Jakarta Casual

I gotta say I am impressed by Perak's new coach. Karl-Heinz Weigang is 80 years old and it is fair to say he has been there and done that when it comes to coaching.

He was born in Germany in 1935 which probably means he is one of the few coaches active today who lived through the Second World War and has some memories of it. He started his career with bibs, balls and cones in Sri Lanka in 1964 when it was still known as Ceylon before moving to South Vietnam in 1966 and stayed there until 1968. Not bad when you consider the Vietnam War was ongoing! 

South Vietnam of course no longer exists, it is part of Vietnam but Weigang will probably stay in the record books for ever as he would have been at the helm when they defeated Philippines 10-0 in Tokyo in 1967.

He first moved to Malaysia in 1979 to coach the national team. At that time I was a spotty goofy teenager devoting my energies to the last days of punk and following a poor Arsenal team when the money permitted and never thought about football beyond London unless it was trips north to be greeted by bottles and bricks. Yet here was Weigang 15 years into a coaching career.

In 1982 he had moved to West Africa where he stayed for 12 years or so before returning to Asia and this time a unified Vietnam.

He is back now with Perak after previous stints with Johor and Perak and I tell you what. Stuff your Jose Mourinho books where the sun don't shine, ig Weigang has penned his memoirs they would be worth reading!

22,500 Sriwijaya v Mitra Kukar
20,092 Persib v Madura United
13,125 Persis v PSCS
12,041 Buriram United v Nakorn Ratchasima
9,976   PSIM v PPSM

No games being played in Vietnam or Malaysia last weekend. The Persib attendance is awaiting confirmation.

You would expect Buriram's game against local rivals NR would have attracted a larger crowd, indeed the largest of the weekend in the region but it appears the fans, like the owner if rumours are to be believed, are losing interest in their one time invincible team.

Impressive that two second tier sides make the top five but again no action in VLeague and MSL

Sriwijaya v Mitra Kukar 0-0 22,500

What a game. As 0-0s go this was bloody awesome and on another day there could have been goals aplenty. Siwijaya may be filled with old buggers but god can they run and at times they tore Mitra Kukar's defence ragged but Sahar Ginajar put in a world class performance between the sticks to save his side a point.

How good a game was this? You could see the mutual respect between both sets of players at the end of the match and even the match officials seemed to be saying well done!

Persipura v Perseru 1-0 (Bio Paulin) 2,500

Persipura picked up their second win of the season. narrowly edging Papuan neighbours Perseru 1-0 though it took a goal from defender Bio 21 minutes from the end to secure the points. It was also Perseru's first loss of the campaign and ended their proud boast of being the top team in the province.

In an effort to shake things up Persipura coach Jafri Sastra started with Pahabol, dropping Eddy Foday Boakay to the bench but as I said it needed a defender to break the deadlock. 

After the game Sastra was quick to suggest Persipura had overcome their slow start to the season. 'Yesterday,' he said 'the players were still sleeping. Now they are awake.' In a weekend of crap crowds this was another...2,500 for a local derby suggesting the fans don't think the Black Pearls are fully awake. Their first home game of the season v Persija saw 21,000...where have all the fans gone?

Meanwhile Perseru Agus Setiyono coach blamed the ref for the loss...come back when you lose a few home games pal.

Arema v Gresik United 3-1 (Raphael Maitimo, Hamka Hazah, Gustavo Marulanda; Ghozali Siregar) 5,877

Disappointing crowd for the East Java derby but Arema showed again why they are serious contenders for the ISC as they turned on the style at a sodden Kanjuruhan Stadium to defeat Gresik United 3-1. And don't forget they still have Cristian Gonzales and Dendi Santoso to return!

Arema go back to the top of the ISC after suffering their first loss of the season last weekend away to Mitra Kukar but the team from East Kalimantan could leap frog them if they get a result against Sriwijaya this weekend.

Hamka Hamzah joint top scorer in Indonesia anyone?! He now has three in five games...

PS TNI have only been a professional club for a few months but their arrival in Indonesian football has certainly been eventful.  They took over Persiram back in March and took their place in the Indonesia Soccer Championship, a competition put together by football authorities to fill the void while FIFA dealt with the PSSI suspension.

Source

While PS TNI were entering what were in effect friendly competitions, like the military backed General Sudirman Cup, no one was really too fussed but now it appears the guys in uniform have taken a shine to football. They took over Persiram and now a guy with many medals wants to run PSSI.

Last week PS TNI fans were involved in serious crowd disturbances when they played away to Gresik United. The game was held up for more than 20 minutes and some reports said more than 50 Gresik fans needed hospital treatment. The military at first said they were not sure if those involved were their people or not but pictures showing men in crew cut fly kicking home fans were pretty explicit.

PS TNI have since come out and apologied for their actions of some of their fans and there was a widely publicised 'kiss and make up session' between the two sets of fans but the trouble came at an embarrassing time for the newly formed club. The president director is in the running for the top job at the PSSI!

Further embarrassment followed when investigations into the Gresik disturbances found only 483 fans had purchased tickets for the away fan enclosure yet more than 1,500 were there. Meaning a thousand or so got in without paying!

With the sports minister having his say the pressure has been mounting on the ISC organisers to act quickly and punish the offenders. The sports minister has said it doesn't matter whether the trouble makers were soldiers or police they should be punished, a clear signal of intent from the government at least.  The ISC have announced they will hold a meeting about the violence next week and fans have been drawing parallels between the fines dished out for flares inside stadiums and the rampage in Gresik. Will ISC take action?

Now PSSI have declared they don't recognise PS TNI as their takeover of Persiram happened while they were suspended. Which in the context of the ISC it doesn't mean much. They are officially not involved in the running of the ISC, that is being done by an outfit called GTS. While it may seem like strong language to say the club are illegal the PSSI have left the door open saying if PS TNI are to apply for PSSI membership through the normal channels they are welcome to do so.

For now PS TNI have more mundane things on their mind. They have lost two and drawn two of their opening four games and this weekend they host their first home game at Pakansari Stadium in Cibinong against PSM looking for their first win.

My back hurts. Seriously I almost fell off my bloody chair on reading the Penang FA will no longer be involved in the running of the football club. They have appointed Bojan Hodak as CEO and Nenand Bacina as coach and just have a read of this quote from FA president Datuk Seri Nazir Ariff.

'Bojan and Nenad will manage the team according to their own style. FAP have given them 100% authority to improve the team’s performance. From now on, we want the team to be run by football professionals ... not politicians, half-baked professionals or amateurs.'

A turkey has just voted for Christmas! Massive respect to Penang for making this choice and I hope it works for them. They certainly have appointed a couple of wise old heads to take charge of things but oh how must other coaches around the region be feeling!

Penang recently 'rested' coach jacksen F Tiago after fans got a bit pissy at a bad result.. The supporters hung around after the game ojecting to the coach and some of the players and the FA members eventually called in a couple of representatives to thrash things out. The result? Jacksen was gone to all intents and purposes. An amateur way of dealing with a professional matter and it is to their credit the FA have seen the error of their ways and taken action accordingly.

This is such a good story. On paper it is revolutionary in this part of the world. We need only look at Kelantan to see how a once mighty football club is being run in such a cack handed way. Too often clubs are seen as an extension of the owner or chief's ego and when they lose, as clubs must do in football, it's in the rules, they throw a hissy fit and blame everyone. When the club wins there they are soaking up the glory the players have earned, taking the plaudits and the credit as if they had netted a 90 second hat trick themselves to win the game.

Penang are taking the first steps towards a professional football club being run like a professional football club. No doubt there will be teething problems along the way and fans must be patient but this is the way forward for Malaysian football. 

Sriwijaya's fine start to the season has seen they share top spot of the ISC with Mitra Kukar and Persija. This weekend Widodo Cahyo Putro's men go toe to toe with Mitra Kukar and the club are hoping to cash in at the gate by increasing ticket prices.

Their last last home against Madura United, which Laskar Wong Kito won 5-0, was seen by 14,555 and Sriwijaya are expecting more than 20,000 for this weekend's game.

VVIP - Rp 100,000 increase to Rp 120,000
VIP - Rp 50,000 increase to Rp 75,000
West - Rp 40,000 increase to Rp 50,000
East - Rp 25,000 increase to Rp 30,000

I hope the club know what they are doing! They have started the season well but they have won nothing yet.

Labels: Laskar Wong Kito, Mitra Kukar, Palembang, Sriiwijaya

The whole football world these days seems to be obsessed by statistics. Number of passes, number of chewing, gum, number of sideways tackles by left footed players. The only numbers that count in football are the goals scored, that is what history recalls, and the only other stats I have an interest in are the attendance figures for clubs.

A couple of tweets recently have prompted me to sit down and compile the teams with the largest average crowds in South East Asia. There are a few difficulties with this of course. Numbers released by clubs or leagues may not always be that accurate due to what ever reason is the main one of course. Still for ball park figures they do make interesting reading.

Now if you think I am going to sit down and calculate every damned club across the region you really are in la la land. Instead I have selected the largest I have come across in my research. Apologies to Singapore, I didn't even bother!

Average League Attendances

1 - Persija 45,188
2 - Arema 23,557
3 - Persib 21,848
4 - PSS 20,660
5 - Buriram United 19,122
6 - Johor Darul Ta'zim 18,095
7 - Haiphong 17,500
8 - Persipura 16,682

Largest League Attendances

50,117 -  Persija v Semen Padang
40,260 -  Persija v Persela
32,600 -  Buriram United v Chonburi
32,391 -  Buriram United v Muang Thong United
32,159 -  Nakhorn Ratchasima v Muang Thong United
29,650 -  Arema v BS United
28,000 -  Haiphong v Becemax Binh Duoung
26,800 -  Johor Darul Ta'zim v Selangor
25,125 -  Persib v Persiba
21,000 -  PSS v Persiba Bantul

Notes

Persija played their first two home games at Bung Karno Stadium, Jakarta. That venue will now be closed for renovations ahead of 22018 Asian Games and Persija must play their home games elsewhere. Solo is the most likely option so expect their average crowd to drop substantially.
Persib played their first two home games at Si Jalak Harupat, Soreang. That venue will now be closed for renovations ahead of National Games and Persib must play their home games elsewhere. Cikarang and Bandung are likely options.
I am not entirely convinced PSS slip in at number 10 and am willing to be dissuaded. Any other crowds in Thailand or Malaysia top 20,000?

Two years ago Darren Lok was signing a new contract with Eastbourne Borough, scoring goals for them at the weekend and earning his bread working as a support worker for psychiatric patients. Now he appears to be on the verge of a call up by the Malaysian national team. It sounds like a story straight from the Jamie Vardy Book of What the Fuck Happened In My Career.

Lok came through the ranks at Eastbourne, a club based in a town more famous as a destination for old buggers looking to tinkle their tootsies in the freezing waters of the English Channel before heading to the Bingo. He played his last game for the club away to Ebbsfleet United, you really do need Google Maps to understand English non league, where his team lost 4-2. In front of 1400 fans! Lok however apparently played a blinder, if the match report can be believed.

The guy writing said report named Lok man of the match, adding ' – this week as every week, a man with Borough in his bones. Best of luck, Darren!'

In a 2014 local newspaper article (it is worth pointing out to people in South East Asia England has thousands of football clubs across the country, not just four or five, and they all receive column inches in the local media) Lok was described as At under 6ft tall, Lok might not strike you as your archetypal non-league centre forward but he was busy last season carving out a reputation as an energetic, lively striker, who makes up for what he lacks in physique with a presence beyond his stature.

The article says nothing about his Malaysian heritage but early 2015 Lok was 'discovered' and featured in the local Four Four Two where he said he loved Chinese food, loved Malaysia but couldn't speak the language! When asked whether he would like to play there he replied 'I would love to play for Malaysia one day. Giving up my English citizenship is something that I would have to give great consideration, but if the chance ever came up to represent Malaysia, I would jump at it.'

Last September national team coach Ong Kim Swee said he was aware of Lok and was open to having more mixed heritage players in the squad...subject to their ability of course. Others who have made an impact in recent times include Brendan Gan, Matthew Davies and Junior Eldstal. 

One time St George legend Scott Ollerenshaw has known about Lok for a while and he is impressed saying 'Darren is potentially the diamond of the lot. He's powerfully built and can score goals.'

Now it appears his chance has come. Lok is currently trialling with Malaysia Super League champions Johor Darul Ta'zim and their feeder side Johor Darul Ta'zim II and he could be called up by the national side for their AFC Asian Cup qualifiers against Timor Leste early in June...if he receives his Malaysian passport in time.

OKS is more cautious. 'Darren still has to prove himself ... no one’s guaranteed a place in the national team. I will have to assess his condition first,' he said on Tuesday. 'I won’t need long to see if he's good enough for the national team ... maybe one or two days. I’ve also received good feedback from JDT.'

If Lok doesn't make the Timor Leste squad it is likely he will be heading to Oceania for friendlies against Papua new Guinea, Fiji and New Caledonia later in the month where he will be enjoying beaches far different from the pebbles of Eastbourne.

Forget Jamie Vardy having a party, this is Malaysia and Darren Lok could be stirring the wok!

God knows Malaysia need strikers. From the squad that was called up for the Myanmar friendly later this week only Amri Yahyah (10 goals) and Safiq Rahim (15) had reached double figures...and Amri is 35 years old! That squad didn't include Norhsahrul Idlan who has six goals or 32 year old Safee Sali who has scored 23 or Indra Putra Mahayuddin (17). And they were held 0-0 by Macau in their last friendly. 

A coach can only draw on what is available to him and with absolutely no disrespect to Lok who is only taking the opportunity that has been offered to him the mere fact a player from Eastbourne Borough could even be considered for the national team says much about the quality of young players coming through and, I guess by implication, the failure of the Harimau Muda projects of recent years but that is another story.

Labels: Arema, Gustavo Giron Marulanda

Kelantan. The footballing soap opera that keeps giving.  Malaysia has given us BoBoiBoy and Upin & Lupin in recent years but none of their story lines come close to the tales that emanate from the north eastern state.

Suffice for a recap, they have Skin Cream Lady threatening to withdraw her sponsorship and TSAM challenging the FAM to take action because the club he oversees owes money to players.

Against this backdrop a new coach has come in to replace K Devan who stepped down recently. Bulgarian Velizar Popov is the latest to try his luck with the Red Warriors who have struggled this season as the two aforementioned figures compete for headlines to the detriment of the team.

But Popov has shown he is well suited for the job. After Kelantan lost 5-2 at home to Selangor in the Malaysia Super League he let loose with both barrels.

'There is something unusual going on here. It is definitely not normal to pick up two red cards in two matches in the space of three days. It is unprofessional because we are forced to play with ten men against a strong team.'*

Fair enough. There is something unusual going on at Kelantan. From the outside it looks like a club low on morale for pretty obvious reasons.

'To those without the heart to play for Kelantan, you are free to leave the team at your will.'

Yep, contractual obligations aside. But then he really puts his size 10s into the players with a comment of immense crassness and insensitivity.

'In Europe, when something like this happens, I would not hesitate to cut the players’ salaries. Everyone has to realize that no single person is bigger than the entire team.'

Oh yes, perfect for the job. Can you see things improving for Kelantan anytime soon? A shame cos it should be one of the biggest clubs in the country. 17,000 saw the Selangor game, thousands travelled to the previous game.

*SOURCE - Fourth Official

'

Persela v Persipura 0-1 (Lukas Mandowen) 7,826

Three points for Jafri Sastra's Persipura gives them five for the season, just three off the joint leaders Sriwijaya, Persija and Mitra Kukar. Not an unsurmountable number this early in the campaign and it is fair to say he can breathe a little easier now after this win rounded off Match Day 4.

No cuch luck for Persela's Stafan Hansson. Pointless from four games you wonder how much longer he can hang on.

Footballers around the world are known for the ostentatious celebrations whenever they score a goal. Hell, some of the even practise them in training hoping they will get the opportunity to try them in front of their adoring legions of fans.

When PSS scored a goal against Persiba Bantul in their local derby yesterday afternoon their celebration was more subdued and more respectful.

They picked up a piece of A4 with a few hand written words showing a message of support for football fans in general who have died in recent days watching football and of course for the PSS fan who was killed in a brawl on the early hours of Sunday morning.

The message was simple and to the point. And all the more meaningful because it has not gone through the grubby mitts of a slick football club PR machine as it would do in England. Nay, scratch that. You would never see players in England do this. Clubs would not allow such an individual display of expression or sympathy.

Bill Shankly famously said football is more important than life or death. That was before Heysel and Hillsborough. Were he around today he would be quick to qualify those words.

'If football is more expensive than our soul then we choose to live without football #RIPFANSINDONESIA' 

Fans too showed their respect for the memory of their colleague with an impressive terrace display.



In an emotionally charged derby PSS won 2-1 in front of more than 21,000...the largest crowd in Indonesia. 

Labels: BSC, PSS, Sleman, Slemania

With the Indonesia Soccer Championship up and running for a few weeks now there has been relative silence over Group 8. Comprising teams spread around a number of different islands I guess there have been issues over the expenses involved in reaching so many out of the way places.

The six teams which make up Group 8 are:

Kalteng Putra Palangkarya - Kalimantan
Yahukimo - Papua
Persigo Gorontalo - Sulawesi
Persbul Buol - Sulawesi
Persigubin - Papua
Celebest Palu - Sulawesi

While life would have been fairly easy for the Sulawesi based clubs pity poor Kalteng. Their away day costs would have been astronomical and journey times would have eaten up several days.

It make sense there fore to have this particular group based on one one venue to help reduce the costs and the ISC organisers are currently deciding whether to award the hosting rights to either Celebest Palu or Kalteng Putra.

Gresik United v PS TNI 0-0 12,300

Unfortunately this game was marred by a pitch invasion that held up proceedings for almost 20 minutes and left 50 fans needing treatment as marauding PS TNI fans went on the rampage.

The game itself wasn't too bad. In the first half especially South Korean Oh In Kyun was the wayang master for Gresik United but all too often the final delivery was woeful. 

As for PS TNI they remain winless after four games and have just two points to show for their efforts. Their attempt to build a team around young Indonesian players is laudable but unless they do something to reign in their support they will soon become associated with something other than football. 

Labels: Bhayangkara Surabaya United, Gresik United, Perseru, Persija, PS TNI, Sriwijaya