The Football Association of Singapore (FAS) held its 31st Annual General Meeting earlier this evening at the Jalan Besar Stadium with its Council members, sponsors and club representatives in attendance.
The meeting commenced with a video presentation which showcased the various landmarks and milestones achieved during the Financial Year 2012, including the National Team’s success at the Asean Football Federation (AFF) Suzuki Cup 2012.
In his opening address, FAS President Zainudin Nordin noted that Singapore football has progressed well during the past financial year. “Apart from the National Team, we have also achieved progress and success in various aspects, including youth development, coaching and refereeing, among others,” he said.
Several leading football officials who had visited Singapore during the past year singled out FAS’ footballing programmes for praise, and also added that the on-going implementation of the FAS Strategic Plan has yielded positive results including the development of our youth players.
Mr Zainudin said: “We are both humbled and encouraged by the endorsements of our programmes by leading football officials including Mr David Borja, FIFA’s Senior Manager, Development Programmes (Asia), and FC Metz’s Youth Academy Director Mr Denis Schaeffer.
“Notwithstanding our progress during the past one year, there remains much hard work ahead as we continue the implementation of our FAS Strategic Plan. We will continue to work closely with our stakeholders and at the same time, strive to secure more financial resources so as to execute the action plans identified in the Strategic Plan – each of which is key to the fulfilment of our various targets.”
Looking forward, Mr Zainudin revealed that FAS is studying the possibility of bidding for the hosting rights of a FIFA World Youth Championship, and added that the Association has expressed its interest to FIFA. Mr Zainudin said: “Our experience in hosting the inaugural editions of Asian Youth Games in 2009 and Youth Olympic Games in 2010, coupled with the successful hosting of several high-profile international events such as the 117th International Olympic Committee Session and the IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings in Singapore during the past few years, has given us confidence that we could and should aspire to host key football-related events including a FIFA age-group competition sometime in the near future. We humbly believe that Singapore has the capabilities to host such events which will help to further raise the appeal and popularity of sports, including football, in Singapore.”
The President also shared brief details of the upcoming signing of a football partnership with the French Football Federation, an exciting development considering the French track record and standing in terms of youth development. Among other areas of collaboration, the agreement will provide increased international exposure for local players through matches between clubs of both countries, as well as stints at their prestigious training academies for promising players and staff.
Mr Zainudin announced changes in the FAS Council. 10 new council members have been appointed to serve a two-year term which commences on 1 October 2013 and ends on 30 September 2015.
The line-up of the new FAS Council 2013-2015 is as follows:
President: Mr Zainudin Nordin
Vice-President: Mr Tan Soo Nan
Vice-President: Mr Lim Kia Tong
Vice-President: Mr Bernard Tan (New)
Vice-President: Mr Edwin Tong (New)
Honorary Treasurer: Mr Sarjit Singh
Members:
Mr Thavaneson Selvaratnam
Mr Lim Eng Lee
Mr Michael Kuah Kim Huat
Mr Tan Chong Huat
Mr Edward Liu (New)
Mr Zulkifli Bin Baharudin
Mr Bennett Neo Gim Siong
Mr Ng Mui Kim
Dr Dinesh Nair
Mr Tan Seng Hua
Mr Michael Foo Say Peng (New)
Mr Chow Phee Chat (New)
Mr Razali Saad (New)
Mr Lim Tong Hai (New)
Mr Bambang Sugeng Kajairi (New)
Mr Kelvin Teo Ban Seng (New)
Mr Han Fook Kwang (New)
Mr Zainudin also expressed his appreciation to the following eight outgoing Council members for their contribution to the development of Singapore football during the past few years. “We are grateful to each of them for their staunch support and commitment towards the development of Singapore football in recent years. They have played a key role in helping our Association achieve many milestones and fulfil our goals aimed at bringing local football to a higher level, and I look forward to their continued support and insightful views and suggestions on local football.”
Outgoing Council Members:
Ms Ang Lay Kwang
Mr Bala Chandran s/o A Kandiah
Mr Daisuke Korenaga
Mr Jackson Yap Kit Siong
Mr Koh Siong Ling
Mr Leong Kok Fann
Mr Mohd Muzammil Bin Mohd
Mr Panthradil George Samuel
Mr Zainudin concluded: “There are exciting times ahead for Singapore football although I should add that we must continue to persevere and overcome perennial challenges and constraints. I am confident that with our continued hard work and perseverance, coupled with strong support from our stakeholders, Singapore football will continue to progress.”
Photo: Football Association of Singapore
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