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FM2009 - The S-League Thread

BenArsenal

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BenArsenal

BenArsenal

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I don't know how many people play FM using the S-League in Singapore, but I suppose I should make a small contribution by creating a mini-guide for anyone who is interested anyway.

The information here pertains to the upcoming 2009 season in real life (which starts on Monday, 16 February 2009), and I'm not sure if they will be included in the update. But at least you'll be having the latest info, and if they're not in the update, you can use this for the next FM edition.

But first, a bit about the S-League.

About the S-League

The S-League was formed in 1996, as Singapore's very own football league. Prior to this, football in Singapore consisted of the national team competing in the Malaysian Cup. After winning the trophy in 1994, a decision was made to withdraw from the tournament, which came as a shock to Singaporeans, ending a 75-year association with the tournament.

However, the S-League has moved leaps and bounds since then, and has become one of the top 10 leagues in Asia, according to the AFC (Asian Football Confederation). From 8 teams in 1996, it has since expanded to 12 teams, and has also attracted some foreign clubs to establish feeder teams in the league to increase its competitiveness.

The 12 teams all offer varying challenges, but it is a very promising league, and to be fair, with the right moves, anyone is capable of anything.

This thread is for the discussion of the S-League. I hope this might raise some interest, and perhaps create more awareness. Anyone, Singaporean or otherwise, is welcome to contribute.

The teams of the S-League

These are brief descriptions of the teams of the S-League, with not too much detail. Anyone is free to add on any additional information.

Albirex Niigata (Singapore) - Due to licensing issues, this team, a feeder of Albirex Niigata in Japan's J-League, are called Niigata Unicorn (Singapore) in the game. Usually a team of younger, promising Japanese players, Niigata have had decent, if unspectacular, showings in the league ever since their entrance in 2004, with mostly mid-table finishes to their credit.

Balestier Khalsa - One of the weaker teams in the league, it has occasionally surprised a few teams with their efforts. Has promise, but not much is expected of them in 2009. Expected to prop up the table again by the media.

Brunei DPMM - A new team for 2009 (I'm not sure if they will be included in the update), they replace Dalian Shide Siwu, who were booted out for their poor performance in 2008. As the name suggests, they are from Brunei, and hosting their games in their home country will provide a new twist for the upcoming season. Being newcomers, their expectations aren't high too.

Geylang United - Former greats, with two S-League titles to their name, they have flattered to deceive in recent seasons, with bottom half finishes ever since coming in 2nd back in 2003. Will they ever return to their glory days?

Gombak United - An gritty, hardworking team, their last place finish in 2002 forced them to withdraw from the league for a couple of seasons. Since their return in 2006 however, they have had some strong showings, finishing in the top half consistently. They certainly play with a vigour not seen in their early days.

Home United - The football team of the Singapore Police Force, they are one of the two 'giants' in the league. Regular title challengers, but have only won the league twice. Expected to challenge for the title again though.

Sengkang Punggol - Often the laughing stock of the league, they have never finished in the top half despite their gutsy efforts, with regular last place finishes. 2009 however, is a whole new ball game for the Dolphins. With a new investor on board, they are now dubbed the Man City of the S-League. Having signed a few internationals, most notably top striker Indra Sahdan, much is expected of the big spending squad. Can they finally move out of the bottom of the league?

Singapore Armed Forces FC (SAFFC) - The dominant force of the league, with seven titles in thirteen seasons, the army team are definitely the team to beat. Can anyone stop their Man U-esque domination? Title favourites definitely.

Super Reds - The third foreign team in the league, they are unique in that they are not an offshoot of another team, but a unique creation fielding South Korean players. Their two seasons so far have been remarkably contrasting, with last place in their debut season followed by a runners-up finish in 2008. One wonders what 2009 holds, but they would be good for a top half finish.

Tampines Rovers - Often dubbed 'Dad's Army' for their penchant for fielding ageing players, they however, have defied their critics, winning back-to-back titles in 2004 and 2005 during what was arguably their golden age. Have yet to make their way back to the top, but still often there or thereabouts despite their ageing squad.

Woodlands Wellington - A sleeping giant, they are the only remaining founders of the league in their current form (the others being Tampines, Geylang and SAFFC) not to have won the league, their best performance in recent seasons being 3rd in 2005. They have, however, had some good cup runs over the past few years, making the final twice. 2009 would prove to be a struggle though, as the club struggles to keep costs down.

Young Lions - Essentially the Singapore Under-23 team, league placings are of secondary importance compared to good performances, as the ultimate aim of the team is to churn out young talents that will eventually go on to star for the national team. Have had a mixed time so far, with finishes as high as third (twice) and as low as bottom.

Some recommended players

Some of the notable players, listed by club. Only the local teams by the way, since there is a limit of 6 foreigners you can sign and so you can't really buy many players from the three foreign teams.

Balestier - Young defenders Jufri Thaha and Han Yiguang have potential, but otherwise no real stars of note in what is otherwise a weak team. Ram Shanker can do a decent job in midfield.

Geylang - Their main dangermen are Slovakians Miroslav Latiak (striker) and Radoslav Belicak (midfielder). Lanky central defender Baihakki Khaizan is a regular for the national team, while others who can do a job are forwards Masrezwan Masturi, Ashrin Shariff, goalkeeper Yazid Yasin and Noor Ali, a winger who's also the captain and a club favourite.

Gombak - Decent squad. Have an African based strike force, with Nigerians Gabriel Obatola and Emmanuel Emuejeraye tipped to receive Singapore citizenship soon. Agu Casmir is always good for some goals, while veterans Jaslee Hatta and Bah Mamadou shore up the backline. Jeremy Chiang is their standout youngster, versatile enough to play in both defence and midfield.

Home United - Fairly strong squad. Veteran centreback and captain S.Subramani leads the backline, while they also have a strong midfield of Shi Jiayi, Peres de Oliveira and winger Itimi Dickson, all combining to provide Cameroon striker Kengne Ludovick with adequate service for goals. Having the national goalkeeper in Lionel Lewis helps too.

Sengkang - With their new riches, have filled the squad with some talent. Former Singapore captain Aide Iskandar leads the backline, along with current international right back Noh Rahman. Star striker Indra Sahdan is poised to join as well, and this is a team that has lots of potential.

SAFFC - Boasts the strongest squad of all. Daniel Bennett and John Wilkinson wouldn't be out of place in the English lower leagues, and the rest of the team simply oozes quality in the form of defenders Shaiful Esah, Japanese Kenji Arai, midfielder Therdsak Chaiman from Thailand, and forwards Ahmad Latiff and Korean Park Tae Won. Not to forget veteran goalscorer Aleksander Duric.

Tampines - Mostly ageing squad, but boasts a fair few internationals as well. National number two keeper Hassan Sunny plies his trade here, as do his international teammates Ridhuan Muhamad, who can operate as a winger or wingback, tough tackling midfielder Mustafic Fahrudin, and a very talented forward line in Noh Alam Shah, Qiu Li and Khairul Amri.

Woodlands - Major cost cutting means that the only player of note is Singapore international Precious. Along with perhaps veteran keeper Rezal Hassan.

Young Lions - Some young talents can be found here. Jasper Chan is a promising goalkeeper, while midfielder Hariss Harun is Singapore's youngest ever international, winning his first cap at the age of 16.

So, there you have it, a brief guide to the S-League. Hope this has been useful, and any possible additions to this guide is welcome. :)

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BenArsenal

BenArsenal

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Any players you recommend?

Depends on the team you take and your budget. And also, depends on the upcoming update.

Most recommended players are internationals, as you'd expect. I'll pick out some from the local teams:

Balestier: Jufri Taha and Han Yiguang are young defenders with potential. But they're mostly a weak team anyway. Ram Shanker is a decent midfielder too.

Geylang: Tall defender Bahaikki Khaizan is a regular of the Singapore team. Forwards Masrezwan Masturi and Ashrin Shariff can do a decent job, as are keeper Yazid Yasin and winger Noor Ali, their captain. Slovakians Ratislav Belicak and Miroslav Latiak are the dangermen though.

Gombak: Nigerian Gabriel Obatola is tipped to receive Singapore citizenship once he has completed his 5 years residency term. Can play in attack and midfield. The other dangerman is Singapore national striker Agu Casmir, who's always deadly. Jeremy Chiang is a youngster to look out for, able to play in defence and midfield.

Home United: Shi Jiayi is a dangerous playmaker, and combined with winger Itimi Dickson and Brazilian Peres de Oliveira, Home's midfield is formidable. Cameroon striker Kengne Ludovick is very dangerous, and they also have Singapore's number one Lionel Lewis.

Sengkang: They have bought many talents, with former Singapore captain Aide Iskandar patrolling the defence, along with international right back Noh Rahman.

SAFFC: As expected, has most of the best players. Daniel Bennett and John Wilkinson wouldn't be out of place in the English lower leagues, and Thai midfielder Therdsak Chaiman is always dangerous, as is winger Ahmad Latiff. And I haven't even mentioned their veteran striker Aleksander Duric yet, who's always a good, dependable finisher despite his age.

Tampines: Singapore's number two kepper Hassan Sunny plays for The Stags, as are fellow Singapore internationals Noh Alam Shah (great strike rate), Qiu Li (decent support striker), Ridhuan Muhamad (winger who can operate as wing back), Khairul Amri (another good striker) and Fahrudin Mustafic (tough tackling midfielder enforcer). Thai Sutee Suksomkit is also very dangerous from midfield.

Woodlands: Not many to be honest, after a major overhaul of their squad for 2009. Defender Precious the only real star in the team.

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BenArsenal

BenArsenal

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Home United is an odd name for a team. I might have to add them to my list of games to play :D

I like playing with teams with odd names like Morón in Argentina.

They started out as Police FC. They changed their name because the Singapore Police Force wanted to be known as the 'Home Team'.

More info:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_United_FC

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  • 6 months later...
frutloopz

frutloopz

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singapore football is lousy

Then dont play in the s-league, there are alot of other leagues you can play with....Seriously, I dont see how in any way your post was even remotely beneficial to this thread, which mind you, as been dead for a good few months now...*rolls eyes*

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  • 2 weeks later...
Management

Management

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I have started a new game With Young Lions, and instantly started to try and weed out the deadwood.

I wouldn't say the whole squad was deadwood but the most of the players weren't up to my standard.

As I seem to have alot of trouble selling players, I ended up just releasing a whole bunch.

TRANSFERS

I could only find 2 positions that needed to be filled in the first squad almost straight away.

I needed a new AML & a new MC (as I'm using my Aston Villa tactic).

I was trolling through the free transfer list and came across a 19yo Japanese AML-FC

j0i4hj.jpg

He has been an absolute beast on the wing in the Pre-Season, And I recommend him for any S-League club.

I also came across a decent looking AMC, Izzuddin Rajabally.

His stats aren't amazing but he plays above them, for sure. So he was a definite for my vacant MC spot.

23kbzlz.jpg

STAFF

There was a few members of staff missing from our backroom that needed to addressed.

Firstly, we needed a Physio. I just put out a call and got minimal replies.

I decided on Sheik Abdullah Ismail simply because his names cool :p

Secondly we needed a scout, just to keep an eye out on possible future transfers.

I ended up hiring Farid Salim mainly because there was only one other option, and he was crap.

AFFILATES

There is always going to ba alot of business in football management,

and what better way to help your company grow than by affiliating yourself with other companies.

We have linked up with Div 1 club, Tessensohn.

Giving me the ability to send players out on loan and also the first choice of any players they attempt to sell.

This will give us an edge when keeping an eye out on prospect players.

PRE-SEASON

We have had an excellent lead up to my inaugural season in the S-League.

  • (A) 4-0 vs SAFSA (NFL Div1)

Rajabally got us off to a flyer, scoring 2 goals in the first 20 minutes.

The rest of the game played out very well with goals to Hariss Harun and Gabriel Quak

  • (H) 2-2 vs Townsville Thunder (Possible A-League Expansion)

We were expected to go down like a sack of potatoes, and going by the first half, we were.

After a late injury to striker, Sufian Anuar (out for 4 weeks), we started to fight back.

With 10 minutes remaining, Obadi Aikhena open the gates with a brilliant shot

and was shortly followed up by a goal from Harun, drawing the game.

This was definitely a great result for the club and a warning to upcoming oppositions.

  • (A) 7-0 vs Tanjong Pagar (Singapore Lower League)

Absolutely outplayed them on the pitch, as to be expected.

A hatrick to Harun and a brace for Kagawa set us up for a dominant win.

  • (A) 3-0 vs Tessensohn (NFL Div 1)

Not the scoreline that was expected but we still looked good on the park.

No real stand out players, but the Key Men took charge and led by example

SQUAD

Upon choosing to play as Youndg Lions, I have also agreed to alot more than jsut a "club"

Primarily the club is the Singapore National Squads feeder club.

We look to develop young stars for the future of the natinal team.

Our U/18 squad is also based under the same "responsibiltiy.

With these "rulings" over the club, I am only allowed to have 4 players over the age of 23

and due to league rules, I am only allowed to have 6 Foreigners (4 in Matchday Squad)

This makes it difficult when looking for quality players, but I could look out for Bargain Loans.

2wclhjk.jpg

That's all I have for now... I'll try and update after playing each club so:

Start of May, 2nd week of August & End of Season.

I'm not in the Asian Champions League.. maybe next year :p

So... Time to get the 2009 season started.

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Kryston

Kryston

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Hi Management,

I think striker is always the main issue your team (which is the 2008 version by the way) will be facing.

See if you can try to lure any of the likes of Ahmad Fahmie, Jafri Hashim or Ashrin Shariff in.

Otherwise with Isa Halim, Hariss Harun, Obadin Aikhena, Hyrulnizam Juma'at and the 2 Yunos, you have a pretty good squad for the S League

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  • 5 months later...
The Unknown Imposter

The Unknown Imposter

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Has anyone played as Niigata Unicorn (Singapore) in this league? I decided to give the league a go and let the computer choose this team at random.

I discovered that all the players at Niigata Unicorn are Japanese and it seems that the only players you can sign are Japanese. The game confuses matters by not explaining this and then - when you try to sign Singaporean players - tells you that you can't sign non-Singaporean players(!)

As an aside, I also found (and reported) a crash dump error on 10.3 (on my system) related to clicking on the 'View Niigata Unicorn' that is in the top right hand corner of the screen. This brings you to the Japanese Niigata squad screen but then your next click brings a crash dump.

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Frosin

Frosin

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They started out as Police FC. They changed their name because the Singapore Police Force wanted to be known as the 'Home Team'.

More info:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_United_FC

It's like as wiki said, its cause of other agency involvement that they has to drop Police FC and use Home team lol, not they want it.

Singapore afaik currently don't have player that can make it to championship level, but league 1 might be possible. Still it would be better for those managing lower league team to look else where for talent, just check back for the singapore regen once awhile for some surprise find if lucky.

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  • 4 weeks later...
BenArsenal

BenArsenal

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I haven't updated this in a while. There are a few changes for 2010. Someone mentioned Etoile, which is actually interesting as they use French players. IRL they are making quite a name for themselves in the league too, with much fanfare.

I'll answer a few questions here. Maybe around the next week I'll start an FM10 thread, if it's OK.

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BenArsenal

BenArsenal

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Has anyone played as Niigata Unicorn (Singapore) in this league? I decided to give the league a go and let the computer choose this team at random.

I discovered that all the players at Niigata Unicorn are Japanese and it seems that the only players you can sign are Japanese. The game confuses matters by not explaining this and then - when you try to sign Singaporean players - tells you that you can't sign non-Singaporean players(!)

As an aside, I also found (and reported) a crash dump error on 10.3 (on my system) related to clicking on the 'View Niigata Unicorn' that is in the top right hand corner of the screen. This brings you to the Japanese Niigata squad screen but then your next click brings a crash dump.

Niigata Unicorn (Singapore) is the feeder club of Albirex Niigata (Niigata Unicorn in the game) in the J-League. It wasn't playable in FM07, but it seems that you can play the team in subsequent editions.

You can indeed only sign Japanese players with Niigata. I think the game gets confused because they are in the Singaporean League and the club is restricted to one nationality, so it gives that message of signing only Singaporeans.

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BenArsenal

BenArsenal

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Interesting... Are there any Singaporean players(National or Foreign) that could make the jump to a European Club? Like a hidden Argentin/Brazilian/Nigerian gem that can be found in the Middle East?

I'm not sure how the game rates them, but IRL, there are a few.

Young Lions has Luka Savic, a Serbian midfielder who used to be with the youth teams of Barcelona and Villarreal. He's only about 18 this year, so I bet he has plenty of potential.

In my experience, the British converts (Daniel Bennett and John Wilkinson) are good for teams at League One level. When running the Singapore League in the game I notice that they are always snapped up by teams such as Chesterfield or Cheltenham, teams of that sort of level.

Of the locally-born, unfortunately they're probably good for a low reputation league (somewhere Eastern European perhaps), or again the British lower leagues. Khairul Amri, Lionel Lewis, Fazrul Nawaz and Haris Harun come to mind. But don't expect too much. FM doesn't rate them too highly. Also, in FM10, it's unlikely you'll get a work permit for them, so if you're a British club, I guess you can just forget about them (unless Singapore's ranking somehow skyrockets).

If you want some semblance of quality, I guess you can just pick the Frenchmen off Etoile. Some of them have Ligue 1 experience. But again, don't get your expectations up. There is a reason why they don't play in Ligue 1 anymore.

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