Can the Lions go all the way?
They are now in round three, the furthest any S'pore team have
gone
By Wang Meng Meng
CELEBRATING WITH his teammates after qualifying for the third
round, Singapore captain Indra Sahdan and fellow Lions have two
more gruelling rounds before South Africa 2010. -- ST PHOTO: ALBERT
SIM
HAVING sailed into uncharted waters, can Singapore now navigate all
the way to South Africa 2010?
Coach Raddy Avramovic's gritty and workmanlike outfit are already
in the third round of the World Cup qualifiers - the furthest the
Lions have travelled.
They have two more daunting rounds before they can reach the finals
in 2010.
Neither the fabled team of 1977 nor the celebrated 1994 legends of
the Malaysia Cup days have gone as far.
Little wonder, then, that Avramovic has hailed the current national
team as the best in his four years in charge.
Ever since they participated in the qualifiers three decades ago,
Singapore have never made it into the third round.
Their previous best showing came in their World Cup debut in 1977
when they finished second in the first-round group with a little
bit of help from stars such as Dollah Kassim, Samad Alapitchay and
Quah Kim Song.
After that, the Republic made it a habit of falling at the first
hurdle for the next seven editions of the qualifiers.
Today, Singapore go into tonight's World Cup draw in Durban fearing
none of the Asian big guns - Australia, Japan, Iran, Saudi Arabia
and South Korea.
They started the perilous journey with a gutsy 4-0 whacking of
Palestine in neutral Doha.
They followed up with a 2-0 win over Tajikistan at Kallang and,
despite an outbreak of diarrhoea, the Lions drew 1-1 away to claim
the third-round spot.
Their steely performances have received the nod from the local
football fraternity.
Former star striker Quah, whose brace clinched the 1977 Malaysia
Cup final for Singapore, is one of the first to doff his hat.
He said: 'Football is played faster now. All credit to the lads,
who have pace and are physically very fit.
'Even if they fail to qualify from the third round, it will not be
easy for the big guns to play this Singapore team.''
When Avramovic took over four years ago, his first year in charge
saw more downs than ups.
The Lions were beaten 0-4 by Kuwait in the 2003 Asian Cup
qualifiers. A year later, they were spanked 0-7 by Oman en route to
finishing bottom of their World Cup qualifying group.
Quah puts it into perspective.
'The 1977 side played teams like Thailand and Hong Kong,' he said.
'Today's team beat Palestine 4-0 away and drew 1-1 at
Tajikistan.
'Before that, they limited Japan to a 1-2 win in 2004, drew 0-0
with China last year and even beat Iraq 2-0 in the Asian Cup
qualifiers. The results speak volumes about the team.''
The statistics certainly show the Lions' quantum leap in results
under the Serb's guidance.
They were dismal during the 2004 World Cup qualifiers, losing five
out of their six games, and finishing bottom of their group.
Since then, the Lions have been unbeaten in two Asean campaigns in
2005 and again this year.
Since 2005, when he formed the core of his winning team, the Lions
have tasted defeat just three times (to Palestine, Iraq and China
in the 2006 Asian Cup qualifiers) in 23 competitive fixtures.
According to former star striker Fandi Ahmad, the secret is the
coach's emphasis on team ethics.
Observed Fandi: 'It's great to see Singapore going this far. Credit
to Raddy, as the team have improved a lot under him.
'Their strength lies in their collective play. They may not have
individual stars like the 1994 or 1977 sides, but this team are
solid in all departments.''
Former national skipper Nazri Nasir hails Avramovic's methodical
approach.
He said: 'The Malaysia Cup team had household names like Fandi, Lim
Tong Hai and V. Sundramoorthy. But the present team are very
organised. Tactically, they are sound.''
Anthony Foo, a 62-year-old die-hard fan who has followed football
closely since the 1970s, is another believer that the current team
can go far.
He said: 'They have impressed me with their fighting spirit. They
also play with incredible self-belief.''
But former international Malek Awab, who has a record 123 caps for
Singapore, wants to see more local players in the national
team.
'Look at Shahril Ishak. He's the finest midfielder now but, because
of the foreign-born players, he has to sit on the bench.''
The Lions have seven foreign-born players in the 22-strong
squad.
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'I still prefer the old days, when players were made of sterner
stuff. I doubt if anyone from the current batch can tackle as hard
as Robert Sim or Hasli Ibrahim.'
KHOO KENG HOE, 75, a retiree who had been following the Lions since
he was a teenager
'They have matured into a good team with good foreign imports. With
more experience, the team will make even more progress.'
MOHD IZHAR, 24, a Lions fan
'This current side play like a true team. There are no egos in the
squad and their team-work is outstanding.'
LEE BEE SENG, former national goalkeeper and current national
goalkeeping coach
'The current team has definitely surpassed the famous 1977 team, in
terms of results. But to be fair, the 1977 team was made up of
part-timers. All of us had day jobs.'
LIM TENG SAI, national defender from 1971-1977.
'This team is short on local talent. Just look at how many of this
present team are attracting offers from overseas clubs?
None.'
An ex-international, who declined to be named
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