Aiming Higher
It would be a relatively slapdash end-of-season dinner for the Grilled clubs for Season 92, with a booking conflict at their chosen steakhouse requiring the event to be pushed back for a day. It would be inadvertently all about
Tian Yonghang, of course, whose quiet resignation as Grilled Birds head coach on Friday had taken the local scene by storm. Tian could hardly be seen as he was mobbed by players, staff and well-wishers throughout, but new boss
Dan Alstani was if anything appreciative at not having to handle all the attention just yet.
The Player of the Season votes had been partially leaked as a result of the delay, but there couldn't have been too much controversy about the choices anyway. It was a wonder that a 29 year-old
Chad Thach had yet to earn his first for the Birds, and there was zero dissent as he collected what he well should have last season. Trainee winger Liow Jing Chao picked up the youth version, with the coaches lauding him as basically the finished product; forward Josh Hwang, centreback Lim Chang Leng and fellow winger Gan Chee Pin were outside shots.
Farmer Bunnies' relegation would not prevent them from giving a hearty cheer to the ever-reliable
Guan Ming Kum, who emerged as their most-consistent contributor ahead of candidates such as
Amirul Jufri Khairil and
Toh Eng Guang. On the U-20 front, they honoured creative Rancher Rabbits Number Six Yahya Mohd Hammadi, who had been quite the draw in midfield. There was no lack of competition with all-around talents Yeo Min Kok and Sawyer Won very much in the running, although there would be some regret over the considerable but neglected potential of troubled Number Ten Hwang Wee An, and possibly also Ravi Bose.
Grilled International's
Egidius van der Duin doubled up on his award from last year, which his teammates agreed that he well deserved. "Hey, Chua started it." Tunisian defender
Ghanem Ben Mimoun quipped.
Snæbjörn Sigfússon and
Remond Bergervoet had their moments in particular, but it was difficult to look past the imposing Dutchman, who has reinvented himself as International's premiere striking option.
Defensive libero Chow Han Dong got the nod for their Young Player of the Season, though the Busy Bees were not short on replacements, with Junaidi bin Hj Nasrul, Azman bin Mohd and an admittedly overaged Zainul bin Naasiruddeen filling in adequately after Chow's graduation.
The ceremony would end with
Dan Alstani invited to give his first official statement as head coach of the Birds, and he duly threw down the gauntlet with a vow to challenge for the title. "If not now, then when?" he asked simply.
