BEFORE
So far the response have been positive on the Little Cubs' epic performance over Montenegro. It was such a long time I last heard of something said in unison about the performance of any of the national teams.
Kudos again for the Little Cubs and credit to the coaching staff headed by Kadir Yahaya for the wonderful execution of the tactics on Thursday night.
Of course, amid all the euphoria over these boys, it also important to like what coach Kadir said the essential "to keep the feet on the ground."
(Pictured above)Headlines like this above epitomized the "feel good" feeling towards the "Little Cubs"
Yet, so much hype on the YOG football team, hope the little cubs can cope with the expectation and media should balance their writeup on the little cubs without over hype the things.
Hope the little cubs can play their normal game amid all hype around them, as unlike the last game they are now the favorite against Haiti.
AFTER
Our Little Cubs (pictured above - screengrab from TV) given everything they had in the game against Haiti.
A slip at the crucial moment saw the Caribbean scored the only goal of the night to jolt the hope of the nation, while we had several chances throughout the game, but the clinical touch in front of goal eluded us.
Kudos to the Haitian for the victory, but in a rather less-than-desired manner.
BUT the most important thing is for the fans out there - WILL YOU BE THERE FOR THE TEAM AFTER TONIGHT?
Here are some of the responds I gathered after I posted the question on my Facebook account with the screengrab.
So far the response have been positive on the Little Cubs' epic performance over Montenegro. It was such a long time I last heard of something said in unison about the performance of any of the national teams.
Kudos again for the Little Cubs and credit to the coaching staff headed by Kadir Yahaya for the wonderful execution of the tactics on Thursday night.
Of course, amid all the euphoria over these boys, it also important to like what coach Kadir said the essential "to keep the feet on the ground."
(Pictured above)Headlines like this above epitomized the "feel good" feeling towards the "Little Cubs"Yet, so much hype on the YOG football team, hope the little cubs can cope with the expectation and media should balance their writeup on the little cubs without over hype the things.
Hope the little cubs can play their normal game amid all hype around them, as unlike the last game they are now the favorite against Haiti.
AFTER
Our Little Cubs (pictured above - screengrab from TV) given everything they had in the game against Haiti.A slip at the crucial moment saw the Caribbean scored the only goal of the night to jolt the hope of the nation, while we had several chances throughout the game, but the clinical touch in front of goal eluded us.
Kudos to the Haitian for the victory, but in a rather less-than-desired manner.
BUT the most important thing is for the fans out there - WILL YOU BE THERE FOR THE TEAM AFTER TONIGHT?
Here are some of the responds I gathered after I posted the question on my Facebook account with the screengrab.
they need our support more than ever now. it's easy to support winners but these young boys have shown enough spirit to earn my respect and support despite the loss today. they have given singapore something precious and rare - an untainted display of passion for the country on the field. this is the moment for singaporeans to show they are not just fairweather fans. let's continue building on the revival of football passion that the cubs have ignited. boys, keep your head high, for you have done your country proud! - C Ng
They played well against Montenegro and already have an eye on the final when they thought that Haiti is just a stroll in the park. Well back to ground zero dear Cubs, the ball is round and don't under estimate your opponent. Take this as an experience and learn from it. - Y Ibrahim
I just think that in our thirst for singapore football glory, we blindly placed our hopes on a group of schoolboys. i'm not belittling them but it is essentially kids football. it just got blown way out of proportion after the last match against montenegro. it is what it is and we should have let it be, but it evolved into a monster especially in the media...
But as consolation we can take heart that support for local football isn't dead. which country in the world will interrupt regular programming at prime-time to show their schoolboys team play live or have public screenings! - B Kunju
They, more than the rest of us.What they need right now is our support and get that medal which has our name on it.
We are all disappointed with their performance tonight but this team more than any other this YOG captured our imagination.
This team showed us why the Youth Olympics matters.Its bigger than winning.
It's getting a country together and showing us why sports is the greatest teacher of them all. They owe it to us getting that medal and we owe it to them being there this Wednesday. - V Subramaniam
The boys have worked really hard and we should not be faulting anyone.
They are after all 15 years old and time will progressed them. To... all fans out there, if you happens to bump into this kids, show them your support. They will always have mine no matter what. Cheers! - H Razzak
You're right, the Haiti team shut us out tonight and looked really dangerous on the counter. They deserved to go ahead, but because of the deplorable manner in which they prevented a comeback, they lost my respect.
ReplyDeleteThe Cubs may have let the adoration get to their heads, but it is better that they learn this lesson early on so they can avoid repeating this on a bigger stage. Everyone must learn to cope with being the favourite as well as the underdog, it is part of progress.
For coach Siva, for your friends and families and most importantly for yourselves, you Cubs need to look ahead to what can be instead of thinking what might have been.
You may have lost a few fair-weather fans but you can still count on a small band of supporters to help you move on. Together we can bring back hope to Singapore football.
Let the weight of our expectations give you something to stand on, not something to drag you down. Fellow fans, let's rally behind our Cubs when they're down and not just when they're winning.
Keep faith and we will roar again.
Honestly don't know what cubs are playin with all the mad rush from the start of the wistle with passes goin astray, forwards missin chances and defense in sixes ans sevens.Is there really a need to exert so much energy that u have nothin left in the end?
ReplyDeleteHavin said that,still million time better than Raddy and his protected seniors who thinks they are super stars that has conquer the world :(
I still feel that Raddy with his outdated methods and many seniors has to leave. These guys are just wastin public funds on tourin Europe that will come to nod :(
@Anonymous, the Cubs have been drilled extensively for fitness, and shouldn't have problems going at top gear for 80-90 minutes.
ReplyDeleteGranted the passing and movement was lacking for long stretches but in the end it was their concentration that cost them.
Maybe we in the stands have gone so long without success that any sort of good results tend to be exaggerated. .. and when a schoolboy team is capable of playing this well, it's more exciting for us fans.
We need to focus on the next game, and get our feet back on the ground.
Raddy and Co. have done pretty well, I think. The Europe trip will give our Young Lions plenty of match experience... yes, Young Lions. There are plenty of those on tour, not just the "protected superstars".
It's a long road ahead, don't expect instant results.
I prefer they are called Singa Cubs.
ReplyDelete"Little Cubs" sound so primary schools...
Wahid,
ReplyDeleteTo be honest, there's no official nickname for the National U15 team..
While the senior national team is commonly known as the "Lions", the U23 aka SEA aka Asiad Squad are known as the "Cubs" (instead of calling them 'Young Lions', since YL is a CLUB playing in the S.League), as they are next in the pecking order.
While "Little Cubs" is what I deemed appropriate to call the YOG boys.
Yet, it's up to individual unless the relevant authority wanna fix a nickname for them