More than 3,000 Straits Times readers took part in the online English Premier League fans survey.

And five of them won a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to meet former EPL players Lee Sharpe, Keith Gillespie, Des Walker and Paul Jones in a meet-and-dine session on Saturday.

The function at Mohammed Sultan Road's Hannibal was organised by Carlsberg, the sponsor of today's IG Masters Sixes tournament at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, which the former EPL stars are participating in.

Manchester United fan Sulaiman Suradi was one of the lucky winners. The 22-year-old full-time national serviceman said: "I'm glad to be able to meet Sharpe.

"Although I didn't get to watch him play, I know he was an important player for Man United, and it was awesome to see him in real life."

Added another winner, Liverpool fan Balasubramaniam Arumugam, 26: "I was a little star-struck, so I didn't ask them any questions. The highlight for me, though, was getting their autographs."

Bernard Yeo, head of marketing for Carlsberg Singapore, said: "The ST contest and our Carlsberg Test Your Faith campaign are just some of the platforms for us to give our consumers and fans a better taste of the football action as the Official Beer of the English Premier League.

"We will continue to identify additional platforms to further engage with our consumers and strengthen our long standing heritage with football."

Chua Siang Yee