Category: Feature
The Lion City Sailors were on the wrong end of a five-goal thriller in the Singapore Premier League on Saturday (24 October), falling 3-2 to Albirex Niigata at the Jurong East Stadium.
Battling back from a 2-0 first half deficit to draw level, Aurelio Vidmar’s charges had their hearts broken right at the death by a controversial Reo Nishiguchi winner. Albirex captain Kazuki Hashioka appeared to have controlled the ball with his hand before setting up Nishiguchi to score at the far post in the fourth minute of injury time.
But Vidmar saw several positives in the performance despite the Sailors remaining in sixth spot in the nine-team SPL standings.
“I saw a strong mentality and a winning mindset throughout the game,” said a dejected Aurelio after the match. “We started off really well in the first 20 mins, unfortunately a couple of errors cost us goals, but we were certainly controlling the game, and continued that form into the second half.”
Albirex took the lead in the 19th minute, after Hassan Sunny in the Sailors goal could only palm a Hiroyoshi Kamata cross, with Tomoyuki Doi sweeping home the loose ball – this despite the Sailors looking comfortable in the opening period of the contest.
Song Ui-Young had two opportunities to level the game, but it was Albirex who doubled their lead, with Ryosuke Nagasawa rifling home in the 36th minute after the solid Tajeli Salamat uncharacteristically missed a clearance.
“We showed great resilience and that’s what it’s all about,” said Aurelio, who saw several encouraging signs. “This was never going to be an easy game, but we showed a lot of fight and a lot of spirit and great unity, and the boys kept pushing themselves right to the very last minute.”
The Sailors came out of the break battling. The team took control of the match, scoring first through Song who swept home in the 59th minute after a flowing move.
Substitute Gabriel Quak then bounced to his feet after falling in the Albirex penalty box in the 88th minute, shrugged off a challenge and sent a left foot bullet that easily beat Albirex goalkeeper Kei Okawa.
Despite having their hearts broken in injury time, Vidmar was wildly encouraged by the football on show.
He said: “We’re playing very good football and we showed that again tonight. We had a lot of great combinations, especially in the second half. The performance from the team was fantastic, special mention to all the boys who came off the bench.”
Aurelio was particularly pleased with the performances of the substitutes who drove the team forward in the second half. Kaishu Yamazaki and Faizal Roslan came on for their first appearance since the SPL restart, with Adam Swandi and Gabriel also coming on to good effect.
“It’s not easy being on the bench, cos everybody obviously wants to play. Their performances showed me that they were mentally and physically ready – all the boys who came on in the second half did a great job,” said Aurelio.
It was a similar positivity shared by Sailors midfielder Song.
“We made mistakes to concede those first half goals, but it was clear that we believed in our coach and in each other. Once we had some time to reorganise, we bounced back very strongly,” said the South Korean.
“I watched the video again after the game, and I think there’s an obvious handball before the last goal. But we will put the negativity behind us, and I’m certain that we will keep getting better as the season goes on.”
While Aurelio easily found positives from this defeat, he was less pleased about what lies ahead for the Sailors. The participation of 2019 SPL champions Brunei DPMM has yet to be confirmed, with their scheduled return to action – against Hougang United on Oct 25 –postponed, and no indication if the Brunei side will show up to face the Sailors at the Bishan Stadium on Wednesday (Oct 28).
“The whole league can’t just sit and wait, we have to prepare, we have to plan, we have to organise training venues and sessions. How can we do that if we don’t know if we’re going to play?” said a frustrated Aurelio.
“It’s so uncertain and something needs to be done immediately.”
The Sailors are up and running in the Singapore Premier League (SPL), having defeated Geylang International 4-0 on Sunday evening for their first ever win.
New signing Stipe Plazibat opened the scoring early on, before Song Ui-Young netted from the spot on the stroke of half time to double the advantage.
With Geylang playing the entire second half with a man less following goalkeeper Zainol Gulam’s dismissal for the foul leading to the penalty, the Sailors would go on to score a further two late into the game, with Stipe netting his second and substitute Shahril Ishak rounding off the victory near the end of the game.
Here, we look back on four talking points from an excellent evening for the Sailors…
- Stipe makes an instant impact… at both ends
All eyes were on Stipe making his much-anticipated debut for the Sailors and he duly delivered. Our Croatian hotshot converted two out of his three shot attempts, which showcased his ruthlessness in front of goal.
His predatory instincts were perfectly encapsulated in his maiden Sailors strike after just eight minutes, as he got ahead of marker Yuki Ichikawa to divert home a Tajeli Salamat knock-on from Shahdan Sulaiman’s outswinging corner. The second goal was much more straightforward, as he swept home from unmissable range after being teed up by substitute Gabriel Quak. He could have ended the night with a hat-trick, but a snapshot earlier in the first half was turned round the post by Zainol.
The goals aside, his all-round play upfront was promising, with Stipe constantly providing an outlet to link up with his team-mates. To cap it off, he also made significant contributions at the other end by often tracking back to help out the team in defending set-piece situations. All in all, it was a superb debut performance which will surely leave Sailors fans salivating for more. The danger for the rest of the league is that Stipe is just getting started.
- Song, now the wily old head
A lot of attention before the season started was focused on how the Sailors’ new recruits like Hassan Sunny, Shahdan Sulaiman and Gabriel Quak would impact the team, so much so that those who were already plying their trade at Bishan Stadium were perhaps overlooked. One such player is South Korean midfielder Song Ui-Young, who is now into his ninth season in Singapore (having spent 2012 to 2019 with Home United, our previous entity).
While he has been deployed in a few positions across midfield over the years, Song currently plays as a no. 8 in a three-man Sailors midfield – a role which allows him to utilise his incredible stamina to roam from box to box. The Incheon native showed why he is such a valuable member of the Sailors by putting up an impressive display against Geylang.
His clever movement and top-notch passing ability helped to link the lines between defence and attack seamlessly – which meant we often managed to get balls in behind the Geylang backline. A video that has been making its rounds on social media summed up Song’s key attribute in a nutshell – having evaded his marker with a strong run, he proceeded to produce a delicious 60-yard ball in between two Geylang defenders that teed up Hafiz Nor for a one-on-one which he did not manage to finish off.
This ball by Song though…. Shades of UCL 2005 final Kaka to Crespo…deserved a similar finish. Can we just give Song an honorary assist? #LCSGEY #SPL pic.twitter.com/mjJnD7vk9t
— Rhysh Roshan Rai (@RhyshRai) October 18, 2020
Also, his penalty? Coolness personified.
Despite turning just 27 in November, Song is already regarded as the wise old head in the Sailors squad, as he leads by example from the middle of the pitch.
- Young talents rise to the fore
The presence of experienced figures like Stipe and Song seems to be rubbing off on the younger players in the team, with Arshad Shamim and Saifullah Akbar showing their potential with good shifts on Sunday night.
Winger Arshad constantly provided an outlet down the right flank with excellent, probing runs – with one of those resulting in the 20-year-old being brought down by a crude challenge from Zainol that drew a straight red for the latter. Meanwhile, 21-year-old attacking midfielder Saifullah did not look out of place on his Sailors debut, with his tidiness in possession and incisive passes.
Nurturing young talents and seeing them progress to bigger and better things is a key facet of the Sailors’ philosophy, so it is important for Arshad and Saifullah to build on their encouraging performances against Geylang. Likewise, the youngsters’ good performances will also drive the senior players to take their game to a higher level – as evident in the impact that Gabriel and Shahril both made when they came off the bench.
- A handy first shutout to build on
It is an obvious fact in football that clean sheets breed confidence, thus the Sailors should be happy with their night’s work. Geylang did have some good moments in the first half, but goalkeeper Hassan Sunny was generally untroubled throughout, although he still had to make an excellent late save to deny Khairul Nizam’s downward header in the second half.
Tajeli, in just his second start for the Sailors, put up an accomplished performance at the heart of defence alongside the experienced Abdil Qaiyyim. Tajeli’s impeccable positioning and reading of the game allowed him to hack off the line from Darren Teh’s goal-bound header, and he was also influential in the Sailors’ opening goal with an excellent leap in the air to knock Shahdan’s corner into the path for Stipe to do the rest.
Meanwhile, full-backs Aqhari Abdullah and Naqiuddin Eunos gradually grew into the game and got forward well, with the latter teeing up Shahril for the late goal.
All in all, the win and the performance that accompanied it is a huge confidence booster for the Sailors, as we gear up for the big clash against the free-scoring Albirex Niigata (S) next week.
The Singapore Premier League (SPL) is set for an imminent restart, and the Lion City Sailors have been training on the pitch striving to be in the best shape to challenge for the title this season.
But one Sailor has been conspicuously absent from these sessions – full-back Ho Wai Loon.
Instead of being out on the pitch with his teammates, the 27-year-old has been forced to stay at home in a cast, after he sustained a right ankle fracture early last month.
The injury, which occurred during our second full training session, was severe enough that Wai Loon had to undergo surgery on his ankle the very next day.
“We were having possession training, and during one passage of play, I slid in to try and block a goal. But my right ankle got stuck in the ground, while the momentum carried me forward, and I suddenly heard a loud crack,” said a disappointed Wai Loon, recalling the painful incident.
“I knew immediately then that it was a bad injury, and that I’d be out for a long time.”
His recovery is estimated to take about four to six months, and the Singapore international will very likely miss a large chunk of the coming season, if not all of it.
After close to seven months without football due to Covid-19 measures, the left-footed Wai Loon was naturally upset at suffering such a serious injury, especially now with the season about to restart.
“It was a devastating blow for me,” said a candid Wai Loon. “Frankly, this year has not been a good year for me, football-wise. We only managed to play two games at the start of the season before circuit breaker started.
“Then just when things were picking up and we got back to full training, I suffered this injury, and will now have to miss another four to six months of football.”
Despite the ill-timed setback, Wai Loon is determined to maintain a positive mindset throughout his rehabilitation.
After all, he believes that the key to a better and faster recovery is to stay positive – something he learnt while recovering from an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in 2015.
“When I had my ACL injury, I realised that your mindset plays a very important role in your recovery,” said Wai Loon. “You have to be mentally strong, and stay optimistic. It is hard, but you cannot wallow in self-pity because it is what it is, and there’s nothing you can change.
“So, instead of focusing on the injury, focus on the recovery. That’s why I’m choosing to look at the positives of my injury now. I believe that things happen for a reason, and maybe because of this injury, it’ll allow me to reset, recharge, and come back a stronger player.”
As part of Wai Loon’s rehabilitation, he continues to work with the club’s trainers to keep active in order to maintain fitness.
“I had just one week of rest after the operation,” Wai Loon revealed. “Since then, I’ve been going for treatment and working with our trainers to keep my quadriceps and hamstrings active so that my fitness levels don’t go down too drastically.
“Thankfully, the recovery process isn’t as tough as when I suffered the ACL injury, and doctors say I can probably begin cycling in a month, which will help with my cardio fitness.”
It helps, too, that Wai Loon’s friends and family, as well as his teammates and coaches, have been hugely supportive and encouraging.
“After the injury, my teammates have been checking up on me often, and of course it helps knowing that they care and that I’m not alone in this,” said Wai Loon. “Their encouragement, along with the support of the coaches and the trainer who’s helping me with my treatment, makes me extra determined to work hard.
“I know they’re all waiting for me to come back, so I shouldn’t disappoint them. Having said that, I won’t rush my recovery too or I might risk getting another injury.”
And while we will be without Wai Loon – who was set to play a key role in our charge for the SPL title this season – for the majority of the campaign, the full-back is optimistic in the team’s ability to achieve success on the pitch.
“I’m confident that the direction we’re going is the right one,” Wai Loon declared. “The coach, the staff, the players are all pulling in the same direction, and everyone is doing well.
“I believe the team will perform well this season, and we will soon be able to show everyone our way of playing football. The morale is high among the boys, and everyone is putting in a lot of effort in training. So even for me, while I’ll be sidelined, I’ll still be there to support the team throughout the season.”
It was past 8pm on a Wednesday at HYFA, and most of the young players from the Lion City Sailors Football Academy had already left for home after their training session.
Five of the academy trainees, however, remained behind on the pitch – sat in a semi-circle around Sailors centre-back Abdil Qaiyyim, eyes focused on the 31-year-old, hanging on to every word that came out of his mouth.
Abdil, one of the most experienced players in the Sailors squad, was sharing with them the valuable lessons that he had learnt – both on and off the pitch – throughout his illustrious career to date.
And the academy trainees – all centre-backs – were enraptured.
Abdil revealed that the one thing he wanted to get across to the five young players was that there was no escaping hard work and grit if they wanted to succeed at the top level of the game.
“My message to them was that even if you have a lot of talent, if you don’t work hard, your talent is going to be wasted. You need to put in the work,” said Abdil. “I told them to look at Cristiano Ronaldo, or Lionel Messi – they’re not the players they are simply because they were born like that. They had to put in a lot of time and sacrifice to perfect themselves.
“Even for me, when I was younger, I wasn’t a first team player. There were a few other players who were a lot better than me, but I did not give up. I knew that I had to put in the work, and that’s what I did. After training, if I had to stay back to do extra work, I would do it.”
Abdil’s impromptu sharing came after he, along with nine other Sailors, had donned their coaching hats and put the LCS Football Academy trainees through their paces in a special training session.
The session saw each Sailor personally conduct training for a group of up to five academy players who played in the same position as they did.
And Abdil, who taught his group about defensive positioning, as well as the art of defending corners, remarked that he was very “impressed” with what he saw of the young players.
“I was actually quite impressed with my group of kids because they showed me that they have a good mentality and the right traits in them despite being still so young,” explained Abdil.
“There was this boy, Jack, and he’s still in Primary School, but the determination that he showed, and his willingness to learn, really blew me away. He was also quite a fighter for his size, and that sort of spirit is very important for a centre-back.”
Abdil, however, was keen to emphasise that these young players had to not just hone their talent on the pitch, but also develop themselves in the right way when they stepped off it.
Reflecting on his own development as a player, Abdil said: “I’ll be honest, when I was younger, I made a lot of mistakes in my career. But I’ve learnt from these mistakes, and I can now share my experience with the kids so they don’t make the same mistakes I did.
“So, I think it’s great that such sessions have been organised for the academy players. Sometimes as players, there are some things that you want to ask your coach, but you’re afraid to do so because they think the question might sound silly.
“But now, these kids acknowledge me as a (fellow) player, so we’re sort of on the same level. I think it’s easier for them to interact with us, because it’s on a player to player basis. This gives us senior players the opportunity to impart our knowledge and experience, and guide the next generation of players for Singapore football.”
But while Abdil described his time with the academy players as “refreshing”, he remained coy on the possibility of going into coaching once he hangs up his boots.
“I don’t know if coaching is in my future, to be honest,” he said with a wry smile. “But I have friends and ex-teammates who went on to become coaches, and I actually look up to coach Noh (Rahman).
“After all, he was once a player, and I even played with him, but he’s now our coach. He’s a person who I look up to, so maybe I can follow his footsteps. But whether I really want to go down this (coaching) path is still unclear to me. Let’s just say I’m keeping my options open!”
It has been a strange couple of months for our Lion City Sailors custodian Hassan Sunny.
After all, since starting his professional career at Geylang United (now called Geylang International) in 2003, the 36-year-old has hardly ever been away from a football pitch for such a long period of time, injuries notwithstanding.
But, with the Covid-19 pandemic putting a temporary halt to all sporting activities in Singapore in March, Hassan has had no choice but to stay at home – away from the familiar surroundings of the Bishan Stadium – and wait for the virus to blow over, so that things can return to normal.
And, while Hassan fully understands the need to be cautious when it comes to the virus, he admits that it has not been easy for him to live without football these past two months.
“I don’t see anyone, or any athletes, having a good time at the moment,” said Hassan. “I watch the news closely every day, hoping for when it’s finally announced that we’re allowed to train again. Even if it’s in small groups of three or four, all of us just can’t wait to be back out on the pitch.
“Because football is in our blood, and we have been playing football since we were young, and this virus is like a huge block to stop us from doing what we love. In fact, it’s not just us professional athletes. I’m sure most people out there have ‘itchy legs’, and can’t wait to exercise or play sports as well.”
Nonetheless, Hassan acknowledges it is imperative that the SPL resumes only when it is safe to do so. And he expressed his confidence that the authorities in Singapore would make the right call at the right time.
“We as Singaporeans have to be thankful and we have to appreciate the things going on in Singapore,” Hassan mused. “Everything is about health. I’m sure when football resumes, all the necessary measures and checks will come first before football.
“I think it’s safe to say that us players don’t need to worry that much, because if any of us don’t pass the checks, we won’t be allowed to train or play with the team. So, if you talk about fears in terms of health, I’m sure everything will be detected early, and I think there’ll be no worries on that end.”
In the meantime, to keep himself focused on football, Hassan reveals that he has taken to watching his past matches, while also ensuring that he remains in tip-top shape physically.
The Sailors ‘Superman’ explained: “I’m sure all of us athletes and football players have been doing a lot of individual work at home or at our neighbourhood parks. On the football side, however, what I do is watch my matches from previous years…just to keep my brain on football and help me stay in the game.”
Hassan, however, will have to remain patient for a while longer – the return date for the Singapore Premier League (SPL) remains up in the air, even as the country slowly but surely moves towards the easing of restrictions.
But even after the SPL is given the all-clear to resume, the veteran Singapore international believes that there will be changes that clubs and players will have to adapt to.
“As much as people in Singapore would love to see football again, I’m sure things won’t go back to normal,” said Hassan. “Case in point – I recently watched the Bundesliga and the Korean league, and they don’t have fans watching them. I’m sure that affects those players, and it would be the same thing for us as well.”
Since its official launch on June 10, our Lion City Sailors Football Academy – along with the announcement of an elite development programme scholarship worth S$1 million for promising young players – has been the talk of the footballing community in Singapore.
Modelled after some of the leading academies in Europe, our LCS Football Academy programme is geared towards grooming young talent in local football by creating a holistic environment to help them to grow and develop to the best of their potential.
This includes providing youth players access to a whole suite of professional services critical to the development of footballers, including nutritionists, sports psychologists, video analysts and sports doctors.
Our LCS Football Academy and its elite development programme has since been hailed by several local football observers as a boost for Singapore football, with Sailors midfielder Saifullah Akbar hailing this latest development as a step in the “right direction” for the local game.
Speaking to the official LCS website, the 21-year-old said: “The launch of the LCS Football Academy shows that our chairman is trying to build a youth set-up which is very similar to what they have in Europe, where they have not only football training sessions, but also cater time for students to focus on their studies.
“I personally think that’s the right strategy to develop youngsters, because it also ensures that they have a good educational background. So, I think the launch of the LCS Football Academy, as well as the elite development programme is a really positive thing, not only for our club, but for Singapore football as a whole.”
Having come through an academy as a young footballer, Saifullah understands first-hand how important it is for youth players to develop in a professional and well-rounded environment like the one offered by the LCS Football Academy.
“Being in a well-run academy like I was, helped a lot in my development,” he shared. “During my time as a trainee, we had things like motivational and nutritional talks…it had a positive impact on me because as a young kid, I needed all that knowledge. And when I grew up, this knowledge stayed with me, and I now apply it in my professional career, and it’s been going well so far.”
With our LCS Football Academy charting a viable career pathway into professional football – either through the senior squad of our Lion City Sailors, or through our vast contacts with overseas clubs – Saifullah believes it will provide an impetus for youth players in the academy to raise their game and work even harder to improve themselves.
“As a young player, if you have that kind of motivation to make it in professional football, you’ll work extra hard every day to try and achieve those goals,” said Saifullah.
“So, this career pathway is good because now everybody will be fighting for that goal, and will put on their A-game every single time. It drives players to push one another, which can bring the best out of them. This can help to produce very good footballers for Singapore.”
Nonetheless, while our LCS Football Academy will strive to provide the best for our players, Saifullah insists that one’s success in the game is really down to one’s own hard work, discipline and determination.
“There are no shortcuts for wanting to achieve your goals,” he declared. “So, my advice to the players coming through the LCS Football Academy would be to take note of the little things…to achieve your professional career goals.
“For myself…I would have very good sleep, eat good meals, and make sure my body is always in shape to bring out the best in me on the pitch.”
