Call For Trainees
Grilled Birds captain
Tian Yonghang joined Farmer Bunnies chairman Joseph Zheng for the ribbon-cutting ceremony at Carrot Field, after which Zheng detailed his five-season plan for the newly-formed affiliate club.
"First off, we have to thank the Sentosa FC staff and players. Current Sentosa FC head coach
Vishnu Singh will continue with the amateur arm, and we are actively sourcing for his replacement. A few personnel will be seconded from the Birds, of course, but all applications will be considered."
"As for the near future, we would be happy to just survive in Division Four, though given that the majority of the clubs in this league are semi-professional, a top-half finish should be reasonable to expect. That said, the development of young local talents will always take full precedence over performances."
Zheng then presented the Bunnies' first signing,
Au Pin How, originally from B Champions FC, and now back in Singapore after a half-season loan in Sweden with Danima BK. Aw cut a fine figure in the Bunnies' home colours of white, grey and pink, and expressed his eagerness to start against CharlesCheesePie.
"We're currently hunting for youngsters with defensive ability, and who are willing to commit at least three years with the club." Zheng continued. "We hope to gather ten or eleven of them, and unlock their potential as best as we can, before we let them go."
"They have been harder to find than expected, and this grassroots-level scarcity is one of the main reasons why Singapore has been struggling to advance in international competition." Zheng noted.
"We are fortunate to have already received commitments from J3 Almighty, Arcturules, United Warrior Team and Tampines Phoenix F.C. about trainee candidates, and with some luck we should be able to gather the four or five additional 17 year-olds in time to start the regime proper by next weekend."
Finally, Zheng brought up the Rancher Rabbits, the Bunnies' youth side, that has been registered with the Hungarian U-20 league Testköz Kupa, which also includes representatives from Poland, Finland, Italy, Argentina and France.
"The travelling and exposure should be a draw for applicants." Zheng added. "And in the future, we hope to unearth a few talents of our own from the Rabbits. Liew Long Jin's our first scouted prospect, and although he's not quite what the Bunnies are looking for, he might find a future out wide."
