Monday, November 30, 2009

GR 2 Gameweek 2

Okay... here comes midweek and an easier score computation process for me XD

There are... no league matches, and there are... no UEFA Champions League matches.

This is a gameweek to savour for those who are keen to understand more of the young players of some of the English teams, or look at some of the intense competition going on in the 2nd tier of European football.

In addition, I announce the official departure of Cyr from the game. The reason, unspoken, is automatically understood, as I had already expected it. The exit of Soo Wee is unconfirmed. As such, the moderator may try to get new participants, but EWPS may end after 4 Gamerounds, in mid-January I think, and till then, the moderator's participation as a player is unconfirmed as well.

Selected matches
Dec 1 Carling Cup
Portsmouth vs Aston Villa

Dec 2 UEFA Europa League
Valencia vs Lille
Slavia Prague vs Genoa
Anderlecht vs Dinamo Zagreb
AEK Athens vs Everton

Dec 3 UEFA Europa League
Sporting Lisbon vs Heerenveen
AS Roma vs Basel
PSV Eindhoven vs Sparta Prague
Shahktar Donetsk vs Club Brugge

Saturday, November 28, 2009

GR 2 Gameweek 1

Chunqi:
Aston Villa 1 - Tottenham 1 +2.0
Everton 0 - Liverpool 2 +2.0
Barcelona 1 - Real Madrid 1 (Scorer: Thierry Henry) -0.25
Parma 1 - Napoli 0 -0.25
Total score: 3.5

Zebra:
Everton 1-2 Liverpool +1.0
Arsenal 1-0 Chelsea -0.25
Valencia 1-1 Mallorca +2.0
Barcelona 2-2 Real Madrid -0.25
Total score: 2.5

Cyr:
Barcelona 1-3 Real Madrid (Scorer: Gonzalo Hinguain) -0.25
Valencia 3-0 Mallorca (Scorer: David Villa) -0.25 +1.0
PSG 2-1 Auxerre +1.5
Hoffenheim 3-1 Borussia Dortmund -0.25
Total score: 1.75

Soo Wee:
Total score: -

Szeyuan:
Aston Villa 2 -2 Tottenham (Scorer: Jermain Defoe) +1.0
Everton 0-2 Liverpool (Scorer: Dirk Kuyt) +1.75 +1.0
Arsenal 0-1 Chelsea +1.0
Hannover 0-3 Bayern Munich +1.75
Total score: 6.5*
*Record Gameweek Score
*Perfect Gameweek

EWal:
Aston Villa 2-1 Tottenham (Scorer: Gabriel Agbonlahor) -0.25 + 1.0
Hoffenheim 2-2 Borrusia Dortmund -0.25
Udinese 1-0 Livorno +1.0
Atletico 0-2 Espanyol (Scorer: Shunsuke Nakamura) -0.5
Total score: 1.0

Shiping:
Arsenal 2-3 Chelsea +1.0
Total score: 1.0

Thursday, November 26, 2009

SEA Games 2009

Knowing the current affairs and sports nature in me, I obviously know long ago that this year's SEA Games will be held in Laos.

I remember there were some noises as the lack of equipment in the host country leads to sports like gymnastics being scrapped for this addition.

There goes our Nicole and Tabitha Tay's gold medal hopes, having thrilled us the last time we met them on the telly.

I look forward to the swimmers' performances once again. Singapore has established itself as a strong swimming nation within Southeast Asia, and this Games will show how some of our swimmers are faring as they prepare for a big splash in the 2010 Asian Games, where it is feasibly the biggest competition they can win.

The likes of Tao Li and Quah Ting Wen, coupled with many others, including the rapidly improving Parker Lam, will be something for us to fill our stomachs with, especially since Singapore has always won at least around 8 golds each time this biannual competition comes around.

Table tennis is a seeming walkover, with it probably the biggest beneficiary of the Foreign Sports Talent Scheme. I hope the association sends the youth players instead of our biggest stars. Reserve the likes Feng Tianwei, Li Jiawei for the Asian Games and Olympics. Leave the SEA Games for the likes of Pang Xuejie, Isabelle Li and Clarence Chew.

Whether or not we can deliver a satiating gold medal in soccer... it is another matter. But let us just sit back and enjoy all the action as it arrives for all of Singaporeans, as usual, on Ch 5.

Gameround 1 Ends!

Gameround 1 Standings

1) Zebra: 6.0 + 3.25 = 9.25
1) Chunqi: 5.0 + 4.25 = 9.25
3) Soo Wee: 7.0 + 1.25 = 8.25
3) Cyr: 6.25 + 2.0 = 8.25
5) Szeyuan: 3.0 + 3.75 = 6.75
6) Shiping: 3.25 + 1.0 = 4.25
6) EWal: 3.75 + 0.5 = 4.25

In a dramatic final day of the Gameround, we saw Soo Wee getting all his remaining predictions wrong to drop to level on points with Cyr, who had already finished his schedule early. As this happens, Chunqi and Zebra both delivered, and finish level on 9.25points.

Congratulations to both of you, and may you continue your good work into the next Gameround. Be sure to feel good about winning this inaugural Gameround.

Noticeably, Szeyuan has done very well. Despite missing the first gameweek, he roared back to finish 5th. Thankfully, the moderator had company in finishing in joint last place. Jiayou for next Gameround.

Here are the Gameround 1 accolades:

Gameround 1 Winners: Chunqi, Zebra
Best Gameweek Score: Chunqi (GW4: 4.25pts)
Worst Gameweek Score: EWal (GW1: -0.5pt), Shiping (GW3: -0.5pt)
Correct Scorer Prediction: Cyr (GW3: Vedad Ibisevic)

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

GW 4 Predictions

Debrecen vs Liverpool
Rubin Kazan vs Dynamo Kiev
Barcelona vs Inter Milan
Rangers vs Stuttgart
Alkmaar vs Olympiakos
Bordeaux vs Juventus
AC Milan vs Marseille
Porto vs Chelsea

EWal:
Debrecen 0-2 Liverpool (Scorer: Steven Gerrard) +1.0
Rangers 2-2 Stuttgart -0.25
AC Milan 2-1 Marseille -0.25

Cyr:
Rubin Kazan 2-0 Dynamo Kiev (Scorer: Sergei Semak) -0.25
AZ Alkmaar 1-1 Olympiakos (Scorer: Mounir Al Hamdaoui) +1.0
Rangers 1-3 Stuttgart +1.5
Barcelona 0-5 Inter Milan -0.25

Szeyuan:
Debrecen 0 - 3 Liverpool (Scorer: Fernando Torres) +1.0
Barcelona 1 - 1 Inter Milan (Scorer: Thierry Henry XD) -0.25
AC Milan 1 - 1 Marseille +2.0
Porto 0 - 2 Chelsea +1.0

Soo Wee:
Debrecen 0-1 Liverpool (Scorer: Fernando Torres) +2.0
Bordeaux 0-2 Juventus -0.25
AC Milan 2-1 Marseille -0.25
Porto 2-2 Chelsea (Scorer: Didier Drogba) -0.25
Shiping:
Debrecen 0-5 Liverpool* (Scorer: Steven Gerrard) +1.0-0.5
Bordeaux 1-3 Juventus -0.25
Porto 2-1 Chelsea -0.25
Barcelona 2-1 Inter Milan (Scorer: Zlatan Ibrahimovic) +1.0
*Allowed by moderator's special grant. However, there will be automatic 0.5point deduction.

Chunqi:
Debrecen 1-2 Liverpool (Scorer: Fernando Torres) +1.5
Barcelona 2-0 Inter Milan +2.0
Porto 0-2 Chelsea +1.0
AC Milan 2-1 Marseille -0.25

Zebra:
Rangers 1-3 Stuttgart +1.5
Alkmaar 0-1 Olympiakos -0.25
Bordeaux 2-1 Juventus +1.0
AC Milan 2-2 Marseille +1.0

Monday, November 23, 2009

Gameweek 3 Results

In a week where my favourite teams, Arsenal and Barcelona, both spluttered, there are not many surprising results, except for Tottenham's astounding 9-1 victory over a Wigan side, which I suppose whose defending was disastrous.

Hereby revealing the net results for our players.

Cyr: 2.5
EWal: 1.5
Zebra: 3.0
Soo Wee: 1.0
Shiping: -0.5
Chunqi: 3.75
Szeyuan: 0.5

Chunqi has done exceedingly well this gameweek, same for Zebra. As for Shiping it's the other way round. Soo Wee had a weak gameweek, and now let's see the overall standings 3/4 into the Gameround.

1) Soo Wee: 7.0
2) Cyr: 6.25
3) Zebra: 6.0
4) Chunqi: 5.0
5) EWal: 3.75
6) Shiping: 3.25
7) Szeyuan: 3.0
8) Runze: -


Soo Wee maintains his lead, but at least we might see some interesting things happening in the final gameweek of the Gameround, with the UEFA Champions League matches. Cyr and Zebra are in prime position to steal the thunder and lightning from Soo Wee, while Chunqi has hauled himself into contention with this gameweek.

A reminder:
You cannot predict for your favourite teams as well. In addition, there are only UEFA Champions League matches this week.

Saturday, November 21, 2009

Gameweek 3 Predictions

Despite the email, I think I will just pick 20 matches for league gameweeks in future in the mail to faciliate easier handling by the moderator. Very tough one, you know?

My choices will be pretty random, 4 from each of the 5 leagues, and also will include at least one big team. Yeah and I will try to pick some sneaky, tough to predict ones. Remember the scoring. So strategy makes more sense from now on.

Cyr:
FC Cologne 1-4 Hoffenheim (Scorer: Vedad Ibisevic) +2.0
Stade Rennes 2-2 Le Mans -0.25
Auxerre 0-2 Monaco -0.25
Nice 4-2 Toulouse +1.0

EWal:
Stoke 1-2 Portsmouth -0.25
Burnley 0-2 Aston Villa (Scorer: Gabriel Agbonlahor) -0.25
Villarreal 1-0 Valladolid +1.0
Napoli 1-1 Lazio (Scorer: Julio Cruz) +1.0

Zebra:
Liverpool 1-1 Man City +1.25
Tottenham 0-1 Wigan -0.25
Deportivo 2-1 Atletico Madrid +2.25
Osasuna 0-0 Valencia -0.25

Soo Wee:
Liverpool 0-1 Man City -0.5
Hull 1-0 West Ham -0.25
Real Madrid 2-0 Racing +0.75
Tottenham 2-1 Wigan +1.0

Shiping:
Tottenham 3-1 Wigan (Scorer: Robbie Keane) +1.0
Fiorentina 2-1 Parma -0.5
Stuttgart 1-2 Hertha Berlin -0.5
Bayern Munich 3-1 Bayer Leverkusen (Scorer: Bastian Schweinsteiger) -0.5

Chunqi:
Liverpool 1-1 Man City +1.25
Tottenham 2-0 Wigan +1.0
Napoli 0-0 Lazio +2.0
Fiorentina 1-0 Parma -0.5

Szeyuan:
Bolton 1-1 Blackburn -0.25
Tottenham 2-0 Wigan +1.0
Stoke City 0-1 Portsmouth -0.25

Thursday, November 19, 2009

GW 2 Review

So France got through with a handball. I hand credit to the Irish for being hugely understanding of Henry, partly because they understood that action was common footballers' instinct and that they understood Henry was someone who was fired up by his loyalty and he is innately regarded a good guy in the football world.

His reputation may take a hit slightly but I think people should not be blasting him so much. Let him do the talking with his feet. I am eager to see him improve his game in all aspects and do his fervent fans proud.

http://sporting-politics.blogspot.com/2009/11/henry-handball.html

And Singapore fought back with a win in Thailand. So as it stands, Singapore is back to 2nd with 6 points, 1 ahead of Thailand and 1 behind Iran who have a game in hand.

Shockingly, Russia did not make the World Cup. I am hugely in support of the French team sacking Raymond Domenech and hiring Guus Hiddink, to have a good chance of showing their worth of going through. And Henry needs to regain his confidence that he can really return to his heady heights with a vengeance and convince everyone. Me included.

Results (including aet if necessary):
France 1-1 Ireland (Scorers: William Gallas, Robbie Keane)
Ukraine 0-1 Greece (Scorer: Dimitripos Salpigidis)
Slovenia 1-0 Russia (Scorer: Zlatko Dedic)
Bosnia-Herzegovina 0-1 Portugal (Scorer: Raul Meireles)
Thailand 0-1 Singapore (Scorer: Aleksander Duric)
Bahrain 4-0 Yemen
Malaysia 1-3 Uzbekistan
Syria 0-0 Vietnam
Indonesia 1-1 Kuwait

Okay now the prediction table. Gameweek 2 results are as below (Wrong outcome deducts only 0.25points under the new rules):

Cyr: 0.25pts
Shiping: 0.25pts
Soo Wee: 2.5pts
Zebra: 2.0pts
Chunqi: 1.25pts
EWal: 2.75pts
Szeyuan: 2.5pts
Runze: -

Current Standings
1) Soo Wee 6.0pts
2) Shiping 3.75pts
3) Cyr 3.75pts
4) Zebra 3.0pts
5) Szeyuan 2.5pts
6) EWal 2.25pts
7) Chunqi 1.25pts
8) Runze -

So Soo Wee is currently holding a big lead and what strategy will he employ as we go into club soccer next? Check it out, all on singaporeliga.blogspot.com.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Gameweek 2 Predictions

The European WC2010 qualifiers go into the 2nd leg with everything at stake to deliver the nation to the biggest soccer spectacle in the world in South Africa. Advantage France, Portugal and Russia as it goes, and can they hold on to this and push themselves to the World Cup?

And can teams like Singapore, fighting for a berth in the 2011 Asian Cup, bounce back from their defeats and win against the same opposition to put themselves in a better position?

Here is what our players think:

Cyr (3.5pts):
Slovenia 1-2 Russia (Scorer: Andrei Arshavin)
Bosnia-Herzegovina 0-2 Portugal (Scorer: Simao Sabrosa)
France 2-0 Ireland
Ukraine 1-0 Greece

Shiping (3.5pts):
Bosnia-Herzegovina 0-2 Portugal
France 2-0 Ireland (Scorer: Nicolas Anelka)
Slovenia 0-3 Russia (Scorer: Roman Pavlyuchenko)
Thailand 2-2 Singapore

Soo Wee (3.5pts):
Thailand 0-1 Singapore
France 2-0 Ireland
Bosnia-Herzegovia 0-2 Portugal
Ukraine 1-0 Greece

Zebra (1.0pts)
Ukraine 0-2 Greece
Bosnia-Herzegovina 1-2 Portugal
Slovenia 0-0 Russia
Malaysia 1-1 Uzbekistan

Chunqi (0.0pts)
France 2-0 Ireland (Scorer: Thierry Henry)
Thailand 2-1 Singapore (Scorer: Sutee Suksomkit)
Indonesia 1-1 Kuwait
Syria 1-2 Vietnam

Eugene (-0.5pts):
France 3-1 Ireland (Scorer: Thierry Henry)
Thailand 1-3 Singapore (Scorer: Mustafic Fahrudin)
Malaysia 1-4 Uzbekistan
Bahrain 2-1 Yemen

Szeyuan (-):
Thailand 4-1 Singapore (Scorer: Sutee Suksomkit)
France 1-1 Ireland
Bosnia-Herzegovina 0-3 Portugal
Slovenia 0-1 Russia (Scorer: Andrei Arshavin)

Runze (-):

Sunday, November 15, 2009

GR 1 Gameweek 1 Results

Here are the actual results:

New Zealand 1-0 Bahrain (aggregate 1-0)
Scorer: Rory Fallon

Ireland 0-1 France
Scorer: Nicolas Anelka

Greece 0-0 Ukraine

Portugal 1-0 Bosnia-Herzegovina
Scorer: Bruno Alves

Russia 2-1 Slovenia
Scorers: Diniyar Bilyaletdinov (2), Nejc Pecnik

Singapore 1-3 Thailand
Scorers: Mustafic Fahrudin, Therdsak Chaiman, Sutee Suksomkit (2)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Standings
Cyr: 3.5 points
Shiping: 3.5 points
Soo Wee: 3.5 points
Zebra: 1.0 points
Chunqi: 0.0 points
EWal: -0.5 points
Szeyuan: -
Runze: -

Here is a 3 way tie for the lead after Gameweek 1. The prediction window for Gameweek 2 is now open, with matches mostly for the return legs of this gameweek's matches. Please remember that you are making the prediction for the 2nd leg alone, not for the aggregate.

The prediction window for Gameweek 2 will close just before the start of the respective matches.

Suggested matches (Matches on 18 Nov):
Ukraine v Greece
Bosnia-Herzegovina v Portugal
Slovenia v Russia
France v Ireland
Thailand v Singapore
Malaysia v Uzbekistan
Syria v Vietnam
Indonesia v Kuwait
Bahrain v Yemen

Singapore v Thailand

It was a match that really showed Thailand's threatening pace and dribbling, and exposed Singapore's defensive frailities.

But it is hard to swallow considering how Singapore sort of lagged by 45 minutes.

In the first half, Singapore was pretty horrendous, creating barely any half-chances at all, and allowing Thailand to shoot with 4 good chances. It was really lucky that we remained only a goal down going into the break. The conceded goal is a penalty.

After the interval, Singapore broke out of their shell and started to find their more fluent style. The introduction of the speedy and tricky Khairul Amri is a good decision, and his passing and dribbling and hunger was for all to see.

Yet, the defence let the team up with 2 goals for the Thai team, one with a rooted Baihakki looking on and not noticing the dash by Therdsak, whom Shaiful Esah followed but could not stop. Therdsak skilfully shot in a volley from close range.

Then it was a one-on-one with a through ball for Sutee to score his second.

Singapore needs a miracle to claw back, and the penalty was the chance to get things going. Mustafic Fahrudin did not disappoint, with his powerful penalty kick into the top right hand corner of the net.

Despite having some good chances when the score was at 0-1, Singapore did not put in those chances and it came back to haunt them. It includes John Wilkinson passing a ball too hard and fast to Duric, instead of shooting, leading to the ball moving out to be cleared by the Thai defenders.

Some other chances include 2 free kicks, one from John Wilkinson and another from Shaiful Esah, both just scraping past the left post. Near the end, Duric was finally provided with a really good cross to his feet but he could not finish.

It summed up a disappointing night for the Lions. Yet, the 2nd half has provided faith that the Lions have the ability to go to Thailand and defeat them, as long as they can plug some gaps in defence and be clinical in their shooting.

We must beat Thailand come 18 November.

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Debate

As 2 of the playing members have voiced their opinion on the clause in the rules that states that every outcome that is predicted wrongly will lead to -0.5points.

As such, all 8 playing members will be called upon to give a vote on this issue. This may take a while, as we look into creating the notions for it.

For each change to be effected, 5 votes in favour of the change will be required. In other words, a majority decision.

Players are now welcomed to voice their opinions via Comments (Blog function).

Here are the possible scenarios:
1) Status quo. Wrong outcome = -0.5points.
2) Reduction. Wrong outcome = -0.25points.
3) Removal. Wrong outcome = 0points.
4) Complication. If Home Win is predicted, a Draw = 0points, an Away Win = -0.5points.

But regarding 4), it is complicated, and what if the player predicts a Draw?

Open for comments.

Changes, if enacted, will be in effect starting from the next Gameweek.

EW Prediction Series Gameweek 1

This will just be a fun affair; I will ask some of my friends to make predictions to some key matches affecting us, and then I will post the predictions here.

Correct outcome warrants 1 point.
Incorrect outcome deducts 0.5 point. (Open for debate)
Correct winning margin warrants 0.5point.
Correct scoreline warrants 1 point.
Therefore, maximum score from scoreline prediction is 2.0points for each match.
The maximum number of predictions that can be made each gameweek is 4.
With every 2 predictions you can predict a goalscorer for any one of the matches.
A correct goalscorer prediction gains 1 point.

I will use nicknames to denote the characters:

EWal:
Singapore 3-1 Thailand (Scorer: Aleksander Duric)
Ireland 0-2 France (Scorer: Thierry Henry)
New Zealand 1-2 Bahrain
Portugal 1-1 Bosnia-Herzegovina

Zebra:
Singapore 1-2 Thailand

Cyr:
Singapore 2-1 Thailand
New Zealand 1-0 Bahrain
Russia 3-0 Slovenia (Scorer: Andrei Arshavin)
Greece 1-1 Ukraine (Scorer: Andriy Shevchenko)

Shiping:
Greece 2-1 Ukraine
Ireland 1-3 France
Portugal 3-1 Bosnia-Herzegovina (Scorer: Jose Bosingwa)
Singapore 1-3 Thailand (Scorer: Noh Alam Shah)

Chunqi:
Singapore 1-0 Thailand
Ireland 0-2 France (Scorer: Thierry Henry)
Greece 1-0 Ukraine

Soo Wee:
Singapore 2-1 Thailand
Portugal 1-0 Bosnia-Herzegovina
Ireland 0-2 France
New Zealand 2-0 Bahrain

As can be seen, the maximum score that can be gained every gameweek is 10 points, provided all 4 predictions are perfectly correct and both goalscorer predictions are correct as well.

There will be no score deduction for incorrect prediction of goalscorers. Thus the worst score from a gameweek: 4 incorrect outcomes, will lead to -2.0points.

After this international break, this game will probably move on to the leagues. Again, there can be up to 4 predictions and 2 goalscorers (depending on number of scoreline predictions).

However, the 'punter' is not allowed to predict scores for any of his favourite club teams. So I cannot predict for Arsenal and Barcelona.

There will be a cap on 2 games for any chosen league. The leagues that can be selected are the main European leagues: EPL, Spanish Liga, Italian Serie A, German Bundesliga and French Ligue 1.

The scores will be tabulated by me every fortnight (half a month). The number of gameweeks will vary, depending on whether there are matches in midweek.

For midweek gameweeks, there is a cap on 2 games for the Champions League and 2 on the Europa League, as well as for any domestic cup competitions.

There will be no prizes, but recognition for the winner(s) all in the name of good fun! ‘Punters’ are not obliged to post predictions with the moderator (me) every gameweek, but to qualify for the fortnightly tabulation, the ‘punter’ must have entered at least 2 of the gameweeks.

This prediction series will be the only thing that exceeds the boundaries I set on the blog; my analysis of teams, etc. for Europe leagues, and international teams, will remain on my main blog.

This prediction game is a strictly jovial affair with no real stakes involved.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Singapore double-header

One of the most important Singapore football team dates.

Singapore vs Thailand 14 Nov
Thailand vs Singapore 18 Nov

Singapore, having lost to Iran but defeated Jordan in the Asian Cup 2011 qualifying group, is on 2nd position with 3 points, behind Asian powerhouse Iran, which could not make it to the World Cup 2010, missing out narrowly in a tight tussle for 3rd place at least in the group.

Thailand is on 2 points having drawn both of their previous matches. So as it stands the teams have 4, 3, 2 and 1 points.

This is in fact one of the easier groupings Singapore have been placed in among the recent groupings for qualifiers. The last time, it was Japan and Oman. Despite a late opportunity with a final qualifying group, Singapore disappointed and didn't enter into the actual competition.

But Singapore has become a regional powerhouse in recent years under the guidance of Raddy Avramovic, and with the aid of the Foreign Talent Scheme, the team is moving forward, despite talk of the S-League moving backwards.

With the 2 matches against Thailand, Singapore could well finally re-enter the regional competition and compete with Asia's best. Finally qualifying will mean that our nation has truly improved and is now ready to move out of just being one of the best in South-East Asia but also in Asia.

2 wins would put Singapore in a very good position to at least finish 2nd.

And it promises to be 2 very keen and fired up affairs between the rivals. Thailand are known for being fast and prefers passing on the ground, while Singapore looks to long balls to the strikeforce which are rather clinical.

Duric, at 39 (or 40?) years of age is still S-League's top scorer once again. His height will make a difference, but not to be forgotten is how he is adept at being a box striker. His partner, Noh Alam Shah, also packs a great heading ability. Remember him totally destructing the shorter Laotian defence last time in an 11-0 drubbing? He is also pacy, but will need to check his temper.

And this team has very strong backup. Khairul Amri is a very pacy forward and can score free kicks and more spectacular goals. His problem is his injury problems, but he has came back and will probably make some contributions as a substitute to turn things around when the match is not going well for the Lions.

The new central defensive pair of Daniel Bennett and Baihakki Khaizan looks rather solid. They do have some height among them, and Bennett, for years playing as a full-back, should be able to check pacy runs by the Thai attackers.

Shaiful Esah promises a lot with his set pieces especially. It is good to note I have appreciated his abilities since his substitute appearance in the defeat by Vietnam in the AFF Suzuki Cup in the semi-finals. He is long my first choice in his position.

Notingly, for all of Thai's attacking flair, they have yet to score a single goal in their qualifiers. They will look to put an end to that. I am expecting a close affair, with goals for both sides.

Singapore can rely on their attackers, with Duric, Noh, Amri, Agu all established scorers who can change games. The midfield is very exciting as well. Mustafic Fahrudin and John Wilkinson really plug the gaps in midfield with a steely presence and can threaten with powerful long shots, especially the former.

Players like Sharil Ishak will add pace, and Khairul Amri as well. It depends whether Avramovic will play him as a winger or a substitute striker, but I back him to feature prominently shall he play.

My prediction for the home leg on 14 Nov is a win for the Singapore Lions by 3-1, while I will make the prediction for the 2nd round of the battle after watching this first match.

Let us rally behind the Lions and roar them to victory!

Monday, November 02, 2009

Condolences

I extend my condolences to all related to Singaporean football coach V Sivalingam who regrettably collapsed during a charity football match.

This piece of sad news follows soon after former national soccer player Dollah Kassim also had a similar case, and he is now still in a coma.

I urge the Singaporean football fraternity to impose stricter checks and also to possibly reduce the intensity of these elder, retired footballers, so as to ensure these sad news will not re-emerge.