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[Telegram Chat] - 𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐇 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐄𝐅𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐓 𝐎𝐑 "𝑩𝑼𝑨𝑵𝑮 𝑴𝑨𝑺𝑨" ?

The recent no-show by Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi in Beijing and Hong Kong respectively had yet again got people asking if staging friendly games in this part of the world featuring high-profile marquees like the mentioned duo is a worthwhile investment. Leo Messi gave Singapore a miss in 2017 There's no doubt that to boost ticket sales, you need a few crowd pullers, and very often, these tickets aren't cheap, but many fans are still willing to pay a hefty price for them. However, recent games of such nature especially those held after the pandemic suggested fans are not going to splurge like they used to do and are taking a more cautious approach when times are bad. The recent pre-season games featuring a few top-tier European club sides in Singapore neither saw a packed stadium nor were the tickets being snapped up at a frantic pace. Notice the empty spaces in the background of the Liverpool-Leicester game in July 2023? Furthermore, those marquee are susceptible to

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐀𝐍𝐒𝐖𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐃 𝐀 𝐐𝐔𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐈𝐍 𝐐𝐔𝐎𝐑𝐀 𝐎𝐍 𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐀𝐏𝐎𝐑𝐄 𝐅𝐎𝐎𝐓𝐁𝐀𝐋𝐋

How things got worse for Singapore football (AI-generated image) [Quora] - WHY HAS THE SINGAPORE NATIONAL FOOTBALL TEAM BEEN SO ATROCIOUS IN THE LAST FEW YEARS? There were a few opportunities in the past when we could have built on after winning those ASEAN titles . It should have been a natural progression to see us move forward to compete with the rest of Asia rather than remain in stagnancy at the ASEAN level. Unfortunately, the participation of “Lions XII” in the Malaysian League during 2012–2015 seems to accelerate the declining process. Mainly because most of the Singapore national players during that period played for Lions XII. While there were some successes for the team like clinching the Malaysia League title and the Malaysia FA Cup, it came with a heavy price. During that period (2012–2015), most of the national players did not have a chance to play in the AFC tournaments (i.e.: AFC Champions League, AFC Cup ). As such, these players missed the opportunity to play against v

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐀𝐏𝐎𝐑𝐄 𝐂𝐔𝐏 & 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐒' 𝐅𝐀𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐎 𝐐𝐔𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐅𝐘 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐀𝐅𝐂 𝐂𝐔𝐏

Two events in recent days prompted me to jot this note - the Singapore Cup and Tampines Rovers failed to qualify for the AFC Cup . The premier knockout tournament will see the nine teams from the Singapore Premier League (SPL) split into two groups with 5 teams in Group A and the rest in Group B. STAGS FAILED TO QUALIFY FOR A SPOT IN THE AFC CUP  In the meantime, Tampines Rovers found themselves being denied a spot in the continental tournament which they would easily qualify to the knock-out stages in the past when they were beaten 3-2 by Phnom Penh Crown of Cambodia in the qualifying play-off. Stags' coach Gavin Lee faced criticism after failing to qualify for the AFC Cup Ironically, Phnom Penh Crown was one of the many regional invitees in the past to play in the Singapore Cup competition. The above-mentioned tournament, at one point, was dubbed the "Asean Friendship Invitational" because of the participation of club sides from the neighbouring countries. OTHER PRO

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐒 𝐎𝐍 𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐓 𝐒𝐄𝐀 𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐒 𝐑𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐄𝐖

Based on those " recommendations ", it is not hard to tell a thing or two where and why our SEA Games footballers failed to perform up to expectations. Coach Raddy was the last coach to guide Singapore to success • SPL NOT UP TO MARK When one of the findings mentioned 'tournament (SEA Games) was played at an intensity “beyond that of the” SPL.' , it has proven that SPL (Singapore Premier League) does not provide the necessary environment and pace to gear our players to play at a higher level usually demanded at the international levels, be it the SEA Games or any international tournaments. • RADDY ALREADY SAID SO Which the reason why former national coach Raddy Avramovic once said the importance of our clubs to do well in regional tournaments such as the AFC Cup, as players would gain the necessary exposure at club levels by playing in those tournaments and would adapt the pace easily when they came to play for the national team, if selected. • POOR FUNDAMENTALS   On

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐌𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐀𝐒 𝐖𝐄𝐋𝐋 𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐈𝐓 𝐀𝐓 𝐁𝐈𝐒𝐇𝐀𝐍

I was flabbergasted when I realised how many sectors the organisers are going to open up for the Singapore national team 's upcoming friendly matches against Papua New Guinea (PNG) and Solomon Islands at the National Stadium (check out yourself at the SISTIC site ). Worth the effort for having games here? Gven such a small fraction to be opened up, it would be a challenging task to create the kind of atmosphere most accustomed to an international friendly, especially the spot where some of the most passionate supporters usually congregate is not one of those to-be-opened sectors. HAVING A WHITE ELEPHANT IN THE HOUSE Based on the seating plan, only a few sectors surrounding the "players' tunnel" are open for sale, and mind you those limited slots are located at the lower tier of the 55,000-seat facility. While there is a desire to see more of the Lions' matches to be staged at the National Stadium , the limited seats available for sale will make the place look lik

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐁𝐔𝐈𝐋𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐃𝐔𝐈𝐓 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐔𝐓𝐑! 𝐓𝐎𝐖𝐍𝐇𝐀𝐋𝐋

Invitation to UTR! Townhall at Suntec (credit: UTR! FB ) To begin with, we have to admit that "Singapore football is in a state of stagnation" as a way to acknowledge and have a consensus on the problem that will allow us to start from a common ground. I believe one of the keys lies in making those in attendance for t he upcoming Unleash The Roar! Townhall session to feel at ease at the venue, enabling them to contribute constructively to the cause, as some individuals may feel nervous and hesitant to speak up openly, unlike when they are typing on a keyboard. MODERATING - A KEY FACTOR IN TOWNHALL This is why I think both the moderator in the townhall, if any, and the agenda of the day play a crucial role during the whole event. Some fans suggested the scheduling of the townhall session on a Thursday (25/5) night at Suntec City can be a challenging one, as compared to having it on a weekend.  Additionally, part of the proceedings included updating the floor on the progress

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐃𝐈𝐓𝐂𝐇 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 "𝐆𝐎𝐀𝐋 𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟎" 𝐈𝐍 𝐎𝐑𝐃𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐎 𝐆𝐄𝐓 𝐒𝐏𝐋 𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐕𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐒𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐌𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐎𝐍

• Fix the things that are not right • Improvise things to make things better • Scrap the things if they do not deliver • Leave it as it is if they still functioning properly When we are talking about the privatisation of the Singapore Premier League (SPL) which is widely speculated to take place somewhere down the road soon, let's make sure we will get off from the right footing in the right direction. "GOAL 2010" must be put to rest NOW The painful lessons are drawn from the much-ridiculed " Goal 2010 " and its reincarnation - that "Strategic Plan" (launched in 2010) must be heeded, in order not to repeat the same mistakes again. There are things that should allow nature to take its course and not be hurried just to meet the unreasonable self-imposed deadline, but it is also a sin to procrastinate on those lingering problems that could escalate to do more damage down the road. Another key to making the privatisation process a success is to guide th

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐀 𝐁𝐑𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐋𝐀𝐖𝐘𝐄𝐑 𝐖𝐇𝐎 𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒 𝐀𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓

I hope people understand where I am coming from when I say the late N Ganesan , who single-handedly triggered the football fever in the 1970s, was a lawyer when he took over the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) chairmanship from RBI Pates in 1976 after serving as the latter's deputy. N Ganesan (in a white suit) holding the Malaysia Cup The only thing that was highlighted was Ganesan played for Singapore Indians in a 1982 Straits Times article which paid a tribute to the brave man to resuscitate the local game during his term in office as FAS chairman (as what it was called then). The reason I stressed this is that it was recently suggested that the top persons in the FA should be people who have played the game at high levels. As the Ganesan example shows, it is not necessarily the case while not discounting the fact there are former players who excelled as able administrators like legendary "Pop" Lim Yong Liang did. Although former players usually have a cert

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐂𝐇 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐑𝐎𝐎𝐓𝐒

Part of the attached image from a media release issued by Starhub I am not sure about the rest, I just don't feel the hype of the World Cup which is going to take place this month. To the extent, I don't know the exact date when the greatest show on earth is going to kick off, I don't exactly know which are teams to be featured, also are there 24 or 32 teams playing in the odd scheduling of this once-in-a-four-year event? Also with the skyrocketing cable subscriptions, I opted not to see the games live on my television unless they are showing on terrestrial channels. Cristiano Ronaldo in action for Juventus in ICCSG 2019 Simply because I couldn't afford the rates, and I can unashamedly tell the rest that I have not seen Leo Messi in action although I was fortunate to snap his buddy Neymar and his contemporary Cristiano Ronaldo in action in recent years when the latter two were in Singapore. So if the poll I conducted on IG Story (top image) days ago is a reflection of

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐀𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐀 𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐄

I hope everyone already woke up from a bad nightmare for what it was never meant to be in the first place. It was a bitter pill to swallow to see some of our neighbours (see links below under RELATED NEWS at the foot) qualified for the Asian Cup, while we could only lick our wounds and keep thinking about what went wrong. The emotion of Shah Shahiran (20) sums it up Many things were said about the preparation, process, etc. leading to the trip to the Kyrgyz Republic for the qualifiers of the continent's most prestigious tournament (i.e.: the late appointment of Takayuki Nishigaya as the national team coach , short preparation period , etc.) And when things did not go according to the script, it inevitably triggered an outcry, as seen on the platform's Facebook page lately. MOVING FORWARD It does not help the situation anymore if we keep harping on those hotly debated issues when we should be looking forward after the post-mortem period. When Coach Nishigaya insisted the Lions

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐂𝐔𝐁𝐒 𝐨𝐫 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐆 𝐋𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒

So long it's not called "pussy cat" I must be probably one of the rare few in Singapore to nickname the Singapore National Under-23 squad as "THE CUBS", whereas most would call them "YOUNG LIONS". For a good reason, I thought "CUBS" should be the appropriate one in this context, even though some opined those national teams in the teenage group should be called that. Simply because "YOUNG LIONS" is a team playing in the Singapore Premier League (SPL) and not a team representing the Republic in international tournaments. To nickname the Singapore National Under-23 as "YOUNG LIONS" would only give a wrong interpretation that the SPL team of the same name is THE ONE representing Singapore in overseas competitions when it is not (even though the bulk of the CUBS were selected from the YOUNG LIONS on many occasions). After all, the function of "YOUNG LIONS" is for developmental purposes in a professional setting. While

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐘 𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐎𝐂𝐇𝐈𝐀𝐋 𝐀𝐓 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐎𝐖𝐍 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐋

We read to widen not constraint our perspective The idea of sharing past occurrences of local football on this platform is to remind us what happened in the past and how those events should inspire us to do better. It is never meant to be a channel to allow certain groups or ideologies to claim superiority over other groups or beliefs. It has not been uncommon to see some lauded and immortalised the achievements of those many decades ago while belittling the efforts of those who did us proud in recent years. These thoughts came to me after I read a book recently in which a former national player lamented efforts by his club mates and himself in a continental tournament meant little significance to many fans who still basking in the glory of a domestic Cup competition which Singapore long associated in the past (need not for me to elaborate which Cup competition). This only tells us the parochial mindset that is etched in the mindset of some fans who still cannot let go of the past. Whi

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐈𝐌𝐏𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐍𝐈𝐂𝐇𝐄𝐒

Saying "No" is an art Even though I blog on Singapore football, it doesn't mean I will cover everything under the said theme. Mainly because being an OMO (One Man Operation) since the start of BoLASEPaKO•COM in 1996, I realised the importance of focusing on certain niches. The niches I referring to can be in any form or topic. Be it, the professional Singapore Premier League, the Singapore National Teams, the amateur/part-time based Singapore Football Leagues the write-ups, the photography, the social media postings, etc. Not having the luxury of a team would mean I have to stay focused on my continuing involvement, on top of having to juggle my day job to avoid a potential burnout. And those who followed me since the early days would know where my niches are, what are the areas I couldn't cover (noticed I used the word "couldn't" instead of the word "don't", since there is a difference between the two). This post is not referring to anyone

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐖𝐇𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐒𝐖𝐀𝐍𝐒' 𝐋𝐄𝐄 𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐃𝐆𝐄𝐒 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐆𝐎𝐀𝐋 𝐁𝐎𝐍𝐔𝐒 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐆𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐂𝐀𝐔𝐒𝐄

Lee (19) exchanges pleasantries with SNL participants Albirex Niigata FC Singapore's star striker Tadanari Lee will be donating all of his goal bonus, which is worth S$200 per goal, to ‘Goals for SportCares’ campaign till the end of the AIA Singapore Premier League 2022 season, according to the club. LEE: BE PART OF THE COMMUNITY “When I came to Singapore in January 2022, I wanted to be part of the community and a way to do this is to give back through what I can do best – sport. So, when I heard about SportCares and how they use football to engage the youth, it really resonated with me." said Lee in the said media advisory. The 37-year-old kicked off his donation drive in the SportCares’ Saturday Night Lights (SNL) event yesterday (23/4) at Clementi Stadium where Lee joined the youth players in their football drills and shared some pointers with them on the field. Lee showing pointers to SNL participants Following the drills, Lee also joined the Muslim participants for iftar

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐋𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒 𝐍𝐄𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐀𝐆𝐆𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐒𝐈𝐕𝐄 𝐁𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐈𝐃𝐃𝐋𝐄 ...

Skipper Hariss Harun (14) is a center-back these days Beating Malaysia is sweet, although we should have been more aggressive in the match that saw us beat the auld enemy 2-1 at Kallang last evening (26/7). The lack of aggressiveness was what I told almost everyone I bumped onto during and after the game which also saw national interim coach Nazri Nasir maintained his 100% record against Malaysia. Like I told a friend, I was wondering if Hariss Harun is being utilized more as the center-back these days that saw our lack of commanding presence in the middle of the park? Ikhsan's brace sunk Malaysia As we witnessed how the Harimau Malaya's more swift and intense movements were all over the Lions' domain at some parts of the game that saw Ikhsan Fandi was reduced to an isolated figure up front on a few occasions? And we had Lady Luck to thank when the Malaysians did not take their chance and even struck the crossbar from the spot-kick attempt before their equalizer in the 57t

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐌𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐚 𝐂𝐮𝐩 "𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭" 𝐭𝐨 𝐒𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐨𝐭𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐥

🙏 Thanks for joining in the FB live streaming on 18th February . 🔗 When we talk about Singapore Football , we can't run away without mentioning Malaysia Cup because of the long association with it. "The Malaysia Cup" was published in 1991 🏆 After all, Singapore was the first winner of this competition in 1921 and the team with the second-highest winning percentage in this tournament. 📖 And the same time, I shared some rare photos and old publications like a book on Malaysia Cup authored by Mr Godfrey Robert , a few copies of "Singapore Soccer", etc. 👴 Based on the June 1976 edition of "Singapore Soccer" monthly, I am confident to say legendary coach "Uncle" Choo Seng Quee would rather win the Pre-World Cup qualifier final against Hong Kong than win the Malaysia Cup in 1977. A copy of "Singapore Soccer" Monthly 🏢 Copies of "Singapore Soccer" monthly and book authored by Mr Robert can be found at National Library

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐁𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐁𝐀𝐂𝐊 "𝐀𝐋𝐋-𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑" 𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄!

The outcome of the poll  In a recent poll conducted on the platform's IG story, 89% indicated their wish to see a Singapore Premier League "All-Star" game. There were a few such games that took place during the S.League era in the form of "local" vs "foreign" setting, for example, 1998's "The New Paper Cup" and the "Tiger Beer S-League All-Star Challenge" in 1999. WHITBREAD SCORED THE WINNER IN 1998 "The New Paper Cup", which included the initiative of "Save Jurong Campaign", saw the "Rest of the World" (foreign) beat "S-League Locals" 3-2 after extra time with the winning goal scored by the then outgoing national coach Barry Whitbread, who doubled up as "Rest of the World" player-coach, at the demolished Jurong Stadium in front of more than 5,000 paying fans back in 28th November 1998. FAHMIE VOWED TO SNIP HIS PONYTAIL The following year saw the staging of the "Tiger Beer S

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐍𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐏𝐔𝐓 𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐄𝐆𝐆𝐒 𝐈𝐍 𝐀 𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐊𝐄𝐓

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

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐂𝐋𝐔𝐁𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐎𝐍𝐄-𝐇𝐎𝐑𝐒𝐄 𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐄

Izwan Mahbud switched to LCS  🚨 So much hoo-ha today (8/1) on the latest Lion City Sailors' (LCS) recruitment of both Izwan Mahbud and M Anumanthan . 💭 A friend of mine asked me about my thoughts on Izwan's signing for the Sailors, the following are some of my thoughts. 👍 On the positive side, it makes the contest for the number one spot more intense which is good, be it on the club or national team (NT) level. 🔄 I would like to think Coach Kim Do-hoon intends to rotate both Hassan Sunny and Izwan, given the packed calendar LCS be having. Happy headache for Coach Kim (credit: LCS) ⚠️ Having either one of them sit on the bench for too long isn't gonna do any good, given their importance to the NT who have both Asian Cup qualifiers and Suzuki Cup coming up later this year. 🧐 I would think Izwan be staying put at Hougang United where he would have more playing time to allow him to impress whoever is going to be the NT coach. 🐴 In the meantime, there are some quibbles on

[Telegram Chat] - 𝐆𝐄𝐓 𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐎𝐍𝐄 𝐎𝐍 𝐀𝐍 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐌 𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐈𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐈𝐃 𝐃𝐈𝐒𝐑𝐔𝐏𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍

No time to waste on searching for Coach Yoshida's replacement No point in crying over a cup of spilled milk when the utmost task for the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) is to seek an immediate replacement for outgoing Tatsuma Yoshida as the Singapore National Team Head Coach. As mentioned in the press release announcing the Japanese tactician's departure after steering the Lions to the AFF Suzuki Cup semis for the first time since 2012, the FAS "will commence with the search for a permanent replacement for Tatsuma in January 2022" in order to prepare for the third and final round of qualification for the Asian Cup in next June After all, have we not learned from the past that dragging their feet in naming a replacement for the national coach would have a detrimental effect. Even if a permanent replacement is not possible in time, getting someone on an interim basis should be one option to ensure the preparation for the Asian Cup qualifiers not be disrupted