Doing well internationally has always been our goal. Our track record last year bears this out. Our Lions were unbeaten in all competitive international matches as we retained the Asean Football Championship and qualified for the third round of the World Cup qualifiers.

Our success was across the age groups as our U-23 team went on to win a historic SEA Games Bronze - our first medal since football became a U-23 tournament. Of the 22 players in that squad, 21 were products of our youth development programme. In another historic first, our U-15 team qualified for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-16 Championship which will take place in Uzbekistan in October.

The S-League has played a major role in raising national players' standards to compete against the best in Asia. Last year, the S-League was short-listed by the AFC, among other top leagues, to be revamped to make them more commercially viable and attractive. The season thus far shows it will be a tight, competitive affair where many matches will be worth watching.

This week, Singapore will host the Lion City Cup with teams such as Australia, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and Uzbekistan. Singapore's U-16 and U-17 teams will feature against some of the best sides in Asia and supporters of Singapore football are strongly encouraged to join us in this celebration of youth football.

With all this emphasis on performance and investment in youth, why did I say, 'It's not right to be overly competitive and expect these youngsters to win medals'?

In our enthusiasm to win medals, we need to remember the Olympic Spirit where one of the fundamental principles of Olympism is 'to place sport at the service of the harmonious development of man, with a view to promoting a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity'.

The development of footballers is a protracted exercise - starting as early as six till 23, where they would feature in Olympic-level programmes like the SEA Games, Asian Games and Olympic Games. Our emphasis is on being competitive while keeping an open mind on their development potential with encouragement and support from all parties.

An over-emphasis on competition (please understand I am not against competition - the lifeblood of sport), would cause us to miss the point of the Olympic spirit and Football Association of Singapore (FAS) efforts to harmoniously develop the players to their full potential.

I assure Mr Ang FAS is committed to do Singapore proud in all competitions that our national teams - from youth to senior levels - take part in. I look forward to his continued support of our efforts.

Steven Yeo
General Secretary
Football Association of Singapore