FAS technical director Michael Browne pens one-year contract extension

SINGAPORE – While admitting that the Singapore Youth League (SYL) is not perfect, Football Association of Singapore (FAS) technical director Michael Browne believes that it will improve over time and its benefits will be visible.

The 65-year-old Englishman, whose one-year contract extension was announced on Aug 16, is among those looking after several key initiatives, such as the SYL, which were announced in recent years under the Unleash the Roar! project to take Singapore football forward.

The SYL was launched in February, with nearly 3,800 youth players competing in over 1,100 matches till December. There are six age groups, ranging from Under-8 to Under-17.

It has, however, encountered teething issues, including lop-sided scores during the inaugural season, which is meant to be a classification round.

In April, The Straits Times also reported that two matches had to be postponed at the last minute after miscommunication among the SYL organisers on venue availability.

While such issues needed to be overcome, Browne believes the SYL is the way forward.

“The SYL is aimed at ensuring that the young players get an adequate amount of games and also they play at the right level,” he said.

“So the whole idea of an SYL is that you have different divisions and the better players play in the top division and you get more competitive games that way.

“Is it perfect? No. Will it get better? Yes. But it’s certainly a major step in the right direction.”

With two other initiatives launched in 2023 – the Junior National Development Centre and National Development Centre – providing regular high-level training for the best players aged between eight and 16, Browne believes that significant benefits can be seen “in two to three years”.

Browne, a Uefa Pro Licence holder who was first appointed in July 2022 on a two-year deal, said it would be rewarding to stay on and “see the fruits of those initiatives”.

Former national goalkeeper and ex-FAS council member Yakob Hashim, however, expressed surprise at the contract extension.

Yakob, a youth coach at Anza Soccer School for the last decade, said: “Since he was appointed, what has he done to clearly improve us in the regional standing?

“The results at youth level have been shocking and when I chat with my colleagues at the youth level, there has not been much on-field engagements with the youth coaches.

“What is his blueprint, because I don’t think anyone here knows.

“If he is pointing to the new plans like SYL, then are they really down to him alone or were they collaborative efforts from a few people?”

Browne, however, believes he would leave Singapore football in a better state than when he arrived.

He added: “We’re implementing structures that will have a long-term impact on football in Singapore.

“I am certain that, regardless of who (eventually) succeeds me, these structures will ensure that Singapore football is in a significantly better place than it was two years ago.”

For a country that has struggled with poor results from youth to senior teams, Browne said Singapore must make it to an Asian Football Confederation (AFC) age-group tournament for the first time since 2008, when the Lion Cubs qualified for the AFC U-16 Championship.

“At some point, we need a team to qualify for an AFC Finals,” he said. “In the next two to four years, we have to be in a position whereby our teams... go to these qualifiers and can have a realistic expectation of qualification.

“And I think if we can do that, then that would be success.”

In July, Singapore’s Asean Football Federation U-19 Championship campaign in Indonesia ended in the group stage, with losses to Thailand (2-1) and Malaysia (5-0) and a 2-0 win over Brunei.

Browne said there has been marginal improvements, but more time was needed for significant gains.

The next two months will offer a chance to see if the Cubs get any closer to Browne’s definition of success.

The Singapore U-19s will be taking part in the AFC U-20 Asian Cup qualifiers from Sept 21 to 29 in Qatar, where they will face Hong Kong, Jordan and the hosts in Group J.

After that, Singapore will host Group J of the AFC U-17 Asian Cup qualifiers which will see them take on Oman, Tajikistan and Guam from Oct 19 to 27.