Maaf terlebih dulu aku mohon dari kalian semua di atas apa yang bakal dicoretkan dalam paparan kali ini. Coretan yang di sebaliknya tersemat rasa pedih kegagalan menangkis cabaran Singapura di pusingan kedua kelayakan Piala Dunia 2014 di Bukit Jalil, malam tadi.
Stadium Nasional yang begitu gah dengan warna kuning dan sorakan patriotik penyokong setia Malaysia, akhirnya terpaksa lara, akur dan semacam bertafakur apabila keputusan seri 1-1 menyekat kemaraan Harimau Malaya yang begitu mengaum sejak pingat emas Sukan SEA di Laos pada Disember 2009.
Banyak kesan sampingan di sebalik prestasi "sedaya upaya tetapi sederhana" daripada pemain-pemain Harimau ketika menentang pasukan Singa. Bagi pemerhati seperti saya, paling terkilan ialah kita tidak dapat terus menguji pasukan atasan Asia dalam peringkat kumpulan. Pengalaman itu (sama seperti Sukan Asia di Guangzhou tahun lalu), cukup berharga untuk bolasepak Malaysia menilai dan belajar untuk menjadi pemain dan pasukan yang lebih stabil (compact) di peringkat Asia. Sayang.... Jika tidak, Safee, Safiq, Kunanlan, Mahali, Amar, Khairul Fahmi, Muslim, Asrar, Aidil dan lain-lain, dapat mengasah lagi corak permainan, fizikal dan mental apabila berentap dengan pasukan seperti Arab Saudi, Jepun, Korea Selatan/Utara, Uzbekistan, Australia dan lain-lain. Saya pasti, pemain sendiri kecewa terlepas peluang itu.
Kegagalan pedih di tangan Singapura bukan berlaku di Bukit Jalil, tetapi sebaliknya di Jalan Besar 23 Julai lalu. Mungkin kealpaan separuh masa selepas mendahului 1-0 di Jalan Besar, menjadi permulaan kejatuhan Harimau Malaya. Barangkali juga, kelicikan kaki, helah badan dan teknik sepakan Aleksander Duric, 40 tahun, pemain kelahiran bekas negara Yugoslavia, untuk menjaringkan gol kemenangan 5-3 Singapura pada perlawanan pertama, merupakan titik hitam kegagalan Malaysia kali ini.
Ini kerana, apa yang 'terselindung' dalam aksi di Stadium Nasional semalam, adalah perbezaan 'budaya' permainan bolasepak di antara Malaysia dan Singapura. Sudah tentu berbeza kerana Singapura kini diwakili 5 pemain yang bukan di lahirkan di Temasik. Duric, Fahruddin Mustafic, Qiu Li, dan Shi Jiayi dan Daniel Bennett. Namun, bukan budaya itu yang saya maksudkan.
Biarpun pedih, tidak dinafikan the Lions juga mempunyai 'budaya' bolasepaknya yang tersendiri dan malam semalam, mereka seperti menggambarkan ketrampilan Singapura sebagai sebuah negara yang rata-rata terancang, bersih dan "hi-tech", sama ada dilaksanakan secara kempen yang sistematik atau pun melalui dasar tegas oleh kerajaan republik itu.
Dalam bolasepak, Singapura sudah menjuarai Piala AFF sebanyak 3 kali walaupun pada tahun 70-and dan 80-an, mereka mudah dijinakkan Malaysia, kecuali satu perlawanan Piala Ovaltine apabila Fandi Ahmad menggelecek Santokh Singh membantu pasukan republik itu menang 2-1 di Stadium Merdeka.
Corak permainan tenang, kemas dan kadangkala 'fancy' agak ketara dirangkaikan oleh pemain Singapura semalam, termasuk sumbangan Harris Haron dan kapten mereka, Shahril Ishak di barisan tengah untuk membuka dan mengawal rentak permainan. Sama sekali tidak cukup untuk pemain Malaysia mengatasi Singapura dengan cara kudrat semata-mata. Insyallah, pengajaran itu pasti membuatkan pasukan muda kita lebih dewasa. Belang Harimau Malaysia masih menawan, semakin hitam dan kuning, ayuh teruskan mengaum!!!
Friday, July 29, 2011
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Spore-Malaysia classic on synthetic
It wasnt exactly one of those classic match between Singapore and Malaysia in the game of football, nor there was an evident 'bookie feeling' or the 'kelong' chants among the supporters of both fans at the Jalan Besar Stadium last night. But 'synthetically' speaking, the nostalgic rivalry between Malaysian and Singaporean football are definitely back!
On a journalistic view, the match could be described as a tensed and topsy turvy affair filled with eight snapshot goals, two red cards and a potentially serious crowd trouble at the terrace between Harimau Malaya's Ultras and Singapore's Lions roar . Singapore came back twice to beat Malaysia 5-3 to finally take a 2 goal cushion di Stadium Nasional Bukit Jalil, on Thursday. "We play on grass too,' quipped Singapore defender Daniel Bennett to quickly point that Singapore are in a good position to qualify for the Asian final group rounds.
Except for the minor skirmishes between a small group of rival fans during and after the game which was finely dealt with by the Singapore police, the Malaysia-Singapore match on Saturday was still lacking the 'derby' or 'causeway' football spirit of the glorious Malaysia Cup days of the 70's, 80's and the early 90's. Personally I felt somewhat sub-dued, easily succumbed by the "long time no see" relationship between Malaysia and Singapore as soon as I met up with former coach of the Lions, Mr Jitta Singh at the VIP lounge of the Jalan Besar Stadium that night. Jitta, who also brought Singapore stars, T Pathmanathan and R Suriamurthi to Pahang when he was appointed manager of the Malaysian state team in mid-80's, is one of the republic's football personality which represents the unique spirit of Malaysian-Singaporean football that started long ago during the early Malaya Cup days in the 1930's, 1940's, and 1950's! Of course my 'arwah' father, Atan bin Mohamed, was the one who gave me the first insights of the great Singapore football stories. I can still remember some of the stories about the the great Awang Bakar, Dol Fattah, Choo Seng Que (Uncle Choo) and Majid Ariff that my father use to tell me when I was a boy. Stadium Jalan Besar too has it's legendary stories about great matches, fabolous players and astonishing goals. Soh Chin Aun, Mokhtar Dahari, R Arumugam and their Selangor team continued those stories from our Malaysian side by stamping their supremacy over Singapore in their Malaysia Cup duels of the 1970's and 1980's.
However the Malaysia-Singapore football rivalry was not really felt at Jalan Besar Stadium despite the loud singing by both fans. Obviously, the 6,000 crowd at Jalan Besar now is so much smaller than the 45,000 capacity crowd of Merdeka Stadium or the 60,000 fans that would fill the National Stadium in Kallang when Singapore play Malaysia (or Selangor) in an official match.
Or perhaps, the 'derby' of 'causeway' football spirit is gone because almost half of the Singapore team are 'foreigners'! Yes, that is a pretty quick and good reason.. No matter how hard they try, Singaporeans will always find it difficult to honestly relate Duric, Mustafic, Qiu Li (China), Bennet or Shi Jiayi, as one of their own. Remember Fandi Ahmad, Quah Kim Song, V Sundram Moorthy, or even Eric Paine? Well, that sounds and feel truly Singaporean!
Taking a 2-goal cushion to Bukit Jalil would give the Lions a certain degree of self-belief when they take on Malaysia in the second leg, second round Asian qualifiers for the 2014 Fifa World Cup. But they will be treading on a tight-rope in front of the expected 70,000 crowd who will relish to witness the Lions bruised and tamed at Stadium Nasional on Thursday. Never mind the nostalgic derby or causeway football spirit....
On a journalistic view, the match could be described as a tensed and topsy turvy affair filled with eight snapshot goals, two red cards and a potentially serious crowd trouble at the terrace between Harimau Malaya's Ultras and Singapore's Lions roar . Singapore came back twice to beat Malaysia 5-3 to finally take a 2 goal cushion di Stadium Nasional Bukit Jalil, on Thursday. "We play on grass too,' quipped Singapore defender Daniel Bennett to quickly point that Singapore are in a good position to qualify for the Asian final group rounds.
Except for the minor skirmishes between a small group of rival fans during and after the game which was finely dealt with by the Singapore police, the Malaysia-Singapore match on Saturday was still lacking the 'derby' or 'causeway' football spirit of the glorious Malaysia Cup days of the 70's, 80's and the early 90's. Personally I felt somewhat sub-dued, easily succumbed by the "long time no see" relationship between Malaysia and Singapore as soon as I met up with former coach of the Lions, Mr Jitta Singh at the VIP lounge of the Jalan Besar Stadium that night. Jitta, who also brought Singapore stars, T Pathmanathan and R Suriamurthi to Pahang when he was appointed manager of the Malaysian state team in mid-80's, is one of the republic's football personality which represents the unique spirit of Malaysian-Singaporean football that started long ago during the early Malaya Cup days in the 1930's, 1940's, and 1950's! Of course my 'arwah' father, Atan bin Mohamed, was the one who gave me the first insights of the great Singapore football stories. I can still remember some of the stories about the the great Awang Bakar, Dol Fattah, Choo Seng Que (Uncle Choo) and Majid Ariff that my father use to tell me when I was a boy. Stadium Jalan Besar too has it's legendary stories about great matches, fabolous players and astonishing goals. Soh Chin Aun, Mokhtar Dahari, R Arumugam and their Selangor team continued those stories from our Malaysian side by stamping their supremacy over Singapore in their Malaysia Cup duels of the 1970's and 1980's.
However the Malaysia-Singapore football rivalry was not really felt at Jalan Besar Stadium despite the loud singing by both fans. Obviously, the 6,000 crowd at Jalan Besar now is so much smaller than the 45,000 capacity crowd of Merdeka Stadium or the 60,000 fans that would fill the National Stadium in Kallang when Singapore play Malaysia (or Selangor) in an official match.
Or perhaps, the 'derby' of 'causeway' football spirit is gone because almost half of the Singapore team are 'foreigners'! Yes, that is a pretty quick and good reason.. No matter how hard they try, Singaporeans will always find it difficult to honestly relate Duric, Mustafic, Qiu Li (China), Bennet or Shi Jiayi, as one of their own. Remember Fandi Ahmad, Quah Kim Song, V Sundram Moorthy, or even Eric Paine? Well, that sounds and feel truly Singaporean!
Taking a 2-goal cushion to Bukit Jalil would give the Lions a certain degree of self-belief when they take on Malaysia in the second leg, second round Asian qualifiers for the 2014 Fifa World Cup. But they will be treading on a tight-rope in front of the expected 70,000 crowd who will relish to witness the Lions bruised and tamed at Stadium Nasional on Thursday. Never mind the nostalgic derby or causeway football spirit....
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
English invasion..no 'tiki taka'
I was really hit by "the blues" on the way to work this morning. Not that I was lazy to start the day at the office but was rather stiffled on the way by a minor traffic jam at Bandar Utama, Petaling Jaya. The Blues, I mean Chelsea football club, had taken over my entrance route to the office with two big busses, heavily escorted by traffic police and security vans. I managed to get a glimpse of the people in the team bus and there was Chelsea's new manager, Andre Villas-Boas sitting alone in the front seat of the bus. To me, Villas-Boas is almost in the same mould of the great Jose Mourinho. The difference is, Villas-Boas has not declared himself as the "special one". But believe me, Villas-Boas, the latest choice by Abramovich to bring the Champions League title to Stamford Bridge, has got the personality and tactical background to succeed. So, we will see how much Chelsea has changed it's game style when they take on Harimau Muda team in Kuala Lumpur on July 21, 2011.
Its hardly surpirising that the reason that I am going to watch the Harimau Muda-Chelsea game is mainly to listen and study the reaction of Mr Villas-Boas about the game. Perhaps he would be the real "special one" to Abramovich.
Am I getting carried away with the EPL, its players, coaches and board of directors stories? I hope not because I'm one who has not been amused at seeing how much the EPL has influenced the Malaysian society over the last decade or so. In short, I feel akward to know there so many "football expert and pundits" out there despite actually being a "kaki bangku!" They love the EPL not really for it's football, they love the players not because of their skills but their looks, the follow the stories not because of their instinctive interest but for their gossiping Malaysian nature.
Arsenal, Liverpool dan Chelsea has made quite an impact with their Tour of Asia trip to Kuala Lumpur. Manchester United also had their moments of enjoying "the Malaysian craze" around this time last year. Where does Barcelona, Real Madrid, Milan, Bayern or Ajax stand among Malaysian fans? How many Malaysian fans truly appreciate and salute the "tiki taka" football being played by mighty Barcelona?
* I am not so sure why this guy under the name of "Meganova Hulk" on his FB is so up-set. He went a little bit overboard to me. No doubt he has his own legitimate reason to be appalled by the EPL's "Big Three" presence in Kuala Lumpur. He is the opposite from the EPL loving group of fans in Malaysia. Perhaps "Meganova Hulk" read too deeply into UEFA President, Michel Platini's criticism of too much financial issues plaguing football these days.
Phrases like "modern football", "circus matches" or "business only FAM" are some of the terms used by Meganova Hulk to berate and belittle his fellow "Ultras Malaya" for being too accomodating towards Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea's Asia Tour 2011. Interesting huh? This is definitely a sign of the new spirit for Malaysian football fans following the 2009 Sea Games gold medal feat and also emerging champions of South East Asia in the Suzuki Cup December last year.
Its hardly surpirising that the reason that I am going to watch the Harimau Muda-Chelsea game is mainly to listen and study the reaction of Mr Villas-Boas about the game. Perhaps he would be the real "special one" to Abramovich.
Am I getting carried away with the EPL, its players, coaches and board of directors stories? I hope not because I'm one who has not been amused at seeing how much the EPL has influenced the Malaysian society over the last decade or so. In short, I feel akward to know there so many "football expert and pundits" out there despite actually being a "kaki bangku!" They love the EPL not really for it's football, they love the players not because of their skills but their looks, the follow the stories not because of their instinctive interest but for their gossiping Malaysian nature.
Arsenal, Liverpool dan Chelsea has made quite an impact with their Tour of Asia trip to Kuala Lumpur. Manchester United also had their moments of enjoying "the Malaysian craze" around this time last year. Where does Barcelona, Real Madrid, Milan, Bayern or Ajax stand among Malaysian fans? How many Malaysian fans truly appreciate and salute the "tiki taka" football being played by mighty Barcelona?
* I am not so sure why this guy under the name of "Meganova Hulk" on his FB is so up-set. He went a little bit overboard to me. No doubt he has his own legitimate reason to be appalled by the EPL's "Big Three" presence in Kuala Lumpur. He is the opposite from the EPL loving group of fans in Malaysia. Perhaps "Meganova Hulk" read too deeply into UEFA President, Michel Platini's criticism of too much financial issues plaguing football these days.
Phrases like "modern football", "circus matches" or "business only FAM" are some of the terms used by Meganova Hulk to berate and belittle his fellow "Ultras Malaya" for being too accomodating towards Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea's Asia Tour 2011. Interesting huh? This is definitely a sign of the new spirit for Malaysian football fans following the 2009 Sea Games gold medal feat and also emerging champions of South East Asia in the Suzuki Cup December last year.
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