PLAYING AS ONE SAF

If residents staying in the apartments beside Saint Wilfred's Sports Complex happened to glance at the football field on the evening of 25 Nov, they would have found it hard to stop looking.

The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) Senior Commanders football team, in their bright red football kits and the Singapore Prison Services football team, in blue, were battling it out for the title of Division II champions of the Government Services Football League and both teams showed no signs of letting up.

The SAF team was dextrous and agile, quickly edging the ball towards the goal each time they had possession. They were matched by the Prison Services team in speed and on a few occasions, conceded the ball to tackles and free kicks.

Nonetheless, no team had scored by half-time.

The action picked up 15 minutes into the second half. 2nd Warrant Officer (2WO) Hioe Han Meng took advantage of a gap in the opponent's defence and deftly lobbed the ball into the goal in the 55th minute, giving the SAF team a 1-0 lead.

And because good things come in pairs, Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) Anthony Tan scored the next goal just two minutes later, in the 57th minute. The SAF team continued their winning streak with a third goal by LTC Lim Teck Keong in the 65th minute and a fourth by Major Roy Chau in the 70th minute. 2WO Hioe sealed the SAF team's championship title when he scored the fifth goal in the 75th minute.

Both the SAF Senior Commanders team and the Prison Services team will be promoted to Division I of the league next year. The National University of Singapore, the Ministry of Education, the Public Utilities Board and the Singapore Civil Defence Forces are among those who participate in the league as well.

The SAF Senior Commanders team was the brainchild of several senior commanders back in the 1970s when the Central Manpower Base was located in Dempsey Road. There was a field nearby, and officers who loved the sport came together once a fortnight to play and de-stress.

Today, the team, which comprises close to 50 members, continues to play every fortnight, honing their skills and match fitness, building camaraderie at the same time.

Said Senior Lieutenant Colonel Fadzully Bin Abas, who has been in the team for seven years: "This team is open to all Services. We have people from the Air Force, Navy and Army. We have our primary jobs but we know when to have fun and enjoy ourselves. The more senior ones also play the role of coach and mentor the younger ones."

Added team captain LTC Lim: "It is a very good platform for networking and this is one way we network across the Services in a recreational environment."

Military Expert 3 Benedict Goh from the Republic of Singapore Air Force s 807 Squadron, who has been playing in the team for the last three years, describes his relationship with other team members as a close-knit one.

His sentiments were echoed by 2WO Hioe, who said: "We are colleagues from different parts of the SAF but when we play and interact, we play as one SAF."