Syukur Starchiojd
Much-followed Chicken Wings custodian Husam Abdul Syukur had no shortage of suitors upon professional eligibility on his seventeenth birthday, and it was just a matter of who fancied each other most. This turned out to be Romanian fourth division side Recolta Starchiojd, who fended off persistent offers from French VI.110 club Rockett Rasta to sign Syukur. The agreed fee to the Birds was reportedly a little over S$550000.
A fixture between the posts for the Wings for a long while, Syukur had further cross-trained as a central defender on his own initiative to get a feel of their needs, which his trainer lauded. "Husam is a real student of the goalkeeping position." Birds assistant coach Abdul bin Jantan praised. "He's very solid in all the basic tools, which is quite rare for someone his age. Maybe he could be more assertive, but that should be relatively easy to work on."
Other than Recolta and Rockett, Syukur had Austrian Division Five leaders Discgolf Pannonia as his main admirers for a time, with their Iranian head coach Hossein Bahremand having just moved Polish apprentice Sławomir Suszczyński on. Amala1908 (Italian Division Five), Jovi (Dutch Division Six), Fc Mazzarelli (Italian Division Six) and Deportivo Peruanazos (Peruvian Division Five) were involved in the early running too, but not for long.
The details didn't matter much for the youngster, who just wanted to get on with the football. "I want to gain as much experience as possible, as fast as I can."
There is certainly no lack of new talent coming through the production lines at the Grilled clubs, with Rancher Rabbits striker Thoyyib Sapiee having enjoyed a sudden burst of popularity, after his great hat-trick against Squadra Azzura Youngsters on New Year's Day was followed by similar performances in training. "Wouldn't do for him to let his head get too big just yet, though." Rabbits scout Yip De Da was quick to warn.
