Last year, after a brawl between players from Young Lions and Beijing Guoan, the FAS slapped heavy fines and lengthy bans on players from both sides in response to a media outcry. But in their quest to keep a critical media less critical they denied national team coach Raddy Avramovic the opportunity of selecting players like Madhu and Khairul Nizam for the ASEAN Football Federation Cup at the end of the year.
And we know what happened there, don't we?
Last night Tampines Rovers played Home United in the SLeague. The two remaining unbeaten teams this season and both with strong title ambitions. The match of the season so far without a doubt.
You wouldn't think so to look at the press releases. Instead, everything is about some game today between an SLeague select and an Albirex Niigata team raising funds for victims of the Japanese disasters. Thanks to the advance publicity the game has sold out even though ticket prices are much higher than normal SLeague games and despite it being a Saturday when, the perceived wisdom has it, no SLeague games are played because of fears fans will stay home to watch English football.
So, let's get this straight. The match of the season was all but ignored and attracted about 1,800 including the freeloaders, media and security guys. The SLeague and both teams did nowt about promoting it and they got nowt back.
But for a pointless friendly with more expensive tickets there is a constant stream of press releases and voila, a sell out on a difficult day!
I wonder if the stuffed suits will see the connection.
The job of the FA is to develop Singapore football. Not act as a fundraiser to grab cheap headlines and publicity.
I wonder how the players felt last night playing in front of a spartan crowd while all the while the governing body was concentrating on non football matters?
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