http://kallangroar.com/blog.php Singapore Football Community en Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:58:22 GMT vBulletin 60 http://kallangroar.com/images/roar/misc/rss.jpg http://kallangroar.com/blog.php http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/159-shock-win-hiraoka.html Thu, 20 Nov 2008 08:19:25 GMT

Basil Yeo (basil@kallangroar.com)
Lin Xiaoyun (xiaoyun@kallangroar.com)

Albirex Niigata (S) head coach Hiroaki Hiraoka nicked a shock win of the MIKASA Coach of the Year award at the 13th annual S.League Awards Night ceremony on Tuesday evening.

The 39-year-old former J.League player topped a list of nominees including celebrated coaches in the vein of Richard Bok and Vorawan Chitavanich, of SAFFC and Tampines Rovers respectively.

Bok was the favourite to retain the award, but through Mediacorp artiste Joanne Peh and Singapore national coach Radojko Avramovic turned out the 39-year-old Japanese coach's name.

Despite finishing 7th in the league, Hiraoka's Albirex were well-known as the 'banana peel' for the top sides to slip on, grabbing surprise wins and frustrating draws.

"I am surprised to even be nominated for the award," said Hiraoka, speaking through translator and club marketing manager Atsuko Tabuchi. "I thought SAFFC's Richard Bok would win!"

"This is the biggest highlight of my coaching career so far," said Hiraoka, who was assistant to current Japan Under-23 National Team head coach Yasuharu Sorimachi during his five years at Albirex Niigata Japan.

The 39-year-old looks up to Sorimachi as a good friend and mentor, and also said that the standard of football in Singapore is not too far off from that of in Japan.

"Amri can play in the J.League," he said, referring to YEO's Young Player of the Year Khairul Amri.

"The weather is the only problem he has to contend with."

Kallangroar.com would like to congratulate Mr Hiraoka on receiving his award. ]]> Maldini http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/159-shock-win-hiraoka.html http://kallangroar.com/blogs/firdaus1990/158-kambeng-column.html Wed, 19 Nov 2008 16:06:12 GMT The Firdaus Said Kambeng Column.

For some, it will be a night never to forget

Woodland's biggest game of the season and SAFFC's opportunity to get that cherry on their pie.

As a Rams fan, I get a little depressed thinking about the game to be honest. It is the club's biggest night since losing out on the trophy against Home United three years ago and the odds are even more heavily stacked against us this time round.

That said, football is a beautiful game and nothing goes till the final whistle blows. I will remind similarly depressed members of the Rams faithful of our win over Home United and the narrow draws with the Stags this season. These performances are those we can take heart from and know that, on a good night, we can put up a good show.

I do not wish to depressingly mention names, but I suspect that for many in the current Woodlands team, it will be the swansong of their career, now that Woodlands Wellington are expected to be amongst the rocks what with financial insecurity and a total squad revamp on the cards. Quite possibly, for those expected to be shown the door next season, it might be the last professional competitive match of their footballing lives.

In years to come they will be telling their children and grandchildren how Daddy's last match was an occasion no lesser than the Singapore Cup final.

Right, on to the preview.

The Stats

Last six matches :

WWFC : WDWLLL

SAFFC : WWWWD

Last three league encounters :

29 March, SAFFC 3 - 0 WWFC

14 July, WWFC 1 - 4 SAFFC

2 October, SAFFC 2 - 1 WWFC

Woodlands have not beaten SAFFC since 2005.

The First XI

It is hard to predict the starting team for the Rams. It really depends on whether Steinebrunner would dictate Woodlands take the game to SAFFC with a 4-4-2 or sitting back and hoping to hit them on the break with a 4-5-1 (or praying it goes to penalties!) with Laakkad playing as a lone striker up front.

Depending on whether Azlan Alipah recovers from his hamstring strain, there will be some slight shifting in defensive roles. The Rams are well-used to that, seeing that pretty much every defender has covered duties all across the line whether it is at the centre or flanks of the defense! If Azlan is not given the green light, expect Jerry to partner Azmi in the penalty area with Anaz Hadee filling in for the right-back slot.

No doubts about SAFFC's best eleven though. I am willing to put ten bucks that their line-up will comprise of Duric and Norikazu up-front, Therdsak and Ahmad Latiff on the flanks, Wilkinson in attacking midfield with Fukasawa sitting in front of their usual back four.

Far and away their best side.

Danger Men

Assuming Steinebrunner chooses to partner Laakkad and Fadzuhasny up front, he will have Park Tae Won and Sazali Salleh on the right and left flanks respectively. The two Woodlands wingers and Nakamura in his offensive centre-midfield role will be the key if the Rams have any ambition of unlocking the SAFFC back-line.

Sazali, despite his mature age, still makes dazzling runs down the run and will stretch Hafiz Osman. Park is Park and I will let his hundred goal record speak for itself. SAFFC better not give away stupid fouls close to the box or they may be made to pay from his free-kicks.

Laakkad, Park, Sazali and Nakamura ; this is the Rams offensive quartet to watch.

For SAFFC, I feel that two key players will have a definite say in the outcome.

Firstly, it is none other than our favourite hate-figure, ex-Ram Ahmad Latiff. He is in most excellent form and it is actually a shame that he did not make the provisional Suzuki Cup squad. His vision, awareness and delivery remind us that he was once seen as the prodigal son of Singapore football. Being a natural fighter, I am sure few would have failed to notice how much he contributes defensively on the right flank. To top it off, his title-winning goal will see his confidence soaring.

Frankly, I hate his attitude but admire his skills.

Secondly, the Makelele role played by Masahiro Fukasawa will be critical if they are looking to stem Rams skipper Nakamura's influence. Being a defensive midfielder rarely grabs you the headlines but it is his habit of getting the second ball, winning tackles and generally disrupting play that will choke the offensive runs of any opposition.

Lastly, it will be an intriguing battle between 1.69 metre tall Yazid and the 1.92 metre Duric. Funnily enough, the evergreen forward towers over the keeper and that rarely happens in football. Yazid is a little fellow with the biggest heart of all goalkeepers. I assure you the Rams custodian will give an inspired performance at the least.

Well, those are my thoughts. Nothing much else to say.

See you at Jalan Besar this friday at seven! ]]> Firdaus1990 http://kallangroar.com/blogs/firdaus1990/158-kambeng-column.html http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/157-s-league-100-goals-award-park-tae-won-woodlands-wellington.html Tue, 18 Nov 2008 07:18:52 GMT Lin Xiaoyun xiaoyun@kallangroar.com Basil Yeo basil@kallangroar.com Woodlands Wellington’s Park Tae Won will be the only recipient of the 100 S.League Goals Award at the Awards ceremony tonight, becoming the 8th man to receive the award, after Agu Casmir last year. Park netted his 100th S.League goal on 6 November 2008, when he scored a free kick, but his side lost to Gombak United. The 31-year-old started his S.League career with Jurong FC in 2001, for which he scored 44 goals for, but was unable to prevent them from folding up in 2004. He then moved to Balestier Khalsa for the 2004 season, but changed clubs again a year later, this time to Woodlands where he has remained since. Park will be leading the Rams’ attack on Friday when they take on league champions SAFFC in the Singapore Cup Final, but with Woodlands experiencing some financial insecurity, it is unknown whether Park will remain next season or move on to greener pastures. Lin Xiaoyun
xiaoyun@kallangroar.com

Basil Yeo
basil@kallangroar.com

Woodlands Wellington’s Park Tae Won will be the only recipient of the 100 S.League Goals Award at the Awards ceremony tonight, becoming the 8th man to receive the award, after Agu Casmir last year.

Park netted his 100th S.League goal on 6 November 2008, when he scored a free kick, but his side lost to Gombak United.

The 31-year-old started his S.League career with Jurong FC in 2001, for which he scored 44 goals for, but was unable to prevent them from folding up in 2004. He then moved to Balestier Khalsa for the 2004 season, but changed clubs again a year later, this time to Woodlands where he has remained since.

Park will be leading the Rams’ attack on Friday when they take on league champions SAFFC in the Singapore Cup Final, but with Woodlands experiencing some financial insecurity, it is unknown whether Park will remain next season or move on to greener pastures. ]]> Maldini http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/157-s-league-100-goals-award-park-tae-won-woodlands-wellington.html http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/156-rhb-top-scorer-award-aleksandar-duric-28-goals.html Tue, 18 Nov 2008 07:17:05 GMT Lin Xiaoyun xiaoyun@kallangroar.com Basil Yeo basil@kallangroar.com With 28 goals this season, SAFFC’s Aleksandar Duric has become the second man to accomplish the feat of finishing as top scorer for two seasons in a row, two shy of Mirko Grabovac’s four seasons record. The 38-year-old moved four clubs within two years, when he first came to Singapore after being picked up from Australian side Adelaide Sharks by Tanjong Pagar United in 1999. However, his first spell in Singapore did not last long and he returned down under to Marconi Stallions and Sydney Olympic, before coming back to the Lion City to finish up the 2000 S.League season and a Singapore Cup with Home United. Before long, Duric was on his way to Geylang United where he stayed for three years and won an S.League title in his first year at the club, and finished as runners-up in 2003, where he picked up his 100 league goals. Despite his age, he was snapped up by SAFFC in 2005, and helped them to a 2nd placed finish behind Tampines, and three consecutive league titles from 2006 – 2008 which cemented the Warriors’ dominance in the S.League. Last year, Duric bagged four awards at the Awards Night which included the NTUC-Income Player of the Year, YEO’s People Choice Award, RHB Top Scorer and the 200 S.League goals. Thanks to his excellent performances and model professionalism, Duric was called up to the Singapore national team once he attained his Singapore citizenship, and scored twice on his debut to send Singapore into the 3rd round of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers for the first time. 38 and still going stronger than players younger than him, Duric is expecting to lead the Warriors’ charge towards completing a historical second double in a row, and play an important part of the Lions’ defence of the Suzuki Cup in December. Lin Xiaoyun
xiaoyun@kallangroar.com

Basil Yeo
basil@kallangroar.com

With 28 goals this season, SAFFC’s Aleksandar Duric has become the second man to accomplish the feat of finishing as top scorer for two seasons in a row, two shy of Mirko Grabovac’s four seasons record.

The 38-year-old moved four clubs within two years, when he first came to Singapore after being picked up from Australian side Adelaide Sharks by Tanjong Pagar United in 1999.

However, his first spell in Singapore did not last long and he returned down under to Marconi Stallions and Sydney Olympic, before coming back to the Lion City to finish up the 2000 S.League season and a Singapore Cup with Home United.

Before long, Duric was on his way to Geylang United where he stayed for three years and won an S.League title in his first year at the club, and finished as runners-up in 2003, where he picked up his 100 league goals.

Despite his age, he was snapped up by SAFFC in 2005, and helped them to a 2nd placed finish behind Tampines, and three consecutive league titles from 2006 – 2008 which cemented the Warriors’ dominance in the S.League.

Last year, Duric bagged four awards at the Awards Night which included the NTUC-Income Player of the Year, YEO’s People Choice Award, RHB Top Scorer and the 200 S.League goals.

Thanks to his excellent performances and model professionalism, Duric was called up to the Singapore national team once he attained his Singapore citizenship, and scored twice on his debut to send Singapore into the 3rd round of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers for the first time.

38 and still going stronger than players younger than him, Duric is expecting to lead the Warriors’ charge towards completing a historical second double in a row, and play an important part of the Lions’ defence of the Suzuki Cup in December. ]]> Maldini http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/156-rhb-top-scorer-award-aleksandar-duric-28-goals.html http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/155-13th-ntuc-income-yeos-s-league-awards-night-2008.html Tue, 18 Nov 2008 07:13:04 GMT Basil Yeo
basil@kallangroar.com

Lin Xiaoyun
xiaoyun@kallangroar.com

The 13th NTUC Income-YEO's S.League Awards Night will be held this evening, 18 November 2008, at the Orchard Hotel, Singapore.

Before the awards ceremony, there will be a short sponsors' appreciation ceremony to thank the sponsors which have supported the clubs over this season.

Stay tuned to this blog as Kallangroar.com will be providing live updates and the quickest possible reports from the event.

The awards and nominees are as listed below:

1 NTUC INCOME Player of the Year
The 5 nominees are:
1 Kengne Ludovick (Home United Football Club)
2 Aleksandar Duric (Singapore Armed Forces Football Club)
3 Therdsak Chaiman (Singapore Armed Forces Football Club)
4 Joo Ki Hwan (Super Reds Football Club)
5 Khairul Amri (Tampines Rovers Football Club)

2 YEO'S Young Player of the Year
The 5 nominees are:
1 Ojimi Gabriel Obatola (Gombak United Football Club)
2 Shaiful Esah (Singapore Armed Forces Football Club)
3 Khairul Amri (Tampines Rovers Football Club)
4 Ismail Yunos (Young Lions)
5 Obadin Aikhena (Young Lions)

3 MIKASA Coach of the Year
The 5 nominees are:
1 Hiroaki Hiraoka (Albirex Niigata Football Club Singapore )
2 P N Sivaji (Home United Football Club)
3 Richard Bok (Singapore Armed Forces Football Club)
4 Vorawan Chitavanich (Tampines Rovers Football Club)
5 Jorg Steinebrunner (Woodlands Wellington Football Club)

4 RHB Top Scorer Award
Aleksandar Duric (Singapore Armed Forces Football Club) - 28 goals

5 SINGAPORE POOLS Fair Play Award
The 5 nominees are:
1 Albirex Niigata Football Club (Singapore)
2 Home United Football Club
3 Sengkang Punggol Football Club
4 Singapore Armed Forces Football Club
5 Super Reds Football Club

6 NTUC INCOME Referee of the Year
The 5 nominees are:
1 Abas Bin Daud
2 Abdul Malik Bashir
3 P Pandian
4 S Kumar
5 T Aravinthan

7 CERTIS CISCO Assistant Referee of the Year
The 5 nominees are:
1 Edwin Lee Tzu Liang
2 Eugene Chan Yew Ren
3 Haja Maidin Bin A Peer Mohd
4 Jeffrey Goh Gek Pheng
5 Nazeer Hussain s/o M Haniffa

8 TIGER BEER Goal of the Year
The 5 nominees are:
1 Shi Jiayi / Home United Football Club (vs Dalian Shide Siwu on 01 September @ Bishan Stadium)
2 Fairoz Hasan / Sengkang Punggol Football Club (vs Dalian Shide Siwu on 20 June @ Jalan Besar Stadium)
3 Choi Young Min / Super Reds Football Club (vs Dalian Shide Siwu on 25 February @ Queenstown Stadium)
4 Abdelhadi Laakkad / Woodlands Wellington Football Club (vs Young Lions on 23 February @ Woodlands Stadium)

9 POLAR Fan Club of the Year
The 5 nominees are:
1 Home United Football Club
2 Singapore Armed Forces Football Club
3 Tampines Rovers Football Club
4 Young Lions

10 AVAYA-J&J Story of the Year
The 3 nominees are:
1 Ash Tan & Oh Yeow Keong (ESPN STAR Sports) - "Goodbye Grabovac"
2 Dawn Yip & Les Tan (Redsports.sg) - "An Interview With Aleksandar Duric"
3 Wang Meng Meng (The Straits Times) - "Fandi's Heir Or Hot Air"
4 Shamir Osman (Today) - "No Panic As Dark Clouds Loom"

11 SINGAPORE POOLS Picture of the Year
The 3 nominees are:
1 Chin Fook Chew (Lianhe Zaobao) - "Mud Bath"
2 Ho Peng Yew (Lianhe Zaobao) - "One Legged Swordman Meets Swooping Eagle"
3 Ernest Chua (Today) - "Out of My Way"
4 Koh Mui Fong (Today) - "Super Reds Flying High"

12 YEO'S People's Choice Award
The 12 nominees are:
1 Takatoshi Uchida (Albirex Niigata Football Club Singapore )
2 Mohamad Faizal Bin Amir (Balestier Khalsa Football Club)
3 Xue Yanan ( Dalian Shide Siwu)
4 Latiak Miroslav (Geylang United Football Club)
5 Theerawesin Seehawong (Gombak United Football Club)
6 Kengne Ludovick (Home United Football Club)
7 Dravko Simic (Sengkang Punggol Football Club)
8 Kenji Arai ( Singapore Armed Forces Football Club)
9 Oh Ddog Yi (Super Reds Football Club)
10 Fahrudin Mustafic (Tampines Rovers Football Club)
11 Jerry Bartholomeusz (Woodlands Wellington Football Club)
12 Hyrulnizam Juma'at (Young Lions)

13 100 S.League Goals
The Award goes to: Park Tae Won (Woodlands Wellington Football Club) ]]> Maldini http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/155-13th-ntuc-income-yeos-s-league-awards-night-2008.html http://kallangroar.com/blogs/cloud/154-gombak-pulls-draw-dampen-saffc-s-party.html Mon, 17 Nov 2008 16:11:31 GMT Image: http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n101/blurfanny/saffc08/P1080673a.jpg Newly crowned S.League 2008 champion Singapore Armed Forces FC ended their season with a 3-3 draw against Gombak United at Jurong West Stadium. Having already secured the title, several star players were rested and the team of the night featured reserves such as goalkeeper Toh Guo’An, Faizal Aziz, Jamil Ali, Razaleigh Khalik, Ashrin Shariff and Syed Karim. Perharps due to lack of match practice, the Warriors second team looked less threatening than their opponents, and indeed it was the Bulls who drew the first blood at the 8th minute. A freekick was awarded to Gombak outside the box, and Bah Mamadou connected to it with a header near post. The ball hit the bar before it fell across the line. Both teams had their chances, but Gombak looked more likely to extend their lead rather than SAFFC equalizing, as the Bulls had more attacking opportunities. The second goal for Gombak came 16 minutes after the second half started. Substitute Precious Emuejeraye found a hole between the SAFFC defence and slotted the ball past Toh easily. Being two goals down, the Warriors put up a great show to prove that they are the worthy champion by scoring three back to put themselves into the driving seat. Jamil Ali first started the revival at the 64th minute after Gombak custodian Fadhil Salim came off his line attempting to stop Norikazu Murakami, but the latter managed to pass the ball to Jamil to slot it to the back of the net. Jamil was in action again at 7 minutes later by crossing the ball from the left to Murakami on the right. The ball was bounced away by the opposite defenders, but it only got to as far as John Wilkinson, who entered the field only 3 minutes ago, and he let out a long shot to beat Fadhil. 4 minutes from time, Mustaqim Manzur gave the Warriors fans more to cheer after he coolly slotted into goal after receiving a sweer cross from Jamil from the right. However, just 2 minutes later, Gombak spoiled the party when a penalty was awarded to them after Hafiz Osman brought Gabriel Obatola down in the box. The latter converted it and SAFFC eventually won the title by 2 points, after runner-up Super Reds beat Tampines Rovers 3-1 on the same night. Image: http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n101/blurfanny/saffc08/P1080688a.jpg Image: http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n101/blurfanny/saffc08/P1080697a.jpg

Newly crowned S.League 2008 champion Singapore Armed Forces FC ended their season with a 3-3 draw against Gombak United at Jurong West Stadium.

Having already secured the title, several star players were rested and the team of the night featured reserves such as goalkeeper Toh Guo’An, Faizal Aziz, Jamil Ali, Razaleigh Khalik, Ashrin Shariff and Syed Karim.

Perharps due to lack of match practice, the Warriors second team looked less threatening than their opponents, and indeed it was the Bulls who drew the first blood at the 8th minute.

A freekick was awarded to Gombak outside the box, and Bah Mamadou connected to it with a header near post. The ball hit the bar before it fell across the line.

Both teams had their chances, but Gombak looked more likely to extend their lead rather than SAFFC equalizing, as the Bulls had more attacking opportunities.

The second goal for Gombak came 16 minutes after the second half started. Substitute Precious Emuejeraye found a hole between the SAFFC defence and slotted the ball past Toh easily.

Being two goals down, the Warriors put up a great show to prove that they are the worthy champion by scoring three back to put themselves into the driving seat.

Jamil Ali first started the revival at the 64th minute after Gombak custodian Fadhil Salim came off his line attempting to stop Norikazu Murakami, but the latter managed to pass the ball to Jamil to slot it to the back of the net.

Jamil was in action again at 7 minutes later by crossing the ball from the left to Murakami on the right. The ball was bounced away by the opposite defenders, but it only got to as far as John Wilkinson, who entered the field only 3 minutes ago, and he let out a long shot to beat Fadhil.

4 minutes from time, Mustaqim Manzur gave the Warriors fans more to cheer after he coolly slotted into goal after receiving a sweer cross from Jamil from the right.

However, just 2 minutes later, Gombak spoiled the party when a penalty was awarded to them after Hafiz Osman brought Gabriel Obatola down in the box. The latter converted it and SAFFC eventually won the title by 2 points, after runner-up Super Reds beat Tampines Rovers 3-1 on the same night.



]]> Cloud http://kallangroar.com/blogs/cloud/154-gombak-pulls-draw-dampen-saffc-s-party.html http://kallangroar.com/blogs/firdaus1990/153-s-league-2008-attendance-statistics.html Mon, 17 Nov 2008 15:53:28 GMT *For us football geeks out there!* The season is over and it is time for those football geeks like me to pour over attendance statistics. Match turn-out is an important key performance indicator for the league. All statistics are obtained from the official S.League website (http://www.sleague.com) match reports. Please PM me if you wish to see the full attendance statistics I have compiled. Alternatively, you can e-mail me at firdaussaid@live.com Image: http://img515.imageshack.us/img515/2922/mainqw2.png Image: http://img373.imageshack.us/img373/3646/hometotalna7.png * Figures do not include televised Friday night matches at Jalan Besar Stadium with the exception of the Young Lions. Image: http://img370.imageshack.us/img370/4305/averagehomeoz1.png * Figures do not include televised Friday night matches at Jalan Besar Stadium with the exception of the Young Lions. Image: http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/1976/top10qa8.png Image: http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/1497/bottom10ra5.png Image: http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/4686/attgraphpy1.png *Monthly Attendance Average* Image: http://img357.imageshack.us/img357/6906/monthlysj3.png *Comments* Attendance slides downwards over the course of the season. I would have thought that as the season gets more exciting, attendance would rise. The worst team, Balestier, has the fourth best support. Tampines fans stick with their club through and thin even though they finished outside the top three this year. Home United, despite being one of the traditional Big Three, are ranked third from last in terms of home support. A foreign team, Albirex, is the third best supported side in our local side. Dalian are far and away the worst supported team but given it is their first year here, no surprises there. Only nine matches have reached the 3000 turn-out milestone. Matches involving the Eastern Derby and the uniformed group rivalry attract the most fans. For us football geeks out there!

The season is over and it is time for those football geeks like me to pour over attendance statistics. Match turn-out is an important key performance indicator for the league.

All statistics are obtained from the official S.League website match reports.

Please PM me if you wish to see the full attendance statistics I have compiled. Alternatively, you can e-mail me at firdaussaid@live.com





* Figures do not include televised Friday night matches at Jalan Besar Stadium with the exception of the Young Lions.



* Figures do not include televised Friday night matches at Jalan Besar Stadium with the exception of the Young Lions.







Monthly Attendance Average


Comments

Attendance slides downwards over the course of the season. I would have thought that as the season gets more exciting, attendance would rise.

The worst team, Balestier, has the fourth best support.

Tampines fans stick with their club through and thin even though they finished outside the top three this year.

Home United, despite being one of the traditional Big Three, are ranked third from last in terms of home support.

A foreign team, Albirex, is the third best supported side in our local side.

Dalian are far and away the worst supported team but given it is their first year here, no surprises there.

Only nine matches have reached the 3000 turn-out milestone.

Matches involving the Eastern Derby and the uniformed group rivalry attract the most fans. ]]> Firdaus1990 http://kallangroar.com/blogs/firdaus1990/153-s-league-2008-attendance-statistics.html http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/152-hicks-grabs-late-win-sengkang.html Sat, 15 Nov 2008 12:35:47 GMT Basil Yeo
basil@kallangroar.com

Luis Eduardo Hicks grabbed a late goal as Sengkang Punggol nicked an impressive victory over Geylang United at Bedok Stadium to overtake Balestier by two points.

It was the final fixture of the season for both sides, and the Eagles had already confirmed their sixth place finish, while the Dolphins were fighting to climb out of bottom place.

Amos Boon was handed back the starting gloves for his career swansong and Jonathan Xu returned from suspension, but captain Aide Iskandar joined Fazrul Nawaz, Masrezwan Masturi and Faizal Senin on the injury list, so Noh Rahman was handed captaincy and Hafiz Rahim made only his second start of the season, pairing Rivaldo Costa up front.

Haris Sumri and Firdaus Salleh were out with injuries, while Reginaldo Estevao was suspended. Razali Johari took the Brazilian forward's place in attack against his former side, supported by Duncan Elias and Suriyandi Naib.

Zdravko Simic opened the scoring within ten minutes as he blasted a stunning free kick into Amos Boon's goal.

The Croatian tested Amos again after beating the defence to fire a shot on target, but the 36-year-old tipped it out for a corner.

Geylang attempted to equalise quickly but numerous offsides and wasted chances characterised their lukewarm start to the game.

However, the Eagles' effort paid off on 21 minutes when Luiz Machado cleared the ball to compatriot Rivaldo, who chipped the ball over an oncoming Joey Sim. The ball came off the near post but was deflected back into goal by Dolphins' defender Winston Yap.

Both sides tried to move ahead before the break, but neither had the upper hand. Sengkang were in the driving seat, dominating play, though two more Simic free kicks went off the mark.

Early after the interval, Noor Ali tried to hook the ball into goal, but missed the far post by inches, and Amos parried two long-range shots from Razali and Hiroyuki Yamamoto.

Razali wasted another good chance against his former side when he sent the ball across the goal after Simic had played him through on the break.

Substitute Sobrie Mazelan created a chance, squaring the ball inwards for Simic, but the Dolphins' captain blasted his shot way too high.

Farizal Basri was cautioned for a savage challenge at Joey Sim which left the 21-year-old lying flat on the ground needing treatment. Joey was soon on his feet again, but coach Swandi sent on Hafez Mawasi to replace him.

Luis Eduardo Hicks popped out from nowhere to slot Simic's assist past Amos, restoring Sengkang's lead two minutes from time.

Noor Ali tried to level things but his volley was saved by Hafez. The veteran had a second chance to shoot, but his shot flew over the crossbar.

The 2008 season ends for both clubs, but Sengkang will finish 11th if Balestier loses on Monday. ]]> Maldini http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/152-hicks-grabs-late-win-sengkang.html http://kallangroar.com/blogs/firdaus1990/151-kambeng-column.html Fri, 14 Nov 2008 17:00:20 GMT The Firdaus Said Kambeng Column.

“With bigger fish to fry next week, there were certain considerations players had to make for their safety tonight,” he (Jorge Steinebrunner) said.

“They include whether to go in hard on the tackle or challenge for the header. These are risky and difficult choices for them.

“Thus some of the team did not give their best as they would normally have.”

Source

Sacrifice

Reflecting the theme of this blog post, I would like to remind those monotheist readers of the parable of the Binding of Isaac, or Ismail, depending on your book, as it entails sacrifice. Coincidentally enough featuring a ram.

Losing 4-1 at the penultimate game on the season calendar must have struck a depressing note in the Woodlands Wellington camp. It certainly struck a chord with me.

But there are more strategic concerns on hand, and it may turn out that the loss was a bitter but necessary pill to swallow.

Looking at the team line-up and Steinebrunner’s comments, I would say it is safe to assume that the coach decided that seventh spot in the S.League table was a lesser priority than keeping security against injury. Woodlands would have overtaken level with Albirex had they won the match. Indeed, the former would have displaced the latter from seventh place even in the event of a draw; prior to the match, Woodlands had the better goal difference, at -13 to the Japanese’s side -14. A fine margin but an advantage nonetheless.

The result sees Woodlands conclude the 13th edition of the S.League season a place lower on the final table standings than the previous year. Two places if you consider that had they not impetuously and infamously walked out against the Stags, Woodlands would have finished sixth last year.

The line-up saw vice-captain Jerry Bartholomeuz, a regular defensive stalwart, dropped in an effort to protect him from a knee injury. Tellingly, club captain Akihiro Nakamura and Sazali Salleh, two crucial players in the club’s offensive set-up, were only brought on in the second half. Yazid Yasin also did not feature the second game running, again making way for number two goalie Ahmadulhaq Cheq Omar. I believe that Aki and Sazali are crucial pivots if we are to have any chance of putting a goal past SAFFC.

Simply said, if Steinebrunner were to snatch the Singapore Cup from the by-then reigning three-in-a-row S.League champions, he will be hailed as an astute practitioner of asset-management by protecting his best players and keeping them in the freshest state of mind against Richard Bok’s seemingly unstoppable team. Maybe there is a reason why old Jorge here is suprisingly in the running for S.League Coach of the Year, yeah?

If Mr. Bok chooses to field the same line-up against Gombak in the hope of ending the season in an all-out blaze of glory win, that would mean less time for his players to recover, seeing how they would only have three full days before next Friday. In contrast, Woodlands will have a full week’s rest. Such a move would be insultingly amateurish of Richard Bok however, and I expect him to give quite a few Prime League boys a run-out now that they have the championship trophy gift-wrapped for them.

Thus, the pros are pretty clear for the Rams.

Keep the players mentally fresh after a long season and insure them from injury at the most crucial juncture in possibly the biggest night of the club’s history. Maybe it is even worth having a couple of bad games to round the season off in the hope that it will empower the players to give that extra vengeful, bitter sting in the tail.

Astute asset management.. or folly?

As with any sacrifice, one has to take the good with the bad.

The bad, is well, bad. Woodlands have now conceded 6 goals in the last two matches while scoring only two. There is the credible draw against Tampines and that out of the blue win against Home United to draw strength from. SAFFC on the other hand, discounting Monday’s fixture against Gombak, are currently on five back to back wins during which they spanked Super Reds three nil.

And there is where, I fear this “save the best for the last” policy Woodlands have seemingly adopted, may backfire; the psychology of winning is all too important in professional sports. There is already the gulf in playing standards to overcome, and coming in with low levels of morale and confidence may spell disaster.

It is my belief that very little actually separates top clubs like say Real Madrid from Barcelona, Chelsea from Liverpool, AC Milan from Inter Milan etc. Sometimes, it is about current form and mental strength. And there are many factors separating Woodlands from SAFFC, players’ mentality being almost the least of them.

Secondly, despite the strategic protection of the integrity of the Woodland’s offensive set-up, it is still a major cause of concern that the backline, having seen only one real change, let in a whopping four goals. As I have mentioned, a draw would have seen the Rams snatch seventh spot from Albirex.

Thirdly, for all of the protection, the game depressingly saw Azlan Alipah withdrawn with a hamstring strain.

I hope that the experience of quite possibly the most veteran squad in the S.League will see the Rams through any negativity. Well, the negativity that I am having anyway. Quite frankly, seventh place for a fighting chance in the Cup final is looking like a pretty decent trade-off.

However, on a note to those SAFFC fans reading this, I want to give you a little warning :

Picture Woodlands Wellington as an old heavyweight boxer. One who is tired and out of condition, challenged by keener, stronger and more agile opponents. Nevertheless, this old boxer can still land a heavy blow if it manages to string together a few right hooks, as Home United found to their title-denting cost.

My heartiest congratulations to SAFFC for the title!

Richard Bok for national team coach when Raddy steps down!

Stay tuned as I continue to preview the Singapore Cup Final over the coming week, with previews and statistical reviews. Also, my comments on the off-field speculation currently surrounding WWFC. ]]> Firdaus1990 http://kallangroar.com/blogs/firdaus1990/151-kambeng-column.html http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/150-latiff-secures-title-warriors.html Fri, 14 Nov 2008 12:29:21 GMT Basil Yeo
basil@kallangroar.com

Ahmad Latiff scored the only goal of the game to secure SAFFC's third NTUC-Income Yeo's S.League title in a row, while Peres de Oliveira missed a poor penalty!

The exhilarating Friday night encounter at the Jalan Besar Stadium ended with Warriors celebrating their fabulous feat of three titles in a row, a first in the S.League's 12-year history.

Richard Bok devised an unusual 4-3-2-1 formation, as Japanese forward Norikazu Murakami is suspended, with Aleksandar Duric on top as the 'star' of the Christmas Tree.

Duric has all but secured RHB Top Scorer award for the second year running with his current tally of 28, four more than Home United's Kengne Ludovick.

The 4061-strong crowd roared ferociously behind both uniformed sides as they attacked, and both started out strongly.

Ludovick had the first attempt of the game when he blasted his volley off-target, and team-mate Shi Jiayi was off the mark as well seconds later.

The Warriors answered with a clearer chance but John Wilkinson sent his header glancing past the far post, but a few minutes later, the English-born Singaporean had a shot on target as he sieved in and out of Syed Fadhil and Kornprom Jaroonpong, but cannonballed his shot off Walid Lounis' body.

Kenji Arai increased the pressure when he won the ball from Kornprom following a corner, and sent the ball back in, only for Daniel Bennett to slam the ball back towards him.

Home responded quickly with a counterattack as Ludovick laid the ball off to Juma'at Jantan, whose dangerous left-footed volley forced Shahril Jantan to an outstretched dive, but the ball swerved out on its own.

Jiayi was in the same position as Juma'at a moment later, but this time Ludovick miskicked the pass and forced him to win the ball on his own and shoot straight into Shahril Jantan's hands.

On the other end, Lionel Lewis made a great save on two attempts from Wilkinson, including a deflection of his foot as Wilkinson snapped up Hafiz Osman's pass while Lounis slipped.

However, it was Ahmad Latiff who struck first blood in the 56th minute when Duric laid off for Therdsak to shoot as Lionel tipped the shot away, but was not quick enough to prevent Latiff from sliding the ball in.

Shahril Ishak was brought on to replace Syed Fadhil as Home looked to improve their creativity in attack, but Ludovick sent his shot spiralling into the keeper's hands.

Home was gifted a golden opportunity to equalise when Bennett brought Ludovick down in the box, amidst groans from the Warriors' supporters, but Peres handled the spot kick horribly as he sent the ball spinning out slowly.

The Brazilian attempted to make amends soon after by lobbing the ball into the box for Ludovick to shoot from point blank, but it was not the Cameroonian's day as he blasted his volley too high!

Wilkinson could have sealed the game off in the 78th minute with a header from Shaiful Esah's free kick, but he nodded the ball off the post.

Time was running out for the Protectors as they piled on the pressure in the remaining five minutes, but even they, who have been so well known for their late revivals in recent years, failed to find that spark to level the game, despite having three minutes grace in stoppages.

Work is not done yet for both sides however, as Home will now need to win on Monday to have any hopes of finishing as runners-up again, while the Warriors can begin focus on retaining the Double next week at the Singapore Cup Final against Woodlands Wellington. ]]> Maldini http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/150-latiff-secures-title-warriors.html http://kallangroar.com/blogs/firdaus1990/149-kambeng-column.html Mon, 10 Nov 2008 15:39:18 GMT The Firdaus Said Kambeng Column. :icon_lol:

“Next year, I want to play and score for a different team,” he explained.

“I have played for Woodlands for four years, and it was a good experience. But I think it is time for me to change clubs, because I have been at the same place for too long."

Star Player wishes to leave and Sponsor Trouble

Source

The only piece of disappointing news that will eclipse Park's departure for Rams fans would be losing the Singapore Cup on November 21.

Park can walk into the first XI of SAFFC, Home, Tampines and this year's Super Reds team. If he can score 13 goals this season for Woodlands, I can imagine him hitting over 20 at those clubs. I love to see him on the ball. He doesn't always get past his man, but his control on the ball is sublime and his overall play is great on the eyes. I love how he tends to cut inside into the box rather than take the ball out wide till the corner flag. His work-rate is the best for Woodlands and he won't stop running till the final whistle, but afterall that is expected from a Korean! Player of the season for the club by a mile.

Should he get his desire and play for another club, then I foresee that Woodlands will have much trouble filling his boots. As a winger, I can only see Sazali Salleh coming close to matching his offensive runs. As a forward, unless Abdelhadi Laakkad rediscovers his form next season or Fadzuhasny Juraimi increases his scoring contribution, then there will be a dire lack of goals next season. Park has scored an incredible third of the club's goals this season. On the plus side, his free-kick abilities can be matched by Lucian Dronca but the latter is aging.

I do not expect Park to stay at the club now that he has publicized his desires, but neither do I begrudge him his decision. Disappointed, of course, but I have no right to resent the personal desire of a model professional. If he goes on to play for one of the Big Three teams or the Super Reds next season, then I wish him all the best and hopes he finally gets a piece of major silverware from his years in Singapore, because realistically, I do not expect Woodlands to overcome SAFFC in the Singapore Cup Final.

I think a factor that influenced his decision is that it is hard to see how Woodlands will progress next season. I do not have statistics on hand, but I am quite sure that the club has the highest average age amongst the S.League teams. The squad at the moment is off-balance as there is a lack of fresh young talent that will inject brash enthusiasm into their style of play.

Coach Steinbrunner's pre-season tranfer move to bring in the 29 year old Fadzuhasny Juraimi (whose career record as a striker has been patchy) was questionable. 2 goals in a 33 game season is not a good return for the forward. In the mid-season transfer window, he persisted with the same crop of players. In defence of Jorge, Singapore is not exactly a country where there is a large pool of players to draw upon.

Neither could he have foreseen the unprecedented impact of the financial crisis, and the unwelcomed effects it has on potential transfer activity.

In a league where clubs cannot rely on the miserable gate collections revenue of their home games, sponsors are the only major financial lifeline. Looking at SembCorp Power and Gas and the company's business portfolio, it is unsurprising that the corporation will be hammered by the economic turmoil. A significant proportion of their operations are based in the US and UK, the worst economic victims of decisions made by irresponsible banking executives. Share prices for Sembcorp have dropped by 50% if you read the charts on their investment relations sections of their website. Over a period encompassing January to November, share prices tumbled from SGD$6.00 to less than SGD$3. That should give you a rough idea of the current financial situation of Sembcorp.

Recently, my hopes were lifted somewhat when I read in TODAY that Sembcorp Marine expected a positive outlook due to confirmed orders due for completion over the next five year period. But I had to be reminded that Sembcorp Marine is not the strategic business unit sponsoring Woodlands's expenditure. It is Sembcorp Power and Gas.

Basically, money mumbo jumbo aside, Woodlands will be unlikely to offer Park a competitive renumeration package that will convince him to remain at the club. Equally important, the club will have even less leverage on the transfer market. I would love to see Woodlands pull off transfer headlines by grabbing the cream of this year's graduating Young Lion's crop such as Isa Halim or Afiq Yunos, but I just cannot see it happening. If anything, the squad will be downsized.

To add insult to injury, Woodlands might slip into the bottom third of the table if they fail to get a positive result at Jurong East against Albirex Niigata in their final game of the season.

Next season, it will be an uphill struggle to climb back into the top half of the table. My guess is that Woodlands will do well to do two places better than their current league position. Consistency, something that has been horribly missing from the team, has to be somehow found.

Woodlands Wellington FC's transfer priorities, if they have sufficient funds in their coffers, would be to find a forward who promises to consistently delivers goals now that Park has announced his intention of leaving. They also need to find a couple of younger centrebacks that they can groom to take over the marshaling of the defence in the middle-to-long run now that the likes of Jerry, Azmi and Dronca are fast approaching retirement age. The trio I mentioned are big, strong and hard men, perfect qualities for the centreback role. But their legs and lungs can only carry them so far and suitable apprentices need to be found.

Park leaving would mean a slot for a new foreigner will be open, and it will be interesting to see who fills that void, if any at all. Will it be from someone aboard or already plying his trade in his S-League? With the rumours that the Super Reds owner may be scaling back his investment too coupled of his talk of transforming them into a local team, it opens the possibility of seeing another Korean filling Park's boots. Mind you, his are large boots indeed.

I was at the last home game of the season on Sunday evening and it was an ominous sign that one of the stadium's floodlights blew out in the final ten minutes of the game.

I hope that somehow, the lights continue to shine for the Rams in 2009.

Here's hoping that all the negativity in this blog post is reversed, thus rendering my writing rubbish.

Here's to hoping for the best on November 21. Cheers. ]]> Firdaus1990 http://kallangroar.com/blogs/firdaus1990/149-kambeng-column.html http://kallangroar.com/blogs/cloud/148-pictures-s-league-h-two-o-ultimate-move-finale-party.html Sat, 08 Nov 2008 18:15:15 GMT The contestants



Top 3~ Who will win? Jeremy pouts~



Amri gets third place



Jeremy or Gabriel?



Jeremy pouts again~



It's Gabriel!



Group pic



The Top 3

]]> Cloud http://kallangroar.com/blogs/cloud/148-pictures-s-league-h-two-o-ultimate-move-finale-party.html http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/147-mike-wong-joins-geylang.html Fri, 07 Nov 2008 17:08:08 GMT Basil Yeo
basil@kallangroar.com

Geylang United have officially announced the signature of Mike Wong as assistant coach with effect from 1 November 2008.

The Eagles recently parted ways with Slovakian tactician Jozef Herel, who was hired in late 2006, and talks of his replacement were kept to a bare minimum.

“I am honored to be working for Geylang United FC because of the club’s rich history and hope to contribute to building up a formidable team again,” said Wong, who was spotted on Thursday at the Eagles' home game against Dalian in the club's Diadora-sponsored teamwear.

Wong's credentials include an AFC Professional License, and he has coached the Singapore national women's team, national Under-18s and Tanjong Pagar United's Prime League team.

Current team manager Lim Tong Hai will continue as caretaker coach till the end of the season, and Wong is expected to take over at the helm when the 2009 season kicks off. ]]> Maldini http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/147-mike-wong-joins-geylang.html http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/146-hat-trick-hero-rivaldo-delivers-goods.html Thu, 06 Nov 2008 13:38:42 GMT Basil Yeo
basil@kallangroar.com

NTUC-Income Yeo's S.League 2008
Geylang United 5 (R. Costa 20', 63' pen, 69', H. Rahim 71', M. Noor Ali 85')
Dalian Shide Siwu 1 (B. Jinhao 32')

06 November 2008
7.45pm, Bedok Stadium

Rivaldo Costa's hat-trick earned Geylang United a 5-1 victory over Dalian Shide Siwu at the Bedok Stadium on Thursday.

The Eagles were still recovering from the devastating injury to Fazrul Nawaz in their last game. Masrezwan Masturi remained injured while Rastislav Belicak was suspended. Fajar Sarib remained in goal, even after two disastrous outings to Gombak and Tampines, in which the 31-year-old let in eight goals in total.

Goalkeeper Wang Guoming wore the armband for the visitors in the absence of regular captain Chi Jinyu, while Wang Liang and Ye Shaonan were out of the tie.

Rivaldo Costa combined with compatriot Junior for an early chance, but the former was offside.

The Brazilian dribbled into the box in the 6th minute but lack of composure failed him when it came to taking the shot, and Guoming easily swept up the ball.

Rivaldo was on target for real two minutes later but the goalkeeper was equal to his shot.

Dalian's first attack of the game came from Quan Heng's cross but it was cleared by Baihakki Khaizan before it could reach Wang Dongqing.

A minute later, Miroslav Latiak had a shot which glanced past the far post.

But Rivaldo Costa made it 1-0 for Geylang on 20 minutes when Shah Hirul's cross found him in the middle, and the Brazilian calmly poked the ball past the goalkeeper.

The Chinese side made an early change in the 24th minute, bringing on Wang Xiaolong for Hui Yi.

Bi Jinhao equalised eleven minutes later when Dongqing sent in a cross from the left and the former beat Fajar with a strong and powerful header into the top right corner.

In the second half, Noor Ali sent a cross glancing across the goal, but nobody was there to reach it.

Geylang switched to a 3-man defence when captain Aide Iskandar was replaced by Hafiz Rahim, and Noh Rahman took over the armband.

Zhao Honglue sprinted past Baihakki Khaizan to send a low cross in, but nobody was there to convert it.

The Eagles won a penalty in the 63rd minute when Noor Ali was brought down by Yanan just inside the box, and Rivaldo stepped up to convert the kick past Guoming to put his side in the lead again.

Wang Xiaolong tested Fajar with a chested down volley, but the goalkeeper made a good save to keep the ball out.

Rivaldo Costa got his hat-trick in the 69th minute when Shah Hirul stole the ball from the visitors and started a beautiful passing move with Miroslav Latiak and Noor Ali all having touches before the latter laid it off to the Brazilian, who finished clinically before being replaced by Syed Thaha.

The Eagles were on fire as substitute Hafiz Rahim made it 4-1 two minutes later, with a shot into the near post from the right side of goal.

Guntur Djafril replaced Farizal Basri in the final legs of the game. The top scorer for this season's Prime League was making his first appearance for the club in this year's S.League season.

The 23-year-old combined with Hafiz to provide a perfect thread for Noor Ali to net his 5th goal of the season.

Ni Yusong wasted his attempt to grab a second consolation goal as he blasted an open chance past the right post.

Yusong nearly made up for it when he whipped in a dangerous chip to Jinhao, but the latter failed to reach the ball, as Dalian saw off their

With Gombak winning 2-1 against Woodlands at Jurong West, it would be very difficult for the Eagles to climb out of 6th place, but the win would certainly put them in good confidence for their next fixtures against the Rams and the final game against Sengkang Punggol. ]]> Maldini http://kallangroar.com/blogs/maldini/146-hat-trick-hero-rivaldo-delivers-goods.html http://kallangroar.com/blogs/leonlim007/144-feasible-plan-super-reds.html Tue, 04 Nov 2008 17:15:12 GMT In my opinion, a good plan will be to add 4-8 local players into their team for the next season; by playing with the high standard of the koreans (as well as their super tough trainings), the local players will improve much faster than they being in any other clubs.

Because of their high standard, the local players will have to fight very hard to break into the 1st team. The attitude and work ethics of the Koreans will also give better influences to these local players, thus beating the same old trap/cycle of what the Malaysian Cup era ppl reckon: that their attitude is merda.

So based on my estimation, they might have to release up to 8 weakest links in their team, and add in at least 4-6 local first team players. At the same time, they should build up a prime league team of youngster, that can learn from the Koreans that had impressed in the first team.

So with the 4-6 local older players to form the back bone of the future local team (barring 4 koreans that will take the foreigner spot), the prime league teams will take the entire season to brush up their standards, and the best of the lot will promote to first team to take up the next "opened-up" slots for local players in the following season.

So probably by the 3rd or 4th season, Super Reds should be able to participate in the ACL thru having enough local players to field in the continental matches. Think Hong Kong's teams, Super Reds can continue to operate as a "Foreign" team, with probably half the team or less Koreans, while participate in the ACL or AFC Cup with the quota of foreign players set for the competition.

Not sure if FAS can allow this, but if FAS allow Super Reds to participate in the ACL or AFC Cup much like how the Hong Kong clubs do (by dropping additional foreign players for the continental games), we could very well see Super Reds playing the continental competitions as soon as the 3rd year.

1st year (2008 season) - 17 koreans (based on their website) | 0 locals = 17 players

2nd year (2009) - 13 koreans | 6 locals = 19 players + 16 prime league players

3rd year (2010) - 9 koreans | 10 locals (4 promote from PL) = 19 players + 16 PL players

4th year (2011)
- 4 koreans | 14 locals (another 4 promote from PL) = 18 players + PL team
or
- 7 koreans | 14 locals (4 promoted from PL) = 21 players + PL team
why 7 because SR will participate as a Foreign team in the league but participate in ACL adhering to the Foreign player quota.

and if they really want to go full local :
5th year
- 4 koreans as Foreign players | 18 local (another 4 from PL) = 22 players + PL

If Super Reds followed my mentioned plan, they will have a full team of local players inculcated with the Korean's attitude and workrate, and especially good in teamwork and camaraderie because all are homegrown from the PL team which are built up by their original Korean players.

I believe it will take at least 5 years before the team can have guaranteed participation in the ACL or AFC Cup. ]]> leonlim007 http://kallangroar.com/blogs/leonlim007/144-feasible-plan-super-reds.html