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Young footballers to take centrestage in revamped 2018 S-League

SINGAPORE – In a move to fix a long-standing issue plaguing local football, the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) is set to announce on Thursday (Nov 16) major changes to the S-League aimed at talent spotting and developing more young local players.

The FAS hopes that the revamped S-League's focus on youth development will help develop young talents for the national football team (national player Irfan Fandi pictured in red) in the future. (Photo: Facebook / FAS)

The FAS hopes that the revamped S-League's focus on youth development will help develop young talents for the national football team (national player Irfan Fandi pictured in red) in the future. (Photo: Facebook / FAS)

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SINGAPORE – In a move to fix a long-standing issue plaguing local football, the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) is set to announce on Thursday (Nov 16) major changes to the S-League aimed at talent spotting and developing more young local players.

Touted as a game-changer for Singapore football, the plan for the “reimagined” 2018 S-League will make it compulsory for the S-League’s six local clubs to recruit at least six Under-23 footballers for its squad, with a minimum of three Under-23 players to feature in the starting 11 for each match.

The required quota for U23 players is expected to increase in subsequent seasons, with the possibility of having half of the starting 11 made up of U23 footballers in the future.

Singapore football observers and fans have long lamented the dearth of young talents in the national football team, pointing to the ageing Lions’ squad as evidence of the lack of youth development by FAS.

Among the host of other changes expected to be announced at the FAS’ annual congress on Thursday are: a reduction in the foreign player quota, scrapping of the Prime League, and the reintroduction of the Beep test for player fitness.

There will be no changes to the S-League lineup for next season, with the existing nine clubs, including the Garena Young Lions, set to compete in 2018.

While teething issues can be expected in the revamped league, local football experts and observers believe the move will be a boon for a sport that desperately needs young blood at the elite level.

“This is the first time in 20 years that we are seeing a major transformation of the league, with the emphasis on youth,” said former Singapore head coach Vincent Subramaniam, who was appointed head coach of the Garena Young Lions in July.

“Look at the S-League, it’s populated with ageing players and that’s why you can’t find able replacements (for the national team). Having three players in the first 11 is an important sign, but they cannot be mediocre.”

Hougang United coach Philippe Aw also approved of the changes, pointing out that it will give more young players a chance to break into the first team.

Citing the issue of some players quitting the game after they were not selected by coaches, he said: “This move is for the long term. In the first three seasons, you may see a drop in quality as the teams are playing younger players, but in time to come, they will mature and get better and we will reap the benefits.”

With the Lions sinking to an all-time low of No 173 on the Fifa rankings, the national team would certainly benefit from an injection of young talents, particularly after a poor run of results in the last 12 months which has seen the national football team go on a winless run in 13 matches.

On Tuesday, the Lions were officially eliminated from the Asian Football Confederation Asian Cup qualifiers after suffering a 0-3 loss to Bahrain.

Mr Aw added: “The quality and talent is there, they just need to be coached properly and given the opportunity to shine. It will definitely benefit the national team…we probably won’t see an immediate improvement but when they mature, it will help.”

Some observers have pointed to issues such as National Service (NS) commitments, and a lack of young players, as potential hurdles for clubs that are required to abide by the U23 player rules.

Mr Subramaniam stressed that there is a pool of players for S-League teams to tap on. “Outside of the so-called NS range, we were able to identify 60 players, and we have enough players between the ages of 19 and 22,” he added.

“Some clubs have already approached players from the Young Lions, and that is a good sign.”

With the revamped S-League in 2018 set to feature a host of young, unfamiliar faces, the question among the footballing community is: will fans be sold on the idea?

Local football legend Fandi Ahmad, FAS head coach of youth, admitted that fans may take time to warm up.

“It will take time for people to understand that development is important," he told TODAY.

"Fans might not like it in the beginning, but if they see good results, and good talents coming, the support will get better.”

While the S-League is set to see one of its biggest overhauls since it was first launched in 1996, not everyone is excited about the change.

Local football blogger and fan Ko Po Hui, 41, questioned if the U23 players will be ready for the rigours of playing in a professional league, or the national team in the future.

“Given the ‘heavily-centralised grooming’ of our players using the National Football Academy system and results of late of these age-group teams at international level, I am not sure if these players are ready for the intensiveness of a professional league,” he said.

“We could see more young players in the league if this ruling is enforced but they may not necessarily be good enough for the national team, as international football is more demanding in areas like pace and tactical awareness, and the S-League isn’t able to provide that kind of environment at the moment.”

While there was previously speculation that the FAS could see its budget for next year’s S-League reduced to S$8.5 million – almost half of the current annual amount of S$16 million – TODAY understands that the national sports association will now receive slightly less than S$16 million in funding for its plans for 2018 from Sport Singapore, which is in charge of disbursing the money from the Tote Board.

With the focus on youth development, coaches, and community involvement, the “reimagined” S-League will also see clubs paired with schools in their community, with their coaches engaging school teams to help guide the players and mentor their coaches.

The foreign player quota for clubs will be reduced from three to two, with the emphasis on signing Under-21 players. At present, seven of the nine S-League sides are allowed to sign three foreign players for the S-League, and six local clubs are allowed to sign one more under-21 import for their Prime League teams.

The Prime League, which is the S-League’s reserve and youth tournament, will be scrapped, with the National Football League (NFL) set to be installed as the second-tier competition.

The NFL currently has two divisions with 12 teams in each one, and there are plans to introduce a promotion and relegation system for the NFL.

The goal is for the NFL teams to eventually compete for promotion to the S-League, with bottom S-League sides to be relegated to the second tier.

In a bid to improve the fitness of S-League players, the Beep test will replace the current mandatory 2.4 km test, and players will be tested three times a year in the pre-season, midseason and off-season.

While it remains to be seen if the revamped S-League will be a success, Mr Subramaniam is excited about the upcoming changes.

“It is quite adventurous, and very challenging. But we have enough experienced people to do this,” he said.

“It is a bold move, but it is a move forward.”

 

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