BoLASEPaKO•COM - A Blog on Singapore Football

Cubs (in red) struggled against the Japanese  Sometimes, one can't be faulted that skepticism  is aroused instantly when things don't deliver, especially when the subject is proclaimed for better things to come. Fresh from their training trip to Turkey that saw them chalking up losses on margin against their peers from German side Hamburger SV, Spartak Moscow of Russian and Yemen U21 with a draw salvaged against Uzbekistan U21, things remain positive and was lauded as a good learning experience for the team's preparation for the upcoming SEA Games in June. So literally, here came this match that the visiting Japanese U22 national side showed their class and gave their hosts - SINGAPORE NATIONAL U23 TEAM , a lesson that will etch in their minds that would not be easy to erase in the near future. Down by five goals at halftime against the Japanese Olympic squad, the Cubs found themselves barely able to make their way out of their fortress during the first 45 with th...

(P.S: If you access this site via "come . to/ matchpix ", please click the "Facebook" icon after you click "HERE" when you want to view the album as that will redirect you to the album, thank you) Thank You Aleks 31/10/2014 Aleks watching the video tribute It was an emotional evening when the time has come to call it a day for Aleksandar Duric and thanks for being the perfect model since I took up football photography. A tribute prior to the kick-off and after the 2-1 win over Brunei DPMM FC had the big man in tears as we saw the last of him in action on a football field. Thank You, Aleks. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REST OF THE MATCH PICTURES Singapore Cup Final: Balestier Khalsa 3-1 Home United 7/11/2014 Hoist the Cup, Tigers! As what Balestier Khalsa Football Club's chairman Mr S Thavaneson said this is "significant victory" for the club for being one of the founding members of the league. And more significantly, the ...

Rafi Ali close checked on "Macca" A trip down to the Jalan Besar Stadium last evening sets apart from those previous ones. It was because the showpiece last night, literally brought me back to my formative years when catching football action on television was a norm then (not much in these recent years). Suddenly, the likes of Ian Rush, Steve McManaman, Fandi Ahmad, V Sundramoorthy whom I used to catch in action on television appeared right in front of me to showcase what they were during their heydays and for Robbie Fowler, himself, could sort of making up for his non-appearance on the same arena when he first came to Singapore in 2009 with the now-defunct A-League side North Queensland Fury . Liverpool legend Ian Rush (left)  don an "Aleks T-shirt" The match was almost derailed before the scheduled kickoff time at 7pm due to the persistent rain and eventually went ahead in drizzling after the deactivation of the Light Warning System (LWS). Anothe...

(L-R) Steve McManaman and Robbie Fowler Earlier in the day, the pre-match press conference for the Castlewood Group Liverpool Masters was at The Westin. Following the success of last year's Masters Event held at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, local-based commercial real estate developer - Castlewood Group had decided to back the event for the second time on a roll with an array of stars from the yesterdays that featuring household names of both Liverpool Football Club and Singapore national football team in a friendly match to be played this coming Saturday at the Jalan Besar Stadium. (L-R) Aleksandar Duric and Aide Iskandar In attendance at the said press conference were former Liverpool idols Robbie Fowler, Steve McManaman alongside with ex-Lions skipper Aide Iskandar and recently retired Aleksandar Duric together with Chris Comer, CEO of Castlewood Group (pictured below third from left) and event organizer Steve Black, CEO of Masters Football Asia (picture below thir...

(This entry is formulated based on the media release issued by the Football Association of Singapore which includes the images depicted on it) Afiq Yunos (11) tussling for the ball (credit: FAS) SINGAPORE, 9 SEPTEMBER 2014: The Singapore National Team played out a goalless draw with Hong Kong tonight at Hougang Stadium, with neither side doing enough to edge the game. It was the young Singapore squad’s final match before leaving for Incheon to take part in the Asian Games. In a start reminiscent of Saturday’s match against Papua New Guinea, the home team began the game shakily with Hong Kong attacking several times early on before the hosts settled around 15 minutes in. The first meaningful Hong Kong attack came as early as the 5th minute when a pass meant for Hong Kong’s Christian Annan was intercepted just in time. Seven minutes later, Annan was again in the thick of action as he blazed a shot well over from a cut-back . Singapore had to wait till the 21st minute for its...

Valentine Nelson (3) headed for safety Some interesting pointers to take note from this "A-Lister" between Singapore and Papua New Guinea that was played this evening at Hougang and saw the hosts walked away victorious with a 2-1 scoreline. There is this a new FIFA ruling that I was told, despite having four Singaporeans listed as the match officials for the game, it's considered an "A" international match that saw a few Lions debutants earning their first cap for the country in which a special procedure is needed to register that. Sahil Suhaimi (7) - the first scorer of the night However, not making his presence at the match was national coach Bernd Stange, who was reported down with fever that his role was covered by Courts Young Lions coach Aide Iskandar, his assistant for this series. To be honest, not much information on Papua New Guinea prior to this match other than they are being coached by New Zealander Wynton Rufer who is a legend in h...

(P.S: If you access this site via "come.to/matchpix", please click the "Facebook" icon after you click "HERE" when you want to view the album as that will redirect you to the album, thank you) "I Bianconeri" in Singapore No Carlos Tevez after all ... Juventus are in Singapore for their final leg of the #juvetour and be playing the very first match stage in the new National Stadium. There was a stadium tour earlier of the day before the Singapore Selection had their training on the new surface. The "Grand Old Lady" of Italian football held their one-and-only public training session on the following day (15/8) in front of their adoring supporters. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REST OF THE PICTURES Football Returns to Kallang... (16/8/2014) The sandy surface was the main talking point The much-awaited football match to be play in the new National Stadium took place on 16th of August when the Singapore Selection took on...

Andrea Pirlo - the midfield Mozart The locals should be proud of what they have seen in the Singapore Selection side against Italian powerhouses Juventus in the very first football match played in the new National Stadium. A notable performance by Warriors' goalkeeper Hassan Sunny at goal had at least accounted for five saves to deny the "Grand Old Lady" from ripping the Selection apart in the first half. Eventually, the "Bianconeri" did find their way to the back of the net on two occasions through "dead ball" situations credited to the crowd favorite - midfield maestro Andrea Pirlo, who took the honour of being the first goalscorer inside this pristine arena through his efforts in the 16th (free-kick) and 44th minute (penalty). Historical moment - Pirlo scored the first goal  Historical moment - Pirlo scored his second goal However, the same cannot be said for the second period with the Italian side turning on the turbo as early as ...

(L-R) Llorente, Buffon and Allegri The Bianconeri arrived in Singapore to conclude the final leg of their pre-season Asian Pacific tour that saw them notched up two victories in Indonesia and Australia prior to their arrival on the sunny island. Following wins against the All- Stars squads of both Indonesian and A-League, Juventus are looking strong to conclude their tour on a high note. Coach Allegri taking questions from press "It has been a good preparation so far for our pre season, and we will have two more weeks to work things out before the campaign." said Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri at the media conference Despite having a short session within hours after their landing and still trying to familiarize with the playing surface, the former AC Milan coach is impressed with what he saw at the new National Stadium, the crown jewel of the Singapore Sports Hub. Gianluigi Buffon - the Azzuri and Juventus skipper Llorente was a World Cup winner...