Interview and pictures by Leslie Tan. © Red Sports

Khairul Nizam

Khairul Nizam at the recent adidas +challenge Regional Final in Hong Kong. (Photo © Les Tan/Red Sports)

Khairul Nizam of Serangoon Secondary won the Golden Boot Award in this year’s National ‘B’ Division Football Championship. Scoring all of his nine goals in open play to win the award, 16-year-old Nizam also played for Singapore Team B (Serangoon Rovers) in the recent adidas +challenge Regional Final in Hong Kong.

Red Sports (RS): Can you remember your best goal in the National campaign?

Khairul Nizam (KN): My best goal was against Springfield. My keeper, Nasruddin, pumped the ball upfield. My teammate Safwan then passed the ball onwards to me and I volleyed the ball into goal with my right foot.

RS: Do you play for any other team besides your school team?

KN: I am in the U-16 Home United squad.

RS: What’s your training schedule like?

KN: I train with Home United three times a week at Whitley Secondary and train with Serangoon two times a week.

RS: How many goals did you score for Home United?

KN: I scored 13 goals, the second best tally to Dileep, a Nepalese player. Our Home United team came in second in the Prime League to the National U-15 squad.

RS: So what do you do if you’re not training?

KN: If I’m not training or playing, I jog and carry weights because I’m serious about my game. I rest at home at other times.

RS: You guys didn’t make it past the first round in the adidas +challenge Regional Final. So what happened?

KN: It was so hot! Cannot ‘tahan’ (Malay for ‘endure’)! The weather is even hotter than in Singapore. We lost to the Thais 10-2. We had to then beat China in our next game which we did 7-4.  But at the end of that game we were too tired already. We lost our last match to Hong Kong 4-7.

RS: Are you hoping to make football a career?

KN: Yes, if I can make it. I was recently selected for the National U-17 squad together with my schoolmate and captain Haziq.

Khairul Nizam

Nizam in the 1v1 component of the Final. After playing 5v5, the teams send their most skillful players to compete one-on-one where a win carried equal weight. (Photo © Les Tan/Red Sports)

Khairul Nizam

Nizam in action during the group stages. (Photo © Les Tan/Red Sports)

Khairul Nizam

Nizam and his teammates were among the 40,000 at Hong Kong Stadium to watch Liverpool, Portsmouth, Fulham and South China. (Photo © Les Tan/Red Sports)

Khairul Nizam

Another view of the Hong Kong Stadium where there is no running track, making spectators feel like they are part of the game. (Photo © Les Tan/Red Sports)

Khairul Nizam

Hong Kong Stadium is built much like a performance art venue, with steep seating areas that give you vertigo but brings you close to the action on the pitch. (Photo © Les Tan/Red Sports)

Some highlights of the adidas +challenge Regional Final played on a reclaimed piece of land in West Kowloon, Hong Kong. © Leslie Tan/Red Sports

Khairul Nizam

A night view of Hong Kong Stadium just before the start of the game between Liverpool and Portsmouth. (Photo © Les Tan/Red Sports)

Khairul Nizam

Hong Kong Stadium is built much like a performance art venue, with steep seating areas that give you vertigo but brings you close to the action on the pitch. (Photo © Les Tan/Red Sports)

Editor’s note: Pictures of Hong Kong Stadium were taken with a Nokia N95 which has a 5-megapixel camera. The camera is useless for sports photography but if nobody moves, it’s ok. In the meantime, don’t forget to read the interview with Liverpool Football Academy coaches and watch the footage of Hong Kong Stadium in another post. More action shots can be found in the Picture Gallery. If you know any other Golden Boot winner from this year’s championships, please contact me.