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This feels like throwing away a lead and conceding two goals in injury time, just like Bayern Munich back in 99.
It has been an eventful yet stormy year for Singapore Football. Half empty or half full, Mothership.sg takes a look back at 10 notable Singapore football moments in 2014.
1. January - Fandi takes over as Lions XII coach.
Lions XII begins new season as defending champions in the Malaysian Super League (MSL) with Singapore's favourite footballing son - Fandi Ahmad - taking over the reins from V. Sundramoorthy. Fans are ecstatic. Sundram brought us the MSL title but it was achieved with a pragmatic brand of counter attacking football that emphasised defensive solidity. Fandi would surely introduce free-flowing attacking football. Surely even more glory to come?
However, the 2014 Lions XII team was never really Fandi's team. As the squad was selected even before Fandi was appointed. And the team lost the three players most instrumental to the title win in 2013: Captain Shahril Ishak, Baihakkhi Khaizan and Hariss Harun. All three players moving across the causeway to play for Johor Darul Taksim (I & II).
The Lions XII finished a dismal 8th out of 12th teams in the Malaysian Super League and crashed out of the Malaysia Cup in the group stages.
2. March - Uber expensive World Cup deal.
To the relief of football fans in Singapore, a deal was finally struck by Singtel to broadcast the World Cup 2014. Fans would, however, have to pay $112.35, up from $88 in 2010.
Many were dismayed by the rise in price, wondering why the Media Development Authority's liberalisation of the cable TV market had failed to benefit consumers. StarHub's Chief Marketing Officer, Jeannie Ong, blasted SingTel for paying a high price to gain exclusive rights instead of placing a joint-bid as they had done in 2010. She said that consumers could have been charged less if a joint bid had been placed.
In perhaps the most damning evidence that Singaporeans can't live without football, a Boycott Singtel World Cup Facebook page set up in retaliation only attracted 899 likes.
3. May - Kampung Community Club spirit.
Football fans finally had something to cheer about when The People's Association announced its partnership with Singapore Pools and SingTel to screen the 2014 FIFA World Cup matches ‘live’ at 40 Community Clubs islandwide. Singaporeans who had baulked at paying the $112.35 did the Kallang Wave.
There was more cheer when fast food chain McDonald’s announced that it would also screen the matches live at its 38 restaurants. The community screenings were a success with more than half a million people visiting the CCs to watch the games together - just like the good old days when we had no TVs and had to peep from a rich neighbour's house.
4. June - Andy strikes gold.
The National Council on Problem Gambling successfully predicts the winner of the 2014 World Cup with it's ad.
The ad spawned numerous memes and parodies as the Germans rampaged through the competition, humiliating hosts Brazil 7-1 en route to the title. The ad was even lampooned on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.
5. August - Spanking new Sports Hub the pride of the nation...
The $1.3 billion Singapore Sports Hub was open to great fanfare with an exciting curtain raiser between a Singapore Selection and Italian Champions Juventus. Fans were excited about the return of the Kallang Roar and stoked to see international super-stars like Carlos Tevez, Gigi Buffon, Andrea Pirlo, Arturo Vidal, Patrice Evra (below) and Paul Pogba in Singapore.
(Photo: Lim Weixiang)
6. August - Or is it?
But the friendly game which was won 5-0 by Juventus surfaced a big problem - the playing surface looked patchy and sandy. Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri said after the game that he had not selected first-choice players Carlos Tevez or Arturo Vidal “to avoid pointless risks because the pitch was bad.”
7. September - Improvement!
After appealing successfully to be sent to Incheon to compete in the Asian Games, the Singapore U-23 team with 3 over-aged players (Hassan Sunny, Afiq Yunos and Baihakkhi Khaizan) performed creditably in a group filled with teams ranked higher in the Fifa rankings (Oman, Tajikistan and Palestine). Coached by ex-National Captain Aide Iskandar, with head coach Bernd Stange sidelined due to dengue fever, the team amassed 4 points (beating Palestine 2-1 and drawing 3-3 with Oman) which was an improvement from previous showings in 2010 and 2006.
8. October - But sandy days are just ahead.
October was an exciting month for football fans in Singapore as top international teams Brazil and Japan arrived to play a friendly match at the Sports Hub. Die-hard fans waited for hours, some overnight at Changi Airport to welcome mega-stars like Keisuke Honda, Kaka, Robinho and Neymar.
(Photo: Lim Weixiang)
Once again, there were complaints and brickbats about the supposedly state-of-the-art Desso Super Master hybrid playing surface. Brazil coach Dunga said at a press conference, "It's going to be hard for us to pass the ball. I feel most of it is sand, not grass."
Local humour page SGAG then pranked the Sports Hub while National team stalwart Baihakkhi Khaizan composed a poem that wasn't very flattering.
He ended his instagram post with the hashtags #stadiumforconcerts" and "#$$$".
In the end, after spending S$1.5 million on new lighting equipment to no avail, a decision was made to lay natural grass over the existing hybrid pitch.
9. November - The S-League fiasco.
The S.League dropped a bombshell on its players when it announced at the end of the season that the 2015 addition will have two teams fewer. Tanjong Pagar United will sit out while Woodlands Wellington and Hougang United will be merged. The announcement was in effect a retrenchment exercise as more than 40 players will not have a team to play for in 2015.
New ageist restrictions (clubs will be allowed only five outfield players above the age of 30) were also introduced, although the controversial ruling was later scrapped.
The arbitrary and abrupt announcement led to widespread unhappiness from both players and fans. A leaked audio recording of S.League CEO addressing Tanjong Pagar players in a callous manner amplified public and online disapproval of the S.League management.
A farcical and inappropriate pole-dance performance at the annual S.League Awards Ceremony meant the year ended rather stormily for Singapore's only professional league and overshadowed the retirement of S.league legend Aleksander Duric.
(Photo: Lim Weixiang)
And here's the pole dancing performance. Just because.
(Photo: Lim Weixiang)
10. November - The AFF Championship disaster.
Singapore were the defending champions of the AFF Championship, a tournament to pick the best football team in the Asean region and with the matches of the 2014 tournament held on home soil in our spanking new Sports Hub, expectations were high. National coach Bernd Stange talked up Singapore's chances. " "We are going to win this tournament. There are no excuses to say that we are underdogs. If Brazil hosts the World Cup, they have to win the World Cup."
(Photo: Lim Weixiang)
Nobody expected the team to perform abjectly and crash out in the group stages with a crucial 3-1 defeat to arch-rivals Malaysia in front of a nearly capacity crowd in the Sports Hub.
In the aftermath of the defeat, there were widespread calls for Bernd Stange to be sacked and details emerged that there was disunity within the squad and Captain Shahril Ishak had sought showdown talks with FAS officials just before the start of the tournament. Bernd Stange's contract expires in 2015.
Top photo from here.
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