Farah Nurzahirah hunts for goals as Lionesses begin AFF Women’s Cup campaign
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National striker Farah Nurzahirah (left) and forward Farhanah Ruhaizat will among the attacking options for the Lionesses at the the AFF Women's Cup.
ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE
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SINGAPORE – Despite her inexperience on the international stage, Farah Nurzahirah knows a thing or two about making an impact.
In July 2023, the striker impressed on her debut for the Lionesses, coming off the bench to score the winning goal in a friendly against Pakistan.
Farah, who has four caps, said: “After that goal, I felt really confident. I felt that I could’ve scored more but, for future tournaments, I will try my best to score.”
The 20-year-old will be part of the national women’s team competing in the Asean Football Federation (AFF) Women’s Cup from Nov 23 to Dec 5, as they hunt for a spot in the Asean Women’s Championship in 2025.
World No. 138 Singapore’s first Group A fixture will be against 159th-ranked Timor-Leste on Nov 26, before they take on hosts Laos (No. 92) three days later. Both matches will be played in Vientiane’s National Stadium KM16.
Group B consists of Cambodia (No. 119), Malaysia (No. 96) and Indonesia (No. 104). The top two teams from the two groups will advance to the semi-finals, with the finalists and third-placed side qualifying for the Championship.
However, the Singaporeans have hit some speed bumps even before kick off, with injuries ruling forwards Danelle Tan and Josephine Ang out of action.
Tan, who plays for A-League Women’s side Brisbane Roar, underwent minor knee surgery in early November, while Ang, who scored 12 goals for Deloitte Women’s Premier League (WPL) champions Lion City Sailors, has also sustained a knee injury.
But Farah is determined to step up and show that she can contribute to the team. In this season’s WPL, she was Geylang International’s top scorer with 16 goals, playing a crucial role in helping the team finish third.
“It’s not my first tournament but, every time you step into a big tournament, the nervousness is always there. But I’m excited at the same time. It’s a very big step for me, but it’s an opportunity for me to prove to coach, myself and the team that I can make a difference with the team,” said Farah.
Linking up with Farah in attack is Farhanah Ruhaizat, who was also a bright spark for Geylang this season. On her partnership with Farah, the 26-year-old said: “Our chemistry really works well together. She’s much younger than me, but training and playing alongside her, we know each other’s playing styles, and I’m very excited to play with her.”
Farah Nurzahirah (far left) and Farhanah Ruhaizat (second from right) were key figures for Geylang International in the Women’s Premier League this season.
ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE
With 39 international appearances, Farhanah is the second-most capped player in the team behind captain Siti Rosnani Azman (42).
While they may be a young side – the average age is 20.6 years – with eight uncapped players in the 23-woman squad, Farhanah believes that the team are gelling well.
“I don’t see a difference in age when we play, I feel like everyone plays well together,” said Farhanah, who works in operations at ActiveSG Bedok.
Despite the absence of Tan and Ang, coach Karim Bencherifa is not too worried as he has confidence in his forwards’ abilities.
He said: “I’m confident all the teams that are there – Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Laos, Timor-Leste, these are all teams that we should do well against.
“This is a very positive thing, the way we play, we don’t just count on certain players to score. Our goals can come from different situations, this is very healthy and positive for the team.”
