BoLASEPaKO.COM - A Blog on Singapore Football

 SGPL - Lion City Sailors 2-4 Albirex Niigata (S) 081022 Albirex's supporters in jubilant mood after securing SPL title Albirex Niigata (Singapore) overpowered Lion City Sailors 4-2 to reclaim the Singapore Premier League title - their fifth league triumph since joining the Singapore football scene. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REST OF THE MATCH PICTURES Singapore Cup - Geylang International 2-3 Tampines Rovers 281022 What a crowded six-yard box  Good exciting game for the neutrals to see how Geylang International fought back from a two-goal deficit but saw a flash across from Stags' Kyoga Nakamura wrapped up all three points in the dying moments over their co-tenants. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REST OF THE MATCH PICTURES Singapore Cup Final - Hougang United 3-2 Tampines Rovers 191122 Cheetahs claimed their first major trophy in the professional era Hougang United clinched their first major trophy since joining the top flight when they beat Tampines Rovers 3-2 to win the S...

 Standard Chartered Singapore Trophy Events 260422 Former Liverpool midfielder Jason McAteer (right) with a fan Nineteenth-time English league champions Liverpool will take on fellow Premier League side Crystal Palace in the Standard Chartered Singapore Trophy 2022. A press conference was held at Gardens by the Bay to announce the match will be played on 15th July at the National Stadium. The confirmation of this fixture will see the Reds and the Eagles being the first European top-flight clubs to play in Singapore since 2019. Besides attending the press conference in the morning, both Jason McAteer (ex Liverpool) and Andre Moritz (former Crystal Palace and now Hougang United) made their presence in the afternoon at Serangoon Stadium for the football clinic. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REST OF THE PICTURES SGPL - Tanjong Pagar United 4-2 Tampines Rovers 280522 Reo Nishiguchi of TPUFC celebrates after scoring After a six-goal thriller in the first half that saw them take a two-goa...

 SGPL - Balestier Khalsa 2-2 Tampines Rovers 260222 Aerial duel at Tigers-Stags game Balestier Khalsa came back from behind to salvage a draw with goals from Shuhei Hoshino and Ensar Brunčević in the second half. The Stags took a two-goal lead in the first half through Boris Kopitović and Taufik Suparno. The match also saw the return of Balestier's head coach Akbar Nawas to the local top flight after five years when he, ironically, stepped down from the Tampines Rovers' hot seat in 2017. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REST OF THE PICTURES SGPL - Tanjong Pagar United 2-2 Hougang United 060322 Jags' 'keeper Zharfan ensured safety Shodai Nishikawa's 88th minute diving header salvaged a 2-2 for Tanjong Pagar United after they earlier surrendered the lead to Hougang United's two quick goals in 77' & 79'. Khairul Nizam opened the account in the 72nd minute for Jags. Tanjong Pagar United reclaimed the pacesetter role barely one day after their co-tenants Alb...

Kyoga Nakamura's deal - a bigger news I can sense that excitement when Tampines Rovers surprised everyone when they dished out an unprecedented contract to bind Kyoga Nakamura for the next five years . After all, a commitment for that duration is something unheard of in local football where it was a common thing to see one or, if lucky, a two-year contract for the players. Furthermore, it came at a time when the economy is not doing well when most of us are worrying about our bread and butter. CONTINUING OF THE HYPE? The surfacing of this development definitely gave us a "wow" reaction, and probably something of a continuation of hype after the heroics of the Lions that melted the hearts of the nation in the recent AFF Suzuki Cup followed by the signing of Izwan Mahbud and M Anumanthan to the big-spending Lion City Sailors (LCS). Not forgetting Albirex Niigata (Singapore) made eyes turn when they roped in former Japanese international Tadanari Lee  ( Lee is famous for s...

People of my generation might have heard of him but were too young to realize who he was when he was playing. Let alone those millennials or Generation Z who might think "Mat Noh" is just a random name of someone around them. It is something we cannot pinpoint at anyone if many young people these days have not heard the names of Mat Noh and his contemporaries who wowed this island republic in the 1970s. The 1977 Singapore National Team is still revered by many to this day ** Simply because many former players have stayed out of the media limelight after they hung up their boots that it is no surprise, some might not realize who are they if they happened to stand in front or next to a former national player. SAD THAT ONLY REALIZED WHO THEY WERE WHEN THEY GONE It is a sad thing that whenever former star players like Mat Noh pass on, we only get to read articles in the newspapers and discussions on social media reminiscing the achievements they had in their heydays, other than...

 Lions Training 010921  Coach Yoshida led by example in the Lions' training  National Coach Tatsuma Yoshida called up 22 locally-based players for a series of training sessions during the FIFA international window. The training sessions saw the newcomers in the likes of Song Ui-young of Lion City Sailors and Hougang United's Afiq Noor. The sessions also saw the return of skipper Hariss Harun alongside Faritz Hameed, Jacob Mahler and Geylang International's Amy Recha whose last call-up was back in July 2016. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REST OF THE PICTURES SGPL - Tampines Rovers 2-1 Young Lions 180921 Balancing act by Baihakki Khaizan Tampines Rovers had to work their socks off till the end to ensure they finally snapped their six-game winless streak by beating a resilient Young Lions 2-1 last evening (18/9) at Our Tampines Hub. Zehrudin Mehmedović gave the Stags the lead before half-time that was cancelled out by the spot-kick from Young Lions' skipper Jacob Mahler in...

Snapped this before I was ushered back to the main stand No one, except for Sembawang Rangers fans, knows why it was called the "Ibrahim Corner" at this part of Yishun Stadium, where I took my place here prior to the start of the S.League match between Harimua Muda and Albirex Niigata (Singapore) back in March 2012. But one thing is for sure, for many Stallions faithful in the past, this stand facing the main stand of the stadium holds many memories for them. This was the place where local football used to have some of its most passionate supporters congregated during the Stallions' home games in yesteryears until the club decided to pull out in 2003 because of financial difficulties. One of the things I remembered of these Sembawang supporters was in 2005 when they turned up in numbers at Ibrahim Corner to show their support to former Sembawang Rangers coach Vorawan Chitavanich, who was in charge of Tampines Rovers, at a league game against the Young Lions at this sta...

Did you see the rainbow? Good day to all, Plenty of things happened over the last few days. ➡️ The resuming of the AIA Singapore Premier League. ➡️ The two-and-half-year partnership between Lion City Sailors and Borussia Dortmund. ➡️ Another Tampines Rovers player tested positive for the Covid19 after returning from the AFC Champions League campaign in Uzbekistan. ✅ ✅ The first two are, no doubt, some positives injected to the scene while, and hopefully, the infected Tampines players will get well soon 🙏. 🤒 From what I read, not only Tampines players are infected, six persons from Gamba Osaka and Frontale Kawasaki are infected as well. 🤒 Gamba reported having two players and two accompanied staff down with the virus, while Frontale non-playing staff were infected, according to Sohu, a China news portal. 🤦🏻‍♂️Although, it is regrettable to come across some nonsensical comments targeted at those infected Tampines players which clearly shown the lack of empathy towards anyone who is...

Wonder if you understand why I am trying to say? Good Day to all, Posted this on IG Story days ago. It came after Tampines Rovers suffered a thrashing defeat in their ongoing AFC Champions League campaign that triggered a massive outcry on various social media sites. I decided not to post anything of that game as I felt no purpose in doing so when I did not watch the game and therefore not in the position to comment anything (I only saw the highlights later). Furthermore, if the post turned out to be another hotspot just to allow some to vent their frustrations like seen in some places, which might be escalated into something irrational, I think it would defeat the whole purpose of having this platform in the first place. Instead, I would rather share something that would be more beneficial in allowing others to appreciate and understand local football, such as historical stuff, etc. Last but not least, please kindly adhere to the "House Rules" when participating in any disc...

Someone said I used the meme wrongly  Good Day to all,  Just something spontaneous I shared this morning with those who subscribed to the platform's telegram channel . This evening is another historical moment in Singapore football and Tampines Rovers are due to make their debut in the AFC Champions League tournament. The Stags will be the second Singapore club after SAFFC to be featured in the elite continental club competition with veteran Daniel Bennett involving for the third time in his long illustrious career. Although the harsh reality is this noteworthy moment is being overshadowed by the ongoing Euro2020 with everyone's favourite match due to take place. But nonetheless, let's enjoy our football 😁 (image using Meme Generator ) - 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎'𝒔 𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒎 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒍 -

 Friendly - Geylang International 2-1 Balestier Khalsa 060321 Balestier's 'keeper Zaiful Nizam stretched to his limit Like the players too, those on the sidelines must also have their preparation for the new season. One of the challenges taking pictures at places like OTH is the unpredictable shades that cover the field during a game. Therefore, playing around with the settings is part of the acclimatising too. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REST OF THE MATCH PICTURES SGPL - Balestier Khalsa 1-2 Tampines Rovers 170321 Balestier's Shuhei Hoshino (red) tussling with Tampines' Baihakki Khaizan The AIA Singapore Premier League match between Balestier Khalsa Football Club and Tampines Rovers Football Club started on time on a greasy field due to the heavy rain prior the game. Stags' Taufik Suparno opened the account in 56th minute before Amer Hakeem levelled for the Tigers in 67th minute but the hosts' joy was temporary when Boris Kopitovic placed Stags back on the po...

SGPL - Geylang Int'l 2-3 Balestier Khalsa 241020 Shuhei Hoshino (9) raised at the near post in this aerial attempt. Balestier Khalsa Football Club maintained their winning form while Geylang International FC continued their losing streak since the resumption of AIA Singapore Premier League after Tigers walked away with a 3-2 win at Our Tampines Hub earlier of the day. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REST OF THE MATCH PICTURES SGPL - Tanjong Pagar Utd 0-0 Hougang United 011120 HGFC's Lionel Tan found himself being sandwiched  Both Tanjong Pagar United and Hougang United concluded their AIA Singapore Premier League fixture on a scoreless ending on 1st November at the Jurong East Stadium. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REST OF THE MATCH PICTURES SGPL - Lion City Sailors 6-1 Tanjong Pagar United 131120 LCS' Shahdan Sulaiman made sure he won this header Lion City Sailors maintained their fiery form by scoring another big margin win when they anchored Tanjong Pagar United 6-1 a...

Somehow, the atmosphere for the ongoing Komoco Motors Singapore Cup tournament just don't seems to feel right at all. It is a major cup semi-final phase we are now talking about but the ambience is as if nothing happened to set the stage right for the fans, if any, to fire up their imagination. The semis are scheduled four days apart. ( source ) Here we have a situation that not only could possibly see Brunei DPMM clinch a historical double but would also see any three of the local sides, namely Geylang International, Tampines Rovers and Warriors FC put an end to the "local drought" by claiming the Singapore Cup this season. STAGS' LAST HOPE FOR GLORY Having fumbled in their league title chase, the Stags knew it very well the Cup is their best hope to end their trophy drought after they last won the S.League title back in 2013. But even with a two-goal advantage from their first-leg win over Geylang, their co-tenants at Our Tampines Hub, Tampines are well...

SGPL - Albirex Niigata (S) 1-0 Hougang Utd 060518 The result saw Albirex Niigata FC Singapore pulled away from the pack in the Great Eastern-Hyundai Singapore Premier League league standing with the rest of them still scratching their heads. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REST OF THE MATCH PICTURES SGPL - Balestier Khalsa 1-2 Geylang International 020618 Not much to snap when most of the actions were "out of bound" due to my equipments limitations but nonetheless Great Eastern-Hyundai Singapore Premier League the match saw Geylang International beat Balestier Khalsa 2-1 at the "dark" Toa Payoh Stadium. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REST OF THE MATCH PICTURES SGPL - Hougang Utd 0-2 Tampines Rovers 090618 Khairul Amri (partially hidden by ball) scored in this match For Tampines Rovers, their main is try to narrow their gap in between them and Great Eastern-Hyundai Singapore Premier League leaders Albirex Niigata FC Singapore and Hougang Unite...