Football, a goal for life

One was a hot-head, and the other a teenager struggling to put food on the table. Don Ranil and Khairulnizam Mazlan are examples of at-risk youths and those from low-income families whose lives have been impacted positively by sports.

Four years ago, Khairul was an angry, rebellious tenager who often got into trouble in school. He was rude to his teachers and played truant so often that they told him that he was “the kind of boy who cannot achieve anything in life”.

His delivery driver father and mother, who is a housewife, could not control him, and things came to a head when he beat up a younger schoolmate. Khairul was sent to the Singapore Boys’ Home, where he spent the start of his 24-month stint angry with everyone, particularly his parents for leaving him there.

But the stubborn teenager was eventually won over by the staff, who constantly talked to him and provided him with guidance. He signed on for the home’s fitness holiday programme, where football coach Isa Haleem saw his potential and asked the young striker to join his team, Team Xerox at SportCares’ SNL.

Once in the team, Khairul found his second family. He told TODAY: “I totally enjoyed it…I was very scared when I first joined them because I didn’t know anyone. But they welcomed me, gave me support and motivated me.”

Football also helped him shed over 30kg off his 93kg frame, and he gained more confidence in his abilities and earned a spot in Geylang International’s youth team last year. Khairul also aced his ‘N’ Level examinations, scoring 2As and 2Bs to earn a place in the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) College West, where he is currently studying for a certificate in automotive technology.

For Ranil, football with his SNL team, Knights FC, provides a weekly getaway from a hectic life juggling his studies at ITE College West with his part-time job as a logistics packer at DHL. The 21-year-old has been working to support the family since the age of 16, after his father suffered a slipped disc while working with a logistics firm. He worked as a porter at Tan Tock Seng Hospital alongside his parents, contributing over half of his S$800 monthly pay to the family.

Football every Saturday is an activity he relishes and enjoys, as he said: “In the past, I was quite ‘kan cheong’ (hokkien for anxious), but I’ve become calmer because as a goalkeeper you have to be calm and patient.

“My team had a few guys who were gangsters and they bullied people, but SportCares helped change their character. SportCares has a rule that there is no fighting, and if that happens, you’re out. They want to stay in because if not they won’t have opportunities to have good coaches, sponsors, and enjoy time with the team.”