Qiu Accepted
With little fanfare, 19 year-old
Qiu Swee Pheng became the first youth teamer since
Bukhari Abd Hamid to be handed a shirt number for the senior side.
With Bukhari's inclusion coming nearly two seasons ago, some say that Qiu's selection was more of an attempt to boost morale in the youth camps that due to his own abilities. The all-rounded Qiu, who has played wingback and striker but now mostly attacking midfielder, rubbished such talk. "If they say I'm good enough, I'm good enough." he said with finality.
His old coaches however bemoaned his late introduction to the sport. "He's probably second only to Quah when it comes to homegrown Grilled debutants. Problem is, Quah joined as a 17 year-old, while Qiu's almost 20."
