In the glory days of the 70s, stars such as S. Rajagopal, Quah Kim Song and Dollah Kassim dazzled us with sublime skills and went on to win the Malaysia Cup in 1977 amid vociferous fan support demonstrated through the Kallang Roar.
In 1980, it was the turn of a then-young Fandi Ahmad and captain Thambiah Pathmanathan to lift the Malaysia Cup. In 1994, the by-then iconic Fandi and foreign talent Abbas Saad won the Malaysia Cup in 1994 by thrashing Pahang 4-0.
Fandi has his sons Ilhan and Irfan playing for the national team now.
The Singapore Lions headed into the first leg of the ASEAN Football Championship semi-final match against Thailand on Aug 15 with spirits riding high. Singapore booked their place in the semi-finals after a 1-1 draw with Indonesia, which left the Lions unbeaten in the tournament with eight points from four games.
Amid rising expectations for the Lions’ progress in the tournament, demand for match tickets was high. But several fans were left frustrated as more than 4,000 home-supporter tickets were sold out shortly after sales started online on Aug 12.
Strong demand even prompted scalpers to surface on online marketplaces such as Carousell, where there were people looking to buy and sell the tickets, with a pair of Category 1 tickets going for as much as S$1,500, or more than 15 times their original price.
More on the first leg in Singapore later.
Fast forward to the second-leg of the semi-final in Bangkok on Aug 18, and the Singapore Lions were very much on the front foot in that match.
On a waterlogged pitch after an afternoon downpour, livewire winger Farhan Zulkifli was denied by sliding Thai goalkeeper Kampon Pathomakkakul before half-time. But Harhys Stewart followed up from outside the box and his shot curled into the back of Kampon’s net. Advantage Singapore 1-0.
Thailand pulled one back with the help of a penalty but the tenacious Lions retook the lead as Ryhan Stewart smashed a low ball across the box, with Pansa Hemviboon deflecting the ball in - making it 2-1 to Singapore at the final whistle.
So, happy days and the final? Sadly, no!
The game was already lost in the first leg in Singapore. The Lions crashed out at the semi-finals as the 2-1 second leg win wasn’t enough to overturn the 3-1 defeat at home in the first leg. The Lions lost 4-3 on aggregate, paving the way for Thailand to go into the final.
Thailand ran out 3-1 winners in the first leg on Aug 15 as individual errors punished Singapore.
Thai striker Teerasak Poeiphimai scored twice in the first half, while Singapore striker Shawal Anuar had his penalty saved. Shortly after the break, Thai captain Seksan Ratree made it three before Ilhan Fandi reduced the deficit.
The Singapore Lions will have an opportunity to redeem the faith and support of long-suffering fans at the inaugural FIFA ASEAN Cup tournament over Sept 24-Oct 3. With India having withdrawn, Singapore will face hosts Indonesia and Malaysia in their group and avoid regional powerhouses Thailand and Vietnam, who are in the other group.
We live in hope, especially to reach the aspirational target of qualifying for the World Cup in 2034. But the Lions really need to take their game up a notch or two.
