The Brunei Times have reported DPMM Brunei is set to sign one of the biggest name ever for the upcoming S-league season.
The club is aiming for Harry Kewell who may cost up to U$1.2 million (S$1.44 million)
The club is looking to improve on their 2009 and 2012 season where they were League Cup champions both times but ye failed to win the two most converted one - S-league and Singapore Cup.
Since being released by Tampines Rovers at the end of the season, Ahmad Latiff have being searching for a new employer and it is believed Woodlands Wellington have offered him a deal.
The 34-year-old have played for Woodlands Wellington for 3 years in 2004 to 2005 as well as the 2007 season.
Unfortunately, he tainted his last season with the club despite winning the club first silverware - League Cup - at that time as even after being named skipper at the start of the 2007 season to reward him for his senior position, he did not show it as he was banned for a number of games especially towards the middle of the season when he clashed with referee S.Kumar and was send off for shoving him which led to a lengthy ban.
After that, the club released him despite the season not ending yet
Since then, he appeared to have clam down as shown with Tampines Rovers where he has played a part in the club last two titles win.
It is why Woodlands Wellington may welcome this Ahmad Latiff more than the one in 2007 despite the fact former international may be at his peak then rather than now.
Tampines Rovers are set to appoint Croatian Nenad Bacina as their coach for next year.
The only thing that is missing now is his signature on the contract as they have offered him the deal.
The former Warriors skipper have coached Woodlands Wellington in 2009 and Hougang United last season.
His other coaching experience included being Head Coach Advisor and Technical Consultant at Malaysian club PDRM as well as being youth development coach at two clubs in his native Croatia.
As a paper - OK, it is TODAY - ,despite having the resources available to them, have shown they do not know the number of Singaporean internationals at Tampines, here a list of current and past ones for the upcoming season.
Khairul Amri
Shaiful Esah
Firdaus Kasman SHAHDAN SULAIMAN
Fahrudin Mustafic
Jamil Ali
Irman Sahib
Sazali Salleh
Aleksandar Duric
TODAY have reported champions Tampines Rovers are still set on signing a marquee player who salary is expected to cost a six-figure sum for any club wishing to signing such players.
At this time the club have already signed 3 foreigners - retaining Serbian forward Sead Hadzibulic and Macedonian goalkeeper Sasa Dreven as well as hiring Albirex Niigata defender Kunihiro Yamashita.
They are still searching for two more including a player fit to be the marquee player.
Home United have retain forward Indra Sahdan and Masrezwan Masturi for the upcoming season.
Even with the inclusion of winger cum forward Jordan Webb as well as the capture of Warriors Aliff Shafaein, Home United forward line still look weak and is unlikely to score enough goals to sustain a title challenge.
That why the 4 remaining foreign slots for Home United looked crucial as one of them have to foreign forward who can notch the goals like Mendy did for the Bishan club for the last two seasons.
Or else it is hard to see how Home United can challenge as currently their attack looked too weak to pose any danger to mid-tier teams as alone fellow challengers SAFFC, Tampines or DPMM.
Shafiul Anuar is the rumored target of a tug of war between Home United and SAFFC.
The forward is wanted by both clubs to strengthen their team for the upcoming season.
The former Home United forward was firstly rumored to be sliding towards his former employer at the beginning but it appear now SAFFC have offer him a good deal as well.
And it may make him change his mind on signing with the Protectors and go with the eight-time champions who are rebuilding under V. Selveraj this season.
I wonder how much we can trust from this report, as again poor
knowledge/basic error shown by the writer. Sasa is croatian, not
macedonian
It show the high standard fans demand of all their reporting from the mainstream media as we have to remember the media ask for Singapore football to uphold high standard so we are not asking anything more than what the media ask of others.
African soccer weebly website claimed S-league team DPMM Brunei is set to secure Hearts of Oak midfielder Laryea Kingston.
It is reportedly worth U$1million and will put the 31-year-old as the Brunei club star signing.
The midfielder other move aboard include Israel side Hapoel Be'er Sheva in 2011, Scottish side Heart of Midlothian, Dutch team Vitesse Arnhem and a couple of Russian clubs.
Woodlands Wellington have signed custodian Yazid Yasin and midfielder Atsushi Shimono for the upcoming season .
Yazid Yasin have been released by a Geylang management looking to renew their squad and the Rams was quick to secure the services of a player who have total of 124 appearances for the Rams before leaving for the Eagles in 2008.
As for Atsushi Shimono, he has been in the S-league for the past four season with Albirex Niigata (S) and in that time, has helped Albirex to win the League Cup in 2011 and finished third last season with his accomplished vision and distribution of the ball lending a touch of class to the midfield.
That was why he was a popular target when Albirex decided it was time to let him go with Woodlands have to tussled with Tanjong Pagar to get him.
Home United have move to secure the services of a trio of players from SAFFC.
They are keeper Shahril Jantan, utility man Noh Rahman and winger cum forward Aliff Shafaein.
With Lionel Lewis retired, Shahril Jantan can filled up the keeper role while No Rahman can do a job a defensive anywhere in defence or midfield. As for Aliff Shafaein, he is a player who can do a job coming off the bench if needed as well as when he start a game.
The Brunei Times have reported DPMM Brunei have signed two new foreigners for the upcoming season.
They are Portuguese striker Joao Vitor Rocha De Carvalho Moreira, 26, and Guadeloupean midfielder Stephane Auvray, 31.
Moreira has represented Portugal at the Under-20 and Under-21 level while
Auvray, who captains his national team, formerly laced up for Major
League Soccer outfit New York Red Bulls. His profile describes him as a
"defensive midfielder known for his aggressive tackling."
Blackwool, Woodlands Wellington website, have announced the current players will be retain for the upcoming season. Senior Squad
1. Ahmadulhaq Che Omar
2. Farizal Basri
3. Oswind Suriya
4. Goh Swee Swee
5. Armanizam Dolah
6. Moon Soon-Ho
Prime League Squad
1. Fearghus Lyle Bruce
2. Dinie Fitri
3. Zulkarnain Malik
4. Mark Tan Mu Zhou
5. Nurhakim Kamsani
6. Andy Ahmad
7. Danial Tan Farhan
Other than that, Prime League players Abdul Qadir Yusoff, Ali
Razali and Sidiq Abdullah have also been conscripted for National
Service in the following season.
With Lionel Lewis retiring, Home United have move to replace his spot for the upcoming season.
They are targeting Shahril Jantan from SAFFC as the Warriors already have another top keeper Hassan Sunny on their book.
This have seem Shahril Jantan chances at at the Choa Chu Kang club limited this season.
While at Bishan, it is different now as Lionel Lewis is gone and the club need a new number one whp is as good between their post to challenge for the title.
Syria has won their first West Asian Football Federation (WAFF) Championship.
They defeat 2007 Asian Cup champions Iraq on penalties in the Final after both sides drew 1-1 at full time and despite another 30 minutes of extra time, the team could not tear each other apart.
The WAFF championship had started out as a competition meant for teams not included in the Gulf Cup although in recent years Gulf Cup teams are also playing in the competition with only Qatar and UAE missing out this year.
11 teams from West Asia including powerhouse like Saudi Arabia and Iran played in this year edition.
At the same time, Oman, who are in the same Asian Cup group as Singapore, has reach the WAFF Championship semi-final stage showing they are no pushover either for they are in the 2014 World Cup Qualifiers final group stage for the Asian Zone and they have the same points as second-place and automatic World Cup qualifying spot Australia.
Jordan had been knocked out in the WAFF championship group stage but the Jordanian reach the 2014 World Cup Qualifiers final group stage for the Asian Zone and despite being last they are only 1 point away from Oman and second-placed Australia.
Singapore has won their 4th ASEAN title as they defeated Thailand 3-2 overall.
The first leg win by Singapore at Jalan Besar proved too much for the Thais to overcome even with home advantage.
Especially as Singapore decided to sit back and let the Thais asked the questions for it is them who need not only the win but also by a two-goal margin.
For despite the Thais creating a number of chances they never make Singapore number custodian Izwan Mahbud make a save considered tough until the final 5minutes.
That was why despite getting the opening goal at the stroke of half-time, the Thais were unable to get another goal to give them the trophy.
With that, Singapore won their fourth title in the last 8 attempts and it is Raddy 3rd titles making him the most successful coach in ASEAN championship.
Singapore:
Izwan Mahbud (GK), Daniel Bennett, Baihakki
Khaizan, Safuwan Baharudin, Shaiful Esah, Mustafic Fahrudin, Isa Halim, Shahril Ishak (C), Aleksandar
Duric, Shahdan Sulaiman (Farzul Nawaz), Khairul Amri (Qiu Li)
Singapore has taken a huge lead to Bangkok as they defeated heavy favourite Thailand 3-1 at Jalan Besar.
Mustafic Fahrudin, named Man of the Match by a number of media sources, gave Singapore the lead as he scored from a spot kick after Duric was fouled in the box.
With Mustafic Fahrudin showing why he was named Man of the Match by a number of media sources for keeping Thai playmaker Teerasil Dangda quiet, the Lions should have scored a second before the break but it did not come about.
After half-time, the Thai nearly make Singapore pay as they equalised but Khairul Amri off a Duirc cross scored almost immediately for the home side to take the lead for the second time.
Singapore continue to play impressively and earn their third goals as Thai keeper flagged the last corner of the game in injury time and Baihakki pound on the mistake to give Singapore a healty two-goal lead for the reutrn leg in Bangkok in 3 days time.
Singapore:
Izwan Mahbud (GK), Daniel Bennett, Baihakki
Khaizan, Safuwan Baharudin, Shaiful Esah, Mustafic Fahrudin, Isa Halim, Shahril Ishak (C), Aleksandar
Duric, Shahdan Sulaiman, Khairul Amri (Firdaus Kasman 85)
It seem despite cutting their budget by 45%, the club still have financial difficulties and owed their players up to 4 months of their wages.
That is why the club have gone to the Ho Chi Minh City authorities for help but have received no reply.
Even if the Vietnamese club, in the end, participate in the upcoming V-league season, one cannot see how they compete in the AFC Cup as the competition will require participating clubs to spend money on competing and until the Final, one may not end up financial better.
V-league clubs have been suffering financial difficulties for the past year as a result of Vietnam economy problems which have seem their source of income (Their owners deep pocket and transfer fees) disappear.
SAFFC
5/3/2013 - vs. Semen Padang (A)
12/3/2013 - vs. Kitchee (H)
2/4/2013 - vs. Churchill Brothers (A)
10/4/2013 - vs. Churchill Brothers (H)
24/4/2013 - vs. Semen Padang (H)
1/5/2013 - vs. Kitchee (A)
Tampines Rovers
6/3/2013 - vs. Saigon Xuan Thanh (H)
13/3/2013 - vs. Selangor (A)
3/4/2013 - vs. Kingfisher East Bengal (H)
9/4/2013 - vs. Kingfisher East Bengal (A)
23/4/2013 - vs. Saigon Xuan Thanh (A)
30/4/2013 - vs. Selangor (H)
GROUP E
Kitchee FC (Hong Kong League champions)
Semen Padang (Indonesian Champions)
Churchill Brothers (I-league second runner-up)
SAFFC (RHB Singapore Cup champions)
GROUP H
Selangor (Malaysia Super League second runner-up)
East Bengal (Federation Cup Champions)
Saigon Xuan Thanh (Vietnamese Cup Champions)
Tampines Rovers (Great Eastern-Yeo's S-league Champions)
Former international John Wilkinson is reportedly on trial with DPMM and the Bruneian club could sign him.
If that is the case then the question become will Wilkinson take up a foreign slot or not.
I hope not as this can open another avenue for local players as A-league New Zealand side Wellington Phoenix are allowed to sign Aussies as local players.
After all in the end, if DPMM Brunei play a few local it can benefit Singapore football as well.
Geylang have captured former Home forward Shotaro Ihata
The 25-year-old have been released by Home recently.
The club have also moved to replace Yazin Yasin with them signing Albirex Niigata (S) custodian Takuma Ito.
As for players at the club, foreigners
Jozef Kaplan and Stefan Milojevic have been retain by the Eagles while
locals Shah Hirul, Ridhuan Barudin, Amy Recha and Jalal.
After being released by Home, Singapore international Qiu Li has join Balestier Khalsa for the upcoming season.
Having achieved their best results, since the merger in 2003, with a sixth placed finish as well as winning the Plate Cup, Balestier are looking for even better results in 2013.
That why they are looking to plug their weakness last season as even with those good results and that was a lacked of firepower.
Qiu Li can get them those extra goals they desired if he can keep fit as the 31-year -old have fought fitness problems at his last clubs - Tampines and Home - who both released him for the same reasons.
At the same time, Gombak keeper Zaiful Nizam will joined the Tigers.
Considered by many to be the hero of 09 as Geylang won their first trophy, RHB Singapore Cup, in 9 years, Yazid Yasin has been released by the club.
The custodian had performed brilliantly throughout the 09 season especially en-route to the Singapore Cup as the Eagles, then under Mike Wong, was noted for it ability to grind out results rather than any flair they might display.
And in the Final, it was no different as the team sat back to absorb whatever Bangkok Glass can dish out before sending the sucker punch.
However, if it was not for brilliant after brilliant saves by Yazin before that, the tie will have been lost.
Still with the club seeking a new direction, the custodian time at the club has come to an end.
At the same time, foreigners Michael King and Mun Seung-Man have also been released by Geylang.
According to Singapore Press Holdings Straits Times, SAFFC are looking at former Japanese international Kazuyuki Toda.
The defensive midfielder have European experience as he played for English side Tottenhman Hotsupr and Dutch team ADO Den Haag.
Other than that, he was also in the Japanese squad for the 2002 World Cup Finals.
If the 34-year-old joined, he will not be lonely as SAFFC already have two other Japanese imports, Shimpei Sakurada and Tatsuro Inui, as well as Croatian import Mislav Karoglan on their books.
Duric has got his wish as he will be given a contract by the club to be both player and trainer.
Back in September, in a goal website podcast, the 42-year-old had revealed he was having talks with the club to be a fitness trainer as well as a part-time player.
He has now got it with the club giving him a a 1 year contract for both jobs with a right to extend at the end of the season.
After assembling what was surely the strike force of last season as all the 3 forwards - Frederic Mendy, Qiu Li and Shotaro Ihata - were among their team top two scorers in 2011, it is all gone now.
Mendy was the only forward Home wish to retain but the 22-year-old heart was set on Europe.
As for Qiu Li and Shotaro Ihata, the club have decided there was better options.
Qiu Li once again had to fight with fitness problem throughout the season while Shotaro Ihata lost form as the season progress despite a good start.
Midfielder Shi Jia Yi also did not have his contract renewed.
Tanjong Pagar United have employ ex-Etoile FC coach Partick Vallee.
The 50-year-old is delighted to be back at coaching as he has taken a
six months break since departing 4th div side AFC Compiegne.
Despite a bottom Two finish in the last two seasons, the Frenchman is seeking a mid-table finishing and promising to do so by playing the brand of attractive football like Etoile according to S-league website.
Champions Tampines Rovers have not extend their coach Tay Peng Kee coach for the upcoming season.
Despite leading the club to the championship after taking over in August, there have always been doubts raised about Tay abilities especially after the Singapore Cup final defeat against SAFFC.
After that result, the club brought back Steven Tan to 'help out' for the final league game which the club had to win.
The club is now looking at a number of options.
At the same time, Tanjong Pagar United have not extended the contract of their coach Terry.
The former Under-23 coach has been the coach of the Queentown club for the past two seasons since their returned to the S-league in 2011.
He is now expected to return to FAS where he will take a coaching post.
Singapore beat Laos 4-3 to reach the semi-final of the Suzuki Cup but it was as close as the scorelijne suggest.
The Lions went down 0-2 before skipper Shahril Ishak pull one back just before half-time.
Next the skipper will put us back on level term just after half-time and after which Khariul Amri will scored a stunning free-kick to put Singapore ahead.
Fazrul Nawaz will score once again for Singapore almost immediately after the restart.
With the score and leader Indonesia losing to host and defending champion, Singapore top the group.
Singapore
Izwan Mahbud (GK), Shi Jiayi, Baihakki Khaizan, Safuwan Baharudin, Daniel
Bennett (Shaiful Esah), Mustafic Fahrudin, Shahdan Sulaiman, Fazrul
Nawaz (Isa Halim), Shahril Ishak (C), Qiu Li (Khairul Amri),
Aleksandar Duric
Under his reign, I would say relationship with Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has gone sour thanks to his misjudgement.
Looked at history, AFC ended it unofficial ban on Singapore hosting AFC competition (They refused to let Singapore host 1993 WCQ Final group as well as 1997 WCQ between Iran and Japan) under the reign of Mah Bow Tan and then under Assoc Pro Ho Peng Kee, we received not just ACL spot but also got two allocation of FIFA GOAL money with AFC help.
What the difference then.
First, they did not humliate AFC like our current President who decided to announce to the world, before informing them, we are pulling out of the ACL race in 2010.
Second, both previous President understand the need to not just talk with AFC but also keep continue contact with the power-in-charge for that was why DPMM Brunei was allowed in the S-league at start of 2009 before our current FAS President who took charge at March of that year forgot.
Indeed, he was cut short immediately when DPMM Brunei was banned later in the year and like now in the ACL slot battle he could only react.
That a reason why Thai Premier League has come out unscathed as their Football Assoication of Thailand (FAT) President
Worawi Makudi is a pro at such work.
He is not a member of FIFA and AFC exco for nothing as he even got England to travel all the way around the globe play a friendly with Thailand with him earning all the money.
That why I am celebrating the end of a FAS president who does not work for anything for like SMRT CEO, he is always missing when trouble brew.
So from what I gather, the ACL qualifiers will see S-league, V-league, Thai Premier League and AFC Cup champions/runner-up in the first round with Chinese Super League and A-league waiting in the next and final round for the winners.
There may also be a big revamp to the upcoming ACL according to more reports with an AFC Conference this week set to discuss these issues.
Increase on Asian Player spots - Clubs in the ACL may register
3 Non-Asian Foreigners and 3 Asian Foreigners (3+3)
Not allowing ACLQ losers to play in the AFC Cup
A new age-group competition - U18 AFC Champions League
While delighted Tampines Rovers can play in the ACL if the Chinese media are right, I am not sure about the fact AFC may cancel the rights of the ACLQ losers to play in the AFC Cup especially as Asian club competition still does not command the full attention of the media in this region and still building itself so restricting it to fewer teams will not help
Amid all the talk on Singapore win against Malaysia, I just want a word on Shaiful Esah as he appeared to have suffered a terrible injury in the game.
Even in the best case, it looked like he will be out of the Suzuki Cup and that is what I hope for and I am not cursing him but if it was any longer, he may be in a spot of trouble.
From reports, it seem he has not sign a contract with anybody yet and is only negotiating with clubs so with such a terrible injury from the looks of thing as he reach to call for medical help immediately after the tackle, it is bad and whether he can come back within weeks is a problem.
This is for a sad case of what I think should have been avoided and next time FAS need to remember we are talking about livelihood here.
FAS need to tell players early if they want to retain them or not as frankly the time frame is too short and too late as contract talks start as early as September in cases.
After all, FAS head man is not just from PAP but also an ex-labour movement leader and the government and the labour movement constantly tell the employers that it should give employees ample notice so that they can find new job (or in this case new club) sooner.
But by delaying until November, we are seeing what we are seeing now and players may be without a contract come the new season as clubs have filled their roasters and some players even from the LIONSXII are anxious as not everybody is in demand and not every clubs have the resources to get all the players they want and they have to choose early as they need to build a team for their coach.
So if Shaiful Esah is out for a while then it is FAS fault and they have to pick up the tab and not push it to clubs like so many cases one see before.
The year is 2012 but it may as well be decades ago as frankly information age or not, FAS is not there yet.
Until now, nearly a week after the Philippines matchup in Cebu, information on that match is 'impressively' still unavailable.
Indeed fans are still searching for information on that match as seem by the quote below from civotarum.
I have spent more than an hour searching the web looking for match stats for the phillipines singapore game.
All I can find is the starting lineup, and goalscorer. This is incomplete and I badly need the substitutions made to calculate the caps. Can anybody help???
If this was the only issue, one can say it is a one-time mistake and people should be more forgiving but let looked at S-league TV channel.
Do anybody noticed something!!!
If one is sharp, they can see the Tampines championship winning game against Harimau Muda that was put up by the S-league TV channel over a week ago is from May and there is no match of the November game.
The November game is surely the most important one of the season as it was the game that saw Tampines lift the trophy and yet on the official TV channel, one cannot find it.
The season end in November; which of course mean the number of eyeball dropped but does it mean FAS can then do a half fuck job.
It is a half fuck job as far as far as I am concern because they did not complete it and it tell me about the lacked of commitment of FAS as immediately after the season ended, such errors crept in where information are left out or ignored.
S-league Chief Executive Officer Lim Chin have revealed to S-league website that S-league bottom two will still be hit next year even if the S$30,000 and S$50,000 penalty does not happen.
Although at this point, it seem it is still being discussed by Strategic Business Unit (SBU).
He is quoted: “We cannot have the relegation trapdoor, but we will still introduce
something to the bottom teams, where the last two will see a loss in
terms of subsidies and incentives provided by the SBU to them the
following season.”
While he is unwilling to give more details on this matter, he was more forthcoming on the rewards for the new fitness test.
Instead of simply having players try to meet the minimum standard,
however, the authorities have created monetary rewards for those who
post good running times.
Any player who can complete the run within exactly nine minutes will
receive a reward of S$100, while for those who manage to go under eight
minutes and 30 seconds, the money is doubled to S$200.
Gombak United will be sitting out of the S-league next year as their chairman John Yap wish to look at a new model of funding for the club.
Since RWS and MBS open, it has hit Gombak jackpot machine earnings and it has affected the club finance health and while John Yap stress the club is not in debt, it is not sustainable.
The club will still operate the Prime League and COEs teams as FAS will still be providing funding for the club.
After failing to win against Myanmar despite taking the lead, it is now Singapore 9th away games in a row that Singapore have been unable to secure a win.
Taking into account the Suzuki Cup 2010 results, it mean Singapore has only won once from 12 games and it is an indication of how bad Singapore has become away from our shore.
The last team Singapore beat was Myanmar but this time, Singapore failed despite Agu Casmir getting on the scoreline like last time as Myanmar got the equaliser and hold out for a draw.
Philippines have done something they have not done in 2 generation and that is beat Singapore.
With players from Europe now in their team, Philippines is stronger than they have ever been and they proved that as they defeated Singapore 2-0 at Jurong West Stadium.
Tampines Rovers have successfully defended their S-league crown as they beat Harimau Muda 1-0 at Jalan Besar to claim all 3 points on the night.
It may have not matter anyway as DPMM Brunei failed to match Tampines result as they fall 0-2 to Balestier Khalsa.
This is the Stags 4th League title and after a drought of 4 years without a trophy, the Eastern giant have now won the most converted trophy for the last two seasons.
The Stags winner came from Fahrudin Mustafic.
Zulkiffli Hassim and Park Kang Jin got Balestier goals.
Tampines Rovers
Sasa Dreven (GK), Jufri Taha, Anaz Hadee, Benoit Croissant, Ismadi Mukhtar, Fahrudin Mustafic, Ahmad Latiff, Imran Sahib, Noh Alam Shah (Jamil Ali), Aleksandar Duric (C) (Fazil Zailani), Sead Hadzibulic (Ahmed Fahmie)
--------------- Gombak United
Zakariah Nerani (GK), Yusiskandar Yusop, Hamqaamal Shah (Andrew Tan), Paul Cunningham (C), Tengku Mushadad, Jaslee Hatta, Ruhaizad Ismail (Zulkiffli Hassim), Goran Subara, Park Kang Jin, Syed Thaha, Zdravko Dragicevic (Patrick Paranjody)
Albirex Niigata (S) have finished third as they drew 0-0 with Gombak United.
With Harimau Muda losing to champions, Tampines Rovers, Albirex get the point to let them overtake to get third spot.
In other matches, Geylang beat SAFFC 3-0, Cubs draw with 0-0 Home United and Woodlands beat Tanjong Pagar 3-2.
For the Eagles win, Jozef Kaplan prove his worth again as he grabbed a brace with Ang Zhiwei grabbing the third one.
Meanwhile Woodlands win was valuable as it meant the Northern club did not match and hold another record for longest win-less streak.
Thus Gombak United 22-match winless streak set in from 2002-2006 still stand. (Take note, Gombak had pulled out after 2002 season and return for 2006 season explaining the 5 years gap)
The Rams have Moon Soon Ho and Goh Swee Swee to thanks with the Korean forward grabbing a double.
Jaguars goals came from Asraf Rashid and Takaya Kawanabe
Geylang United
Ridhuan Barudin (GK), Khayrulhayat Jumat, Shahril Alias, Khairulnizam Jumahat (Faizal Samad), Jalal, Michael King, Shah Hirul, Ang Zhiwei, Jozef Kaplan (C), Taufiq Ghani (Rizawan Abdullah), Nurhazwan Norasikin
CYL
Neezam Abd Aziz (GK), Faritz Abdul Hameed, Sirina Camara, Fazli Ayob, Hafiz Abu Sujad (C), Zulfahmi Arifin, Benjamin Lee (Syafiq Zainal), Nazrul Nazari (Fareez Farhan), Anumanthan Kumar, Sherif El-Masri (Shahfiq Ghani), Jonathan Toto
Home United
Nazri Sabri (GK), Jeremy Chiang, Kenji Arai, Sofiyan Abdul Hamid, Franklin Anzite, Firdaus Idros (Justin Khiang), Masrezwan Masturi, Nor Azli Yusoff, Frederic Mendy, Indra Sahdan (C) (Shaheer Afiq), Song Ui Young
---------------
TPUFC
Shamsudin Hashim (GK), Anthony Aymard, Delwinder Singh (C), Jonathan Xu, Azhar Ahmad, Hanafi Salleh, Asraf Rashid, Carlos Delgado, Takaya Kawanabe, Hafiz Nor, Abdul Rahim (Syed Karim)
Woodlands Wellington
Ahmadulhaq Che Omar (GK), Danny Chew, Duncan Elias (C), Fabien Larry Lewis, Dinie Fitri, Zulkarnain Malik, Guntur Djafril (Andy Ahmad), Han Yiguang (Farizal Basri), Oswind Suriya, Goh Swee Swee (Shamsurin Abd Rahman), Moon Soon Ho
---------------
Gombak United
Rudy Khairullah (GK), Nurullah Hussein, Ismail Yunos, Walid Lounis, K Vikraman, Fairoz Hasan (Jung Hee Bong), Obadin Aikhena (C), Amin Rossady, Julien Durand, Samuel Benjamin (Christopher Anderson), Ahmad Suhaim (Iqbal Hamid Hussai)
Tampines Rovers
Sasa Dreven (GK), Jufri Taha, Benoit Croissant, Ismadi Mukhtar, Sazali Salleh, Fahrudin Mustafic, Ahmad Latiff, Imran Sahib (Ahmed Fahmie), Jamil Ali, Aleksandar Duric (C), Sead Hadzibulic
SAFFC won their first trophy since 2009 and their fifth Singapore Cup; matching their Uniform rival Home United record.
It nearly never happen as they were make to pay for an own goal by the usually reliable Shahril Jantan as a misjudgment of a cross meant he punch it into his own net.
After that the Warriors found it hard to punch a hole in the Stags defence but as the match drag on, the Stags pull back their punches more and more as they decided to close shop so they could focus on the league title battle in 5 days time as well.
They were make to pay as Shimpei Sakurada scored from a scramble in the box from a corner.
After that, the Stags found it hard to get back on track and were waiting for the whistle to regroup but they were not given that chance as a master stroke by the soon-to-depart Richard Bok won the Warriors the cup.
He brought on forward Erwan Gunawan and the sub did not disappoint as he will notch the winner in injury-time and the Cup was going to Choa Chu Kang.
In the Third/Fourth placing, Gombak thrash Philippines side Loyola Meralco Sparks 4-0 with goals from Iqbal Hamid Hussain, Mustaqim Manzur, Fairoz Hasan and Julien Durand.
If the fight for the title was close and going to the final day then the fight for third is no less intriguing.
Both Albirex and Muda are tied on the same points and only goal difference separate them and it is so going to the last day as both draw their matches.
It could have been worse for Albirex as they were down 0-2 against Courts Young Lions after goals from Jonathan Toto and Benjamin Lee.
But they rally back as their skipper Norihiro Kawakami got them back into the game with goal before another from Masatake Sato saw them share the point.
The Muda game was not as exciting (Although the Hougang Hools will tell it was the most exciting match of all and they are not wrong) as they drew 0-0 with Hougang.
In another match, Balestier drew 1-1 with TPUFC with David Cunningham scoring for Balestier and Carlos Delgado scoring for Tanjong Pagar.
CYL
Neezam Abd Aziz (GK), Faritz Abdul Hameed, Yuki Ichikawa, Sirina Camara, Shannon Stephen, Hafiz Abu Sujad (C), Shamil Sharif, Zulfahmi Arifin (Fareez Farhan), Benjamin Lee, Nazrul Nazari, Sherif El-Masri (Anumanthan Kumar), Jonathan Toto
Woodlands Wellington have got their second unwanted record in 4 days.
According to henryo, despite Woodlands Wellington good start to the season where they won 2 out of two, they are now the owner of the longest win-less streak in a single season in S-league history.
If falling behind in their last match was not enough, DPMM Brunei did it again in their matchup against Hougang United but like against Woodlands they showcased their title accreditation.
With their title hopes on the line after Jordan Webb have given the Cheetahs the lead, DPMM Brunei fought back to draw level before half-time with a goal from Azwan Saleh.
Like the last match, the half-time did them much good as they came out to kill their opposition and this time they gave themselves breathing space in the match.
Two goals from Patrick Da Silva andAmpuan Nurul Azami gave them a 3-1 lead and another 3 points to leave them 1 point behind leaders and champions Tampines Rovers.
It mean the title race is going to the final day.
In other matches, Harimau Muda beat Geylang United 3-1 and Home United drew 0-0 with Woodlands.
Irfan Fazail, Gary Robbat and Mahalli Jasuli got the goals for the Malaysians with Jozef Kaplan replying for the Eagles.
Hougang United
Fadhil Salim (GK), Hasree Zais, Syaqir Sulaiman, Lau Meng Meng, Azhar Sairudin (Ignatius Ang), Jordan Webb, Fazli Jaffar, Faizal Amir, Sobrie Mazelan (Nurhilmi Jasni), Fazly Hasan, Mamadou Diallo
--------------- Geylang United
Yazid Yasin (GK) (C), Khayrulhayat Jumat, Shahril Alias (Amy Recha), Syed Fadhil, Jalal, Stefan Milojevic, Michael King (Nurhazwan Norasikin), Shah Hirul, Ang Zhiwei, Jozef Kaplan, Fabian Kwok (Rizawan Abdullah)
---------------
Woodlands Wellington
Ahmadulhaq Che Omar (GK), Danny Chew (Fabien Larry Lewis), Duncan Elias, Daniel Hammond (C), K Sathiaraj, Armanizam Dolah, Guntur Djafril (Andy Ahmad), Farizal Basri (Shamsurin Abd Rahman), Oswind Suriya, Goh Swee Swee, Moon Soon Ho
Home United
Nazri Sabri (GK), Jeremy Chiang, Kenji Arai (C), Firdaus Idros, Rhysh Roshan Rai, Masrezwan Masturi, Nor Azli Yusoff, Shotaro Ihata, Frederic Mendy, Indra Sahdan (Justin Khiang), Song Ui Young
With the champions victory over SAFFC, DPMM are left with only 1 option and that is win both their upcoming matches.
It sound easy as they were up against bottom side Woodlands Wellington but maybe the pressure the pressure was getting as they nearly messed it up.
Given a spotkick in the first period, they will miss it and then go behind and but luckily before half-time, they got back level through Shahrazen Said.
However their title hopes looked shaky at best.
The break though was what the Brunei side needed and they came out in the second period in better shape and finally took the lead through Rosmin Kamis.
They will hold it and pass their first of two test but it was a near thing.
Guntur Djafril got the Rams goal.
In other matches, Albirex Niigata (S) drew 1-1 with Geylang while SAFFC thrashed Gombak 6-1
Sho Kamimura scored for the White Swans while Micheal King reply for the Eagles.
Shimpei Sakurada, Mislav Karoglan (2), Marin Jonjic, Erwan Gunawan and Fazrul Nawaz got the Warriors goals with Bulls sole goal coming from Ex-Warriors Mustaqim Manzur.
Geylang United
Ridhuan Barudin (GK), Khayrulhayat Jumat (Khairulnizam Jumahat), Shahril Alias, Syed Fadhil (C), Jalal, Stefan Milojevic, Micheal King, Shah Hirul (Taufiq Ghani), Ang Zhi Wei (Amy Recha), Jozef Kaplan, Fabian Kwok
---------------
Woodlands Wellington
Ahmadulhaq Che Omar (GK), Duncan Elias (Goh Swee Swee), Fabien Larry Lewis, K Sathiaraj, Daniel Hammond (C), Zulkarnain Malik, Armanizam Dolah, Guntur Djafril, Farizal Basri (Shamsurin Abd Rahman), Oswind Suriya, Moon Soon Ho
---------------
Champions, Tampines Rovers, show how much they want yo win the S-league title once again as they staged an amazing comeback against SAFFC.
The Eastern giant were behind at the early of the second period with Warriors snatching the lead through Shimpei Sakurada. The Champions were level within 15 minutes through Ahmad Latiff.
But with the need to win, they had to go forward and take forward and with 6 minutes left, the Warriors took advantage and retake the lead once again through Fazrul Nawaz.
It was a disaster and the best the most optimistic fan must be just to avoid defeat.
They got that thanks to a Benoit Croissant stunner and that is where also ran and champions material are differentiate as the defending champions refused to give up chasing for the full 3 points.
They got it in injury-time as Jamil Ali once again got off the bench to contribute a valuable goal that may well give the Champions the title once more.
In other matches, Harimua Muda beat Balestier Khalsa 2-0, Geylang defeat Gombak 3-2 and Home win against TPUFC 2-1.
Ahmad Hazwan and D Saarvindran scored for the Malaysians.
For the Eagles victory, Jozef Kaplan was the hero as he grabbed a hat-trick with Hafiz Rahim and Iqbal Hamid Hussain scoring for the Bulls.
Shotaro Ihata and Jeremy Chiang got the goals with Anthony Aymard replying for the Jaguars.
Balestier Khalsa
Zakariah Nerani (GK), Hamqaamal Shah, Paul Cunningham (C), Yusiskandar Yusop, Tengku Mushadad, Ruhaizad Ismail (Zulkiffli Hassim ), Goran Subara, Park Kang Jin, Poh Yi Feng, Syed Thaha (Suria Prakash), Zdravko Dragicevic (Patrick Paranjody)
---------------
Geylang United
Yazid Yasin (GK) (C), Khayrulhayat Jumat, Shahril Alias, Syed Fadhil, Jalal, Stefan Milojevic (Ishak Zainol), Micheal King, Shah Hirul, Jozef Kaplan, Fabian Kwok (Danial Razali), Amy Recha (Ang Zhi Wei)
Gombak United
Rudy Khairullah (GK), Ismail Yunos, Shazwan Sidek, Obadin Aikhena (C), Hafiz Rahim (Ahmad Suhaimi), Mustaqim Manzur, K Vikraman, Christopher Anderson, Zulfadhli Emran (Amin Rossady), Jung Hee Bong, Julien Durand (Iqbal Hamid Hussain)
---------------
Home United
Nazri Sabri (GK), Jeremy Chiang, Kenji Arai (C), Sofiyan Abdul Hamid, Firdaus Idros, Rhysh Roshan Rai (Indra Sahdan), Masrezwan Masturi, Nor Azli Yusoff, Shotaro Ihata, Frederic Mendy, Song Ui Young
TPUFC
Shamsudin Hashim (GK) (Fajar Sarib), Anthony Aymard, Hafiz Osman, Jonathan Xu, Azhar Ahmad (Syed Karim), Zahid Ahmad, Asraf Rashid (Seah Si Hao), Carlos Delgado, Takaya Kawanabe, Hafiz Nor, Gilbert Bayonne
---------------
cant help but feel, some reporters/columnists are just shooting off
their mouth without doing any research, nor have much knowledge of the
league... I guess it just shows the level of interest/passion they have
for the league
just an example, leonard thomas wrote in TNP yesterday that for the
second successive year, the champions of Singapore's domestic
professional club competition will be decided in the final week of the
campaign.
Firstly, it is still not known whether the title will be decided in the
final week. As long as DPMM fails to get at least 4 points against
Woodlands on Sunday and against Hougang on Wednesday, the league title
is Tampines'.
Secondly, it is definitely not the second successive year, I still
remember 2010, when the title was decided on the final day, Etoile was
initially trailing against I think Albirex, and with Tampines leading in
their game, the title was for a moment going to Tampines. But Etoile
came back in the second half to win.
I cant remember 2009 (whether it could have been more than 'three'
successive years), but if I am going to write a column in a newspaper, I
will definitely do some research first.
And here from me pointing out they might as copy from others as they are not that good
SPH Straits Times report on #sleague fine idea. But the report had errors. #sgfootball
First #sleague is not going to increase total prize money by $100k. It is the champion prize money as reported by TODAY long ago #sgfootball
Second: Total prize money is nt $150k. It is again only the champion. #sgfootball
Balestier Khalsa Prime League has done a double as they won the 2012 Singapore Pools FA Cup by beating Siglap CSC 2-0 in the Final.
Balestier duo of Casteels Tzu-Ming and Kim Minho, who finished as the club top scorer in the Prime League with 12 goals each, got the goals in the final.
Siglap CSC is the first ever side from National Football League (NFL) Division 3 to reach the Final.
After the first leg in which Tampines won 2-0, it was difficult to see how Philippines side Loyola Meralco Sparks was going to stage a comeback in the RHB Singapore Cup.
Afterall Tampines was no average side, they were S-league defending champions and currently are fighting for the double in the domestic scene.
Expectedly they finished the job in the second leg winning 3-0 with goals from Aleksandar Duric (2) and Imran Sahib.
Aleksandar Duric and Ahmad Latiff got the goals in the first leg.
Overall Tampines thrashed Sparks 5-0 to reach the Final.
3 teams went into the weekend games with a shot at the title thanks to Albirex 4-3 win over Tampines Rovers 3 days.
In the end, only one, DPMM Brunei, came out of it still with a shot There was always going to be a team who will drop out as DPMM were squaring off against Home at Hassanal Bolkiah National.
It was a match neither can lose for this meant the end of their season as a whole. The door was open to them but who can take advantage as they have to win this encounter and a draw will do neither good.
So both came to attack and it was the visitors, Home United, who showed the deadly touch as they went 2-0 up within half-time thanks to Shi JiaYi and Frederic Mendy.
After the break, it was another story as Shahrazen Said, Patrick Da Silva and Adi Said gave DPMM the lead and if a coach was judged by the brave decision he make then Croatian coach Vjeran Simunic showcased it.
He took off his top scorer and scorer of the first DPMM goal, Shahrazen Said, to make way for Adi Said and the substitute repay the faith of the coach as he was the one who got the winning goal.
With that, Home United title challenge was over and soon to follow was Harimau Muda.
The Malaysian side saw their challenge ended by Gombak United, the bogey side of title challengers.
The Bulls had stalled DPMM Brunei challenge earlier in the month and then did it against Tampines Rovers in their last match and now it was the turn of Muda.
This time, it was costly as the Malaysian side title challenge was gone as they went down 1-2.
Zulfadhli Emran and Jung Hee Bong got the goals for the Bulls while Wan Zack Haikal reply for the Malaysians.
In another match, Hougang drew 2-2 with SAFFC.
Jordan Webb and Azhar Sairudin got the goals for Hougang while Mislav Karoglan and Shimpei Sakurada reply for the Warriors.
Home United
Lionel Lewis (GK), Jeremy Chiang, Kenji Arai, Sofiyan Abdul Hamid, Shi Jia Yi (C), Rhysh Roshan Rai (Indra Sahdan), Masrezwan Masturi, Nor Azli Yusoff, Shotaro Ihata, Frederic Mendy, Song Ui Young
--------------
Hougang United
Fadhil Salim (GK), Hasree Zais, Syaqir Sulaiman, Lau Meng Meng (C), Ante Barac (Basit Hamid), Azhar Sairudin, Jordan Webb, Fazli Jaffar (Faizal Amir), Sobrie Mazelan (Ignatius Ang), Fazly Hasan, Mamadou Diallo
If Tampines want to retain the 2012 S-league crown then they have to fight for it as Albirex are not going to give it up.
Three times the defending Champions took the lead and yet Albirex Niigata (S) came back all the time and if that was not enough they took all 3 points towards the end with Sho Kamimura winner.
Right from the start, both teams show their attacking instinct as they went at one another. And there was no rest bite as the Stags took the lead at the start through Sead Hadzibulic.
The White Swans came back thanks to an error of judgement by the Stags custodian Sasa Dreven who lost the flight of the shot by Yasuhiro Yamakosh.
Almost immediately the Stags struck again, this time through Ahmad Latiff but 10 minutes before half-time, the Japanese outfit was back on level term as Yasuhiro Yamakosh got his second.
Level at the break but not soon after as Aleksandar Duricgot into action as he put the Stags ahead once more. However tonight, Yasuhiro Yamakosh was on fire and he got his hat-trick.
Then disaster for the defending champions as Fahrudin Mustafic got send off and the 10 men had to defend for another 15 minutes.
It was not to be asAlbirex got the fourth to claim all 3 points and open up the title race.
In another match, Tanjong Pagar drew 1-1 with Courts Young Lions. Hafiz Osman had scored for both sides with the first the error before making up for it.
Tampines Rovers
Sasa Dreven (GK), Jufri Taha, Anaz Hadee, Benoit Croissant, Ismadi Mukhtar, Fahrudin Mustafic, Ahmad Latiff, Imran Sahib, Aleksandar Duric, Sead Hadzibulic (Noh Alam Shah), Gligor Gligorov (Jamil Ali)
--------------
CYL
Syazwan Buhari (GK), Faritz Abdul Hameed (C), Sirina Camara, Shannon Stephen, Fazli Ayob, Faris Ramli, Fareez Farhan (Jonathan Toto), Zulfahmi Arifin, Benjamin Lee, Nazrul Nazari (Syafiq Zainal), Sherif El-Masri
TPUFC
Fajar Sarib (GK), Anthony Aymard, Hafiz Osman, Delwinder Singh (C),Jonathan Xu, Azhar Ahmad (Zahid Ahmad),Asraf Rashid (Syed Karim), Carlos Delgado, Takaya Kawanabe, Hafiz Nor, Gilbert Bayonne (Abdul Rahim)
Champions Tampines Rovers failed to close up the title race as they were held to a draw by Gombak.
This mean Tampines have to beat Albirex in 4 days time to end all talks about any challenge on the title.
It should not have been the case as Sead Hadzibulic gave the Stags the lead in the first half but the Eastern giant was unable to close the game. They pay for it as Bulls pull back on level towards the end through ex Eagles Hafiz Rahim.
It gave DPMM an opening as the Brunei side climb up to second.
DPMM have a game in hand and are 7 points behind the defending champions. Win their game in hand and it is only 4 while the top 2 clashed in their next meeting and any result other than a win for Tampines will benefit DPMM.
The Brunei side thrash Tanjong Pagar 3-0 with goals from Shahrazen Said and Ivan Jerkovic (2)
In other matches, Harimau Muda beat Woodlands Wellington 2-0 while Geylang also beat Courts Young Lions 2-0.
Thamil Arasu scored both goals for the Malaysian side.
Shah Hirul and Jozef Kaplan scored the goals for the Eagles.
Gombak United
Zaiful Nizam (GK), Nurullah Hussein, Obadin Aikhena (C), Walid Lounis, Iqbal Hamid Hussain, Hafiz Rahim (Amin Rossady), Mustaqim Manzur, Christopher Anderson, Zulfadhli Emran, Julian Aguirre (Amin Rossady), Samuel Benjamin (Jung Hee Bong)
Tampines Rovers
Sasa Dreven (GK), Jufri Taha, Anaz Hadee, Benoit Croissant, Ismadi Mukhtar, Ahmad Latiff, Imran Sahib (Noh Alam Shah), Ahmed Fahmie (Sazali Salleh), Aleksandar Duric, Sead Hadzibulic, Gligor Gligorov (Jamil Ali)
--------------
Woodlands Wellington
Ahmadulhaq Che Omar (GK), Danny Chew, Fabien Larry Lewis (K Sathiaraj), Daniel Hammond (C), Armanizam Dolah, Han Yiguang, Shamsurin Abd Rahman (Guntur Djafril), Farizal Basri (Oswind Suriya), Goh Swee Swee, Moon Soon Ho, Hussein Akil
---------------
Geylang United
Yazid Yasin (GK) (C), Shahril Alias, Syed Fadhil, Jalal, Stefan Milojevic (Ishak Zainol), Shah Hirul, Ang Zhi Wei, Jozef Kaplan, Nurhazwan Norasiki (Khayrulhayat Jumat), Fabian Kwok, Amy Recha (Rizawan Abdullah)
CYL
Syazwan Buhari (GK), Faritz Abdul Hameed, Sirina Camara, Shannon Stephen, Fazli Ayob (Sherif El-Masri), Hafiz Abu Sujad (C), Faris Ramli, Shamil Sharif (Jonathan Toto), Fareez Farhan (Nazrul Nazari), Zulfahmi Arifin, Benjamin Lee
--------------
TPUFC
Shamsudin Hashim (GK), Anthony Aymard, Hafiz Osman, Delwinder Singh (C),Jonathan Xu, Hanafi Salleh (Azlan Alipah), Farhan Rahaman, Carlos Delgado, Hafiz Nor, Seah Si Hao (Syed Karim), Gilbert Bayonne
Moore Like a Father Than a Coach
-
[image: Douglas Moore - A fatherly figure to the 1994 Lions (as credited)]
Moore - A fatherly figure to the 1994 Lions (as credited)
When he assumed the rol...
Don't Tell Me, This Is Paradise
-
Talk about surprise signings. Penang recruiting Dylan Wenzel-Hall has to be
the coup of the window in Malaysia where the perceived wisdom is
high-profi...
Senarai penuh pemenang anugerah SAM 2023
-
Anugerah Persatuan Penulis-Penulis Sukan Malaysia (SAM) bukan sekadar
meraikan hasil laporan-laporan media terbaik setiap tahun. Ianya juga
merupakan me...
Happy to play in any position
-
“For the team I am happy to play in any position, though I prefer midfield
and winger,” said PPCFC’s Japanese-born utility player, *Yuta Suzuki*, who
joi...
Ipswich Town - Stuck In A Moment
-
This has been a challenging season for Ipswich Town, as they have been poor
in the league and recently suffered a humiliating, televised defeat in the
F...
Harga Kontak BBM Tertarget
-
Probably a demanding business if you jasa tambah kontak bbm aspire to add
contacts fuel meant for affair purposes online supermarket you, but in fact
it i...
-
I believe after a year long of missing-in-action this blog needs to be
reinstated. It started out as a stand-in website for Hougang United FC when
it re-br...
A painful game for LionsXII
-
It’s been a long while since I last blogged and this is definitely not the
kind of post I would want to make after a long rest… The match against the
Johor...
Veni Vidi Vici
-
'Veni, Vidi, Vici!'
Like Julius Caesar in 47BC, Patrick Vallee could have said the same
sentence at the end of the 2010 Sleague season. The Etoile FC co...
Lions reform chases only red herrings
-
In football, the road paved with failure more often than not ends up with a
few lambs sacrificed on the altar of public opinion. For Singapore,
point-less ...
Profitable Plots Update
-
We reported on the unsavoury link between Liverpool, Steve McMahon and the
disgraced investment company Profitable Plots at the start of September
(read...
[Preview]Home United FC versus Gombak United FC
-
The Protectors returns to Bishan Stadium for it’s opening “home” match
against Gombak United FC. After spending 2 years at their temporary “home”
base at C...
AFF Suzuki Cup 2010 Finals Matchday 8
-
Semi-final 2, leg 1 in Jakarta, Indonesia
Philippines 0 Indonesia 1
Christian Gonzalez headed home the only goal of the game on 30 minutes to
give the Ind...
Standing United in Hougang
-
Some of you might had read the following article from TODAY. Talk about
drastic measures to close another chapter in the long-line of name-change
to the ex...
Interesting ACL Developments
-
*Football Federation Australia*
Renewal of Wellington Phoenix FC’s license in the Hyundai A-League was
approved by FIFA until 2016. AFC acknowledged the ex...
