Academy intent on third-time victory

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DEFENDING champions CIMB Youth Football Academy will be aiming for a hat-trick at the seventh Royal Selangor Club (RSC) Datuk Chu Ah Nge international junior football tournament at the club’s grounds in Bukit Kiara, Kuala Lumpur starting on Saturday.

Following their back-to-back victories in 2009 and 2010, the two-time winners will be attempting a third victorious outing in a row in their bid to become the first ever team to keep the challenge trophy for good at the annual junior meet.

Last season, CIMB Youth Football Academy were the Under-10 winners and finished as the Under-16 runners-up.

For the champions: RSC junior football development programme chairman Jimi Low (second right), RSC vice-president Julie Hoh (third right) and RSC president Ronald Quay showing the tournament challenge trophy. Joining them are (from left) RSC sports chairman G. Seenivasagam, tournament organising chairman Ramesh Nair, RSC football section convenor Vincent Thambyrajah and Cardiff City Football Club chairman Datuk Chan Tien Ghee.

They went on to edge Kuala Lumpur Youth Soccer (KLYS) and RSC in a tight three-corner fight for the top spot in the overall standings.

Although the three teams chalked up identical eight points in the standings, CIMB Youth Football Academy emerged as the winners based on their superior head-to-head wins over the two other challengers to retain the top position for the second consecutive year.

KLYS settled for second and RSC came in third on the countback.

In the series, northern contenders Bintang Biru were champions in 2006 and 2007 while Little League and hosts RSC won the tournament in 2005 and 2008 respectively.

RSC junior football development programme chairman Jimi Low said it will be an exciting weekend for participating teams as they are required to field a team each in all five age-groups — Under-Eight, Under-10, Under-12, Under-14 and Under-16 — to vie for supremacy in the tournament.

Children’s favourite : National football coach Datuk K. Rajagopal (right) signing autographs for the RSC budding footballers.

“Currently, we have more than 350 children aged between eight and 18 training up to four times a week under the club’s programme. Besides providing the opportunity for youngsters to learn the game, it is also important to create an avenue for them to gauge their strength in competitive environment,” Low added.

For the two-day junior meet, 14 teams each will feature in five sections in the seven-a-side tournament.

Besides the local entries, foreign teams from Singapore, Indonesia and India are joining the fray.

Singapore will have a strong representation with four different club based sides — JSSL Arsenal Singapore, ISA Singapore and BM Soccerites — in action.

Meanwhile, the newcomers are Bali Soccer Sports from Indonesia and BIFA India.

At a ceremony to announce the tournament on Tuesday, Cardiff City Football Club chairman Datuk Chan Tien Ghee said they share the same dream with RSC in creating a wider base of junior footballers at the grassroots.

“It is a gradual process in developing sustainable initiatives. We are keen in teaming up with RSC to promote football for everyone in the community but we should take one step at a time to explore and share new ideas,” he added.

Also present were RSC president Ronald Quay, RSC vice-president Julie Hoh, RSC football section convenor Vincent Thambyrajah, tournament organising chairman Ramesh Nair and RSC sports chairman G. Seenivasagam.