Who Say We Not Passionate About Football?

There has been a couple of letters to the papers lamenting about how the average Singaporeans are not true fans of football but more rather football punting.

(Read here and here.)

My response to them is... 

I got 3 things to say here and they may or may not be related to the above topic, but just need to get it out of my system.

1. While football betting is always on our lips, it is just beer talk lah. We do seriously enjoy a good game of football. Look at the number of people out on the fields kicking the ball on Sundays. Perhaps the only thing hindering this passion is the Gahmen red tape needing to book this, book that, permit this, license that. Haiz...
   
   Couch-potato-wise, we are also a passionate bunch. Like the drap showing between Ukraine and Tunisia, we can't help but pui chao nuah at the Ukranians for just about the most clueless and boring display of football. Sure, we won half a stake for those who betted on the Ukranians but it is only consolation and compensation for the 90 minutes of sheer agony that we had gone through.
   
   
2. After looking outwards at the World Cup, we also look inward at our own domestic football. Remember to good old Malaysian Cup days? Now that was a good time when 35,000 of us would turn up at the National Stadium to cheer on our boys against any Malaysian team, be it, Selangor or Perak or Pahang or Kedar or Sarawak. We were ONE UNITED PEOPLE (kicking over all the Malaysian-plated motorcycles in the car park or throwing our slippers at the only guy wearing green in the hostel when Kedah scored) back then. There was hardly football betting on our lips for the simple fact that the matches were so kelong against our favour (11 of us vs 14 of them) that the bookies didn't dare to take bets. Still, we cheer them on to victory against greater odds (and I don't mean the betting type of odds).
   
   After the departure from Malaysia Cup, we ended up with the stoopid S-League which we have no idea what it was all about. Yah lah, there are the Tampines Rovers and Woodlands Wellingtons.
   
   BUT what about those of us who live in Lim Chu Kang (LCK Undertakers?) or Bukit Timah (BT Hillbillies?) or Bishan (Bishan My-Son-Want-To-Go-Cat-Highlanders?) or Ang Mo Kio (AMK Tomatoes?)? If you tell me to follow my GRC zoning hor, I will come to your house and slap your head solid solid one time.
   
   Then what about Hougang and Potong Pasir? Oh wait.... never mind. Gahmen said that they are not part of Singapore and so no need to care about them.
   
   
3. Ok, back out to the World Cup again. Can you see Singapore qualifying the World Cup finals in the near future? If no, then support who? Support what? Support Korea har? Support Japan har?
   
   As long as it is not Singapore Lions in the World Cup final, supporting Brazil is about the same as supporting England or any other country. That subsequently prompted the next question from a friend.
   
   "If you say you are a supporter of the Brazil team i.e. Brazil is YOUR team, then ask yourself if you think if the Brazilians think of you as one of them? If no, then call them YOUR team for f*ck? People's national anthem you know how to sing or not?"
   I was stumped.
   
   And this got me to reflect upon myself, a so-called Manchester United supporter and I asked myself what has the city of Manchester got to do with me? I supposed due to the sub-standard of our own local football league that we are all forced to look elsewhere, even at the expense of being a second-class citizen over there. You see any Madrid people calling themselves fans of Gombak United?
   
   So perhaps, I can't live up to the name and expectation of a true Manchester United fan for all I am interested is to see them play and wishing them victory.

- Voxeros

1. heather left...

Tuesday, 27 June 2006 2:06 am :: http://disenchantedprincess.wordpress.co

poor singapore lions, hopefully one day they are in world cup too!

2. JayWalk left...

Tuesday, 27 June 2006 8:00 am :: 

heather: Well, if we can rename our Singapore referees to be Singapore Lions, then we're IN!!

3. sunflower left...

Tuesday, 27 June 2006 9:36 am

You are so hilarious! Like tat oso can! my eyes rolled again!

4. Mum2One left...

Tuesday, 27 June 2006 4:31 pm

After this morning's match with Italy, let me just say, ALL REFEREES ARE THE SAME-LAH. ALL TERUK! Sulk. Sulk. Sulk. Where got fair, you say lah?
Sorry, comment not related to your post...

5. JayWalk left...

Tuesday, 27 June 2006 4:51 pm :: 

sunflower: Make sure you don't roll your eyes too much. Sekali eye ball cannot come back then you know!

Mum2One: It is related but only to my post for tomorrow. Stay tuned. Akan datang.

6. Zhe Bin left...

Tuesday, 27 June 2006 10:41 pm

Acually I don't call Man Utd MY team lah, but rather my favourite team. Just like I have my favourite singer, my favourite food, my favourite toilet paper.. They also never ask me endorse but I choose to like it. = D

However, if my family business is selling toilet paper, I might use my own brand of toilet paper because it's a cheap alternative (very convenient), or I might not because I simply like to use other people's toilet paper. Preference and passion this thing can combine, but must take sometime to. Haha.

7. JayWalk left...

Wednesday, 28 June 2006 1:25 am :: 

ZheBin: How the heck did we digress to pang sai zhuar?

Anyway, in contrast with you, I tend to be a bit more passionate about things and hence making ManUtd "my team" without realising (until now) that the City of Manchester has got nothing to do with me.

I guess you are right in the sense that ManUtd is my favourite team instead of "my team". I should stop talking about them in the first person's perspective from now on e.g. "we should play Neville up front and pull Rooney to the back...."

8. spinnee left...

Wednesday, 28 June 2006 12:46 pm :: http://spinnee.blogspot.com

good entry!!! :)