Sengkang Punggol 2010 S League Team Line-up

Before I give a low down of the 18 players that made up our playing squad this season, I would like to sincerely make a grateful appreciation of Mr Ko Pohui from Bolasepako.com for providing me this exclusive information issued by the club officials.

The media will of course give a concise introduction of the team as they had done but we would have to wait for the actual team list provided by S League.com somewhere near the kick off of the season.

Therefore I hope this piece of introduction can provide avid fans of the club to familiarize with the players prior to the start of the season (Registration and jersey number might alter before the season):

Goalkeepers

No. 1 Amos Boon Hock Chye
Age: 37
Previous club: Retained from 2009 squad
Biodata: The sage of Sengkang Punggol needed no introduction as the forever youthful Amos had been associated with the club as well as its previous incarnations which spanned around 12 years of his playing career. He was signed to guide young Joey Sim in 2009 but in the end he did superbly well to usurp his apprentice and helped in more than one occasion to keep the scores respectable.

No. 2  Muhammad Fadhil bin Mohd Salim
Age: 27
Previous club: Gombak United
Biodata: Many considered former SAFFC, Woodlands Wellington and Gombak United custodian Fadhil Salim as a major coup this season, personally I felt the claim was credible from some of the sparkling performances I had seen Fadhil between the sticks for the Bulls over the course of last 2 seasons. An agile goalkeeper who shows reassurance at the back, Fadhil was at times susceptible to the odd setpieces. The 27 year old became peripheral to Darren Stewart’s plans in the final third of last season as young upstarts like Zaiful Nizam and Zakariah Nerani were preferred. Let’s hope Fadhil could be our goalkeeping solution after the likes of Joey Sim, Hafez Mawasi and Adi Salleh failed to bring in previously.

Analysis: Experience is what we had this season as between Amos and Fadhil, we had vast experience playing in the S League which bode well for a rather lightweight defence.

Defenders

No. 4 Lau Meng Meng (Vice Captain)
Age: 27
Previous club: Retained from the 2009 squad
Biodata: My personal player of the year last season. Meng Meng epitomized a body of grit, bravery and resolute which is blatant for all to see since his emergence in his stint with Geylang United. A quiet figure on the pitch, Meng Meng always looks to give 101% to the cause of the team and gave many wingers a hard time last season, therefore he was a natural choice to be retained and given the vice-captaincy.

No. 5 Nor Azli bin Mhd Yusoff (Captain)
Age: 27
Previous club: Retained from the 2009 squad
Biodata: Since day one, a close confidante of mine who had been watching the S League for years ring words of admiration to the nifty defender nicknamed “Boy” by his team mate. A player who get his footballing education at Tampines and Gombak, Nor Azli has been a pitbull on the pitch and never shy away from a challenge which sometime work against the tenacious player. Comfortable with the fullback or anchorman position, Nor Azli was plucked to play in the heart of defense late last season which produced indifferent results. However his hard work was recognized by coach Aide Iskandar who even gives him the captain’s armband this term.

No. 3 Duncan Elias
Age: 25
Previous club: Retained from the 2009 squad
Biodata: A product of our own Prime League side, Duncan had not made a single appearance last season, not even from the bench and was slowly becoming the forgotten man. Previously playing in the attacking quarter, Duncan had been groomed to a defender by Aide, but the knives are ready to unleash if the plan backfires. Nevertheless Duncan should be given a chance to impress and let’s hope this season would be his platform.

No. 6 Darrel Tan Guan Yu
Age: 23
Previous club: Promoted from the Prime League squad
Biodata: A former Singapore Under 18 player who participated in a recent Lion City Cup tournament, Darrel was introduced midway through the season and was part of the youthful line-up that surprised DPMM at home with a 2-1 victory which was unfortunately annulled. Darrel showed good touches in his play last season but lack pace and stamina which we hope he can work on this year.

No. 11 Sivaneswaran s/o Ramalingam
Age: 23
Previous club: Thai Ban Bueng FC (could be now known as Thai Airways-Look Isan FC)
Biodata: A relative unknown in the local footballing scene for a player who last season played in the Thai First Division. Siva (hope he doesn’t mind us shortforming his name) might have picked up some skills from his time in Thailand which can boost our typically leaky backline.

No. 12 Muhammad Shahir bin Hamzah
Age: 21
Previous club: Young Lions
Biodata: I believe Shahir is usually utilized in the fullback position by Terry Pathmanathan last season but Aide had hope he can compliment Nor Azli in the centerback role this year. Shahir might just be the defensive hero we had been seeking for years but first let the youngster acclimatize and groom.

Analysis: The defense does not give me the confidence but good words were mentioned during their pre-season preparation and with an experience defender like Aide at helms, we can just hope we do not let in cheap goals like we had done last season, especially from corners.

Midfielders

No. 7 Ashley Ow Hong Chan
Age: 24
Previous club: Promoted from the Prime League squad
Biodata: Like Darrel, there were much hope pinned on this prodigal son of Hougang Stadium who had a decent run in V. Sundramoorthy’s Young Lions in 2008. Ashley who usually played in a defensive midfielder role has the physique and skills to blossom in the role but need to keep his temperament in check at times.

No. 8 Sobrie bin Mazelan
Age: 26
Previous club: Retained from the 2009 squad
Biodata:  I remembered Sobrie having a couple of good games up front on his own against Tampines Rovers last season, in league and cup. This is a player who received much adoration from our comment posters but yet to open his account for the senior side despite doing it frequently for the Prime League squad. Perhaps an extended playing time might sharpen his attacking instint.

No. 13 Jalal
Age: 30
Previous club: Woodlands Wellington
Biodata: One player I felt uneasy with his signing. A player with just a solitary name like a Brazilian or Spainard, Jalal was infamous for being the most ill-disciplined player in the S League season of 2008 when he was still with Gombak United. There was a famous clip of him making a gawky dive in the 18 yard box in the game against Super Reds in the League Cup which subjected to much joking in the forum.

No. 14 Muhamad Faizal bin Amir
Age: 26
Previous club: Balestier Khalsa
Biodata: It was written in the team list as Faizal was from Geylang but in actuality Faizal played a fair share for bottom dwellers Balestier last season and maybe the one before. From his stats of 2009 season, he picked up 3 yellow cards and scored none in the fare share of pitch action he enjoyed with the Tigers.

No. 16 Abdoulaye Djibril Diallo
Age: 27
Previous club: Retained from the 2009 squad
Biodata: The biggest contribution the former Gombak United and Pesiraja Banda Aceh midfielder brought to the club was his kid brother Mamadou. From what I heard Abdoul is a top notch professional who seldom thread dangerous waters or create controversies while constantly playing to what the coach has requested. Despite not able to score a goal in 2009, Abdoul create a few goals for his team mate and had a useful stint at the bad to fire some wonderful goal kicks for Amos. Some supporters questioned the choice of retaining Abdoul but I am pretty glad he decided to stay on and hopefully play a bigger role in the upcoming season.

No. 17 Murphy Wiredu
Age: 25
Previous club: Retained from the 2009 squad
Biodata: I have once touted Murphy to be our Gabriel Obatola, but in truth they are 2 very different players but both are really good footballing talents. Murphy played 28 games for the Dolphins in 2009 and his overall performance won alot of fans’ adoration, of course 8 goals (which could be 10 if we included that scored against DPMM and a penalty kick that should be converted against Gombak United) really cement his status in the club. Another player I was thrilled to have been retained and truly hope he can up his goal tally in 2010, not forgetting laying some to his fellow attackers.

No. 18 Jordan Westley Webb
Age: 22
Previous club: Toronto Lynx FC
Biodata: Hailing from Murphy’s former club, it was pretty obvious who was the one recommending Jordan into the fold. However like Wiredu, Webb came with an illustrious background winning the MVP and Rookie of the year after scoring 5 and creating 6 for the Lynx in 18 appearances. Let’s hope Jordan would be a good link man from the midfield to the forwards this season.

Analysis: Very attacking midfield line-up with only Ashley and maybe Abdoul capable to supplant the defense when need arises.

Forwards

No.  9 Muhammad Farizal bin Basri
Age: 29
Previous club: Retained from the 2009 squad
Biodata: He began 2009 playing as a winger, soaring down both flanks. Then Farizal was used as an axillary rightback in certain matches at the tailend of the season before finishing up front, breaking his duck from the spotkick against Woodlands Wellington. Flamboyant Farizal should have been one of the star of Singapore football, till injuries hampered his progress but in 2010, the 29 year old looked to be a senior figure among his budding team mates and should not take his starting slot for granted. His setpieces might be crucial to our cause but he need to refrain from swinging his arms at opponents.

No. 10 Israel Tan Jia En
Age: 22
Previous club: Promoted from the Prime League squad
Biodata: Israel completes a strong local Chinese contingent which had been a feature for Sengkang Punggol considering the days of Steven Tan, Lee Man Hon, Tan Sio Beng, Winston Yap, Ong Keong Leong etc. I managed to catch this athletic chap in action in the Prime League a few times. Although he has a sound attacking instinct, he need to work on the composure in front of goal. However Israel really can won our hearts with his ever willing to run for the ball, a trait found in some of our Prime League boys last season.

No. 17 Moussa Keita
Age: 26
Previous club: Perseman Manakwari FC
Biodata: Another similar pattern in foreign talent recruitment again after signing a Canadian off the Canadian Premier Development League, we now signed a Guinean who previously played in Indonesia and having experience playing in Singapore. In the short write-up about Moussa was that he first embarked our shores to play for Kaki Bukit FC in the National Football League before signing with Tampines Rovers in 2000. It had stated that Moussa scored 20 goals for the Stags in 2 seasons but it might had been in the Prime League. In 2004 he left for Indonesia and his career there spanned 5 seasons with 3 different clubs scoring an impressive 98 goals. From the picture Moussa does not look like a typical predator who utilizes his built for goals, so I assume he might be a nimble forward who really bank on his pace. Would be interesting how he would pair up with the likes of Murphy and Mamadou up front.

Analysis: Moussa is surely the prime targetman but would be good to have Israel involved as much as possible. Scoring goals is everything in the game of football, and this is one department us suffering fans are always to look to improve but it is early days to pass judgement on our forwards.

Of course we should  see Mamadou Diallo, our vivacious Guinean talent registered in the Prime League though I wonder what capacity he would play in the forthcoming season.
There were some Prime League players who might have been promoted such as Shane Neubronner, Raymond Kwa, Jasper Seet and Nurhidayat Kamarudin but we never know if they are still with the club. It would be a shame to see Raymond go especially.

I have a feeling that Aide might register himself as a backup player as he mentioned he might need to return to the playing field in times of need, but otherwise this should be the final team.

Key players for the season: (from left) skipper Nor Azli, Shahir Hamzah, Jordan Webb, Fadhil Salim,Moussa Keita & Murphy Wiredu, flanked by assistant general manager Edwin Tan and head coach Aide Iskandar. Picture Courtesy of Pohui from Bolasepako.com

Pre-season Friendly #7

Another match scheduled for tomorrow, as published on Geylang United website.

Details
Opponent: Geylang United
Date: 26th Jan, Tuesday
Venue: Hougang Stadium
Time: 1700hrs