One Bright Spot
There would at least be one trophy on show for this end-of-season dinner, appropriately held at the Farmer Bunnies' clubhouse, after they had ended a ten-season wait for another league title. The Birds had, of course, been tripped up at the last hurdle, but from how
Tian Yonghang was mingling and joking, his job remains secure.
For once, the Buns would kick off the award presentation as hosts, and there was little debate as to who would be their Player of the Season - not with
Ho Ah Kian having struck ten goals, six more than closest challengers
Edgar Popienia and
Amirul Jufri Khairil. A few purists had nominated goalkeeper
Gilberto Sorondo for his consistency, but the 35 year-old Ho took this without too much protest.
The youth version went to
Amaya Ravula for a second time, with the youngster remarkably tying Amirul and Sorondo for most official matches played over the season, and some memorable goals and assists. "It's quite incredible how complete he is already, being just twenty-one." former Uruguay youth international
Mauro Fau commented. "I can't understand why he hasn't gotten that Young Lions call-up yet!"
Next up would be Grilled Birds, and again there was no looking past the obvious choice:
Joe Reece, league top scorer with fifteen goals from fifteen starts, which while not quite on
Chan Ze Han's level yet, remained a great return for a young forward in a competitive Division Three league.
Brian Reddy,
Phua Ming Xin and
Mohd Marzuki Khairul received honorable mentions from Tian, and
Gústav Thoroddsen might have merited consideration had he joined up earlier, but none were about to outshine Reece here.
Pickings were far slimmer for the YPOTS, with almost no candidates of the right age range in the main squad, and a relatively average crop in the academy. Given this, Justis Truong had to be as good a pick as any, with his being picked up by Tahiti's CO Cournols du Sud not hurting his case. The budding 17 year-old defender has built something of a name for himself with Rob the Newbies for his uncommon passing range, and he will be looking to expand on that with his next club.
Now, it was not like Grilled International particularly wanted to give it to
Chua Jun Long for a third season in a row, but after a twenty goal league season, there was really no valid reason to deny the 30 year-old. "It's not like we could have given it to anybody else, and not have him knowing that it was a pity gift." International boss
Didi Reidenbach explained the obvious. "So here we are!"
There was probably more leeway with the junior trophy, but Georgian midfielder
Leri Bezhanishvili earning three U-21 caps - and in fact having just returned from contributing to a 5-3 win over Barbados - pushed his case massively. Otherwise,
Remond Bergervoet and
Egidius van der Duin could have been reasonable choices, but neither could complain much about Leri getting the nod.
The Busy Bees would offer a curiosity in the form of new trainee Mohd Fazren bin Cucu, who set an academy record by being accepted on his fifteenth birthday. "We're not sure what the kid's best position is, but boy does he have a knack for one-touch passing." assistant coach Abdillah bin Mohd noted.
