By Jan Lin/Red Sports
The Cubs, aged 15 and under, excited the country with their winning run in the Youth Olympic group matches. (Photo 1 © Les Tan/Red Sports)
So you are upset the Cubs lost.
Yes you are upset and there’s nothing wrong with that. Sure, it wasn’t the boys’ best performance, and what is worse about last night’s lacklustre showing is that it gave permission to the enemy to invade our soil and turn it into a play(acting) ground.
However, may I suggest that the pent-up anger of most football fans in Singapore is rooted in the disappearance of that once-upon-a-time tangible sense of national pride in football? But why should a group of talented 15-year-olds bear those grievances?
What were you doing when you were 15?
To put things in perspective, not only the Cubs, but many of Singapore’s Youth Olympic Games (YOG) representatives are full-time students enrolled in our local schools. Many of them will sit for exams after this.
Before the Games, the first half of their 2010 was spent training and preparing for the annual inter-schools competitions on top of national trainings. While their peers soaked up the June break, training did not cease for these national flagbearers.
Then when curtains for the Games fall next week, and life goes back to normalcy for us, guess what? The boys have to polish off eight months of academic lessons to sit for the same final year exam along with the rest of their schoolmates in October.
Even the kids in the Sports School receive minimum privileges simply because time does not and will not stop for the kids to catch up on their school work. Life has gone on for many while those involved in the inaugural Games play catch up.
The beauty of hosting a multi-sport Games is in unraveling sporting talents that the nation may be oblivious to or may have overlooked in the midst of a highly pragmatic society that glorifies the rat race and paper-chase. Hence, foreign sports talents.
It is never nice to lose at home, but what is winning or losing when it has taken a group of 15-year-olds, who just want to play ball, to have also brought the nation together for a common cause? This has made hosting the Games worthwhile.
Why are we so quick to tear down what is but raw beginnings of a generation of youthful sporting talents? Are we not shooting ourselves in the foot when we cry foul against foreign talents but yet remain hostile and critical towards our own?
Talent development takes time, strategy and above all, impeccable support from various stakeholders and pillars of the society – the government, family, schools, media and especially the general public whose views shapes one’s self-concept.
If at 15, you are able to say with zeal, ‘It really doesn’t matter what others think of me’, you are either emotionally well beyond your years (perhaps owing to exceptional parenting) or quite simply, you are lying or hiding behind a façade.
Kids, and yes, even adults, crave permission and learn most through observation.
We can be bitter about the Haitian kids playacting antics in last night’s game but again it is just as hypocritical to judge their behavior when millions across the world hero-worship the adults who do it every week and the media loves them.
Why are we not angry about the ‘example’ these adults are setting?
In the same way, our Cubs are observing and are aware of the expectations and reactions pre- and post-game. Some have pointed to the media’s hype as a cause of the Cubs’ loss. Well then, all the better. Learn from it.
The earlier kids are exposed to the ‘real world’ and be equipped for it, the better the chance they stand as adults to handle these demands and become successful coping with them independently instead of being beaten by what others think.
Perhaps it’s against the Asian parenting psyche, but the sooner we release our Cubs to the wild and teach them how to survive instead of protecting them, the earlier we are allowing the Lion in them to rise up and soon, roar.
[…] Last Saturday, at 1.41am, a reader apparently from Uruguay popped by and wrote: […]
bolivia used older players!
it has been made public by even bolivian authorities like the president of Santa Cruz coaches of Bolivia!
they should be taken off the medals and receive a very hard and example penalties for this!
this should be hardly discouraged and punished!
whats going to happen!?
I think the cubs have done us proud during their YOG campaign. The max i’ve lasted watching football on TV was 15 minutes, but i managed to watch the whole of their last group match. For the semis, they tried hard, but perhaps just couldn’t get things together
Still, I hope this team will stick together all the way to senior football. It was so nice to hear ‘Ole ole ole ole’ from the spectators. Let’s go Singapore (:
Thanks everyone for your kind words! : )
I’m sure your belief in them will go a long way to help the Cubs refocus for their bronze medal play-off on Wednesday.
Hi Canon
I’m not aware of any deleted comment of yours – but I trust non-constructive comments would be removed by my moderators – just to save readers from coming under the fire of other readers! I take on any comments as they come!
Just so you know that Pohui is a great friend of mine – it’s great to know that these things are also discussed on other spaces – unfortunately I do not have the time to stalk on local football forums, but I do what I can in my own capacity!
We welcome anyone to contribute their commentaries on Red Sports. But no worries, I’ll take it up with Pohui personally as I’ve said he’s a great friend, a respected guy, and to me friendship is more important than whatever ‘credit’.
I must say that, at least, I believe between me and Pohui, we know that all that we do, we do it for a common cause – never to divide but to unite. ; ) I hope you, an ardent local football fan, will also embrace this spirit and join in this cause!
🙂
Largely agree with the article. Though I think had we lost to Bolivia or even Montenegro, the criticisms, if any, would not have come so hard and fast. The disappointment is because this was Haiti, a country you would hardly associate with a footballing culture. Most of us hadn’t seen Haiti play, we only know they got whipped 9-0 by Bolivia, and we would think that all those training trips to London, reading news about them beating the Spurs boys and such would have set our Cubs marching towards the Final. We got disappointed because if these boys lost to Haiti, could hopes be pinned on them when (or if) they eventually become our national footballers and they play far more illustrious nations on the international stage? We got disappointed because we care, we want the boys to do well, we place hopes in them for the future or Singapore football…how many Singaporeans actually got angry that we got walloped upside down in Handball and Hockey?
well written, jan lin!
Hi Boys, you all did ur best n give ur sweat blood and tears! But in the end luck is just not there and that is football as it most best. Am not sayin you all deserve to lose but I tell u its cut throat business. But nonetheless you all put up a big fight all the way to the final whilstle, I would like to congratulate u boys that u have ignited every body and anyone who loves football to come support local football, I bet you every young boys out there playing the field or the court with their friends are tryin to be like you boys n taking after ur names as the have fun of their own. Not even that is enough I believe there are some arms with their game consoles over Winning 11 or Fifa, have actually make a team n players out of you boys.
Fantastic article!
Well written. I’m really pissed with my friends as well when they pinned so much of their own hopes on this 15 years old. They failed to understand that this team is not the Malaysian Cup team.
I don’t feel that Singaporeans are ‘angry’ with the football team. For those of us who have followed YOG obviously we were disappointed but I think most Singaporeans do not even care. Sad but true.
All these comments saying the Cubs were arrogant and boasting about themselves are off base.
They were overhyped. They hardly say a word, their coach is usually silent.
They generally would rather not talk to the media.
Nobody asked the regular media to devote so many pages to them, including a front page photo.
Give the boys a break.
Why don’t you comment about ‘Singapore fans’ swearing in the stadium right in front of their own kids?
Why don’t you comment about the ‘Singapore fans’ who leave the stadium before the game is up and not stay until the end to encourage our boys with applause?
For the first time in a long while, this is the first Singapore team that has managed to bond a country.
For the first time in a long while, this is the first Singapore team that has managed to play football on the ground with skill and technique.
For the first time in a long while, there is a Brandon Koh and a Jonathan Tan who can bring out the crowds with their awesome dribbling skills and speed.
The Cubs will go from strength to strength. We lose today and win tomorrow. With their dedication, determination they’ll win us as a nation. Same goes to all the athletes at the YOG. More of us are exposed to other sporting events and this will generate more interest among the young and young at heart! Well done. Keep on going!
Perhaps we could have a look at how Germany handled their football as a whole?
Compared to the English media that built up the EPL “stars” and expected them to win the world cup and viciously tore them down for their failures (sound familiar?), the german media and people on the other hand did not hype up their national team as much and let their football federation do their thing.
Of course, at a footballing level they started from scratch, focused on youth in their league, as well as on international level and did not burden them with excessive expectation. I guess we all know how the German youth fared against the much celebrated EPL superstars.
Germany is a modern, advanced country with a good economy not unlike Singapore. I’m sure their people go through some of the life challenges that parallel ours since they are quite the prosperous, cosmopolitan country as well. Their people are mostly highly educated and if I am not wrong, their football players are the same.
Granted we may not have a large population as they have, and perhaps we can come up with 1001 comparisons on how Germany is different from Singapore but surely we can learn a thing or two from their model? Surely they are doing something right?
All I’m saying is, yes our situation in Singapore football might be unique to us but surely we can have a look and learn from systems that work?
At some point we should cast our negativity and hate aside, and look at ways we can make a difference instead of making inconstructive and defeatist comments that in the end, benefits no one.
just my two cents.
peace.
Comments like yours, soccerfan, are what makes for pleasant conversations on this site.
*clap clap clap*
Hi! there, everyone,
I’d like to thank everyone who has given their comments/analysis in any sporting event that’s running in YOG2010.
It shows how passionate you are in sports that you would give your opinion.
I believe, if the athletes reads the comments/analysis with an open mind they’d surely be better in future events.
Now, I’d bring everyone back to reality.
Realistically, in Singapore, to host an inaugural Youth Olympic in a time frame of less than 3 years, and get enough young athletes to participate in all the 26 sports is, I’m sure you’d agree impossible. But we did it, through the sacrifice of the Team Singapore YOG Training Squad.
Every National Sports Association did not just pick the athletes that you see on TV. Every face on TV that represent Team Singapore, go through a series of qualifying event against their own teammates training together with them to get to do their best to make Singapore proud of, the junior squad of sportsmen/sportswomen that will represent our country.
I don’t know how many are in the Singapore YOG2010 Football Training Squad, but, if we take a look back at World Cup 2010 England squad, they had 30 players, then they reduce it to 23 players, I think.
I’m only into 1 event at YOG2010, as my daughter, Audrey Yong is competing in windsurfing girls, she’s the only one to represent Team Singapore from a training squad of 4. Until today, what you’d see for junior windsurfing, has never been done before in the history of windsurfing in Singapore.
Nothing will happen if it isn’t for the fact that there’s an inaugural Youth Olympic Games. Singapore do not have a junior windsurfing training squad, unlike countries like, Thailand, Hong Kong, Great Britain, Italy, France, Poland, Isreal and most European countries.
These are the powerhouse of junior windsurfing, so what do we have? Nothing.
If, Audrey’s coach, Mr.T.C.Chua, & Singapore Sailing didn’t give her a chance to train on a windsurf board, she won’t have a ghost of a chance to show the World that, Singapore, can and will be represented on the World stage, since the time of the late, Mr.Kelly Chan, ranked No.! in the World.
In YOG2010, if Audrey, rank 3rd today, just 1 point from, Naomi Cohen, ISR in 2nd place, who’s the 2010 World Champion, and can beat her when the event ends on Wednesday in the Gold medal race, then that will be the 3rd World Champion that she’d beat since she started windsurfing in early 2008.
Audrey has already said in an interview, she wants to beat the Thai competitor, and she did it on the 1st day of racing, when she came in 1st in race 2.
All the girls in the windsurfing event are friends with each other for the past 3 years. They’ll also compete and play hard when they meet each other.
I. as a parent, always remind her, in the words of a legend in Olympic sailing:-
“You haven’t won the race, if in winning the race, you’ve lost the respect of your competition. -Paul Elvstrom (DEN) 4 golds in 4 consecutive Olympics,England(1948) to Italy(1960)”
Regards
Paul Yong
insulting putdown deleted
is it so hard for you take criticism? this IS a terrible ‘article’. any ‘article’ with more question marks than analysis should be kept in your own diary. it doesn’t even qualify as an article! and what’s written (or questioned) isn’t anything new. a lot of it was discussed online already in various portals (especially facebook on bolasepako and it’s owner pohui’s fb page), and this is just a rehash of all that. too bad one leech of a person is taking credit for this. though even then what’s said here still falls short of anything worth reading.
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ED’S NOTE: This person seems to trade in double standards and faulty logic.
Firstly, he insists his comments be let through while the writer of this article is not allowed to state her opinion.
Secondly, just because her opinions mirror some in other forums, she is branded a leech.
Thirdly, while what she says, according to him, is a rehash of what’s going in other places, what she writes is not worth reading. Therefore, by his faulty logic, what is in other forums also, logically, “falls short of anything worth reading.”
So we leave his comment here for all to see his faulty logic and double standard.
His comment is no canon (standard) at all, especially since the majority of comments support what the writer has written.
well written article.
we are not upset…we will continue to support u….all the way s’pore!
YEAH!!!!! no matter who you guys lose to, you are winners in all our hearts. In specific, i would just like to comment on radhi’s performance. it IS SUPERB!!
Awesome article the best i read so far about the cubs.
Good job Jan Lin of Redsports.
Have anyone else realized the common factor between the Lions and the Cubs?
They tend to win in the opening matches by a meager scoreline,then they talk to the media about the lack of support, boast about themselves, give like 20,000 people high hope, talk about their aspirations and how they can definitely win, and when everyone goes to cheer them on, they falter and then eventually, return home with their tails between their legs, licking their wounds.
Seriously, what they need to learn is to be humble, and start from scratch. Put aside their humongous ego bubble and swallow their pride and go out and show us why they really deserved our support.