

“After I came from my suspension up till now, I have keep on been winning things. I really have to thank all my family who have been supporting me”. Indeed family is always a word the man has on his mouth in recent years when the media reflects on his good performances.

As to upcoming plans for him, Noor Ali said, “Actually I can retire now, but I don’t intend to, as long as I can pass my Beep test”.

Unable to curb his itch for a dig at his good friend who stepped into the media zone, he exclaimed, “If Aleksander Duric can play till forty with his i/c (identification certification) change, I will try to play on!”

“But if there was an award for 600 misses, Aleks would have won it by now. He should have won the top scorer award if not for that”, Noor Ali chuckled.

“He is one player that we always look forward for motivation. It is an honour for me to go up on the same stage as him.”

Upcoming plans

On a more serious note, Noor Ali expressed his desire to continue in the game after his eventual retirement.

“I am doing my ‘A’ licence in March. But not too fast as I still want to enjoy the S-League.”

At the moment, he is keeping his options open to new offers and indicated that a player-assistant coach role would also suite him fine as it would be a good opportunity to learn the management side of the game.

“I am happy when I see the younger ones coming up and do well. I hope to pass on my knowledge and experience to the younger ones”.

National team

When quizzed whether his had regrets about not making more appearances for the national team, Noor Ali replied confidently, “I have no regrets in whatever I do. I quit the national team in 2005, I am happy that they are doing well and winning things. At that time, there were also a lot of young players coming in, which was a fantastic thing.”

“I have done my part for national team. I have played in the SEA Games, played and won the Tiger Cup. So right now it is time for me to pass down all my knowledge.”

Expect to see more of this wily veteran attacker for a couple of more years to come. With players sorting out their contracts in the coming weeks, would anyone dare to rule out a return to Tampines for a final Noor Ali-Duric combo in the 2011 season?

(courtesy of http://www.sleague.com/)

If you get another chance ,dun waste it ALIFF!

2010-11-22T14:20:00.017+02:00

I hope the recent incident on Cup Final morning can wake Aliff up. Just have this feeling perhaps the Stags will give him one final chance to wake up his idea, especially if they cant add on quality players. If Aliff is desperate, punish him with a lower fixed package but with add-ons if he changes for the better. If not, based on tactics, I would want to see him at Geylang playing the in the 'hole'. Coach Mike, Lieutenant Lim & General Seak have the potential to whip him into shape.

"The Little Master" definitely is talented, the pictures which i went to dig my magazines dates back to a 1995 street soccer tournament when he was selected to represent Singapore in Berlin and impressed the contestants there as well.

This was a player whom Jita Singh roped into his Police FC in the inaugural S.League season for his junior team at the age of 14 along with two 16 yr old Indra & Ahmad Latiff.

Aliff,

I think many of u hope to see u back on the pitch soon, a changed man. Don't let us down. I hope these recollection of images can spur you on to focus on doing what u do best, playing good football, entertaining fans while staying out of trouble.

Your fan

(to readers of this article, if u can get the man to read this piece, pls do so as a favour to me. Thanks.)

Room for improvement, Etoile FC

2010-11-11T04:53:00.010+02:00

First, congrats to Etoile and their fans on clinching the league title.

I know many in the local football fratenity would have preferred a local team to win it, myself included. I can understand their allegiance since we are Singaporeans and this is our league. The only thing I am disappointed is that the $100,000 prize money is not kept within a local club for bonuses or improving its finances.

Etoile have brought a new brand of football to the local league and challenged the teams here to do better, which is great for the league on the whole. If this allows local clubs, league/FAS top managment to crack the whip and strive harder to improve, I am sure local fans would gladly give up the 2010 SLeague trophy to Etoile.

Now to the not so nice things.

Why do Singapore football followers generally dislike Etoile so much as it seems?

(This section is really for Etoile fans, players, Johan, Patrick and now Jorg. I am not throwing cold water at your celebrations. But to seek your cooperation in improving our league)

From the start, it is easy to say bcos Etoile have been winning games, beating teams that we support, thats why we dislike you. This is definitely not true, at least for me.

To me, there is 1 CLEAR REASON why Etoile have not gathered the respect of Singapore fans and followers like Albirex have done.

Its the behaviour of players and coach.

So much that Etoile's football in general is impressive, there have too many an incident of dissent happening on the pitch and off the pitch.

Yes, refereeing standards sometimes, or most time sucks. But all teams suffer from it, not just you. I am not sure if its the language issues, but I doubt so when I watch Etoile games.

Recall the 1-1 with Tampines in March or April at Tampines Stadium. Etoile spent much time chasing the game after going down to sublime Qiu Li freekick. In the process of it, I saw players losing their heads, overly rough tackles and a ball boy getting f***** literally by Patrick. It was not still injury time that Patrick was sent to the stands and Michelini had equalised. Initially i put that down to a typical Frenchman's passion and emotions, especially when they were on the losing end. But having it too frequent is too convenient an excuse.

There you have it, u made your first enemies at Tampines.

What was to follow during the season were issues like arguing with referees, complaining, acts of dissent and diving.

When decisions go against Etoile, it was the same players who would be making noise. From rightback, you can bet Julien Delatraz will be the first at the scene, having a go at the officials. Leclerq, Lakehal, Vershave are the others.

Diving - there is only 1 culprit. So much so a new chant of "Frederic Mendy's falling down, falling down" came by.

Patrick needs to stop his incessant arguing on the sidelines. I do agree that the 'closing of one eye' by the officials sometimes encourage him to go on and on. There are proper ways to lodge complaints. But do we expect higher standards for a professional who hails from Europe?

Talks now are that there will be major reshuffle of the team, but whoever that comes it, Etoile need to do better in their behaviour, Patrick included, especially now that Etoile will be the defending champions in 2011. You got to show some standards. I challenge you to be in the top 4 in the 2011 Fair Play table.

Soccer Marathon 7 & 8 Nov

2010-11-08T06:00:00.006+02:00

Started with the Asian Games soccer where the Cubs played Qatar in the opening group game.

Izwan, Safuwan in defence and Nazrul on the left wing impressed me aided by the more experience Shahril who led the line. The Asian handicap was around +1.25 but the Cubs did well to overcome it.

Was hoping to see the boy I tout as Singapore's version of Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere - Hafez Abu Sujad (above) in action. Too bad he didnt appear. I have watched him a few times and have been thoroughly impressed by this boy.

Overall a good team performance by the Cubs despite a difficult last 25 mins where the Cubs were under absolute intense pressure. We actually had the Chinese crowd behind us for much of the game. Cries of 'Xing jia po jia you!' (Come on Singapore!) could be heard during attacking set piece situations.

Current Chinese coach and ex-Tiong Bahru CSC striker Gao Hongbo was also in attendance.

Dutch Co Adriaanse, the Qatar coach, quoted in Lianhe Zaobao criticised the Cubs performance, he commented that we should have stayed in the hotel had we wanted to play tat way.

Wait a minute, didnt Bert Van Marwijk stifle Spain in the WC final too?

But hey, a result is a result, when you support your HOME COUNTRY, that is all it matters! Play is secondary to me when I support my nation. As a club supporter u can choose, but u don't go around choosing a home country to support right?

Come on Cubs, continue to play as a team and try progress as far as possible and gain the exposure to big stage games. This will definitely help in future.

***************************************************************************
Summary:

Big guns in Europe generally faltered their handicaps except in Spain
- Bayern, MU, Chelsea, Arsenal, Ajax, Inter, Lazio
-Resolute Magpies performance hindered Gunners
-Ranieri completes a week of turnaround in fortunes as his twin strikers on-loan Borriello and Vucinic converts a pair of penalties
-Zenit falls 2 behind in 11mins, equalises by 15min, and go on to score 3 in the 2nd half to win 5-2.
- Twin terror Falcao and Hulk leads Porto to 5-0 thrashing of Benfica

Excerpts from Patrick Barclay's 2005 book: Mourinho - Anatomy of a Winner

2010-10-27T15:52:00.002+02:00

1. Why did Mou behave the way he did on his 1st return to Barcelona as Chelsea mgr?
The answer came from conversation with Van Gaal. Although Mou will not admit it, he had unfinished business with the Catalan club. For all his years there gave him the perfect grounding for a top coach, he was often treated dismissively in Barca, referred to among the club's large media entourage (& even some within the club) as "The Translator". Thats why he boasted about having won as many titles as Barca (as of 2005).

2. After the league cup final with Liverpool:
He did smt different from other mgr. He toured the dejected Pool ranks. By grativating towards the pitch, was he seeking the share of limelight he never had as a player?
In essence, answer is yes. There is a passage in the book he produced with his journalist friend Luis Lourenco about how when he returned to Benfica as Porto coach, he milked the abuse of a huge crowd before the match: 'I made a point of walking on alone, before the team... It was fantastic, an amazing feeling. I had never been a first class player who could feel, for eg, what Figo had felt upon returning to Barcelona (with RM), ans so i had no idea what it would be like to have 80,000 people whisting and jeering at me. I believe tat when we are mentally strong, pp who seek to intimidate and disturb us wd have exactly the opposite effect. Upon hearing he whistles and jeers... I felt as if I were the most important person in the world.'

3. Poor marks in Maths disqualified him from entering uni at the first attempt

4. He listened intently to philosophy lectures of Manuel Sergio, whom he began to derive a fascination for playing with people's emotions. The prof remembers him as a voracious student: 'He looked like a cat catching birds.'

5. Hello Mister, Im Jose Mourinho - this was his introduction to Sir Bobby at Lisbon
About his translation, Sir Bobby said, 'I always had the feeling that he was saying it the way i would have said it. That was his knack. The players responded as if I told them. I could see. It was the same reaction.

6. He advised Sir Bobby to take up an offer from Porto.

7. He split his UEFA coaching licence into 2 parts in 1988 and 2000 (normally a coach does 2 parts in consecutive summers) as he was spending the rest of the years learning at football's university of life, and he worked daily with the likes of Figo, Rivaldo & Ronaldo. It were the 2 years he was between jobs.

8. He never bragged abt his achievements in 2000 when he did the second part, even in the pubs with his mates after finishing the day. He listed in his application he had been "assistant coach" to Robson at Porto and that was not taking too much of a liberty, though techincally he was not. But his work actually emcompassed more than that.

9. Key figures in Barca's dressing room came to accept he had a lot to offer when he was Sir Bobby's assistant. eg skillfully edited videos showing opp's strengths/weakness. This was appreciated among those, by Pep Guardiola. Jose built up a relationship with Pep knowing Pep's status at the club.

10. He got along well with Hristo Stoichkov too.

11. He was pissed when Barca moved Sir Bobby upstairs to make way for Van Gaal. Sir advised LVG to keep him, and Mou benefitted bcos LVG got him to do more work as LVG was one of those who like to stand back, unlike Sir Bobby who was totally hands on.

Overhaul of 2011 S-League Season

2010-09-09T03:20:00.025+02:00

[dated 9 Sep, updated 23 Dec] edits are in blue

Today's editor Leonard Thomas has said it right. "Zainudin can invite current and potential sponsors, ex-players, officials, fans and even members of the media, among others, for a brainstorming session. It wouldn’t hurt — it could throw up some interesting suggestions, maybe even a masterstroke. Whatever conclusion the decisionmakers at football headquarters come to after the last week, it is clear something decisive needs to be done, before the SLeague does slip into a crisis."

Yes these stakeholders will be the one who will tell you the problems, not those in the JBS office.

It seems that every September/October the past few seasons, we are always discussing how to solve problems and discussing forever.

Thats why this time, I am putting my head on the chopping board - to come up with solutions for the main problems.

The Crux Issue: Dwindling attendance/lack of support/awareness

The biggest problem we are facing now is the situation of a lack of support/awareness of the league. In the event of this, I say changing just the league's software is not enough. A $500K/month 'star player category' Park Ji Sung will still be mistaken as the $5k/month 'normal foreigner' Park Kang Jin at Orchard Road.

We need some change in the hardware of the league.

Proposed Solution (A) : Change of match schedule

Assuming 12 team, average 6 matches/week

Proposed kickoff times:
1 x Wed – 730pm
1 x Fri – 730pm (live)
2 x Sat – 515pm, 730pm
2 x Sun – 515pm, 730pm (live)

Why?
It is simple logic. We already have limited fan support for the local league. Why further limit this supply of fans by playing so many games on weekdays when Singaporeans live their hectic lifestyle? Which bloodly league in the world plays every day throughout the week?

My idea of 2 games on Sat & Sun each. This would give chance for people to catch games on wkends. Families can watch games together before or after dinner, providing options than to throng shopping malls or showflats. Have cheaper packages for family of 3,4 or 5 perhaps.

We should not contest with the EPL for fans since its going to be a one-sided affair. Hence the option of 515pm games. This allows a 2 hr break for a 10 or 11pm EPL game on telly, assuming you give up the early kickoff EPL game. Anyway not all EPL games on telly are good right, so OUR league will offer another option - a REAL 'LIVE' experience.

515 game save floodlight costs too as game should end at 7pm. Should be bright enough still.

Telecast game on Sunday live on Ch 5. People who laze around at home on Sundays can watch it, rather than some lousy movies.

Keep the Friday night live games. Its the end of the week and more likely to attract students/working population.

Sat games, after the increased media exposure measures stated in the next section, should be the benchmark to test if they have yielded results. They MUST draw crowds, especially if there are no big EPL games.

A game on Wednesday to make up the quota, which allows for teams to have enough rest between each round of games.

Live games must be meant to publicised the league and get crowds to the stadium eventually.

Proposed Solution (B): A 'fireworks' Curtain Raiser to kick off the season on a Sunday

515pm: YOG team vs Singapore U17 or U18
730pm: S-League East vs S-League West

Why?
Aim is to use the fame of the YOG team as an attraction, introduce crowds to the U17/U18 team. This will draw their friends, families and Singaporeans who followed the YOG football games. After that game comes the main show, splitting the SLeague club teams evenly into a East vs West matchup, just like in year 2000 at Bishan Stadium.

Introduce the 'star' players before the East v West game ala NBA finals style - Player run out waving to fans.

Make Straits Times have a 1 page coverage of the curtain raiser evening.

Proposed Solution (C): Teams to adopt a few neighbourhoods towns as in 1996

Why?
To get residents to back the team that plays in the vicinity of their homes. Make it THEIR team. There is a reason why hardcore Tanjong Pagar and Sembawang Rangers fans exists that call for their return. Its because they identified with THEIR clubs. This take time to build and must be cultivated.

In 1996, clubs were somewhat set a geographic sector to try reach out to fans. But this was not closely followed.

Get players out to shopping centres of all their neighbourhood towns/bus/mrt interchanges to raise awareness before the season kickoff, and maybe once or twice more along the season.

Have tie-ups with neighbourhood shopping centres within the vicinity. Liase with landlords like AsiaMalls (Hougang Mall) or sports related tenants like Sportslink. Advertising efforts could be put up in within the tenant space or centre itself to publicise upcoming fixtures and posters of certain more established players who can be used as 'ICONs' for the football team.

In return, billboards of these brands and shopping malls can be put up or even be attached on the team's jersey.

Players must realise the importance of raising their own profile and reputation. That is the way that they can attract potential brands to engage them as ambassadors and perhaps to increase their own playing income as they become more well known.

CCCs and RC leaders and members could be rope in to help, rather than just wasting time having useless meetings and enjoying catered buffets afterwards.

Proposed solution (D): Ticketing issues

Recently, there have been calls for free entry to be given to the public for Sleague games. I feel that this should not be so.

WHY?
This also cheapens the Sleague and make people think lowly of it. Singaporeans have the mentality that things which are free means not tat good. SO it only spoils the image.
My suggestion is to perhaps reduce the $5 entry to $3. Since clubs have said that income from this source is not major, I think that lowering it slightly can perhaps motivate masses to give it a try. As mentioned earlier, FAMILY PACKAGE could be made available for wkend games.

My reason is that sometimes, even I admit that you go to matches not sure of what kind of quality you will get. With respect to a $7 movie ticker, Singaporeans might think $5 is kind of expensive if there is not much entertainment value. Thus, I would think lowering the tickets first, try improve things on the pitch, and raise the pricing as we continue OUR local league.

Additional amendments to current measures:
i. shift Highlights programme to say weekday night 10 or 11pm
ii. work harder to bring in better foreigners, improve pitches
iii. identification of the 12th team as 'Somebody' must go

Mr Zainuddin, if you let the media and fans out there know that you are willing to set up a meeting with the matchday Sleague media and fans to discuss our suggestions with you personally (since we are people on the ground). I have no doubts your meeting room will be filled. Let us know the time and venue. We do not need catered buffet, light refreshments will do.

*Opinions are welcomed.

S-League Foreign Review - Albirex, ETOILE, X

2010-09-09T02:37:00.019+02:00

I think creative juices of many have been stirred following the fighting fracas and the reports of low attendences.

Fish out of the water has done a summary of the foreign teams @
http://fishoutofwaterspfc.wordpress.com/2010/09/08/s-league-foreign-clubs-walk-of-shame/

Totally agree that Albirex has been the benchmark for foreign teams with their colourful fans, innovative website, community involvement and marketing. But this season's Albirex give me the impression that they don't really have any real stars among them, which is the only problem I can think of about the Japs considering names like Wakui, Okayama to Takase used to flow out of me in the past.

Etoile, which many fans love to hate, have been great too. Challenging for the title, nice football, good marketing, colourful Johan, chubby Patrick with some French babes. They have added new ingredients to our league which were not there previously. Even bad press about their $ issues are good media exposure too. So too news of $10 tickets, fireworks and clubhouse.

The French flair have influenced the league so much that some local fans hate them cos they are winning, some hate them bcos of their colourful characters, some hate them bcos the players sometimes show too much of their French passion on the field that they do certain things which we dun like to see. But man, have we missed our Venga & Simunic don't we? others miss their Jose M..

Cyril Bagnost & Kevin Yann impressed me the most with their play and professionalism. Good players to watch, so too Karim Boudjema.

I hope Albirex and Etoile will stay in the league going forward.

Earlier in the season, I said 'X' will do better than its previous counterparts as they have good credentials in China and they were the feeder team, unlike the previous ones. No doubt their play have been good at times with their decent technique, but with the fighting incident and the other 'niggling' things I have read and observed, I say good riddance to Chinese teams for OUR local league.

I say boycott Yishun Stadium till end of the season to make our point to FAS.

** Monsieur Vallee, if you are reading my blog, drop me a msg below! I will be happy that you are reading it! HAHA

Sg Pools staff to work overtime tonight!

2010-09-07T17:44:00.003+02:00

Abandoned match between Young Lions and Beijing tonight?

Ticket holders pray hard. Sg pools will probably be busy accessing the bets it received for the match before they decide which decision they can take to make most $.

As usual i bring u guys back to history:

2007: Woodlands Wellington vs Tampines Rovers (refer previous entry)
http://dreamteamsteam.blogspot.com/2010/07/2007-walkover-woodlands-v-tampines.html

2010: The way they set the top scorer rules for WC 2010 Top scorer

YOG - Local Football Fever

2010-08-25T16:59:00.003+02:00

(delighted Hanafi, while Kadir was teary and proud of the boys in his interview)

The young cubs have now secured a bronze for Singapore. A good win which confirmed that many of them, especially defender Dhulkilan Jeevamani will indeed be stars in the making. Without discrediting the rest of the backline, I think this youngster is the best defender among all, even better than Lightfoot.

Pity the boys could not test themselves against Bolivia and gain some experience playing South Americans opponents. I would have them lose the final and gained that bit for their footballing career. But finishing on a high by winning a game is also not too bad lah.

Perhaps its the 'curse' that has struck Singapore football teams in recent years - that is losing to teams when we are the 'favourites', and playing at home with the 'OCCASIONALLY STRONG' support.

Lets hope that going forward, the local crowd will provide good support to our Lions and Cubs alike in all their games.

Untuk Bangsa Dan Negara, Majulah!

Sengkang 1 Beijing 0 : Mamadou extinguishes the ghosts of Hougang

2010-07-19T09:02:00.003+02:00

On a cooling Sunday evening at the Dolphins’ home in Hougang, it took a thumping header from Guinean wonderboy Mamadou Diallo (right) via a Duncan Elias’s set-piece special three minutes from time to decide the match as the Dolphins secured a precious 1-0 victory over Beijing Guoan Talents.

This finally ended their five-month wait for a second home win this season. Their last home victory had come in February when they defeated Gombak United in their opening home fixture.

It was also the first win Aide Iskandar’s charges have achieved since April, thereby allowing them to leapfrog past Woodlands Welington into 11th place in the league standings.

Perhaps it was fitting that the most exciting player on the field – Mamadou, had a say in the final proceedings as he was no doubt the star of the game.

Sengkang started the match brightly and in the fourth minute, captain Nor Azli Yusoff slid Mamadou through and the tricky youngster showed nifty footwork to evade four defenders before firing in a shot that got the home crowd off their seats. Unfortunately, Beijing defenders recovered to deflect the ball for a corner.

Minutes later, the Guinean was at it again, this time stealing possession from Zhang Xiaolong and setting up new boy Mojtaba Tehranizadeh or ‘Moshee’ as he is affectionately known. The Iranian in turn returned the pass into the dangerzone which Mamadou just missed connecting to.

Moshee was making his home debut in front of the Hougang faithful and showed plenty of his well-known aggression and workrate in a role just behind Mamadou.

The Talents took 17 minutes to test Dolphins’ custodian Fadhil Salim when forward Zhang Ye showed good control with his chest before rifling a shot which Fadhil equaled to.

Beijing was slowly getting into the game and Fadhil had to be alert on two occasions in the 31st minute to keep his net intact.

The danger signs were mounting and in the 36th minute, Fadhil had his woodwork to thank as dangerman Teng Bin’s stinger from 25 yards off a throw-in situation crashed against the frame of the goal. From the ensuing corner, defender Yu Tianzhu’s header skimmed the crossbar as the Dolphins survived yet another scare.

On the stroke of halftime, Mamadou displayed his sheer persistence when he somehow kept a stray pass in play when players and spectators alike thought it was heading out of bounds. After retrieving the ball, he then charged towards goal with his electric pace in a three-on-one situation, ultimately winning a corner for his efforts in the last play of the first period.

Beijing had a great opportunity to take the lead on 48 minutes when they were awarded a spot-kick after Sengkang left-back Duncan Elias’ mistimed his tackle.
Key midfielder Wang Hao stepped up but Fadhil went down well to his right and pulled off a stupendous save to keep Sengkang in the game.

The save lifted the spirits of the Dolphins as they pushed harder in search for a win while the Talents seemed to experience a drop in confidence in their subsequent play.

Mamadou continued to cause the Chinese side problems with his pace and determination and almost sneaked a goal in the 54th minute but his left foot shot from a turn just lacked power.
As the game wore on, mistimed challenges increased and some of the Beijing players went down with cramps, a reminiscence of the earlier part of the season.

Sengkang then produce their best play of the night in the 84th minute when neat buildup play between Mamadou and Farizal Basri saw substitute Ashley Ow firing in a shot which just went a little too high.

Three minutes later, the deadlock was finally broken as Mamadou leaped high out of nowhere to finish off Duncan’s delightful corner play.

The Guinean celebrated by running half the length of the pitch to celebrate with his team’s hero at the other end, Fadhil, as the rest of his teammates joined in.

Sengkang held on for the remainder of the game to clinch long awaited win which had Coach Aide beaming finally.

He exclaimed, ‘I am pleased with the three points tonight. We prepared well for the whole week for the game and the players gave 100%. The players kept believing in themselves and are now playing with more confidence’.

Below (from left ): toned down celebrations, Aide with some of his fans/supporters who lifted the atmosphere at the stadium with their innovative chants. hopefully more of these Man Utd fans will catch the local games too.

Sg Pools did it again!

2010-07-13T16:47:00.001+02:00

SINGAPORE POOLS
In the event of a Dead Heat, the Prize is calculated by dividing the Stake placed on the Selection involved in the Dead Heat by the number of competitors or players who achieved the same result, and multiplying the results by the Odds

OTHER BOOKMAKERS

20 THE DEAD HEAT RULE If there are two or more winners, the payout odds (less the stake) are divided by the number of winners and settled accordingly with the stake returned.

SEE THE DIFFERENCE? REMEMBER WOODLANDS WELLINGTON VS TAMPINES ROVERS in 2007? The walkover match thanks to the inept referee?

Sg pools payed out the odds by the default scoreline and not refund the bets like the other bookmakers that time!

ONCE AGAIN SG POOLS HAS MADE A FOOL OUT OF ITSELF!

FUCK YOURSELF SG POOLS!

2007 Walkover - Woodlands v Tampines aftermath

2010-07-13T16:42:00.002+02:00

Recap of the great decision by Sg Pools in the wake of the 2010 WC topscorer fracas.

> Subject: Re: Web feedback - 2-0 BY DEFAULT> To: **@hotmail.com> From: customercare@sgpoolz.com.sg> Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 15:44:51 +0800> >

Dear Sir> > We wish to inform that the award of the 2-0 result to Tampines is fully in
> accordance with the Rules for Football Betting (SCORE & STRIKE!) posted in
> our website on http://www.singaporepools.com.sg/Common?page=rules
> > Under clause 2.1, it states that :> "Full Time Result" means the result of a Match as at the end of Regulation> Time.
For the avoidance of doubt, the Full Time Result of a Match shall not> include any goals scored in extra time or as a result of a penalty> shoot-out; and>

> "Regulation Time" means 90 minutes or such other time as may be determined> by the referee or the relevant governing body for football or the organiser> of the Match or Event (as the case may be) to be the duration of playing> time for a Match, including stoppage time and/or such other time as may be> added by the appointed referee for the match for playing time that is lost> for various reasons, including but not limited to substitutions of players,> injuries to players and deliberate wasting of time by players. For the> avoidance of doubt, Regulation Time excludes any allocated extra time,> sudden death time or time for the execution of penalty shootouts, and where> a Match started but is called off (including but not limited to> abandonment, postponement, suspension and cancellation) for any reason> whatsoever and the referee or the relevant governing body for football or> the organiser of the Match or Event (as the case may be) announces or> declares that the score at the time the Match is called off shall stand as> the Full Time Result, then the duration of the Match that was played shall> be deemed to be Regulation Time.> >

For further clarification, please call Customer Care at 6216 8188.> > >

Yours sincerely> > Priscilla Teo> Executive Officer (Customer Care)
customercare@sg > poolz.com.sg >

To > 13/09/2007 customercare@sgpoolz.com.sg > 11:03 PM cc > > Subject > Web feedback - 2-0 BY DEFAULT > > > > > > > > > > > Name: Mr G> Email: **@hotmail.com> Daytime Contact No.: 96703744>

Subject: 2-0 BY DEFAULT>

Feedback: Singapore Pools made a big error in its decision to recognize the> 2-0 result in favour of Tampines that night. I could understand FAS and the> S League's decision in awarding the game to Tampines that night as it was> Woodlands who refused to play on. The key issue that the 2-0 scoreline> awarded to Tampines BY DEFAULT.> > This decision is similar to a team fielding an ineligible player in a match> and hence the league awards a default scoreline to the opposition team. In> this case, due to Woodlands team walking off, the league awards Tampines a> default scoreline. It was purely accidental that Tampines was leading by a> 2-0 scoreline at that time.> > Hence it should have refunded all bets for the match due to the match being> abandoned.> > In this instance, Singapore Pools has simply HIDE behind the backs of their> big brothers (i.e FAS and Sleague), while taking the easy way and> PROFITABLE way out by claiming it paid out the bets due to the league> awarding the 2-0 scoreline.

WC Final - notes

2010-07-11T05:40:00.003+02:00

Chance for Dutch captain Giovanni Van Bronkhorst to end on a high before retiring.

Or will it be his ex-Barca teammates CARLES PUYOL & XAVI's last chance to complete their ULTIMATE football medals collection? It will probably the Catalan duo's last World Cup, so its now or never..

World Cup, Euro, UEFA Champions League, FIFA World Club Cup, leagues + cups

******************************************************************************
I suspect if Spain cock up, it will be most likely due to the inadaptness of Sergio Busquets and Xabi Alonso (the player I always termed a luxury player).

Cesc Fabregas must definitely be first choice in front of the luxury player.

Made-in-Catalunya

2010-07-08T03:13:00.002+02:00

Made-in-Catalunya goal causes chaos in a local neighbourhood. Sorry neighbours for the early morning call! VISCA BARCA! VISCA CATALUNYA!

Captain Courageous Carles Puyol stuck shit in the faces of some deriders who labelled him a weak link to the Spanish rearguard. Take that! After the goal, it was as if we saw a Espana version of the Fabio Cannavaro of WC 2006. Shaggy hair was impeccable!

note: (From my observation, teams that thrash others hardly ever win the ultimate prize in a knockout competition. What more one that walloped 3 teams by 4 goals?)

BBQ the Octopus & final hope

2010-07-07T08:28:00.003+02:00

Lame shit.

Let me give you my theory. If I am not wrong, this assy octopus is fed with 2 types of food.

Against Australia, it tried the 'german' food. Against Serbia, it changed its choice to test the 'second type' of food.

It then decided that the 'german food' is nicer. So subsequently it ate the 'german' food against Ghana, Inggeland and Argentina.

Now it is tired of the 'German' food. So it ate the 'other type' of food this time.

Lady luck has been shining on the Dutch that with a crap defence, they may still end up champions.

Predictions have gone awry, one final hope now is for Pep's successor in the heart of the Barca midfield to achieve the whole collection of medals a professional footballer dream to attain in a career & surpass the achivements of Bixente Lizarazu, Zizou and 'Turbo' Henry.

Glen Johnson is a HERO!

2010-07-02T02:51:00.003+02:00

Ok this has come a bit late as I have been busy to post.

But has any report or article point out the role that Glen Johnson played in England's round of 16 defeat?

If you recall, for the third German goal that killed off all hopes for the Three Lioness, Glen had the opportunity to make a tactical foul on Ozil or Podolski (either one of them) as the German player ran sideways past him. HE WAS NOT THE LAST MAN.

He didnt and that pass led to the Germans' third.

Guess what, later in the game, our dear Glen got a yellow card instead for some dumb foul. Then, the TV screen showed, "Misses next game". WOW!

How about that man Glen? Dumb or selfish? Both?

I don't even want to mention the name of a certain German who missed the Cup final for his team, bcos they are of a different league altogether.

Kudos to Glen!

Back in Green for a night

2010-06-23T05:22:00.000+02:00

Kim wins the duel of Koreans as Eagles snap winless streak

Tuesday night’s Great Eastern-Yeo’s S-League match saw two Koreans who recently joined their respective teams in the mid-season transfer window go head-to-head.

After ninety minutes, it was clear which Korean had stamped his authority on the game. The name more local fans would be familiar with - Geylang’s Kim Jae Hong, won the battle hands down as the attacking midfielder created the first goal before adding his name to the scoresheet, leading Geylang United to a comfortable 2-0 victory at Hougang Stadium.

His counterpart, Sengkang’s An Jae Cheul, huffed and puffed in the middle of the park but hardly made an impact before being substituted in the second half.

No doubt Geylang fans will be glad to see Kim back with the side as the Korean had played a key role in the Eagles’ cup triumph last season with his penetrating runs and crucial goals.

With this performance, it looks like the Eagles’ managment have done a good piece of business in replacing the injury-hit Miroslav Latiak, who has been bothered with groin problems all season,
The win allows the Eagles to snap a five game winless streak and move up to fourth place in the league standings.

Sengkang coach Aide Iskandar had sprang a surprise in his line-up when he paired a half-fit Jordan Webb with livewire Mamadou Diallo upfront, probably seeking to exploit the Geylang’s defence with sheer pace.

However, even before his plan could take effect, his team found themselves already a goal down.
Off a Syed Thaha throw-in from the left after just fifty seconds into the match, Kim dazzled his way past a couple of defenders into the Sengkang penalty area. After some pinball in the box, teammate Itmi Dickson finally found space to thump the ball into the roof of the net to leave the Sengkang players shell-shocked.

With a goal advantage, the Eagles sat back a little but still managed to control much of the game.
Itimi was proving to be a handful early on as his pace and trickery left the Sengkang defenders backpedalling on many occasions in the first period.

At the other end, it was Mamadou who was causing the Eagles backline problems with his darting runs.

In the 36th minute, the Guinean youngster won a freekick which he himself executed. The swerving attempt was good but Eagles custodian Yazid Yasin proved his worth with a good save.
Three minutes earlier, a misjudgement by Shahir Hamzah had almost led in Kim but Dolphins’ keeper Fadhil Salim was alert and diverted the Korean’s half volley away with his legs.

Just before the break, Sengkang had two good opportunities to equalize.

First, midfielder Sobrie Mazelan struck a fierce volley that just missed Yazid’s righthand post. The chance came after Webb had set him up well from leftback Duncan Elias’ sweet cross.
Then in the 44th minute, Webb took on a few Geylang defenders before feeding Jalal.

Unfortunately, the winger was called for offiside else he would have been through on goal. It was a let-off for the Eagles’ defence.

The Dolphins came out of the dressing room looking for the equaliser and almost got it in the 48th minute had their own Korean An not been so wasteful.

Webb showed excellent control and acceleration as he pulled down a high ball before dashing down the by-line. His pullback was brilliant but An somehow blazed over from ten yards. It was probably the home side’s best chance on the night.

Next up to threaten Yazid in the Geylang goal was Duncan, whose usual set-piece routine caused chaos in the Eagles’ penalty area on a couple of occasions.

Geylang on the other hand, was relying on their swift counter attacks with Kim and half-time substitute Yasir Hanapi leading the charge.

It was through one of this combination in the 56th minute which striker Peter Tomko almost profited, however, his marker Shahir did well to deflect the Slovak’s attempt wide.
A minute later, a poor kickout by Fadhil proved costly for the Dolphins.

Geylang wingback Syed Fadhil intercepted the kick and played a long ball down the middle which the pacy Kim reacted quickest and latched on to. The Korean took a touch with his left boot to control before finishing clinically into the Sengkang goal with his right.

It was the Eagles’ fleet footed attacker’s first goal since returning to the Eagles early this month.

Though two goals down, the Dolphins continued to show effort through their hard running but was let down their passing and decision making, especially in the last third of the field.

On the few occasions that Mamadou, Jordan, and gang conjured up promising moves near the Geylang goal, a combination of uncompromising defending by the Geylang defenders and alert goalkeeping by Yazid kept the Dolphins at bay.

In fact, it was Kim who had the best chance to get the game’s third goal towards the end of the game when a smart inter-change with Yasir and Tomko saw the Korean broke free down the left.

But from a narrow angle, he could only blast the ball high and off target.

Reflecting on the game, a visibly dejected Aide Iskandar admitted that Geylang were the better and hungrier side on the night. Summing up the game, he said, “It was disappointing to concede an early goal. Although we played much better in the second half, another mistake caused us to lose a second goal”.

In contrast, Eagles’ coach Mike Wong was in a more positive mood. He commented, “I am happy with the three points, but we still made some silly mistakes in the game”.

Looking forward to their next game against their eastern rivals Tampines Rovers in twelve days time, he added, “This mini break will give us time to reorganise and this win is important as it will lift the players’ spirits during this period.”

When quizzed about Kim’s performance, Wong commented, “Yes, Kim is an important player to us as he can exploit spaces behind the opponents’ defence. I am happy that he has scored on his third game back with us and hopefully his form will last long till the end of the season”.

Euro 2008's Spain > WC 2010's Spain

2010-06-18T10:12:00.008+02:00

"Sometimes the obvious simply blinds the not so obvious"

Let me put this clear. I like Spain, their style of play and I support them.

Prior to kickoff at Euro 2008, Xin-爷 and I had a chat and the idea of Spain winning the tournament was explored and after some deliberation, discussion and analysis, decided to back them a few times on route to the final.

At that time, nobody gave them a chance and the pressure was off the players.

But i just think that a lot of people have not realize that Spain has come into the tournament this time with too much hype but in a worse condition than going into Euro 2008 despite going 40+ intl games unbeaten.

Why do I say so:

a) The only recent return of El Nino, Cesc Fabregas to the team. U cant be at your peak right?

b) Andres Iniesta is an extremely vital element of the side but still bugged by injury

c) Xavi, after a tough european season where he played the last part carrying a calf injury, is also not at 100%. Just to note he is one who is seldom rested by Pep. And the fact that my Barca was pushed all the way to the wire by our deadliest rivals

d) Absence of Marcos Senna, this has been mentioned b4 in reports. Alonso is no Senna, neither is Busquets. If you remember, Senna played a more defensive role in the Euros than at club level but to perfection, setting the platform for Xavi to probe along with Iniesta and David Silva

e) The overwhelming expectation of the country. Possible?

f) Luis Aragones factor. This is Vicente Del Bosque's first big tournament. Maybe he is just Real material? nothing more?

g) Jesus Navas and Pedro are impressive, but relatively lack experience at intl level. Too much weight on them to certain youngsters to turn the game when needed?

Above are points to ponder about.

But still, i hope that the team can pull itself up, make some changes and progress further. However, I am of the feeling it wont be the ones to lift the cup in July.

But then again, the team I think will win the tournament has players not at 100% condition too. Hmm.. Contradicting?

WC - 15 June: Embarassments

2010-06-18T10:05:00.005+02:00

Brazil's defender Juan had his name badly mispronounced by the whole game yesterday. unbelieveable error by the seasoned commentator. It should be Hoo-an, not Jew-an.

U don't pronounce Jew-an Sebastian Veron do you?

I say Chong Tese 鄭大世(as he is known in Japan) looks much better with his hair up there. He tried too hard imitate Wazza man..

WC - 13 June: Delights

2010-06-18T10:01:00.002+02:00

By the end of July, i believe non-German football fans will know the name Mesut Özil.

Ghana baik! photographed for the first underdogs win : )

Aide wakes up

2010-06-14T15:05:00.003+02:00

Finally, our dear Sengkang coach has FINALLY address his defensive problems by bringing in an experienced Kenji Arai to lead the line, although the Jap may not be the best defender, i think he is at least experienced and good enough to provide Shahir Hamzah with some good pointers.

Rather than having a Diallo Abdoulaye, Nor Azli or Sim Li Ming along Shahir right?

It addresses the problem pointed out earlier that Aide got his foreigners' priority wrong at the start of the season when he went for foreigners further up the field, leaving the backline w/o a old warhorse.

Hopefully the central defensive partnership take off and we will see the former Young Lions' player recover his early season promise too..

Dominant French cruised to a convincing win

2010-06-10T08:17:00.000+02:00

M97: Etoile FC vs Tampines

By: Hugo Ng

The highly anticipated top of the table clash at the Jalan Besar Stadium on Wenesday night turned out to be a somewhat one-sided affair as Etoile FC put four unanswered goals past Tampines Rovers to record a second 4-0 league victory this season.

In the process of doing so, the French side has taken over the league leadership once again, albeit for a longer period this time, by opening up a two point advantage over the Stags.

This win also means that they have defeated all of the so-called “Big Three” in the league, having notched a solitary goal win against Home United last week and previously slayed the SAF Warriors comprehensively by three goals.

Quality in the middle of the pitch proved to be key in this matchup as Etoile’s trio of Cyril Bagnost, Kevin Yann and Khaled Kharroubi and flying winger Karim Boudjema imposed themselves right from the word go. For once, the Tampines could not an answer to their opponents’ superior passing and movement, which is not often the case.

Boudjema, in particular, impressed throughout as he laid off three assists for his teammates.
Etoile’s first chance came as early as the second minute when their main man Frederic Mendy’s volley hit the side netting after captain Matthias Vershave had fed him with a delightful ball from the right wing.

Tampines responded down the other end through as striker Aleksander Duric took goalkeeper Hassan Sunny’s long punt down and set up “The Little Master” Aliff Shafaein, whose left-foot shot was parried by Etoile’s custodian Yohann Lacroix.

It was to be the Stags’ only meaningful goal attempt in the first period as possession was with the French team for long periods and the team in yellow was only able to create limited chances that were easy for the Etoile backline to sweep up.

Hassan had to be alert to tip a Julien Deletraz free-kick over on the 12th minute mark. From the resulting corner that was taken short, the national keeper had to be quick off his line to put Mendy off after Kharroubi’s cross somehow him free in the penalty box.

However, there was no stopping Mendy in the 23th minute. Boudjema’s clever slide-rule pass after a sweet move initiated by Kharroubi allowed the striker to get in on the blind side of Tampines defender Seiji Kaneko. The lanky striker held off the Japanese’s challenge before netting the game’s opening goal from a tight angle.

The former Kashima Antlers defender was having a tough time containing Mendy and worse was to come on the stroke on half time.

But moments before that, Etoile had went 2-0 up. Again, Boudjema was the instigator. He took Kaneko and Benoit Crossiant on for a run, exposing the Stags defence before slipping a pass to the onrushing Yann to tuck home despite substitute defender Park Yo Seb’s desperate effort to keep the ball out.

Next came a crucial moment in the game. Kaneko, who had already been unluckily cautioned in the 17th minute after teammate Jamil Ali had played him into trouble, fouled Mendy from behind and earned his second yellow of the evening, leaving his team to fight a fire which was already proving extremely tough to put out.

Finding themselves with a comfortable two goal lead and a man advantage, Etoile started to stroke the ball around more at the start of the second period, making use of the full width of the pitch and having their fans cheering every pass.

Aliff had a quiet game by his high standards, coming into life only in bits and pieces. In the 50th minute, he orchestrated a one-two with Duric, only to be halted by the linesman’s flag when he was through on goal as Duric had been in an offside position earlier.

That proved to be the last contribution from “The Little Master” as Coach Vorawan made a double substitution seven minutes later with forward Qiu Li being one of those brought into the game. He was to prove pivotal as the Stags finally began to pierce a few openings in the stubborn French defence.

Vorawan’s last throw of the dice, though bore no fruit in the end, gave Tampines hope as Qiu Li struck a brilliant left foot curler two minutes after coming on which left Lacroix grasping thin air , only to see it ricochet off the keeper’s goalframe.

In the 63th minute however, Etoile dealt the Stags another blow. Vershave’s deep cross was met by Boudjema’s head to divert the ball back into the danger zone and Mendy pounced on it with a diving header to grab his second of the night to make the score 3-0.

Tampines looked dead and buried at this point but they did not give up.

Qiu Li sent a thunderous free-kick sizzling past Lacroix and a minute later his cushion header found teammate Akihiro Nakamura free in the box. But the S-League journeyman inexplicably fluffed a simple half volley with only the keeper to beat.

With his side three goals down and getting constantly booed by the Etoile fans for incidents dating to the last meeting between the two sides, Croissant was starting to get wind up and it was clear he was losing his concentration. But credit to the Frenchman for ultimately keeping his cool and getting on with the game.

The 85th minute saw Etoile net their final goal of the night. From a clearance off a Duric free-kick, a defensive mistake by the Stags backline allowed the French side to pour forward. Off a brilliant pass from Bagnost, Vershave made his way into the box before firing a stiff grounder past Hassan Sunny for 4-0.

In the post-match press conference, Etoile’s coach Patrick Vallee revealed he felt “very good” after the win.

When quizzed about what went right on the night for his team, he quipped, “The players imposed the system that I wanted to play. It was a good decision”.

He added, “We played for a win and I think we deserved it when you look at the game on the whole as our goalkeeper only had one or two saves to make in each half”.

However, he got all emotional when asked about his post match reactions to a small group of spectators.

In response, Vallee said, “I respect everybody and I expect the same from the others. I am here to raise the standard for Singapore football, not to talk about my family”, as he let the media in that the same group of men have been repeatedly abusing him verbally at games and he urged FAS to look into it.

Meanwhile, Stags’ coach Vorawan Chitavanich had a smile for the reporters though in defeat. When questioned about it, he declared, “I am proud of my players as they showed fighting spirit even when we were a man down and losing”.

Reflecting on the game, he concluded, “It was not a lucky day, when we wanted to fight back, we made too many mistakes and holes appeared in our defence”.

~~~~SLeague.com~~~~~~~~~

M92: TALENTS OUTGUNNED BY THE STAGS

2010-06-07T07:57:00.001+02:00

Tampines Rovers warmed up for their upcoming top of the table clash with Etoile by crushing the youthful Beijing Guoan Talent side 4-0 last night at their Tampines cauldron in the first part of its two matchups within three days against the league’s foreign teams.

This allowed them to head into Wednesday’s crunch game at Jalan Besar with the comfort of top spot after the French side had momentarily occupied pole position for twenty-four hours with a victory over the Eagles on Saturday night.

Stags’ coach Vorawan Chitavanich fielded the identical eleven that had surprisingly lost to the Young Lions three days earlier despite initial fears of the lack of recovery period for the elder statesmen of his team like Aleksander Duric and captain Zulkarnaen Zainal. His decision was helped partly due to the continued absence of national forward Khairul Amri and wingback Imran Sahib while Qiu Li was only fit enough for a spot on the substitutes’ bench.

The youthful Beijing side started brightly from the start and managed to threaten the Stags from a few set-piece situations but with nothing to show for.

Slowly, the more experienced heads of the Tampines players got into the game and netted their opening goal from their first real attack in the tenth minute after good combination play between Jamil Ali and Aliff Shafaein.

Jamil won the ball on the left flank and made his way into the centre before laying the ball to Aliff. The Stags’ No 19, dubbed as “The Little Master” by the media, returned Jamil with a peach of a pass that saw the former Woodlands man run through on goal before easily finishing with a low grounder past the Beijing keeper Su Boyang.

Eight minutes later, Aliff was at it again as Zahid Ahmad released the nippy playmaker down the left wing. Fortunately, the Beijing defence recovered in time to clear the centre from “The Little Master” out for a corner.

In the 20th minute, Stags keeper Hassan Sunny was called into his first real action of the night as he pulled off a wonderful one-handed save to deny Liu Teng’s point blank header after forward Li Tixiang had whipped in a good cross from the right.

Credit has to be given to the Chinese side as they continued to create opportunities in a bid to equalise before half-time and had two good chances to do so. However in both situations, they were denied by the impressive Hassan.

The first of which happened in the 40th minute. Liu Teng’s cross from the right flank was cushioned by striker Tan Tiancheng nicely into the path of rightback Yu Tianzhu, whose low shot was tipped wide by Hassan’s fingertips.

Just before the interval, a five-man move initated by Li Tixiang culminated in Yu having another golden chance at goal. This time, Hassan put his giant frame into good use as he flung himself ala Peter Schmeichel style to deny the Beijing man.

In between the two Beijing attempts, Tampines missed an opportunity of themselves as Jamil took one touch too many and the chance went begging after wonderful approach play by Duric and Zahid.

Within a minute after the break, Beijing raided the Tampines left flank and almost leveled the score but Tan just narrowly missed connecting a cross from the right wing with a half volley.

Stags hit three in twelve minutes

It was to prove costly as the Stags went two up four minutes later.

Anchorman Shukor Zailan slid Aliff through with a delicious ball down the Beijing centre. “The Little Master” shook off the attentions of defender Ma Chongchong as he took the ball in his stride before slotting past keeper Su for two nil.

Beijing coach Zheng XIaotian reacted with a double substitution in the 55th minute, bringing on Lei Tenglong and Teng Bin as he sought to find a way back into the game.

Unfortunately, the plan backfired as the Stags added a third goal within a minute of the changes.
Once again “The Little Master” was at the heart of the move as he collected a pass from Ismadi Mukhtar, cut into the middle before laying the ball on a plate for Duric to slam the ball in for 3-0.

Beijing’s night was not to get any better as the Stags took advantage of the loss of organisation in their opponents’ backline to notch a fourth goal six minutes later.

A measured pass inside his own half by Jamil was immaculately controlled by Aliff with one touch to set up Duric.

The evergreen striker had the luxury to control the ball and ward off the challenge of Su before netting his second of the night with a left foot shot that trickled into goal despite the best effort by substitute Lei on the goalline.

Though they were 4-0 down, the Talents showed desire to grab at least a consolation goal but those hopes were more than once denied by Singapore’s No 1 Hassan.

Wang Hao and substitute Teng produced a couple of decent attempts at goal after marauding runs near to the Stags’ penalty box but found Hassan in top form.

The pick of his saves came in the 85th minute after Teng mesmerized Stags’ substitute Jufri Thaha down the left and charged to the bye-line before pulling the ball back for top scorer Tan Tiancheng.

This time, Hassan’s legs came in the way of Tan’s shot as he made sure his goal remained intact.
Tampines almost scored a fifth deep into injury-time but substitute Edward Tan somehow missed a sitter after good work by Duric.

Morale booster

Stags’ coach Vorawan Chitavanich expressed delight at his team’s overall performance and agreed that it had indeed been a morale boosting win, especially coming off a defeat against the Young Lions previously.

His felt that his prematch concerns of his charges’ fitness levels was somewhat alleviated by the fact that they had the faithful home crowd behind them.

When asked of his views with regards to the performance of “The Little Master”, Vorawan commented: “After spending the last seven years with me, Aliff has definitely grown and has been able to adapt well into my game plan and make important plays for the team”.

His counterpart Zheng Xiaotian was left to rue the individual errors by his players which he concluded proved costly at the end. He said that tactical changes were made during the game but ultimately was not enough to grab any rewards from the game. He also acknowledged the brilliant display by Hassan in the Tampines’ goal.

Tampines’ focus now turns to the intriguing clash between the league’s top two teams as they do battle on Wednesday evening. If their last meeting in March can be an indication of what is to be expected, football fans can surely expect fireworks at Jalan Besar - both on and off the field.

Internazionale - Real

2010-05-30T16:04:00.002+02:00

Just some random thoughts arriving after hearing that this 2 clubs have 'good' relationship with each other after the Mourinho transfer saga. It was a short one, definitely much shorter than the protracted one when Ronaldo left in 2002 for the Bernabeu.

Real - Inter
Clarence Seedorf
Ivan Zamorano
Esteban Cambiasso
Santiago Solari
Walter Samuel
Wesley Sneijder

Inter-Real
Ronaldo
Jose M

'Mou' Rinho

2010-05-24T15:13:00.005+02:00

Finally, the worse kept transfer secret of the summer is out. Mou is heading to Real, my long term hatred rivals.

Just have this feeling that he wont achieve the kind of success he's used to, cos Real are not clad in blue. His successful teams have always been donning blue jerseys, recall Porto, Chelski & Inter. Ok tats a side talk.

Seriously if Barca can add bit more exquisite quality in midfield, my team will still be the team to beat in La Liga next season. Esp if Cesc returns home, but pls not at the expense of Yaya Toure. I do not mind sacrificing Sergi Busquets though. Just send Marquez, Hleb over to Emirates. Thierry's heading to the MLS.

I do not see Mou being able to mould a solid rock in RM's defence. This team has always been 'score more than opponent' team, a team whose fans demand entertaining football. I suspect defensive tactics will not be welcomed even if Mou can win games. Remember Don Fabio? The likely situation is that he wun be able to love the fans as he did in England & Italy.

I love to see Crisitano Ronaldo tracking back to defend ala Samuel E'too next season.

Lets see if he can buy 4 solid defenders & prove me wrong.

I cant see how he and Florentino Perez can click. Remember how Roman and him fell out?

To me simply, it wun be a happy marriage. Mark my words.

Visca Barca!

*now that season has ended, its time for our own Singapore League once again, watch this space!

Renewal period for the Rossoneri

2010-05-16T12:47:00.001+02:00

Thanks for all you have done for the club!

Gracias Leo, Dida, Favali!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ilp4YNlnhHU

Former Tampines Stags @ Malang

2010-04-22T10:54:00.014+02:00

Alerted to this piece of informative article of others which i thought many like me might have missed if we arent TNP readers. It was published earlier in the week. Just to share:

Singapore fever hits Malang

Arema Indonesia's unlikely rise to the top of the Indonesia Super League table has captured the imagination of its fanatical supporters. But it also propelled Singaporeans Noh Alam Shah and Ridhuan Muhammad to rock star status, way beyond their wildest dreams
PASSION (top left): The Arema fans know their football - and they like what they see in their Singapore imports Noh Alam Shah and Muhd Ridhuan.

GET SHIRTY (top right): Players know they've made it when vendors start selling jerseys with your names on it. PICTURES: BH

AT FIRST, there was uncertainty.

Employed by an overseas club for the first time in their career, Singapore footballers Noh Alam Shah and Ridhuan Muhammad were hoping for the best, but prepared for the worst.

Soon, they realised that they need not have worried at all - the duo hit the ground running in the Indonesia Super League.

These days, the two Arema Indonesia players cannot walk around in Malang without being mobbed.

Keychains, T-shirts and caps bearing their names and faces are snapped up like hotcakes at souvenir shops.

Short visits to the shopping malls almost always turn into impromptu meet-the-fans sessions, where fans are quick to take the opportunity to have their photos taken with their idols.
So, they often disguise their themselves by wearing shades, caps, or by pulling their sweatshirt hood over their heads.

Celeb girlfriend
If you think that's getting a little absurd, wait till you hear Ridhuan's confession that he has been dating an Indonesian celebrity for the last four months.
Life doesn't get any better for the duo.

Said 29-year-old Noh Alam Shah: 'I just came back from the mall. I was standing at the centre, taking photos with the fans. After almost 15 minutes, I could see that my wife was beginning to look a little unhappy.
'In the end, I had to excuse myself. Otherwise, it would never end.
'I seldom step out of the house nowadays unless necessary. But it feels much better than being not recognised anywhere I go.
'If you think it's bad for me, wait till you speak to Ridhuan.
'When we board the team bus on match days, the school girls would rush towards Ridhuan and start screaming until some would actually start crying. '
Indeed, Ridhuan's celebrity status has skyrocketed since his arrival in Malang, which has a population of almost 1.2 million people.
Still only 25 and single, his has more than 7,500 supporters on his Facebook fanpage. He is used to returning home to see about 10 fans waiting for him at his doorstep.
He loves the attention, but laments about the loss of privacy. He sometimes wishes he could go shopping with his girlfriend without being stopped so often - he is dating a 21-year-old Indonesian TV station sports presenter.
Said Ridhuan, who declined to reveal the identity of his girlfriend of four months: 'It's difficult to go out on dates like that, you know.
'She's from Bali, but studying here in Malang. She's also a sports presenter for ANTV.

Stalkers
'Some of the fans will follow me home. They will follow me in a car, like stalkers, and then take photos of me from the outside. Some will also ask for my phone number.
'The last time I checked my Facebook account, I saw more than 1,000 outstanding 'friend requests'.
'I enjoy it. But sometimes, they can go overboard.'
Such attention has its dangers.
Ridhuan knows only too well that he must keep his feet on the ground.
He said: 'It's an experience which will live with me until the day I die.
'But I tell myself this: I may be very popular here but one day, when I go back to Singapore, it will be back to square one.
'So, there is really nothing to be big-headed about.'
In any case, he has Alam Shah watching over him like an elder brother.
Arema coach Robert Alberts has entrusted Alam Shah the task of making sure Ridhuan remains humble.
Alam Shah said: 'It's normal for a young player like Ridhuan to enjoy it. Alberts wants me to take care of him.
'I am doing my best. If he is playing badly, I will tell him so.
'I call him at 10 pm almost every night to check on him. But he has been behaving, lah.'

The things fans do for love
MALANG may be more than 1,400km away from Singapore, but you can still see a Singapore flag at the Kanjuruhan Stadium in every Arema Indonesia home game.
This gives you an idea of the affection the Arema fans feel for their two Singaporean players, Noh Alam Shah and Ridhuan Muhammad.
Said Alam Shah: 'Everytime I score, I would run towards the Singapore flag at the stadium and salute the flag.
'Yes, the fans actually wave a Singapore flag during our games. It measures about five by three metres.
'Actually, it used to be an Indonesia flag. The fans stitched a crescent and five stars on it to turn it into a Singapore one.
'Although Singapore and Indonesia are fierce rivals on the South-east Asia stage, the fans have accepted us.'
Ridhuan, who holds his own in the popularity stakes, also recalled a harrowing incident.
In a frenzy to buy a copy of the newspaper which contained a pull-out poster of him, a pregnant woman slipped while running out of the bathroom.
He said: 'She already knew that there was going to be a poster of me in that day's newspaper.
'But she was showering when he heard the newspaper vendor doing his round.
'So, she changed into her clothes, and as she ran out of the bathroom, she fell. She was sent to the hospital and delivered her baby the very same night.
'What a relief they are both okay.
'What's funnier is, the patient's wrist tag which she was wearing while in her ward bore my name instead of hers.'
Getting to the stadium on match days can be a scary experience.

Police escort
The team bus is always escorted by the police to cut down the travelling time. Even then, it doesn't stop fans from getting close to the team bus to catch a glimpse of their idols through the windows, or even snap photographs - not an easy feat since most of them travel on motorcycles.
Said Alam Shah, who had to stop to control his laughter as he recounted the incident: 'We were on the team bus, and this pillion rider on the motorcycle was right next to our bus.
'I waved to him and he was really thrilled. He in turn said something to the rider, who turned to look at me.
'In all his excitement, he lost control of his motorcycle and rammed into a tree.
'After that, they just picked up the motorcycle like nothing happened, caught up with us again and gave me the thumbs up.
'It was amazing.'
Even travelling on a lorry doesn't guarantee safety, as Alam Shah was quick to warn.
He said: 'On another occasion, I saw these guys on an open-top lorry, waving Arema Indonesia flags.
'The guys were looking out for their favourite players in our bus.
'But just as they were doing so, the lorry braked quite sharply. All of them fell and piled up in a heap at the back of the lorry.'

GARY LIM (TNP - 19/4/10)

Afterthought:

1) Indonesia has a different football culture with us, i do think that they are more die-hard than european fans, probably more comparable to South American ones. Not a topic i like to dwell on too much actually as I think the focus here is to get the crowds off their couch, to stadiums and support the teams (not in a fanatical way for a start..)

2) If he is doing so well at Arema, then why cant Ridhuan turn it on when he dons the Lions shirt?

Mou vs Lou - UCL final maybe?

2010-04-21T16:16:00.006+02:00

About time i mentioned a bit on the European scene. Barca fan I may be, but i know its extremely difficult to retain the title and nobody has done it. Inter is the only reason Barca can miss out on retaining it, and Mou definitely is a strong factor.

Since the second round when i backed Inter to overcome Chelsea, they have have on the up - being in the best of form for a long time for an Inter team.

I expect the Ribery-Robben to send Bayern through to face Inter in the final & wat a final it will be, Mourinho vs Van Gaal! Come on, bring it on!

Below are just some feelings i have expressed on facebook in the past weeks:

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Internazionale lies awaits, but is FC Hollywood up for the challenge next? The potential clash of 2 tactically astute managers bringing their 2nd club to the final...It would be a delightful & befitting final and story for the duo who worked together in Catalunya for 2 seasons.
7 hours ago
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Be gracious in defeat Mancunians. U were never going to win it this season at CR's home ground. Going all the way and then not winning it is the worst. We ll see either Jose's parting gift for Inter or Pep's team creating history by being the first team to retain it. Continue the chase for EPL. There's still chance.

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My status 9 hrs ago was exactly spot-on as 'The Horse' wins it for Bayern. But i just realised its a nickname i gave him instead. Too bad mancunians.
March 31 at 9:04am Custom: loading... · Comment

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'The Horse' could be the difference in Munich tonite.
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hahaI was right. The horse is a Croatian, by the name Ivica Olic. tats bcos he runs really alot during matches.
March 31 at 8:49am

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Love hate relationship with Internazionale

Wednesday, March 17, 2010 at 9:50am Edit Note Delete
From the day in December when the draw for the first knockout phase was drawn, we had the feeling that Jose and his Inter team would go through and it proved. And luckily we stuck with that no matter what was said.

The happiness and joy had to be shown and this article is the way to show. Ooh La La!

Of course what has been talked about in Ibra’s departure forced Inter to play in another way definitely is true. They have definitely improved as a team. Many of the signings have been brilliant, Diego Milito a.k.a The Prince, in my opinion the perfect No 9 for Maradona. Along with Higuain and Leo, the trio will be devastating. With Kun on the bench, how does that sound? Ok back to Inter.

The real difference this season for the Nerazzuri has definitely been Wesley Sneijder. No doubt the best piece of transfer business in the summer. The missing playmaker that Inter has been looking for in years. Though not a natural one in an advanced position, he has adapted well.

Another will be the flying Dutchman at Allianz Arena, but he had cost much more. I am sure you guys are smart enough to know where they arrived from. Haha. Too bad my much admired Van der Vaart is still playing for that bloody team.

On a personal note, I have always said there’s a reason for the departure E'too from Nou Camp and the statement justifies itself. Similarly for Carlo from Milan. In both cases, I was happy to see them leave as it was time my teams moved on. No change no progression. Simple. By the way, if I am not wrong. Carlo has quite a bad record against Jose. Probably only one victory in about 5 games? and that came in last season’s derby win when Ronnie scored his first Milan goal with a header in a 1-0 win.

Woes at the Eagles' den

2010-04-07T16:54:00.003+02:00

It seems the fallen giant's awokeness was a temporary one.

The fortutious Singapore Cup success last season, driven largely by a brilliant goalkeeper and strong team play has somewhat fallen apart this season and questions must be asked about the Eagles' performance, if there has been any. In truth, it has been abysmal.

'Negative' and 'too defensive' has been the greatest criticisms of them.

Injuries aside, I think the absence of Kim Jae Hong is beginning to show, with all due respect to Noor Ali. The Korean's imaginative play has sorely been missed as he could produce that few bits of quality to complement the doginess of the rest of the team. Without him, Miro has been asked to work overtime in the attacking department, which is taking its toll.

Mas has been missed too. Together with Kim & Yazid, these were 3 vital clogs in the mean green machine of 2009 that led to the cup success.

Fingers are starting to point at Coach Mike Wong. But in truth, it seems there are more serious than what it is on the surface. The running of the football side of things at Geylang was already put in a blurry state when 3 men were put in charge of the club before Mike 'officially' took charge last season (or was it in 2008?).

Anyway, sometimes I do feel that the team is restricting itself in terms of tactics trying to fit into a 3-5-2 or 3-6-1 formation. Yes the Eagles did have success when it was employed around 2001. But since then, only Home United and Tampines have played them formation to entertainment and success.

In my opinion, with the players currently available. A less sophisticated 4-4-2 would work well. Peter & Hafiz upfront, supported by Thaha, Itimi on the wings and Vasi cum Miro at the heart of midfield. Defence would be more tricky as its a big weakness. That could also be the reason why the Eagles have always needed to defend in numbers. Belo + Adrian at centrehalves with Shah Hirul and Jonathan at fullbacks will be the best I can think of. The keepers currenlty pick themselves.

I would think that this team will be able to play a better brand of football for its fans, whom i really feel has been suffering the past games.

It is currently an emergency situation for the Eagles. The 3 wisemen, or perhaps 4, must really wake up now and shape the team up in a way before it gets nearer the foot of the table and when the fans boycott their games.

The Green Men at war in AFC Cup

2010-04-05T16:20:00.002+02:00

The Eagles take on the Thais team tomorrow at JBS. Although I do not see them qualifying ultimately from the group, I do feel that the Eagles can get a positive result in this game.

Last time i graced JBS to watch the Eagles, they defeated Bangkok Glass to end their barren spell.

Planning to catch them in action tomorrow evening. Lets hope i will have something to cheer and write about post-game.

Highlights from the reverse 2-2 draw at Supachalasai Stadium, Bangkok

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUmZ4n6obyk

Lions XI - If I am National Team Coach...

2010-03-16T15:58:00.010+02:00

Ok. The events that have taken place since 2-3 weeks ago have been disappointing and unsavoury. Unexpectedly there have been so much media coverage on the Lions this time around, albeit its some negative ones. But I guessed it did have its effect in raising some awareness in fellow Singaporeans about our national team?

All sorts of opinions have been expressed through a series of media platform and questions have been raised about Coach Raddy and his team selection. Players who have erred can be excluded by a simple reason, they have under performed for the past 2 years to be frank. No other excuses like disciplinary reasons are needed.

Lets take 1 issue at a time. Today, let me focus on team selection. Lets play Championship Manager (Asian version). I am in the mood to share my fantasy 11 for the next Lions X1.

Note: Jersey nos go with the old school English style, but in a 4-4-1-1 or 4-2-3-1 style.

No 1: Lionel Lewis/Hassan Sunny/Shahril Jantan

All came thorugh the famed Geylang United system. Need we explain more? All 3 are excellent goalkeepers. If one fault I can pick out, perhaps Lionel need to work on his kicking and backpasses more. Too bad our best department lies here, if not our team would be stronger.

No 2: Isa Halim ???

Tough tackler, decent technique. Played in all right sided positions with Woodlands in the past. Dun waste him sitting on the bench as a substitute centre midfield. I know he got outclassed in the SEA Games at right back. But I sense he can make the spot his in time to come.

**BUT: Need to show his worth more to Raddy to stake a 1st team spot.

No 3: Shaiful Esah

No much introduction needed. Just need to concentrate better and keep improve his defending.

While he recovers from injury, I will go for Jumaat Jantan for his mobility down the flanks.

No 4: Dan Bennett

One of the few successes of the FTS. Still solid though have been shaky in recent times. But I put that down to his partners in defence. He is still the 2 best centrebacks our small country possess.

No 5: Mustafic Fahrudin

The major surprise!

Quality undoubted as a defensive midfield. But this choice as centreback needs justification.

a) We do not have good enough centrebacks to step up currently. The closest will be Shariff Samat, needs to prove his worth to Coach. Next option will be Shahri Alias.

b) Farra has played in defence for Tampines before.

c) We do have other options for centre midfield.

No 6: Hariss Harun

Definitely a key player. Kudos to Raddy for blooding him early. He has improved leaps and bounds. Continue to work hard and he has a bright future. Did I mention b4 that he lives in my HDB block? Its true.

No 7: Ahmad Latiff

We all know about ghis performances in recent times. My first intention is to play ALK with Hariss in the middle, but considering the lack of capable options on the wing, I would think he has to work harder and run more on the wing for the Lions. Supposed its not too much to ask from him after sitting out intl games for so long?

No 8: John Wilkinson

My choice as a partner for Hariss in the middle. Works hard and good workrate in the middle with decent passsing ability. But if a new winger can come through soon, I will place Latiff in the middle and placed Wilko on the bench.

No 9: Noh Alam Shah

Ah Long has shown too that in recent games that he deserves his spot in the team. The stint in Malang looks to have spur him on.

* Needs to be at his inspiration besst if he is to retain his captaincy.

No 10: Shahril Ishak

The most creative among all the players we possess. Used to play in a free role in the national U-18 under Vincent Subramaniam. Has been tried at left midfield and central but his workrate and fitness levels puts him at a disadvantage in these positions. A supporting role will suit him well. We basically need him to be at his creative best for 60-70 minutes when a replacement can come on.

*Got to beware, Shafiq Ghani will certainly threaten this spot in a few years time. Watch your back Shahril.

No 11: Khairul Amri

One of our best in getting past defenders. Putting him wide on the left allows him the chacne to cut in a have a go as well. But needs to work hard on his defensive skills to suit the role better too.

Important subs: Shariff, Shahril Alias, Jumaat, Mustaqim, Agu, Fazrul, Jiayi, Qiu Li

Under further consideration: Jamil Ali, Aliff, Masrezwan

*I do not know if anyone of them smoke and I dun really care. As long as they show enough semangat and brains when they play, Singaporeans will never fault them. Stand up and prove that you deserved your place in the team.

Repetition Cycles - Self examination

2010-03-04T17:41:00.004+02:00

I read that some fans are afraid of the things that Singaporean comment after each Lions defeat.

But thing is I feel, even when we win. These issues are also present and has long needed addressing. Each defeat just further highlight the problems already inherent in Raddy's team.

Our defence simply need an overhaul. Some other guys should really be given a chance to prove themselves. Like Shariff, Shahril Alias in the middle and Jumaat, Isa at fullbacks. But they will need time. More names need to put in better perfomances in the league to throw their names into the fray.

Big question: Are there better defenders out there for Raddy's selection?
My answer: Raddy needs expose the above mentioned and others while stop being loyal to some others.

And i loved the way SSF's blog @ http://singaporesportsfan.wordpress.com/2010/03/04/thank-you-lionel-for-saving-us-from-humiliation-against-jordan/

Simply loved the way he described our twin terror of disaster : )

Raddy has many times stated that the team needed an overhaul but one would know besides the addition of Shaiful and Hariss, the team has not change much over the past years.

If however impressive a player plays but still cant make it into the national team, at that time, something got to give. And perhaps them its time for Raddy's head since his team selection cant be justifiable anymore.

Sometimes it would occur to me that Raddy has taken us the furthest he can, esp with this set of players.

The clock should start ticking with the ASEAN championship coming up. I hope I dun need to address and read about those issues everytime after we cock up and nothing is done. Thing is if we can already guess wat others will talk about post-game each time we cock up, why have the issue not been settled (by the coach?) ?

To end off, kudos to to NAS and Hariss, the 2 best Lions on the pitch last night.

*did in a stage of sleepiness, hope can get my points across.

Feb happenings - Disappointments/Shocks/Hopes

2010-02-27T12:33:00.002+02:00

Due to time constraints and unfortunate events, there have been few entries in the past weeks.

Anyway, while browsing through to catch up on the news revealed a shocker. Young player of the year Ojimi Obatola's employment pass not renewed? What the heck man? any kind soul there with an explanation on this?

Anyway, once again it seems like Geylang is going to have another disappointing season ahead. I suppose w/o Masrezwan upfront, the Eagles will find goals hard to come up. Jury is still pending about Tomko and Ghindaru. Much will depend on Miro again. There are tactical issues which I dun agree with.

Suppose there will always be a short supply of goals in their matches once again this season as defence is once again the main focus. One nil scorelines will be common. AFC Cup wise, I am not that optimistic about their chances especially when you struggle in the final third of the field.

On the other hand, my 'hometown' club Sengkang looks like they are doing well. Credit to Aide especially many of us thought they would struggle again this campaign.

Another darkhorse will be Rams from the north. A decently solid and balanced team in my view.

Will try to catch up on the league soon.

Meanwhile, lets get behind the Lions for Wednesday's clash with Jordan (Live, Ch 5, 11pm). Thier form hadnt been good. But they usually perform when odds are stacked again them, so C'mon Lions! I wanna hear your ROar!

Sights @ Hougang Stadium 2 Feb

2010-02-02T16:08:00.004+02:00

It was the first 2010 S-League game for me this year and of course it was at Hougang Stadium for Sengkang vs Balestier. Hardly a big game, but as usual there was a decent crowd at the Dolphins nest.

Pre-match feel was for Tigers win considering they are now a much more stable team from last season and with old head Salim Moin helping out Coach Nasar.

Just as I entered the stadium at the 18th min mark, Geylang discard Rivaldo Costa put the Tigers. Not too long later, fellow samba boy Vitor Borges, recommended by Peres, was caught by Fadhil Salim in the box and it was Rivaldo who put the Tigers 2 nil up from the spot, Fadhil narrowly missing his punch.

Just as HT approached, Jordan Webb, impressive with his a-la Robinho stepovers, ghosted into the box to chest a long ball down, beat the keeper, and passed the ball into the empty net.

In between, the Tigers had defender Sofiyan sent off for a second yellow card.

The second half saw Sengkang swinging cross after cross into the box but to no avail. Jalal and vice-cap Lau Meng Meng behind most of the inviting ones. Tigers keeper was in fine form and Sengkang were somewhat poor in front of goal.

2010 for Sengkang is a totally different one from the Jon Angelucci's long ball time, this group relies more on pace and speed up front with decent wide men.

However, my personal opinion is that Diallo Abdoulaye is never a centre back. Oh pls. The foreign policy is somehow screwed here.

Other interesting sights:

- Prof Ho Peng Kee spotted, along Venga, and the 3 men Etoile entourage

- Richard Bok and Mike Wong on scouting missions

- *new* Vitor Borges I believed needed the attention of his physio at least 3 times during the match, if i remembered correctly, the stretcher party was quite tired carrying him off so many times.

- Current Thai Port player Cameroonian Modourou Moise with his African teammates cum friends, possibly on a scouting mission on the Eagles game on Wed with SAF. When asked if he was here on holiday, he said no. And gave me a smile when I asked if he was on scouting trip. Haha. The Thai team is probably in pre-season mode right now, so likelyhood he has been given off by his Coach.

- 2 ladies, who are from the Sengkang management team, giving out Mentos sweets in a nicely decorated basket to the VIP section during the game.

Eagles dealt yet another friendly defeat

2010-01-24T06:38:00.002+02:00

Geylang United FC 2-3 Woodlands Wellingtion FC

37” Vasile Ghindaru , 47” Miroslav Latiak

36” 62"Lakkad Abdelhadi, 50” Kazuki Yoshino

Date: 23 January 2010
Location: Bedok Stadium

A double strike by Moroccan Lakkad Abdelhadi consigned Geylang United to a second friendly loss in a week as it enabled Woodlands Wellingtion to come away from Bedok with a 3-2 victory on Saturday.

This result meant that the Eagles have achieved only one win out of their six pre-season friendlies and that came against amateur side Singapore Cricket Club.

The 5pm kickoff time meant that the first half was played under scorching heat conditions and it took both sets of players awhile to settle down.

With regards to the Geylang starting line-up, it had a familiar look to it with only defensive lynchpin Rastislav Belicak (injured) and star forward Masrezwan Masturi (bench) missing. In their places came Jonathan Xu and promising starlet Yasir Hanapi.

In the 12th minute, the Eagles had their first shot at the Rams’ goal after good approach play by Miroslav Latiak resulted in Yasir producing a beautiful curling attempt that was pushed away by the Rams’ keeper Hafez Mawasi for a corner.

Five minutes later, new signing Itimi Dickson whipped in a brilliant effort direct from a free-kick out from the left which needed a goalline intervention by the Woodlands’ defence.

Slowly, the away team was beginning to threaten with former Geylang trainee Sazali Salleh and Lakkad looking to do damage.

In the 36th minute, the Woodlands’ pair dealt the Eagles the first blow. After Sazali broke into the danger area, the ball was laid off for Lakkad whose shot took a wicked bounce which deceived Eagles custodian Yazid Yasin and into goal.

However, the Rams’ joy did not last long as Geylang pulled level almost immediately.
Syed Thaha swung in a free-kick from the far side which was met with a looping heading into the far post from new Romanian signing Vasile Ghindaru. At half time, the score stood at one apiece.

The Eagles went into the lead two minutes after the break. Masrezwan, who had replaced the ineffective Peter Tomko, produce a decent attempt which was deflected out for a corner.

Off the resulting set piece, Latiak put the Eagles ahead 2-1 with a shot from outside the box after the Rams’ defence failed to clear their lines.

This time round, it was the Eagles who could not hold on to their lead for long.

From an initial corner situation for Woodlands in the 50th minute, the Geylang backline could not clear convincingly. This led to Rams’ centrehalf Winston Yap teeing up his partner in defence Kazuki Yoshino. The Japanese kept his composure to steer a stinging shot into Yazid’s goal to pull the scores level once again.

The equaliser seemed to galvanise the Rams as they started to look more dangerous.
In the 62nd minute, former Eagles captain Noor Ali led a raid down into the Eagles box where he was upended by Jonathan.

Lakkad stepped up to net the Rams’ third goal for the evening which turned out to be the winner.

Along the way during the second period, Coach Mike Wong made several positional changes to the players in search for the right formula with Ghindaru, Syed Fadhil and Shah Hirul all inter-switching positions.

But it seems that tactical switches and substitutions were to no avail as the Eagles struggled to find a reply.

There was a fine chance in the 82th minute when Masrezwan combined well with substitute Hafiz Rahim to set up Latiak, whose attempt on his weaker right foot was pushed away by the Rams’ keeper.

On the stroke of full time, it was Latiak again with the shot but this time it was off target and the referee ended the game soon after.

Coach Mike Wong revealed post-match that the team needs to improve on aspects like tactical awareness and team cohesion and that it is crucial to put these issues right on the training ground before the campaign begins.

The Eagles will next face Sengkang Punggol in their last pre-season friendly on Tuesday, 26 Jan, at the Hougang Stadium. Kick-off will be at 5pm.

2010 S-League - The 12th team saga

2010-01-21T05:41:00.003+02:00

The debacle about the decision to exclude Yishun Super Reds has left many among the local football community seething.

From what I have gathered over the past week, it seems there is indeed a strong, passionate local base in the Yishun area where the attractive Sembawang Rangers used to be based. They probably have been sick of the sights of Young Lions & the Korean Super Reds being the home team @ Yishun Stadium over the years.

Indeed the northern part of the island seem to have the most vociferous fans, if you take into account the excellent crowd of the Woodlands Rams even though their football have not been the best to watch since 2006 when the star studded team strut their stuff there.

Coming back to the Yishun team story, it seemed that the FAS people had many doubts about their credentials despite the plans that the chairman had. Perhaps it should be made known to the public to try soften the anger that many fans and players have felt.

Actually when I saw the names of players that were initially training for Yishun, I did think it was a decent team with the 3 foreign players then. However it definitely will be a super uphill task to take them to a decent position as results do not come on paper.

Furthermore, it is a risk to incorporate these newly formed teams into the league. Paya Lebar Punggol was a real disaster a few years ago and probably that made the selection committee cautious. Then again, with the Korean influence on the team, maybe it will do ok. But is maybe good enough?

So question is then if the Yishun Reds got into the league and are languishing lowly in the table, will the crowd still be there? I suspect this is another grey area for FAS.

Footballing wise, my personal feel is that Beijing (correction, its not Dalian as previously mentioned) will put up a decent showing with their youth team or whatever. Their reputation is VERY VERY different from the rest of the Chinese teams that have played in the league so far.

Sinchi, Liaoning are newly formed clubs ZERO experience. I meant this both on and off the field.

Beijing however is a different proposition as I know they are one of the biggest team (Dalian too)in China. Its somewhat an Albirex model being replicated.

The question of whether this foreign club attraction that started with Albirex has stagnanted for some time.

But Beijing will probably have difficulty attracting the local crowd to watch them, as many have stated. Much will depend on the brand of football that they can serve up to the hungry Yishun crowd who are already sharpening their knifes for FAS’ throats.

We will not get "TOK" by FIFA

2010-01-21T05:07:00.000+02:00

Singaporeans should not be held to ransom by FIFA’s outrageous demands for the World Cup telecast rights.

Read somewhere that the $100m price for Singapore was set based on the GDP per capita whereas the other countries are slightly different?

My thinking is if the end consume has to pay obscene prices for catch the tournament, then I rather both telcos don’t bid for it as they will ultimately pass on the costs to us consumers.

Probably the telcos already know the range which locals is likely to fork out and would like avoid the potential losses.

Anyway, I think I will be probably satisfied with the 4 FOC matches on Mediacorp. Working life probably will not allow me the freedom to catch games anyway.

So, for the rest of Singapore, besides catching the games online/via antenna for Indonesian connections, I would suggest going on wkends getaway trips to JB or Batam to catch the games.

S-LEAGUE PRE-SEASON FRIENDLY –EAGLES AND WHITE SWANS FIRE BLANKS

2010-01-18T11:50:00.001+02:00

The fourth matchup of the Eagles’ pre-season saw them take on their semi-final conquest of last season’s Singapore Cup, Albirex Niigata(S) at the Jurong East Stadium.

After spending the past three days in a team-bonding camp away from the football pitch, this friendly game provided the boys in green another chance to have a good workout for the upcoming campaign.

Adrian Dhanaraj started his first pre-season game in defence alongside Rastislav Belicak and Siddiq Durimi, who like utility man, Syed Fadhil, has returned to the Eagles fold after a short stint at Home United.

Romanian signing Vasile Ghindaru held the fort in the middle while upfront saw main man Masrezwan Masturi partner the newly acquired Slovak forward, Peter Tomko.

And it was Tomko who had the first notable attempt at goal in the 15th minute when he swiveled past his marker and produced a stiff shot on the turn which warmed the gloves of the Albirex keeper.

Aside from that, the Eagles only managed to conjure up shots from distance as both Syed Thaha and Miroslav Latiak tried their luck at goal.

The Japanese proved that they are never easy opponent on their home turf, hitting the crossbar once and having a two decent penalty shouts turned down by the referee in the opening 45 minutes.

Perhaps being away from the field for the past few days had an effect on the team as play was scrappy for most part of the first period.

The second half threatened to follow suit till a series of substitutions saw the game open up more.

Coach Mike Wong took the chance once again to blood in youngsters as he would require his whole squad for the Eagles’ impending battle on three fronts.

Senior players like Walid Lounis, Shah Hirul and Hafiz Rahim were also given run outs as the changes ringed in.

In the 70th minute, Jonathan Xu, who had come on earlier for the injured Siddiq, wasted a glorious chance when he blasted against the post following a corner situation.

Two minutes later, a well-weighted pass saw Tomko raced through on goal only to be denied illegally inside the box. Up stepped Itimi Dickson but his weak effort denied the fans inside the stadium something to cheer for.

A third chance in quick succession for the Eagles arrived shortly, when off a freekick swung in by Itimi, the ball ricochet somehow into the path of Walid. But the Tunisian-born player wastefully toe-poked the ball off target from three metres out.

The game then stagnated towards the end that saw the match end goalless.

Coach Mike Wong post-match commented that though the bonding camp had done good for team spirit, there is more work that need to be done on the pitch and that he will be drilling his charges harder in the coming two weeks to prepare them well for the battles ahead.

The pre-season schedule next see the Eagles take on Woodlands Wellington on the 26th Jan (Saturday) at the Woodlands Stadium.

S-League Pre-season Warm Ups - 16th Jan

2010-01-15T08:20:00.002+02:00

As we countdown to the 2010 S-League season, the 2 eastern based clubs will be in pre-season action on Sat, 16 Jan.

@Tampines Stadium, 5pm - Tampines Rovers take on the NFA U-18 team.

@ Jurong East Stadium, 5pm - Cup-winners the Geylang Eagles take on their semi-final conquest Albirex.

Singapore Vs Iran review (part 2)

2010-01-07T12:17:00.002+02:00

There also so many thoughts that I like to share from the aftermath of the Asian Cup qualifier match bwtn Singapore and Iran that I dunno where to start from.

Ok lets not talk about Sun Baojie the referee, cause we all know he’s a bastard. Anyone got template for death treat letter? Perhaps we can issue him one…

Next, yes Iran is an traditional Asian soccer powerhouse.

But for all of that, we know that teamwork & tactical organization can help to neutralize opposition’s individual and Raddy’s team in the past have shown to be capable of being organized and frustrating the opposition.

With that in mind, I don’t care whether it is Iran, Japan, Korea. The fact is we are capable of holding our own against these teams if the Lions play to their true ability and semangat.

Now lets try to decipher more of last night’s game and my views.

Mental aspect - Players too emotional
Raddy was right. The players again could not recover from that mental block after the penalty conceded and the soft goal given away for Iran’s second.

Understandably, Precious & Farra lost their confidence and morale and this filtered through the team.

The goal NAS pulled back then gave the Lions their best spell where they played with more belief, but not necessarily the calmness and guile.

It was the same during the 2nd half up till we got counter-attacked for the third goal, it was more brute than guile.

Subsequently after our net got bulged for the third time, most of our Lions hearts sank, including the fans & ‘spectators’.

When NAS got into some entanglement with the Iran players, I suspect that it will affect him after that and it did. The concentration just wasn’t there anymore.

Concentration is the key. Being emotional to have to spirit to win is one thing, able to handle that emotion and turn it into good performance to ensure that is another.

Formation, Tactics, Players
4-4-2 with 2 defensive mids? Perhaps a 4-4-1-1 when you already knew that we were trying to at least not to lose this game and attempt to win if possible. Yes it was impotant to denfd deep but playing 2 up resulted in gaps between the central mids and the fwds.

Anyway I never thought Aleks and NAS can form a good partnership, and I think they never managed to. Bascially they are 2 fwds who play with their physical presence. You might think this is unfair for Aleks when he plays in the S-League, but in int’l games, his average footwork come to nought.

I would think you needed a more ‘guile’ player like Shahril Ishak, Indra, or Khairul to play behind Aleks or NAS, or possibly Agu, when he recovers in a 4-4-1-1 against more technical teams.

Farra & Hariss together? A fellow blogger has acknowledged perhaps its another similarity in style. Actually I do share the same sentiments to a certain extent. But Hariss do venture more. Just that I felt that a withdrawn striker or attacking midfield player will complement it better.

N man, I did think Hariss was one of those who put it a decent showing last night, considering his inexperience at intl level.

Substitutions
Noh Rahman for Farra?

I have said umpteen times. Noh Rahman can play in a DM position, BUT, only either in a 3 man centre midfield, OR, in the Sleague.

One must understand, there is a difference in requirement for DM in a 2 man and a 3 man centre midfield.

Considering last night’s situation, I thought Shi Jiayi would have been a better option. A better passer who spreads play, rather than bring on another DM. But then again, Jiayi has just recovered from some injury I think.

Then again, am I in a position to question Raddy?

My next entry will probably talk about the general deficiencies facing the Singapore Lions. I am already gathering some thoughts.

Singapore Vs Iran review (part 1)

2010-01-07T08:46:00.004+02:00

When I knew I was going to be late for the match because I missed a bus, I got irritated as I was plain unlucky.

Checked the electroinic next bus monitor at the bus stop, and then i saw nxt bus arriving in 21 min. C'mon, how can there be a 21 min interval ??? Btw, i was trying to catch Service 14 from Dhoby Ghaut.

Once alighted, rushed to the stadium, just as I chiong up the stairs to the Gallery, i heard boos. Bloody hell, penalty awarded when I haven even got to my seat. Good.

As usual took my seat near the centre of the field. To my disgust, I found a large grp of Iranian supporters there. Had expected the Lions die-hard to be there at first.

So it will be in this position where my review will come from ( to be continued..)

Iran - Possibly the last Lions' opponent @ Kallang

2010-01-03T05:22:00.002+02:00

After being criticised by many for giving up the hosting of the 2013 SEA Games, I supposed the SSC will now get their act together and that the Sports Hub construction will get underway in early 2010.

With no real football matchups scheduled for the early half of 2010, traditional Asian powerhouse Iran could well be the last opponent to grace the Grand Old Lady that is Kallang.

With its European players like Masoud Shojaei, Javad Nekounam, Ali Karimi apparently still suspended due to political reasons, we would definitely miss some star appeal but i guessed we probably would not mind.

But we still cant discount the locally-based Iranians as they are still far ahead of us in many aspects like technique, etc.

However, my own perspective is that the current Iranian is no kingpins of Asia and definitely not among its best team in recent times.

After recent friendlies with Oman, where performances have been poor and disunity among the Lions, I seriously hope the Lions can conjure up a good performance on Wednesday to edge Singapore a step closer to the Asian Cup next year.

Any form of housekeeping or bucking up could be taken care by Raddy after our place is secured.

So now, I am hoping for a big upset and something humongous for local fans to cheer about on Wednesday evening.

Let's draw positives from the 2006 qualifying matchup against Iraq where I was at Kallang to witness it first hand.

This Wednesday, I will be there once again, carrying a big hope inside which I wouldn't show...

There is only ONE Ronaldo, and he is Brazilian

2009-12-31T15:38:00.010+02:00

Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima

The BEST striker ever to be seen since the day I started watching football.

Sir Bobby's protege is the biggest reason why I am a Barca fan.

The then 20 year old produced 34 league goals in 37 appearances, 8 Copa Del Rey goals in 5 appearances, 5 European goals in 8 appearances during the 1996/1997 season @ the Camp Nou.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYVqmMzEaZ4

Dec 17 - Blast from the past!

2009-12-17T05:01:00.010+02:00

Today is D-day for the SEA Games soccer medals.

Vietnam are already kings of SEA at senior level. And after defeating Singapore twice in the past 2 years (i.e the SEA Games semis & '08 Suzuki Cup @ Kallang), indeed they are on a rise. Its time to keep them in check.

But I have always fancied Malaysian soccer, probably influenced by the strong link previously in Sgp's participation in the Malaysian soccer scene as that was the time i started watching football.

K Rajagopal is a seasoned coach around Malayisa and he used to be assistant at Selangor around the 90s. I think the current team is pretty decent enough to win gold.

Surprisingly, I was doing some research on the Harimau Malaya yesterday and found that Dec 18 was the anniversary of one of their and Asia's greatest player - R. ARUMUGAM a.k.a SPIDERMAN (http://worldrec.info/2006/05/03/malaysias-soccer-heydays) as I have heard of this guy from my dad.

Can the team give this icon a fitting anniversary by going against the odds and beat the Viets? And in doing so, they will be able to end their long 20 year wait of a SEA Games soccer gold. Their last was in 1989 when I believed a team comprising of Lim Teong Kim, Dollah Salleh Sheeby Singh!!! and gang won it.

Coincidentally, Dec 17 is also when Singapore clinched the 1994 Malaysia Cup by trouncing the Zainal Abidin Hassan-led Pahang at Shah Alam.

Hope the Cubs will put up a credible performance later. If what Coach Terry promises what he said, we can finally see the Cubs open up and play some attacking football. Im sure many die-hard have been wanting to see more attacking play deep down inside throught the tournament.

I really hope that the Harimau Malaya can help the Lions avenge the two recent defeats and end thier gold drought.I want Negaraku to be played at the ceremony can?

So c'mon, Tigers & Lions!

Live or Delayed? - El Fenómeno's take

2009-12-10T04:36:00.005+02:00

I understand most of the soccer die-hards are upset over the decision to delay the telecast of the Laos-Sgp game.

But on Mediacorp’s part, probably it’s the correct thing to do since the Swimming finals this evening had medals on the line whereas the Cubs/Young lions basically could achieve qualification with a draw. There is also a chance the match may turn out to be drab game, especially towards the end when the 2 teams may hold on for a draw.

Would that be good for local audiences? Especially those who are already critical of the Cubs’ standard of play? So perhaps it is not a bad thing for the delayed telecast tonight.

But be sure, any delay for the matches in the semi-finals on will not be tolerated. Haha.

sidenote:
The only way these clashes can be avoided is to have a dedicated channel for the SEA Games. Something similar to a SportsCity will be welcomed with open arms. Not sure if its that hard a thing to do since Starhub Cable TV can do it from time to time. Plus I think Mediacorp do have a lot of artistes who are available to do the hosting watever right? Or how about showing it on Okto (i.e. the free-to-air cartoon/documentary channel)?

Local clubs – Buck up on your marketing efforts!

2009-12-10T04:29:00.003+02:00

Fish out of Water blog (http://fishoutofwaterspfc.wordpress.com/)recently did a piece on the websites of local clubs and the findings are plainly frank. The overall standard is atrocious. Outdated/lack of information, sites of a primary school boy standard, blah... basically its poor upkeep and site management.

Similarly as to football standards, clubs must do their own part in branding & marketing. While you sought to improve things on the field, clubs must be aware of things off it too.

A source told me that the FAS/S League actually sets aside $ for clubs who operate fan clubs/websites (any idea on this?). If so, then something is really wrong. Is budget the problem??

I hope that clubs don’t take things for granted and simply rely on the League to drum up publicity for them.

Similarly, once their club roster is confirmed and pre-season begins. Clubs should not hold back on revealing players’ details & news to the media and public. Hold press conferences, release news on club websites! That’s the way it should be!
(by the way, SAFFC’s confidential info has finally been released in today's ST)

Currently, what you see now is where soccer enthusiasts have to scour forum websites for rumours and uncredible information. Should they be leave guessing? If players have not pen to paper, then maybe. But once all is well, information must be released and broadcasted.

If not, you will be leaving in a mouse hole by yourself…

Sunday's Special Delivery from Ibracadabra & Klaas

2009-12-01T04:51:00.007+02:00

The 2 main signings of Barca & Milan of the close season showed the reason why they were being hunted by my teams in the summer.

Both came on in the second period & made a decisive impact within 6 mins of their introduction.

Ibra's entrance created a new dimension as he provided a KEY to unlock RM's defence (actually, most of the time, you wont need one ) and he netted with a stupendous volley.

Huntelaar's first was an equally well-struck volley and he followed up with an amazing lob from the edge of the box. Both came on the 90th min mark. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0bvd-quFJc&feature=related . They were his first goals for the Rossoneri and hope he can build on it.

The Guardian's Sid Lowe did an amazing post-Classico write-up which i strongly recommend @ http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2009/nov/30/ronaldo-ibrahimovic-real-madrid-barcelona

On a sidenote, I also found also an interesting quote from Andres Iniesta post-Classico regarding CR on his alleged tumble inside the box:

AI was quoted on Onda Cero radio station : "It annoyed me that Cristiano told me not to dive because he is not exactly the best person to tell anyone that. He should not be telling anyone whether they dived or not."

WORST losers of knockout competition

2009-11-27T17:10:00.005+02:00

This week saw the penultimate games of the Uefa Champions League's group stages. As some of the reputable teams battle it out to stay in the competition, I felt that perhaps it was time to share this mindset of mine about knockout games which I have had for a long time.

Perhaps in many people's opinion, the greatest losers of a knockout competition is the losing finalist.

However, to me, the losing semi-finalists are the worst losers.Why?

Think about it, you spend so much time and effort in knockout games, maybe taking an eye off your league competition, only to get as far as the semifinals. If its a 2 legged affair, you go through 180 mins of battle only to find yourself slipping at the last hurdle to reach a final.

At least the losing finalist had an opportunity, a 50-50 one off chance to win the competition in the final. So in this sense, the heartache is not as painful as teams which lose the semis.

Maybe one could argue progressing through different stages earn you some revenue and bonuses. But I feel these are small consolations. You can concentrate on doing better in the league.

So I have always hope the teams I support can kick out of a knockout competition like the UCL around the second round stage. Especially if I think they are not capable of going all the way.

Basically, DON"T WASTE TIME STAYING IN IT IF U CANT WIN IT IN THE END!

So Liverpool fans, if you are tormented by the Red Devils' fans now, dun fret, I think the Devils will probably be just making up the numbers in the competition :D

Raddy's quotes - taken off ST

2009-11-26T15:49:00.006+02:00

As the Lions prepared for the Thailand double header 2 weeks ago, a ST journalist wrote an article on the gaffer and these quotes came from it.

With regards following a team:

"You don't come only if you are 100% sure if your team will win, you come and support despite whoever your team is playing. It is your team, it is part of you."

This is indeed an excellent quote :D

Raddy also noted:
"Winning a trophy in an empty stadium is not the right feeling".

About the 2nd point, probably Raddy should never need to worry. Singaporeans will never abandon their team especially if we are playing a match where a win will earn us a trophy. Correct? Haha..

2009-11-20T05:39:00.010+02:00

Had a good time surfing through the local websites and watching SportsCentre and Eurosports yesterday. Just some thoughts I like to share:

1st issue: There are knifes ready for Ridhuan's head
Wow. I didnt know so many people are calling for him to be dropped. Seriously, if Jiayi had been fit, I wonder if Ridhuan would have played. But Raddy has all along wanted pace down the wings.

Seriously, his performances had been atrocious to say the least. A comparison with the activity down our left wing would really prove the point. But to his credit, he has been tracking back well to counter the effects of Sutee.

Then again, if Khairul can track back and yet attack a certain Suree Sukha, the fact that Rangsan is not in Suree's mould would once more question Ridhuan's attacking ability.

Basic expectations of a wide midfielder is to either deliver crosses/beat defenders (preferably both), track back and help full back. It seems he has not been able to meet the requirement in an attacking sense.

That probably explains the local fans getting sick of his performances and calling for the return of the prodigal son Ahmad Latiff ( there actually is a Facebook page petitioning for his return! well done ).

A.L.K aside, in my mind, accoring to form & performances this season, I would put reckon the Ali brothers, Jamil and Noor and even youngster Yasir Hanapi for that right midfield spot. Suppose Jamil Ali would be my first choice.

2nd issue: Found a supporter for my idea of Isa Halim at rightback on Kallang roar forum
Even if Baihakki is playing at his best, he is still not a rightback. Mat Noh is a steady, competent defender, but has lost tat bit of pace which he used ot have and I believe a defensive midfield role would suit him best.

Isa started off as a rightsided player (he played all right sided positions at Woodlands before and impressed many) but converted to a central midfield at Young Lions. But the past S-League season has seen Sivaji utilised him as a right full back for Home U.

He is probably Raddy's 4th choice CM. So why not put him at right back? Pacier and better technique than Bai & Noh, less rash than Bai, taller than Noh with defensive capabilities at least on par with the other two.

ISN'T HE THE PERFECT CHOICE FOR RIGHT FULL BACK? Actually i see a bit of Kadir Yahaya in him.. haha.

Another choice would be Jumaat Jantan, who is a real workhorse down the wings. Perhaps he is not as solid defensively but in my opinion give him time and he ll show to be a better choice than Bai & Noh.

Its time for drastic measures and I have done it. Hopefully Raddy will read my message I sent him and ponder about it.

3rd issue: Referee had stamps on his eyes, cant blame Thierry
Come on, it was straight forward, Henry should not be a labelled a cheat when simply the match officials did not pick the incident up and you could see it was unintentional, due to the bounce, more of a reflex action than a blatant attempt.

That said, Ireland may still end up on the losing side at PKs though they have Shay Given. Who dare say definitely they will win the PKs? Would it have been more disappointing to lose on PKs? That said, yes the Irish was denied a chance..

For sure , it is FIFA who cocked up the chances of Trap's men. A last minute decision to draw playoff contenders according to FIFA rankings is the real reason behind this whole mess. That should be the thing we should be focusing on guys..

ex-SAF FC combination seals 1-0 win @ Rajamagala

2009-11-18T15:45:00.003+02:00

Had problems loading the game but finally caught the game 18mins in. Luckily I managed to catch the goal and i treated my neighbours to a roar of 'GOAL!!'

As I had said pre-match blog entry, we managed to bounce back and the Lions played to their ability finally. A far cry from their performance on Sat.

By HT, Lions 1 nil up through a Duric header off Shaiful's corner. Really hope they can hang on to it since we knew the Thais would come at them in hte 2H.

Passing is more decent today. The team have been doing well. Restricting the Thais who haven created much. Was hoping that the midfield can hold, after Farra got injured, but Noh Rahman gave a stellar performance in a position more suited for his attributes nowadays.

Hariss was lucky not to have been sent off in 2H due to second yellow. Defence held on well. Could have got a 2nd goal from Khairul.

Though there were a few scares, Hassan was not really troubled.

I told many people that the Lions can play football. They probably forgot how we dominated against Vietnam in last year's Suzuki Cup but lost unluckily.

Last Saturday was merely that they didnt turn up.

Yes there are a couple of players who probably are on the line, but trust Raddy to get rid of them when the time comes.

I admit the Lions are not very good, but they are not as lousy as what critics write them as.

Now for Iran on 6 Jan 2010. I think it will be realistic to aim for a draw in that game. A draw would force Iran to get a result in their last game @ Azadi against the Thais.

We generally can perform against the bigger teams. Expect to hom many men behind the ball and counter attacking.

Think its scheduled for Bishan. Surely we can packed that stadium?

Nov 18 - Rajamangala Stadium

2009-11-18T10:04:00.002+02:00

Its as well that the game tonight is not shown live, just in case the Lions cock up again.

Having it delayed probably give people a good chance to know result first before watching it.

If the Lions get a credible score, which i think they will, it will great for all to watch the game and be proud of them.

Personally, it just struck me that the past 2 clashes at Kallang with the so-called South-east asia big guns nowadays (i.e. Thailand & Vietnam - lost 0-1 in 2008 Suzuki Cup), we have lost. And on both occasions, both games were shown live on TV. Could the live telecast be a jinx? Or the Lions are mentally weak when they are on TV?

Tonight will present the Lions with a chance for redemption. First and foremost, we know that Thailand is a formidable team, this has never been in question. But to a certain extent, I do agree a comment that Singapore, Vietnam and Thailand and more or less on par in the region.

The main thing is that the Lions failed to perform and show their ability last Saturday night at home and that the Thais played brilliantly.

I am of the opinion that tonight we will see the fighting spirit of the Lions in bouncing back from adversity tonight.

In the past years, they have tend to perform when people write them off. I hope tonight they will be able to do the same.

We can take heart that the Thais did lose 1-2 in Bangkok to Vietnam in last year's Suzuki Cup 1st leg final. However superb are their techincal skills, they have shown a tendency to be mentally suspect when things don't go their way. I just hope that the Lions (esp Baihakki, can keep their concentration for 90 mins and not be rash).

Plan would probably to keep things tight at the back and cut down spaces in midfield.

The hype of Shaiful in the first leg probably went overboard. I feel that tonight's game could be where his set pieces expertise would be more relied on than the 1st leg.

The fact is that the Lions can play, in a short spell last Saturday, they did show that and troubled the Thais. So they are not as worthless as what people are saying.

So stand up & be counted Lions, show what you are really worth tonight. From Hassan to Aleks, C'mon!

My Local Football Oscars 2009 (ala Serie A style)

2009-11-12T09:52:00.007+02:00

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)

EAGLES OVERCOME ALL ODDS TO END EIGHT YEAR BARREN SPELL

2009-11-09T09:46:00.002+02:00

8 November 2009 has earned itself a place in Geylang United’s history books after the Eagles rounded off a fine 2009 campaign in style by overcoming their underdog tag to clinch the Singapore Cup.

It was the first piece of silverware that the once all-conquering giants of local football took home in eight long years.

In front of a vociferous crowd of 5,870, the Eagles showed character, resilience and discipline to outwit the smooth passing Thai outfit Bangkok Glass through a solitary strike from substitute Hafiz Rahim in the 82th minute.

Man-of-the match Yazid Yasin was in the form of his life, proving to be a one-man wall on many occasions as he repelled the Thais repeatedly to keep his team in the game. His performance was capped by a superb penalty save in the 87th minute.

Coach Mike Wong made one change to his previous starting eleven as he reinstated club captain Noor Ali into a packed midfield.

The Eagles started the match tentatively as they allowed the Thais the early possession. It was only in the 13th minute that the team put together their first inventive move of the night through a counter attack involving Syed Thaha, Miroslav Latiak, Kim Jae Hong and Noor which led to a corner.

From the ensuing set-piece, the Thais broke swiftly to the other end as dangerman Gbenga Ajayi warded off two challenges before unleashing a shot which Yazid palmed away.

Five minutes later, Masrezwan Masturi (Mas) picked up a loose ball and drove at the Thai team backline. As the defence closed him down, Mas laid the ball out wide to Noor who then picked him out with a first time cross but the latter could not make a clean connection.

Ajaki was proving to be a handful for the Eagles and in the 33th minute, the Nigerian raced into the box and pulled the ball back for his strike partner. Luckily, Walid Lounis managed to deflect the effort to safety.

Geylang was getting into the game gradually and two freekicks either side of the half-time break almost provided the breakthrough.

As the game headed to first half injury time, Kim went on a solo run after being played through by Adrian Dhanaraj before being chopped down unceremoniously by the Thais’ captain Amnart.
Off Latiak’s powerpack attempt which deflected off the wall, Kim stole in and tried to nick the ball past keeper Klisana but the angle was just too tight.

The Korean then curled a brilliant left-foot set-piece attempt himself which narrowly missed the goal three minutes after the break.

Through another counter in the 63th minute, Latiak raced down at goal after Noor had played him in with a delightful chip, however, an unexpected bounce off the artificial turf allowed the Thais’ defence to recover and clear the danger.

It sparked Bangkok Glass into action as they started a series of intense bombardment of the Eagles’ goal soon after with playmaker Peeraphong in the thick of things.

The No. 23 gave the slip to both Adrian and Rastislav Belicak in the 64th minute before testing Yazid with a stinger from inside the box which the keeper responded with a brilliant save.

Eight minutes later, Peeraphong’s fierce drive from the edge of the box again needed the intervention of the increasing busy Yazid.

Next, a far post header back across goal from a corner situation for the Thais soon after bounced dangerously just in front the Eagles goal. Once again Yazid showed great agility to punch clear as the Eagles sought to weather the storm.

Geylang rode their luck and their determination was rewarded in the 82th minute. Klisana flapped at Kim’s corner and a goalmouth melee ensued.

Within the space of seconds, Noor and Hafiz Rahim – who had come on ten minutes earlier for Mas, saw their efforts cannoned off the woodwork.

As it is, Lady Luck smiled at the Eagles in the pinball situation as the ball fell at the feet of Hafiz a second time and this time, the striker who had been unlucky with injuries the past few seasons, produced an unerring finish as the fans in green roared in absolute joy.

A controversial decision from the match officials minutes later then had the Eagles’ fans up in protest.

Referee Kenny Ng had waved play on when Ajaki went down under a challenge inside the box. However, the referee overruled his decision when he saw the linesman flagging and instead gave the Thais a penalty kick.

Geylang players disputed the decision and Kim was booked for carrying his arguments too far.
The stage was set for Yazid to play hero yet again and the Geylang custodian obliged by pulling off a stunning save from Supachai.

Frustration soon took over the Thais and substitute Nantawat was given a straight red card in the 90th minute for a tackle from behind on Kim.

The Eagles held on for the remaining three minutes of added time and joyous scenes soon broke out at the final whistle.

Coach Mike Wong post-match attributed this tremendous cup run to the fantastic team spirit in the dressing room and revealed that he is hoping to build on this success for next season which will also see a return to the AFC Cup for the Eagles.

While the Eagles celebrate this latest success, we all hope that this will be the start of a new dawn for Geylang United in the coming seasons.

(article taken off Hugo Ng's article from Geylang United FC website)

MOBILISATION FOR ALL SINGAPOREANS

2009-11-06T17:40:00.002+02:00

http://kallangroar.com/general-chat/3011-mobilisation-call-singapore-vs-thailand.html

This is BRILLIANT! I LOOOOVVVVEEEEEE IT!

To all EPL-loving Singaporeans, this one u simply have NO excuse not to support the Lions. Cos its an intl wkend! Go get yr butt down to Kallang on Nov 14!

Singapore Cup final

2009-11-06T11:22:00.002+02:00

Was delighted to get Latiak's jersey at the Jurong West Stadium on Monday. Now will have to check with GUFC what jersey colour the Eagles will be wearing on Sunday.

I expect the team to be on the backfoot for most of the game, defending. So hopefully, Yazid Yasin can keep the team in the game and the forwards can really take their chances.

Suppose only those with Tampines Rovers' conenctions will be rooting for Surachai's Bangkok Glass due to AFC Cup reasons. Lets hope the prize money stays within local soil.

This is going to be a prelude to Singapore vs Thailand in a week's time too.

So come on, Geylang boleh! Give me something to cheer for on Sunday @ JBS!

Post-Sunday

2009-10-26T12:07:00.000+02:00

As I expected, Liverpool bounced back in normal fashion by proving sceptics wrong.

In truth, the stage was all set up for them to turn the corner around. A midweek home defeat to Lyon, coupled with Man Utd's win in Moscow, had further pushed punters on the Devils' side.

The media obviously went to town on Pool's terrible situation. Statistics of how far back they have not lost 5 games in a row, Rafa's possible successor & potential compensation package, problems between Hicks & Gillet, the protest march by fans.

But the most intriguing one would have to be the beach balls story and how MU fans will flood Anfield with it. They did and they paid a price for mocking their rivals in this manner.

What goes around come around. Perhaps Pool got lucky with Carra's incident, but think about the Manchester derby not too long ago.

In truth, the home team was the better side on the field. Once again, Devils lost a game which their Scottish hatchetman Darren Fletcher missed. He had missed the UCL final too.

2009-10-21T09:06:00.002+02:00

Woodlands Wellington FC 0-1 Geylang United FC
90+3” Kim Jae Hong
Date: 20 October 2009
Location: Woodlands Stadium

KIM KNIFES THE RAMS RIGHT AT THE DEATH

The Geylang Eagles made it a clean sweep against Woodlands Wellington in 2009 as they stole victory courtesy of the last kick of the game at the Rams’ cauldron up north with Korean Kim Jae Hong notching his third goal in four games.

It was also the Eagles’ third consecutive 1-0 away win in all competitions, having previously beaten Balestier and Albirex at Toa Payoh and Jurong East respectively.

Coach Mike Wong expressed post-match his disappointment with his side’s first half display as he felt his charges had sat too deep, allowing a Woodlands side, who were out for revenge after two losses against the Eagles this season, to dictate the early exchanges.

Wong felt that perhaps the two previous losses in the league had played on his charges’ mind as they exercised due caution in the opening period.

His half time pep talk probably worked wonders as the Eagles showed more enterprise in the second half and was rewarded right at the death.

The game was also the Rams’ last home game of the season and the home fans were determined to put on a good show off the pitch as well and this created a good atmosphere around the stadium.

Chances at a premium in the first period

In terms of the Geylang’s starting line-up, Shah Hirul, Faizal Senin and Hafiz Rahim were once again given the nod to start in the absence of the likes of Masrezwan Masturi, away on national duty after earning a well-deserved recall, and Miroslav Latiak, who was wrapped in wool as the Eagles’ No 9 had felt a minor twitch in his right hamstring during the build-up to this game.

Hafiz, in particular, was eager to impress the coach as he worked tirelessly along the forward line for a large part of the game.

Despite the Rams’ significant possession in the opening exchanges, it was at the other end of the pitch where the first piece of goalmouth action was conjured up.

A one-two between Hafiz and captain Noor Ali in the 18th minute set the former down the left touchline, where he whipped in a cross that narrowly just missed the head of the on-rushing Shah Hirul.

Two minutes later, the Geylang defence got sucked in to the ball, allowing the Rams’ forward Mojtaba Tehranizadeh to strike a fearsome shot which Yazid Yasin punched clear.

Geylang’s Tunisian-born defender Walid Lounis then got into the act in the next two pieces of action at either end. First, he almost profited from a deep free-kick swung in by Rastislav Belicak after the Rams’ keeper mistake misjudged the flight of the ball.

Then, immediately at the next possession, Walid put in a timely challenge to thwart the opposition a clear attempt at goal.

An alert Yazid then kept out Mojtaba again in the 32 minute as the Iranian took advantage of Belicak’s fluffed clearance and almost poked the ball home.

Enterprising second half

The stage was set right from start of the second half as Jonathan Xu headed a free-kick just over within the first minute of the restart.

In the 51st minute, Kim sizzled past a Woodlands defender and accelerated into the penalty box, where he tested the Rams’ keeper Ahmadulhaq Che Omar with a low shot which the custodian managed to divert out for a corner.

8 minutes later, Kim had a decent penalty appeal turned down by the referee after he was brought down by Daniel Hammond following a swift Eagles‘ counter which saw six quick passes strung together.

Mike Wong then brought on Ashrin Shariff in the 62 minute for his first appearance in months after recovering from an injury to add more bite to the attack.

Faizal Senin next produced a left-foot bullet from 30 metres out which again stung the palms of Ahmadulhaq in the 70th minute.

Three minutes later, a deft chip by Ashrin set up Kim, who sidestepped the keeper and laid the ball to Hafiz, who blasted unforgivingly high with the goal at his mercy.

National U-21 midfielder Ang Zhi Wei was then introduced in the 84th minute to add more pace down the Eagles’ right flank.

Geylang then produced a couple of more chances in the last few minutes of normal time, the best falling to Noor Ali who hesitated when set free down the left and the chance was gone.

At that time, the match had looked destined to end goalless. However, it was not to be.

Up stepped Kim deep in injury time as he volleyed home from close range after Ahmadulhaq had spilled a Noor Ali corner. The Eagles’ fans roared as Kim went about his usual goal celebration by falling on his knees with his hands cupped together.

With that, the Eagles are now on 39 points in the revised league standings with two games remaining. They next take on the resurgent Young Lions in their final home game on 28th October at the Bedok Stadium.

Sgp Football Outlook

2009-10-20T08:12:00.004+02:00

This post was done commenting on another article done titled' FAS’ five-year plan for the S-League: a case of closing the stable door after the horse has bolted' @ http://singaporesportsfan.wordpress.com/2009/10/19/fas-five-year-plan-for-the-s-league-a-case-of-closing-the-stable-door-after-the-horse-has-bolted/

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Couldnt agree with more with you. U really strike my instinct to comment on it after reading it first on ST last Sunday.

Yeah it seems that authorities have neglected the administrative part of the league. Could it be due to the Lions success in 2005 & 2007? Tampines victory in the ASEAN club championship & SAF's debut in ACL. Or they sat comfortably thinking that it is Asia’s top 10 league already.

FAS: If the quality is good, the fans will do free promotion for you. U do not need to tell people u are good.

Actually I thought the league was still pretty decent up till 2006 n 2007 where players like Mirko, Peres, HU's Ivorian duo Kone Hamed & Diakite can still light up the league.

Since then we seemed to have satisfy ourselves with some sub-standard foreigners like Brazilian flops, an Egyptian & Frenchman who dun seem tat good as he should be). Even Sengkang’s foreigners of previous seasons have been decent, Ekollo, McKenzie.

Perhaps can point it to lack of funds, be it subsidies, club's scouting or club chairman (who could be pissed off by referring standards and become less enthusiasic abt it). However there are still bright spots in the league currently with players like Latiak, Aboulaye Diallo, Obatola.

I know FAS is using their contacts to bring in players. To a certain extent it has worked, Murphy Wiredu had been decent, though Bahadur not too much. We had a Lenadro at Young Lions not too long ago too. But the thing is, sometimes these players which come thru the contacts are too young to make a credible impact.

On another note, I was going through some past news articles of 2002 the other day n i realise that at the point of time, ST still had at least a decent section on S-league with stuff like Team of the month, etc. now u only see a tiny corner where the score is published. WE NEED IMPROVEMENT HERE!

Basically it’s true that the league has stagnated over the past 2-3 years and although this kick up the butt has been late, it is better now than never.

FAS & the league administrators should bloody wake up their idea and address areas of key issues, some of which NAS has addressed:

1) refereeing

2) club seeding --> standard of foreigners ( or using the constant $, employ less foreigners but better quality ones, dun just use their so-called foreign contacts who normally bring in foreigners too young, I suppose there should b a mix)

3) MEDIA COVERAGE !!!

Why is the ISL now and M-league in previous yrs able to attract good calibre players, mostly due to funding. Be it club or from the league.

There are many factors which are linked, but basically $ is always the root:

$ -> player quality ->excitement -> media coverage -> returning fans -> more clubs/league sponsors & $

Other Attributes needed:
1) good pitches
2) decent referees
3) league administration

I agree that 96-2002 was the golden period. I just hope that the league can return to where it should be, not harping on it being one of the best in Asia and then stagnating.

We always say ‘Football is the no1 sport in Sgp, therefore the local league should always be something we should be proud about’. U get it FAS? Mr Zainudin & Winston Lee, its time to show your worth.

Do catch interview with Dez Corkhill on his take on Sgp football at http://jakartacasualtv.blogspot.com/. U can skip Sasikumar's though :D

Indo & Sgp - Friendly neighbours

2009-10-17T15:16:00.003+02:00

Was reading a ST article about Indonesian maids, recruitment fee and their welfare.

It just occurred to me some sort of relationship between these maids & local footballers.

Maids go from Indonesia to Sgp, footballers move the other way round. In both instances, wages is the reason. Both are seeking greener pastures.

Some sort of irony i suppose. Just a thought..

Why blog?

2009-10-13T04:44:00.002+02:00

The past months of following some soccer blogs have played a part in the decision.

I have never been keen to start cause i dun think my typing skill is up to standard. haha. but people around me has encouraged me to start blogs to express my views on soccer issues.

I probably wunt post tat often. Only when i have burning issues or opinions. Hope those reading would enjoy what I have to share!

"I did what i loved, and I did what i was pretty good at and I suppose what I was born for. I enjoyed my career. It was wonderful" (Sir Bobby, 2005)

Why Dream Team Steam?

2009-10-13T03:41:00.001+02:00

If anyone remembers, its the title of the song the Malaysian Cup team of 1993 did ard the knock out stages of the competition. It was just a random thought for a title appealing enough.

It was around the time where Kallang roared to Sundram's dazzle down the by-line as he cut the ball back for Fandi's winner against Pahang in a memorable 3-2 victory. Goalscorers among the day included a 1st min strike from Mickey Patterson, Jose Iriarte and Razali Saad. Cant remember who scored our first goal though. Ok, tats pretty random. Just a sudden thought.

And of course we lost tat final to Kedah via goals from Lee Kin Hong and Rahim Mat Din. Alistair had a penalty saved by Ahmad Sobri towards the end. It probably was also a time where i learned about Nigerians with white handkerchiefs (Nieketien & Adigun) and the current Arema Malang's coach Robert Alberts.

Yup so this is the beginning of this blog.