BoLASEPaKO.com - A Blog on Singapore Football

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

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

An IG poll was conducted to see how many noticed this poster There is some marketing buzz going on for the upcoming AFF Suzuki Cup though I am not sure how many noticed this banner while strolling along this busy walkway of Bishan MRT station? Not that far away from this station is Bishan Stadium - the venue for most of the Group B matches. One thing to take note of is the stadium is installed with a new natural grass surface (picture below) which I had a look at recently from the nearby Bishan Sports Hall. Being a surface that was only laid not that long ago, not sure if it is able to withstand the robustness of the team like the Vietnamese who are known for their pace. (maybe someone with some horticultural knowledge can answer that)? Will Vietnam thrive on this new surface? In the meantime, the delay in the announcement of the ticketing and broadcasting details caused some anxieties among the local fans during the run-up to the biennial showpiece. Yet when the ticketing details we

The name is fixed? (created using meme generator ) After months of anticipation, we are given some updates on the Unleash The Roar! (UTR!) project days ago. When I first read about it, my main concern would be the sustainability of those ten School Football Academies (SFAs) schools (ie: resources like financial, manpower, etc.) which are the cornerstones of the update. Are we getting full support from the Ministry of Education (MOE) on the setting up of these SFA schools? Let's hope so, especially it seems to me past blueprints like "Goal 2010" did not have the backing of the educators. Besides MOE who must wholeheartedly support the "SFA" concept, I think to convince the parents of this UTR! is a viable project is equally important too. Parentage support is important to UTR! While it seems that the UTR! received a booster with Borussia Dortmund (BvB) and LaLiga coming on board as strategic partners , there are concerns of the roles to be played by them wh

Lion City Sailors - 2021 SPL champions (credit: FAS) 😶 It is not unusual to see transfer speculations surfaced right after the season is over, and already we read about newly-minted champions Lion City Sailors (pictured, credited FAS) linked to several high profile foreign players in their bid to assemble a squad capable to put up a decent performance in next season's AFC Champions League (ACL). ❌ Nothing wrong with that, especially we wouldn't want to see a repeat of that woeful Tampines Rovers' ACL campaign that eventually led to a premature end of their SPL title campaign. 💰 And more importantly, we know the financial muscles of the Sailors and some detractors of theirs are worrying they have already begun to turn SPL into a one-horse race.   LCS Coach Kim Do-hoon won the ACL in 2020 (issued by LCS) 🔍The challenge will be in what way the rest of the league can innovate in other means besides money to complete with Sailors, rather than sit at one corner to lick

A picture of a goalkeeper (as credited) Just a quick thought of what I saw at the Lion City Sailors - Balestier Khalsa game that had the Sailors walked away with a victory and the Singapore Premier League (SGPL) title. Sadly, in this game, we witnessed some poor goalkeeping that gifted the newly-minted champions those decisive goals which could have been avoided if better reading and judgment were there in the first place. Like one veteran coach who once told me "'keeper's territory is six-yard and outside that area would be the defenders" and with that belief, it bemused me what was going through the mind of the 'keeper whose poor judgment eventually led to Gabriel Quak netted LCS' fourth goal and helped to uncork the champagne for celebration. Lion City Sailors - 2021 SGPL champions (credit: FAS) Furthermore, the lack of commanding presence in his six-yard led to the second goal scored by Sailors in the first half and he seems to have the audacity to ask

1) I never utilize the "story" function available on Instagram until June last year when I posted my first "story" in June 2020. As I used to think why should I bother to post something which only lasts for 24 hours. It was only after I posted my first poll in November 2021 and realized how useful it is to solicit feedback and understand the ground's sentiments on various issues on local football. Like this poll, I conducted to find the fans' preferred mode to watch their AIA Singapore Premier League matches. A marginal majority preferred at the stadium 2) This recent poll was meant to be a tongue-in-cheek attempt to gauge how was the response seemed to be one-sided, and Shopee did reply after I tagged them in this story. I never expect Shopee would reply after I posted this 3) On a serious note, this poll was conducted right after the draw of the AFF Suzuki Cup which is scheduled to take place in Singapore at the end of the year. And seems like many are

39th FAS Annual Congress (picture credit: FAS) The following are some of the key points mentioned in the 39th Football Association of Singapore (FAS) Annual Congress . A) From the 2022 Singapore Premier League (SPL) season onwards, the fielding of one Under-23 (U23) player instead of three in the starting lineup. B) No limit on the number of U23 players registered in each SPL squad. C) Young elite leagues to resume in the 2022 season (subject to prevailing circumstances). D) FAS will "put in a strong and determined bid to host" AFF Suzuki Cup . I thought the biggest takeaways would be points (A) and (C) , especially for the former that head coaches would not find themselves in a constrained situation and give more flexibility to field their ideal XI. The move to revive the youth elite leagues is a good one and hopefully, we can see a conduit in place to allow proper progression than having a fast-tracking mode that saw more teenage players in a top-tier league in this s

I believe those in their fifties and above would know who Mat Noh (Mohd Noh bin Hussain) was. Nicknamed "Allan Clarke" of local football, the good-looking striker was a heartthrob to many ladies fans and wowed many with his dazzling skills on the field during his heydays in the 1970s when starring for the national team in their Malaysia Cup exploits that ignited the "Kallang Roar" era. Mat Noh passed away at the age of 67 But how many who were born in the 1980s actually know him or his contemporaries and those who were born in the late 1970s might be too young to know who they were until they read about them in newspapers, etc.? And because of such ignorance, it led to one unsavoury incident that triggered one uproar that a late former national player was not properly accoladed on the night when he should at the closing ceremony of the old National Stadium (I shall not dwell on this incident, just go and Google it, as it still left a bitter taste on my tongue whenev

Good day to all, Would not want to embroil in some of those emotionally charged debates which are meaningless unless tangible actions are taken to put all those nonsense to stop once and for all than being used as a channel to vent those frustrations. On that "one particular topic", I would like to ask - at the end of the day, what is the message we try to bring across especially to those kids Is it meaning to say in the end, you will be forgiven after you served your punishment as if it is an "entitlement" for what you have been through when the key is to prevent anyone from doing the wrong thing at the very beginning? And let us not forget our government has strict laws on matters pertaining to "that thing" and there shall not be compromise on that. That will be my final and last comment on "that issue" And last but not least, all the best to Siti Rosnani Azman who is embarking on her new football journey when she will begin her professional c

The Google Search from 15/8 to 21/8/21 Good day to all, A random search on Google Trends to test the three names that generate some buzz in the otherwise tepid scene over the last week. As we noticed "K Kannan" was the first to peak after the much-publicized bid to have his ban lift by FAS . Zaiful Nizam was axed by the Tigers Follow that was the shock termination of Zaiful Nizam's contract by Balestier Khalsa after the internal disciplinary inquiry which resulted in a spike in his name is searched online. To round things up on a positive note was the naturalization of South Korean-born Song Ui-young as a Singapore citizen . Till then, stay safe and healthy and don't gather in numbers ❌ Thank you for your support. - 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎'𝒔 𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒎 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒍 -

Good day to all, Two unfortunate incidents took place over the last weekend in the AIA Singapore Premier League. First was that infamous post-match interview by the league broadcaster with Hougang United's coach Clement Teo after his side lost 4-1 to Albirex Niigata (Singapore) which was widely discussed and the other would be the 4-2 defeat of Balestier Khalsa in the hands (again) to the Young Lions. I only saw the highlights of the BK-YL match and was left flabbergasted by the first goal conceded by Balestier Khalsa's keeper Zach Leong. I may sounded picking on this reserve Tigers' custodian but such a horrendous slip-up and poor decision-making is making a mockery out of the whole setup and should never allow happening even in a schoolboys' game. "People paid admission charge to watch a game of football and not a comedy like those defensive slip-ups that schoolboys be ashamed of, let alone being a top-tier game," I replied to my posting after shared the h

A book not to be missed  Good day to all,  I would like to recommend you this book - the autobiography of Mr. Quah Kim Song, the former national striker in the 1970s.⠀ For those who know the background of Mr. Quah, I think I shan't dwell on that part, and for those who don't know who Mr. Quah was, please head to the nearest library to loan and read it. If anyone wants to know more about the history of the local football and those swinging days of the 1970s aka the "Kallang Roar" era, this is the book to read. But there is one chapter in which Mr. Quah detailed his NSF days and it is something noteworthy as it explained how he juggled his fledgling football career with his citizenry obligations. Do have a read of that chapter, since there is now an ongoing discussion about sportsmen serving their NS and see how the SAFSA can be revived to help in this cause.  That is the short update of the day. Till then, stay safe and healthy and don't gather in numbers ❌ Thank y

The late Mr. Lee Kuan Yew (as credited) Good day to all, I saw these words from the late Mr. Lee Kuan Yew from the source which I credited on the bottom of the shared picture. Perhaps, it may be the case for other aspects of Singaporeans but not necessarily when we come to talk about local football. I think we all know too well that there are some individuals around who always like to compare the past with the present and some to the extent of belittling the efforts of the present generation while gratifying the greatness of those in the past. In fact, this syndrome of comparing is nothing new and certainly did not occur only in recent years which I believe since the first day a football was kicked on the shores of Singapore, it already started. Just check out this blog post which I did in 2019 - "We Will Thank Raddy 20 Years Later, Instead Of Now ..." which there are few examples to show how deeply the syndrome of comparing is entrenched in local football. While it is good

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 -