BoLASEPaKO.com - A Blog on Singapore Football

It was probably one of my earliest vivid memories when as a child watching a player in a light blue jersey dribbling a ball on television at my maternal grandfather's home. As I grew up, it was made clear to me that it could be one of the Singapore national team's matches held at the old National Stadium that had all the eyeballs of many households around the island glued to the screen to cheer the Lions on. The Admiral Blue jersey worn by Samad Allapitchay (left) is one of my earliest memories (Asian Soccer)   Based on my intuition, the moment could be somewhere in 1977 - the year which is still fondly remembered by many as the heyday of Singapore football. Interestingly, this blog posted a few posts related to occurrences that happened during that year which witnessed some of the highs and lows of the local game. So here is a recap of some notable incidents in that year. FANS CALLING FOR UNCLE CHOO TO BE REPLACED  In the weeks leading up to the new calendar year, a petition

I met up with a reader who emailed me shortly after I posted the piece on the Metro 20th Anniversary Tournament back in March. In his email, he mentioned he has a copy of a magazine that included some write-ups and pictures from those matches played in the 1977 quadrangular. I visited his abode after accepting his invitation to take a look at the said magazine. The magazine turned out to be "Asian Soccer" with the late Mohd Noh , in action wearing the legendary Admiral blue outfit, fronting the August 1977 cover. The feature on the Metro 20th Anniversary Tournament (Asian Soccer) The features of the Metro Tournament were incorporated in that above-mentioned magazine which consisted of a picture of the trophy of the competition on the same page that included a team photo of Yugoslavian titans Red Star Belgrade , one of the four participants of the quadrangular. "UNJUSTIFIED" AND "NOT IMPRESSED" The first page of the aforementioned included the starting par

Many motorists would be forgiven if that unassuming small stadium located next to the huge SAFRA clubhouse failed to grab their attention when they drove past it after entering Toa Payoh from the westbound Pan Island Expressway (PIE). OFTEN FORGOTTEN OBSCURITY After all, the awkward positioning of that above-mentioned brutalist arena along the busy Lorong 6 stretch does no favour to help any random visitor to have a clear visible sight of it when there is a car park in front of it. The brutalist facade of Toa Payoh Stadium Nonetheless, the 3,800-capacity Toa Payoh Stadium has a special place in local sporting folklore for being part of the then newly erected Toa Payoh Sports Complex which served as a venue for competition and training of the 1973 SEAP Games - the first major sporting event hosted by the then newly-independent Republic of Singapore. PELE VISITED TOA PAYOH STADIUM IN 1974 It was also this stadium that etched its presence in Singapore football when the legendary Pele c

The biography of "Uncle" Choo Seng Quee I was thrilled when I first came across the Facebook group posting by Reynold Godwin Pereira on his plan to write a book about Choo Seng Quee, the late legendary Singapore football coach whose name still awes everyone by merely mentioning his moniker "Uncle Choo". After all, we are talking about an individual who, through his no-nonsense, tough disciplinary methods, uplifted game standards not just in Singapore, but also in Malaysia and Indonesia. PRESERVE UNCLE CHOO MEMORIES BEFORE THEY'RE GONE A biography like this one came just at the right time to inform the current young generation of the great things the man did before all those memories would fade away after the passing of one generation. With "Uncle Choo" passing away in 1983, Pereira had to rely on the accounts shared with him by those who knew him, including players who trained under him and became national players like Quah Kim Song , etc. The book aut

 SGPL - Lion City Sailors 3-1 Tanjong Pagar United 240223 Both Sailors and Jags anticipating a ball into the box Lion City Sailors opened their Singapore Premier League campaign with a sweet victory over Tanjong Pagar United in their homecoming at the Bishan Stadium. Japanese ace striker Kodai Tanaka marked his Sailors' debut with a brace from close range in second half. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE OF THE MATCH PICTURES SGPL - Balestier Khalsa 2-3 Hougang United 260223 Balestier Khalsa's Ryoya Taniguchi (red shirt) surrounded by Hougang United players Hougang United claimed all three points at Bishan Stadium by beating Balestier Khalsa 3-2 in a scrappy encounter which is otherwise known as the "pinball" derby. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REST OF THE MATCH PICTURES SGPL - Geylang International 2-1 Hougang United 050323 Hougang United's players look on as Geylang International celebrate With Vincent Bezecourt's double in the second half, Geylang Internation

Led by English entrepreneur Reg Lambourne , the contingent comprised of English powerhouse Arsenal, Scottish giants Celtic FC, and Yugoslavian titans Red Star Belgrade arrived in Singapore to give local football fans one unforgettable experience in the Metro 20th Anniversary Tournament back in July 1977. I doubt scenes like this would ever happen today when I prowled and read what I gathered from newspapers archives for details on the Metro 20th Anniversary Tournament which took place in July 1977, when three groups of footballers descended together at the old Paya Lebar Airport for the abovementioned quadrangular which was part of the "World of Soccer Cup" friendly tournament played in both Singapore and Australia. "$24-MILLION WORTH OF TALENT" Was how it was labeled by The Straits Times in their report when renowned footballers such as Malcolm "Super Mac" MacDonald, Liam Brady, Danny McGrain, and Vladislav Bogicevic were part of the contingent welcome

One of the headlines on the stampede ( NLB archive ) The build-up to the match was intense. After all, it was between the two biggest sides of the tournament that saw them being the first finalists of the competition first known as the HMS Malaya Cup back in 1921. To make the showdown even more mouth-watering was the fact that Selangor, widely known as the Malaysian "second national team" back then with the likes of Mohktar Dahari, Soh Chin Ann, Santokh Singh, etc., had already beaten Singapore twice on a roll in the final to win the coveted Malaysia Cup in previous two years (1975 and 1976). The blogger speaking to Dato' Soh Chin Ann in 2010 (Gale Gan) Instead of making the arch-rivals face each other for the third consecutive time in the ultimate fixture in 1977, the script was changed to see both Singapore and Selangor in the semi-final instead. The young republic, coached by the legendary "Uncle" Choo Seng Quee, topped the South Zone undefeated with eight wi

Mr Lim Teng Sai in his younger days (as credited) The story was shared by former Singapore national defender Mr Lim Teng Sai during the launch of the book "ROAR: Football Legends of Singapore" at the Jalan Besar Stadium (JBS) days ago. The former center-half approached a group of us during the friendly match between Singapore ex-internationals, which featured some of his former teammates, and their Malaysian counterparts, as he would like to peruse the book that documented the football history of Singapore. The friendly match, which was won 2-0 by the hosts, was part of the launch of the book authored and edited by long-time Singapore football supporter Mr A Thiyaga Raju and sports writer Mr Gary Koh respectively. The blogger with Mr Lim at the JBS Elated to see his name being featured in the list of the players in the book, he went on to oblige a fan's request to sign on a few pictures of his taken during his playing days in the 1970s. Pointing towards the direction wh