CONFIDENCE will be high within the Singapore ranks, their recent performances an indication of how the team has matured over the last year.

The Lions have had the experience of tough away games under their belt and they will thrive under the pressure. They will go into the match without any fear.

TOKYO - SUBARU has announced it will not contest the 2009 FIA World Rally championship due to the pressures of the global economic crisis, a day after fellow Japanese auto-maker Suzuki pulled out of the competition.

'Our business environment has been dramatically changed due to the quick deterioration of the global economy,' Subaru parent company Fuji Heavy Industries said in a statement on Tuesday.

TOKYO - MANCHESTER United boss Sir Alex Ferguson came to the defence of the Club World Cup on Tuesday, calling it a prestigious tournament that was important for his team to win.

There has been criticism in the British press that the long trip to Japan mid-season for a tournament of continental champions was a pointless exercise that could derail their Premier League campaign.