Project 2010?



Few years ago, there was a project called 2010. Not really sure what the real details are but it's something about the sports fraction aiming for the 2010 World Cup. Yup, the target was for the Singapore National soccer team to qualify for the World Cup. So, here we are and Singapore doesn't even come close to beating war-torn Iraq. What happen to the project? God knows......

On a different note, looking at all the big soccer stars and soccer nations, most of the players actually come from humble beginnings or even hardships. They are the ones who had nothing at all, and soccer was their way out to success. Their hunger for making life a lil' bit better for their family was the first reason these guys gave everything to soccer, and achieving it. These guys are always very hungry to achieve something, even when they reached the status of God-like players.

In some countries, like the USA, parents pay for their kids to play soccer. Some of these kids don't even want to play soccer but were made to do that as part of their curricular activities. These are the kids who come from middle-income families to all the rich ones. Most of them play soccer coz they have to or just for the fun of it such as socializing. How many of them would have the hunger to achieve success and give it all?? As much as the US team are in the World Cup, they will never reach the standards of Argentina, Brazil or Uruguay. If you wonder why teams like Nigeria are not successful anymore, it's because the players are rich people now and they got nothing much to fight for themselves. Ever wonder why the French team acted like they did in the WC2010? Well, it didn't help coz they're just French.

Coming back to Singapore, I notice that for the past 3 years, the soccer culture has become familiar like the one in US. Parents here pay for their kids to be in well-known soccer schools, mixing with expat families or train under ex-soccer celebrities whose only aim is to make sure they earn enough for a car, condo, annual holidays and dining in restaurants every other day. Do you think the new generation will be hungry to achieve all this? By that, means a whole lot of sacrifices, determination and discipline.

I still remember those days where we see kids playing soccer at the void decks, basketball courts, carpark, etc. Name it, well make a pitch out of it. Nowadays, u don't even see them anywhere. Sometimes, not even on the futsal courts coz the Mat-Reps are there to loiter and create nuisance. Not forgetting we have to pay like a gazillion dollars just to play soccer on a proper pitch. With all these, what actually make you think that we gonna be in the world cup in the near future??

There's more to be said but, would anybody even bother? Where's the hunger?? Hungry?? Or just 'hung-out-to-dry'?? Let's see whose hungry enough to win this year's WC2010?? Vamos Argentina!!!!!