Noh reject Sriwijaya

Despite many reports from Indonesia claiming Noh Alam Shah is already a Sriwijaya player next season, it has emerged the Singapore international have rejected the offer from the Palembang club.

Is this a smart move with the Indonesian Super Liga set to start in two month time?

I think so if the reason are for the right ones and not those that claimed Noh is refusing to move without certain players or dislike living in Palembang etc.

I would say Sriwijaya is more an Indonesia equivalent of a Gombak than SAFFC and that mean the long-term security the 29-year-old is looking for when he depart Arema Malang is still lacking.

Former Uzbekistan forward Pavel Solomin had score the winning goal while Precious play a significant part in the Indonesian Cup Final but at this moment in time, reports indicate they have yet to sign an extension.

It is clear Sriwijaya cannot offer term on a long term basis as their budget is not stable from year to year as they did run into trouble early in the year when salaries were not paid before the regional government gave them a 'loan'.

That when Solomin came into the picture as he was recruited then thus as Sriwijaya work on their next budget they are without knowledge on what the next, next budget should be.

Noh is going to be 30 soon thus he need to make a move to a club that will really set him up for the next few years and not keep have worry over the next contract even when he play well.

Valle : The way Rams is playing is not helping S-league

Despite a 2-0 victory over bottom-dewller Woodlands Wellington, Etoile FC Patrick Vallee expressed his disappointment with the way the Rams is approaching the game is not helping the S-league brand.

In what is a robust contest, the Rams, being the inferior team, had retort to rough challenges to stop the current championship challenger and the French coach was unhappy about that.

He believed it lead to a negative attitude about the S-league with Woodlands Wellington refusing to let them play any sort of football.

In a way, I cannot disagree with Vallee as this season I have seem too many contest where teams are refusing to play football and it is tough to watch such matches; especially for those who are neutral and rarely go to matches.

That why even although the fight for fourth place is close, it has not been a great contest to watch those teams play.

I once say only the S-league Big 3 along Gombak United can play football among the local clubs but this season the Bulls have fall off that list and negative football have taken hold in the S-league as results take increasing importance.

That is a problem worse than inferior foreigner recruit by the clubs as it mean I worry about the Lions outside of the Big 3 who are being hindered by the negative style especially if they are the forward line.

Karim Boudjema and Anthony Moulin had score for the French side

Woodlands Wellington
Fajar Sarib (GK), Winston Yap, Kazuki Yoshino, Sahairi Ramri, Anaz Hadee, Luis Eduardo Hicks, (Guntur Djafri) Shahri Musa, (Asraf Rashid) Noor Ali (C), Sazali Salleh, Abdelhadi Laakkad, (Nigel Vanu) Rizawan Abdullah

Draw the name of the game - Part 2

When Gombak United and Geylang United play, there is similar feel about them and it is not because they both have United as part of their name.

Once again, their games ended in draw with Geylang United drawing 2-2 with the Young Lions while Gombak United play out a 0-0 with Sengkang Punggol.

Will be waiting for the day when these two clubs pick up the courage to take risk and go out to win games.

Hope it will be before all my hair turn white as watching them now is making my hair grow white.

Kim Jae Hong and Yasir Hanapi score the Eagles before an own goal and Cubs forward Khairul Nizam drew the Jalan Besar side level.

Young Lions
Izwan Mahbud (GK),
Afiq Yunos, Irwan Shah, (Luka Savic) Safuwan Baharudin, (Khairul Nizam) Fazli Ayob, Hafiz Abu Sujad, Faritz Abdul Hameed, (Gabriel Quak) Zulfahmi Arifin, Hariss Harun (C), Seo Su Jong, Khalili D'cruz

Geylang United
Siddiq Durimi (GK), Salim Rahim, Walid Lounis, Jonathan Xu, Vasile Ghindaru, Kim Jae Hong, Adrian Dhanaraj, (Fabian Kwok) Yasir Hanap, (Hassan Aziz) Syed Fadhil (C), Shah Hirul, Hafiz Rahim,
(Masrezwan Masturi) Peter Tomko

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Sengkang Punggol
Fadhil Salim (GK), Shahir Hamzah, Ratna Suffian, Lau Meng Meng, Kenji Arai (C), (Sobrie Mazelan) Farizal Basri, Jordan Webb, Faizal Amir, Duncan Elias, (R Sivaneswaran)
Mojtaba Tehranizadeh, (Zul Nor Farahin) Mamadou Diallo

Gombak United
Zakariah Nerani (GK), (Hamqaamal Shah) Jaslee Hatta (C), Bah Mamadou, Obadin Aikhena, Jeremy Chiang, Goran Subara, Ridhwan Jamaludin, Agu Casmir, (Zulkiffli Hassim) Park Kang Jin, Fazrul Nawaz, (Ruhaizad Ismail) Chang Jo Yoon

It is the AFF Suzuki Cup again

ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) have stated on their website announcing Japanese car giant Suzuki Motor Corporation have renewed its title sponsorship of the AFF Suzuki Cup for 2010.

The AFF Suzuki Cup is Southeast Asia’s biggest football event and ratings leader. This year’s competition, featuring the region’s top eight teams, will be co-hosted by Indonesia and Vietnam from December 1st to 29th.

Suzuki has been a title-sponsor of the AFF Cup since 2008.

Singapore set to play Hong Kong

News have broken out from Hong Kong that Singapore is set to play Hong Kong next year over two legs - home and away.

One of the dates has been set for February 9th with the other date still in discussion.

Singapore last played Hong Kong back in 2004 in the Tiger International Festival hosted in Singapore. The match ended 0-0.

Singapore Squad announced for Thailand friendly and Serbia Training Tour

National Coach Radojko Avramovic has named his 22-strong squad for next Wednesday’s friendly international against Thailand in Bangkok and the upcoming training tour of Serbia.

International Friendly

Thailand v Singapore
Wednesday 11 August, 6.00pm (local time)
Yamaha Stadium
Bangkok, Thailand

Serbia Training Tour
14 to 27 August

Serbia XI v Singapore
Wednesday 18 August, 5.30pm (all times local)

FK Vojvodina Novi Sad v Singapore
Monday 23 August 5.30pm

FK Jagodina vs Singapore
Wednesday 25 August 5.00pm

Singapore Squad

NAME	CLUB	CAPS	GOALS
Hassan Sunny	Tampines Rovers	27	0
Shahril Jantan	SAFFC	8	0
Izwan Mahbud	Young Lions	0	0
Daniel Bennett	SAFFC	92	6
Baihakki Khaizan	Persija (Indonesia)	72	2
Afiq Yunos	Young Lions	1	0
Irwan Shah	Young Lions	2	0
Safuwan Baharudin	Young Lions	2	0
John Wilkinson	SAFFC	29	4
Fahrudin Mustafic	Persija (Indonesia)	50	6
Hariss Harun	Young Lions	15	0
Zulfahmi Arifin	Young Lions	0	0
Isa Halim	Home United	28	0
Shahril Ishak	Home United	78	5
Shahdan Sulaiman	Home United	0	0
Shi Jiayi	Home United	45	1
Tengku Mushadad	Home United	9	0
Masrezwan Masturi	Geylang United	19	2
Fazrul Nawaz	Gombak United	39	3
Agu Casmir	Gombak United	32	12
Khairul Amri	Tampines Rovers	61	9
Aleksandar Duric	Tampines Rovers	26	11

Noh Alam Shah linked with Indonesian Cup champions

Singapore forward Noh Alam Shah is linked with a move to three-time Indonesian Cup champions Sriwijaya.

It mean the 29-year-old will still have a chance of playing in the AFC Champions League next year, if he has indeed sign with the club, as Sriwijaya have won the right to represent Indonesian Super Liga (ISL) in Asia.

However, the Palembang club is not assured of a place in the Elite Asian competition as they have to play in the playoff.

Sriwijaya had square off against SAFFC in the ACL playoff semi-final earlier in the year where they were defeated 0-3 at the Jalan Besar Stadium.

Home crushed Beijing but stay third in title race

Two-time champions Home United crushed Beijing Gouan (S) 3-0 at the Yishun Stadium to stay in the championship race.

Despite the impressive victory as well as an incredible run of 9 win from 10 matches, the Protectors stay third in the league as they could not overtake Etoile FC with the French having a superior goal difference.

Etoile FC could pull away from Home United again and draw near to leader Tampines Rovers when they meet bottom-dweller Woodlands Wellington on Thursday.

Shi Jiayi, Shahril Ishak and Jun Woo Keun scored for the Protectors.

Home United
Nazri Sabri (GK), Juma'at Jantan, Valery Hiek, Tengku Mushadad, Choi Chul Woo, (Sufian Anuar) Shi Jiayi, Chun Jae Woon, (Firdaus Kasman) Shahdan Sulaiman, Jun Woo Keun, Shahril Ishak(C), (Firdaus Idros) Naufal Omar Ashiblie

Pavkovic seek to change mindset for youth players

FAS technical director Slobodan Pavkovic continue his work to develop Singapore football as he took part in the H-TWO-O Skills Assessment Challenge.

Over 80 students aged 17 to 20 from ITE College Central MacPherson campus took up the challenge, according to TODAY Paper

The aspiring footballers were tested on their skills proficiency for five of the 20 basic moves in the National Football Syllabus, which was introduced as part of the Football Association of Singapore's (FAS) Strategic Plan launched in April.

The problem is that in top football countries, kids learn such basic skills at a younger age.

FAS technical director Slobodan Pavkovic says the culture here must change if Singapore's youngsters are to develop their skills at the same pace as those in South America and Europe.
At football institutions like Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona and Manchester United, the emphasis at their youth academies is not for children to win games. Instead, they are drilled to perfect their basic skills, and encouraged to have fun.

"It is the truth. The beginning of playing football is learning the technique, and control of ball and body. It is never too late if players want to learn, but generally, with these basic moves, players should start as early as possible."

Sriwijaya is Indonesian Cup champions again

Sriwijaya have won the Indonesian Cup again after defeating newly-crowned Super Liga champions Arema Malang 2-1 in the Final.

This mean the three-time Indonesian Cup champions will once again be representing the Indonesia Super Liga in the ACL playoff.

Sriwijaya had square off against SAFFC in the ACL playoff semi-final earlier in the year where they were defeated 0-3 at the Jalan Besar Stadium.

Singapore Olympic team invited for Ho Chi Minh Cup

According to vietfootball blog, Singapore Olympic team is slated to play in the Ho Chi Minh Cup.

It is to celebrate the 1000th anniversary of Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam.

While there is no date as to when the competition is played, it could be at the same period as Thang Long Cup which is being held in Hanoi from September 20-24.

Stags go into YOG break as leader

Top spot is secure for Stags until YOG is over, as least.

It started when Aleksandar Duric slotted in his 11th goal and 298th domestic (Not S-league) goal

Now, the record goal scorer need two more to reach 300th goal and it looked more than a possibility with a min of 10 more games for Tampines Rovers.

But the resistance of the former champions SAFFC was only killed off when Khariul Amri slotted in the second from the spot.

With that result, Tampines Rovers has pulled four point clear of second Etoile FC so no matter what happen on Thursday, they cannot be overtaken before YOG finish at the end of August.

Tampines Rovers
Hassan Sunny (GK), Benoit Croissant, Seiji Kaneko, Akihiro Nakamura, (Jufri Taha) Imran Sahib, Park Yo Seb, (Jamil Ali) Aliff Shafaein (C), Shukor Zailan, Ismadi Mukhtar, (Edward Tan) Khairul Amri, Aleksandar Duric

SAFFC
Shahril Jantan (GK) (C),
Razaleigh Khalik, Ivan Lovric, (Hafiz Osman) Daniel Bennett, Ivan Jerkovic, Ahmad Latiff, John Wilkinson, Noh Rahman, Park Tae Won, (Mustaqim Manzur) Ruzaini Zainal, Taisuke Akiyoshi

S-league Preview

Last week Preview - 2 right and 4 wrong with 1 yet to be decided

Beijing Gouan (S) vs Home United
It is a tough one for the Protectors. If it was a few week ago, it will be a walkover but the Chinese side have hit a purple patch and they dispatched former leader Etoile FC two weeks ago with ease. But like a broken recorder, it is win or burst for the Protectors. They have no choice left as fate is not in their hand. 2-1 win for Home United

Young Lions vs Geylang United
This has a draw written over it. The Cubs are starting to shuffle their team more now as they test more local players for the Asian Games while the Eagles as I have written lacked the ambition and ability to win games. I cannot see who will take charge of this game. 0-0 draw

Sengkang Punggol vs Gombak United
Another draw game if you ask me. Like the above Preview, the Bulls lacked ambition and ability to win games. But Sengkang is in no better position, they lacked the ability to put the ball in the net as well. Who will show mercy and score in his match for this is a LIVE game and not a great advertisement for the S-league. Nobody as far as I can see. 0-0 draw

Etoile FC vs Woodlands Wellington
The French are walking away with 3 points and the scoreline is the only guess here. At 1 stage, the French score 10 goals in 4 games but they are back to where they were - 1 goal per game. With result more important than goals, they will settle for it even when the Rams are up for the kill as the Northern team must be putting all their effort for the weekend game. 1-0 to Etoile FC
SAFFC vs Balestier Khalsa
The Warriors hope to finish in the top 3 but I cannot see them doing it. I am not even sure they can win this encounter with the Tigers. That how badly their season have gone this season. But Indra need only 1 more to get his 200th domestic goal (3 more to get official S-league Award) and it is time he got it. This is a LIVE match so the former Lions skipper may perk for this game and go for the record. 3-0 to the Warriors

Geylang United vs Beijing Gouan (S)
The Chinese side will be confident of winning this one. They are on a great run and showing more ambition than the home side. Goals win games and the Chinese side are showing they know where the back of the net is unlike the Bedok team. They can win it. 2-0 to Beijing

Woodlands Wellington vs Sengkang Punggol
Let give Abdelhadi Laakkad his last chance. The Moroccan has the ability but since his return, he has yet to score. This is the game to prove he still have it. It will not be easy as Sengkang will send Kenji Arai to take him on. It is the Japanese up against the Moroccan that might decide the two Singapore club fate. For Rams, defeat the Dolphins and they can keep the second-bottom side close to them with a chance to overtake. For Dolphins, a draw or win and the Wooden Spoon await the Rams. 2-1 to the Rams

Draw the name of the game

It was Draw night on Friday and Saturday as Geylang United drew 1-1 Albirex Niigata (S) at Jalan Besar while Balestier Khalsa held Gombak United to a 0-0 draw at Toa Poyah.

In a way, it show either the lacked of ambition or the lacked of abilities of the Eagles and Bulls as they were presented with a chance to pull away from the rest of the pack to secure fourth spot but they could not do it.

For me, it is a bit of both as both Eagles and Bulls head coach tend to be too defensive minded thus instead of going for wins, they go for not losing.

That mean a packed defence and midfield with no interest to attack so even with great attackers like Tomko and Masrezwan for the Eagles and Agu and Farzul for the Bulls, they are wasted.

It is also no surprise that both their midfield lacked attacking midfielders with Koreans like Eagles Kim Jae Hong and Bulls Park Kang Jin being circle slotted in square peg.

Atsushi Shimono had scored for Albirex Niigata (S) and Rastislav Belicak reply for the Eagles.

Geylang United
 Siddiq Durimi (GK), Walid Lounis, Rastislav Belicak (C), Vasile Ghindaru, Kim Jae Hong, Adrian Dhanaraj, (Yasir Hanap) Syed Fadhil, Shah Hirul, (Syed Thaha) Salim Rahim, Masrezwan Masturi, (Hafiz Rahim) Peter Tomko

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Balestier Khalsa

Ahmadulhaq Che Omar (GK), (Poh Yi Feng) Sofiyan Abdul Hamid, Paul Cunningham, Daniel Hammond (C), (K Sathiaraj) Mushthafa Kamal, (Ishak Zainol) Syaqir Sulaiman, Kamal Nasir, Nurhilmi Jasni, Andrew Tan, Vitor Borges, Rivaldo Costa

Gombak United
Zakariah Nerani (GK), Jaslee Hatta (C), Bah Mamadou, Obadin Aikhena, (Ruhaizad Ismail) Hamqaamal Shah, Goran Subara, Fabian Tan, Ridhwan Jamaludin, Agu Casmir, (Zulkiffli Hassim) Park Kang Jin, (Fazrul Nawaz) Eddoh Pascal

It is really over for Shariff Abdul Samat

Home United coach Paul Lee has expressed his feeling about Shariff Abdul Samat to the media.

It was simple. The player will not be at Home United next season.

Even now with Home facing a selection headache at the back with injuries and suspension, the 26-year-old is not on the radar of the Korean coach.

Shariff Abdul Samat was believed to have clashed with the Korean in training and like former Protectors Peres and Nelson, he is now 'exiled' from the squad as long as Paul Lee is in charge.

Vietnam top striker to miss reminding V-league season

Vietnam and Hanoi T&T top striker Le Cong Vinh is set to miss the reminding V-league season.

However, unlike Singapore forward Qiu Li, he is expected to be fully fit by the end of the year thus making him available for selection for the AFF Cup.

Nguyen Quoc Hoi, Hanoi T&T chairman, said Vinh is recovering well from an operation in Portugal to a damaged knee ligament.

This will be welcome news to the Vietnam public as Le Cong Vinh is an important member of the Vietnam football team setup with him getting the winning goal back in the 2008 Suzuki Cup Final to secure Vietnam first ever international trophy.