Author name: Ernest Cheong

SailorFanTalk with the GOAT. And with that, the 2025 season comes to an end. Not quite, though it may feel like it for some fans. For the longest time we’ve been accustomed to SPL seasons ending around December, with the recent football calendar shift only coming into effect last season. After the highs of 24/25, this season has been underwhelming to most observers. Mixed Feelings For starters, we are out of the ACL Two, unable to replicate the high of reaching the final. This was despite drawing an easier group on paper, comprised of ASEAN sides. It was fair to consider the Sailors’ squad as one of the strongest in the group, especially after the acquisitions in the summer. Unfortunately, football rarely plays out the way we expect it to. Persib Bandung managed to improve their fortunes, finishing top after convincingly being the better side in most matches. We managed to earn 4 points against them but it was not enough as their imperious home form ensured their progress to the next round. It was a particularly tough pill to take considering the online banter that follows Persib everywhere they go, but we can take solace in our improved results against the Indonesian side. Our campaign was instead undone by our regional nemesis Bangkok United. 0 points out of 6 against our direct H2H rival was catastrophic, especially in the manner we lost the games. A single point/goal in those games would have seen us qualify ahead of them, which we belatedly managed to do in the Shopee Cup. In a funny turn of events, we have since signed Luka Adžić who scored the decisive goal in our home loss against the Bangkok Angels. Oh and a certain Kyoga Nakamura… Selangor was this group’s whipping boys, managing a solitary point against Bangkok away. This probably foreshadowed the weak showings of both clubs in MD-6. I had this to say in my previous article: Lion City Sailors beats Selangor. Bangkok United beats Persib Bandung. We brushed past the Malaysian side with relative ease, but the same could be said about Persib’s endeavours against Bangkok. It was not to be in the end, as we crashed out of the competition despite being level on points with Bangkok. Could we have done better than an early exit? Most definitely. But finishing on the same amount of points as last season is nothing to be ashamed of, as echoed by Bailey Wright on this Sports Minutes episode. The best we can do now is channel this disappointment towards future success, and that starts with the Singapore Cup final on the horizon. Allez Maxime The future successes will have to be achieved without our magician Maxime Lestienne, who left the Sailors after a fruitful 4 years. This inevitable goodbye was tough to take, especially as Max has been around for the majority of LCS’ history. I am sure many fans came to support the Sailors partly because of his excellence. I recall posting a Maxime Lestienne rap as part of my giveaway entry for our away day against Jeonbuk. That video has since been relegated to the archives of internet history. But it also led to me writing my first SailorFanTalk article back in 2023. Anyway, it is evident that Maxime has left a huge impact on everyone involved with the club. It was heartwarming to see the reception he received in his final game, with a tifo revealed before kickoff, an honour befitting of our legend. Truth be told, the game was rather uneventful in retrospect, with an early goal from Shawal taking the sting out of the two-legged tie. It would have been romantic to see Maxime register a goal involvement, and the Belgian had the best chance of the game with a penalty in the second half. Alas, he fluffed his Panenka attempt. It was indicative of his propensity to entertain, and ultimately the miss proved inconsequential. Maxime signed off with 70 goals and 97 assists, truly the best we’ve ever seen. Fans would have loved to see him continue playing till the end of the season, but given all that he has given to the Sailors over the years, it is hard to begrudge him his wish to spend more time with his family at home. It is time to look ahead and build on his legacy. We love you Maxime, we do! Mid-season Musings We are now at the most critical juncture of the season. Despite being 6 months in, the domestic league is in its relative infancy. Teams have only played 4-5 games, which means there is still 75% of the season to be decided. It is however blatantly obvious that only two teams are in contention to compete for the title, which just so happens to be the Cup final teams as well. Detractors may complain about LCS and Tampines receiving byes into the semis, but it was clear for all to see the increasing gap in quality between them and the rest of the league. Whoever wins the Cup will carry great confidence into the rest of the domestic season. For Tampines, it would embolden them on the great run of form they have been on, which includes impressive results in the ACL Two. For LCS, victory will capture the narrative and provide optimism for the games to come. Another cause for optimism is the Shopee Cup, where we still have a chance of qualification to the next round. Our main obstacle is ​​Nam Định FC, who we are due to face in our next away game. As long as we win both our final two games, we should be able to finish in second. After all, their final fixture is against the inevitable JDT. There are also possible sanctions against JDT that could be in the picture soon… That being said, we did lose 5-0 against our previous Vietnamese opponent CAHN last season. It will not be an easy away day, but with the squad

In this SailorFanTalk special, we have guest writer Ernest contributing yet another article! Ernest returns to share about his experience travelling with the Crew for yet another away game, this time a familiar city just across the border. He quips about the journey there, the sights and scenes, the hospitality and ultimately, lessons we can learn from our footballing neighbours. Friendly Neighbours Johor Bahru. Singaporeans often cross the border to enjoy the benefits of a superior exchange rate – 3.51 at the time of writing. From affordable (and arguably tastier) food, groceries to heavily subsided petrol, we love to patronise their offerings. With a gradually weakening currency, Malaysians have been the subject of some light-hearted jokes.  However, Johor Darul Ta’zim are no laughing matter. In the span of a decade, they have managed to establish themselves as the best Malaysian football club (by some distance) and a regional powerhouse. The slogan Decade of Dominance is well deserved, such is the success of the team. Being an ambitious team ourselves, we can surely take some lessons from their meteoric rise. We took the opportunity of a pre-season friendly to visit their ground. Gathering at Home The club were kind enough to charter a coach for ardent fans. We even received extra jerseys and scarves to look the part for this away day. I have to applaud the club’s constant effort to engage the Crew. The invitation was extended to non-members, which I’m sure will go a long way in expanding our fanbase. It is a good look for the club to start such initiatives, not just for LCS but for local football.  We were soon on our way. The coach was comfortable and spacious, leaving enough room for some pre-match chats and snoozes. It rained in the afternoon, the skies had cleared by this time and it set the stage for a great day ahead. A Stadium Fit for Royalty Yeap, that’s half of us marvelling at the behemoth that is the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium. As the name suggests, it was named in honor of Johor’s current ruler, Sultan Ibrahim ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar. He was also recently sworn in as the seventeenth Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia. All this is to say that this venue is a glorious sight.  Everyone was in high spirits, the journey here was pleasant and we had tons of free time before the match. We took some pictures and proceeded to check out the amenities the stadium had to offer. I headed excitedly to the new megastore JDT Direct first. The last time I was here, the merchandise was sold in booths located near the outdoor parking lots. It was refreshing to see a brand new retail space that attracted even opposition fans. There was a feature wall at the entrance showing JDT memories through the decade, before leading to the main store itself. It reminded me of stepping out onto the pitch from the player tunnel, which may have been the inspiration behind this concept.  We happened to visit on the day of their 24/25 3rd kit launch. They were going at a lower price than last season’s jerseys and many of us Crew left the store with shopping bags in hand. They also offered name printing services. There were tons of accessories on sale, even a cute angpao set that I was reluctant to leave behind. The staff were ever so helpful, and greeted us at the door when we left the store. This leaves me excited for the upcoming LCS kit launches. The new SPL season will be upon us very shortly and I’m sure fans will be clamouring to get their hands on the kits. The new signings have also garnered much interest and there will be many requests to print their names on their new kits. Currently, most of us get our jersey fix through the Shopee store, matchday merchandise booth and the vending machine at Mattar Road. The only way to print names would be through The Sporting Edge website, but ask a random fan and he/she wouldn’t have a clue. The fans would prefer to print their jerseys on matchday itself, which I’m sure the club will be looking into. HINT HINT. Matchday Grub With retail therapy out of the way, we proceeded to survey the food options. There were plenty, with chains like Starbucks, KFC, Subway and my personal favourite, Woodfire Burgers. It was the second last day of Ramadan for our Muslim friends, understandably the queues were a little long. The prices were lower than you would expect even at local standards. I understood from a JDT fan that the club’s owner, Crown Prince Tunku Ismail Idris (also known as TMJ) subsidised prices so that the local fans would find it affordable and choose to dine in at the stadium. This is a great way to address the needs of the fans whilst boosting matchday revenue and numbers. LCS have taken a step in the right direction, with the home leg of this friendly featuring a few food trucks including the beloved Old Chang Kee. It was a nice sight to see many fans having their meal at the stadium before the match kicked off. Moving forward, it would be wise to continue such initiatives, encouraging fans to reach the stadium early and possibly increase match attendances. Boys of Straits The famous JDT fan group or Ultras if you will, Boys of Straits. I have always been in awe of their drumming and chanting routines, executed with surgical precision and military unison. They are in my eyes a vision of what the Crew can be one day, if we continue growing. Eddy, Joseph and Charmaine had the opportunity to speak with Adam, the admin of the BOS Instagram account. He reached out earlier to meet at their very own merch store, MARKAZ. It’s really surreal to see the BOS have a dedicated space not just to sell their merchandise, but also to celebrate the journey of

In this SailorFanTalk special, we have a guest writer, Ernest Cheong! Ernest joined The Crew and SailorFanTalk in Korea for our clash against Jeonbuk last month. Here he writes about his positive experience and why he believes more should join in and lend their support to the Sailors #allhandsondeck Once Upon a Time Once upon a time, there was a lone man on a deserted island. He would watch the seafarers from afar, intrigued by their bravado and vigour when they sat sail on their voyages. He could see them even from his lonesome abode, for the sea was vast and wide. It represented the unknown, both the waters and the humans who navigated it. You see, the man had never once left shore, worried about the uncertainties out there.  One fateful day the man spotted an abandoned raft that had washed ashore, it bore the same insignia of the ships he had been in awe of. Curiously, a note was intact on the interior of the waterborne craft: “Ahoy stranger! Consider this an invitation to set sail with us on an adventure of a lifetime. Now the tide is too shallow for us to reach your residence, take this raft and come aboard to experience the thrills of sailing with us!” The man was confounded – his curiosity had been noticed by the seafarers after all. Perhaps there was something out there for him other than his life of solitude. Thus the man left the island on the said raft, into the vast unknown. The ship was not hard to spot, the crew were expecting his arrival. Nearing his hosts, however, his anxiety took over – what if his sea-legs did not work, what if he would not belong among this trope of experienced sailors?  The man went aboard the ship with conviction. To his pleasant surprise, the seafarers were not unlike him. They were once all island-dwellers like him, curious about the wonders out there. Each took a plunge and eventually formed a community of explorers. Inspired, the man and his fellow crew set sail for new lands, recruiting new like-minded individuals. The island days soon became a distant memory. Back to the Present That was an elongated figurative account of my experience meeting the Crew, but what an adventure it has been. It isn’t everyday you take the plunge to go overseas with strangers you’ve never met.  We travelled 4521 km to Jeonju, South Korea, to support our beloved Sailors for their ACL match against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, but that wasn’t all that transpired. The Crew felt like family – we didn’t just bond over football.  This was a group of passionate people from different walks of life that banded together on a chilly night in Jeonju. Though the match result wasn’t to be, we made sure we did not let ourselves down with the boisterous support we displayed. The First Meeting The vibes were immaculate the moment I met The Crew for the first time at Changi Airport Terminal 3. I’m not exaggerating – I tend to sit alone or with my own group of football kakis during LCS games. This was my first time interacting with the ‘Ultras’, and my only regret is not taking the initiative to do so earlier. I am fortunate to have been chosen by the club for this particular expedition – it was actually my second attempt nominating myself. Eddy was the one who encouraged me to try again. Frankly if it wasn’t for that, perhaps I wouldn’t be here sharing my experience with all of you.  Anyway, we collected our complimentary gift bag which included the ACL meal tee (how thoughtful of the club), took a few pictures for the club’s socials, checked in and had some time for ourselves before the flight. It took no time at all to warm up to my new acquaintances – again, the vibes were immaculate. Before long we were chatting away, and the smaller group I was with barely made it in time for boarding! It was a 2:45am flight, so once we got on the plane we knocked ourselves out. We had a long day ahead. Arrival in Korea After a flight where I could barely sleep, we touched down in Incheon and were greeted by our amazing guide Sujin. We were advised to pack some refreshments for the 3.5hr transit to Jeonju, and soon after we were on our way. I remember marvelling at the Incheon Bridge, a 21km cable-stayed bridge connecting Yeongjong Island to the rest of the cities. It gave us magnificent views of the Korean Peninsula and that was the first time it truly clicked in – we are finally here in Korea to support our Sailors!  Now the coach ride was where things became interesting. You wouldn’t believe it, but many of my core memories of the trip were from the time we spent traveling between places. We made full use of the microphone onboard, playing ice-breaker games that honestly were less cheesy than expected. We also recorded ourselves trying to sing parts of Korean songs – we were in Korea after all! There was a great enthusiasm on show, despite the long flight, and looking back it set the precedent for the amazing 3 days we would spend together. We stopped by a local rest stop along the highway. This might not sound like much but it was jam-packed with amenities. In Singapore we have petrol stations, but in Korea we have establishments with multiple food courts, eateries, convenience marts and the like. This was a proper mall.  We stepped out into the cool air, the seasons were still changing and the temperature was just right. The rest stop served as the first time many of us tasted authentic Korean food, and though it was not extravagant, I am sure the travelling party enjoyed our first meal together.  The rest of the way to our hotel was largely the same, we even had time