Courtesy: Today On line


High octane futsal action impresses Sivaji

THE 7-Eleven Inter-School Futsal Championships kicked off last Saturday at Choa Chu Kang Sports Hall, with the North and South Zone under-15 teams engaging in tremendous battles.
What the players didn’t expect was the presence of a football guru, who was on the lookout for potential future national
talent. PN Sivaji, technical director of the Football Association of Singapore, who watched the action on Saturday, said he has asked some of the school coaches to recommend their good players to him.
“There is definitely talent out there. Futsal is a game that requires both skill and quick-thinking and there is much potential
to be developed from what I’ve seen in the matches played,” Sivaji said. Each zone of 16 teams were divided into four groups of four teams each. After several bouts of round-robin matches, the top four teams of each group advanced into the zone semi-finals, after which the final two teams fought it out for the right to be crowned.
There were surprises aplenty on the futsal pitch. Never a strong contender in the 11-a-side Inter- School Championships, Queensway Secondary amazed the crowd by virtually dominating the South Zone.
Both their teams (Queensway ‘A’ and Queensway ‘B’) emerged victorious in their respective semi-final matches to make it an all-Queensway final. Queensway ‘A’ eventually took the South Zone championship
with a 1-0 win over their schoolmates. Coach Chua Lye Heng had nothing but praise for his players. “The boys put in a lot of hard work and commitment and they certainly deserve the good result. I would say this is the best team we ever had in the history of Queensway soccer,” he said.
In the North Zone Final, it was down to Yishun Secondary ‘A’ and Fuchun Secondary ‘A’ to battle for the crown. Both sides boasted good skills and technique, not surprising considering both outfits had nationa youth league players. At the final whistle, the teams were tied at 0-0. The game then went into a penalty shootout and Yishun ‘A’ managed to oust their opponents 2-1. The 7-Eleven under-15 Futsal Championships continued yesterday with the East and West Zone.
St Patrick’s Secondary ‘A’ was crowned East Zone champion, defeating Bedok South Secondary 2-1. In the West Zone Final, Clementi Town Secondary were no match for their opponents, Regent Secondary, as the latter triumphed 3-0 and successfully took home the West Zone championship.





Posted by Luca Ranocchiari --> luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com