By Shikin Louis
KUCHING, Nov 17: Sarawak’s budding football stars are urged to set their sights beyond local leagues and district tournaments—it’s time to dream big and aim for the international stage.
Tupong assemblyman Dato Fazzrudin Abdul Rahman emphasised the importance of cultivating a winning mindset from an early age, paired with a solid strategy to turn those aspirations into reality.
Fazzrudin, who is also Kuching Division Football Association (KDFA) president and PETRONAS Youth Football Closed Tournament 2024 organising co-chairman, further said to execute the strategy, young players must build up their discipline.
“Discipline is not just about training on the field or during match time, but discipline in our lives—what time do we wake up in the morning, what do we eat every day, what time do we go to bed, what time do we head to training, how do we train, what time do we finish training, and what do we do after training.
“These are things that need to be instilled in our players, and of course, it is the coaches’ responsibility to ensure they have that kind of mindset.
“Only with that mindset can we produce players who can reach the international level,” he said during the closing ceremony of the PETRONAS Youth Football Closed Tournament 2024 held at Sarawak Stadium here last night (Nov 16).
The inaugural tournament, held from Sept 14 to Nov 16, coincides with PETRONAS’ 50th anniversary.
In ensuring the success of the tournament, PETRONAS has forged a strategic partnership with KDFA, Kuching City Football Club (KCFC), Sarawak Sports Corporation (SSC) under Sarawak Ministry of Youth, Sports and Entrepreneur Development (MYSED), as well as TVS.
The tournament has seen over 1,000 youth players from 18 football academies and schools in Kuching, Samarahan, and Sri Aman competing across four age categories: Under 10, Under 12, Under 14, and Under 16.
Earlier, in her speech, PETRONAS Sarawak general manager Norazibah Md Rabu revealed that a total of 580 goals had been scored until the final match this afternoon, and this number is expected to continue increasing for the last final match tonight.
“However, amid the intense competition, 140 yellow cards and nine red cards have been issued as of this afternoon, highlighting the players’ fierce rivalry and unwavering fighting spirit.
“Although injuries are common in sports events, minor injuries have been swiftly addressed by officials and medical teams, with no serious injuries reported so far,” she said.
In the Under 16 final, PFA Odin took the lead with two goals in the first half, but SMK Sri Matang responded with a goal in the second half, though PFA Odin held on to secure the win.
Meanwhile, in other categories, KDH Kuching claimed victory in the U14 division against PFA Odin, while PFA Odin emerged as champion in the U12 category by defeating DATUS United Jr.
Tambirat also took the title in the U10 category, winning against SJN Academy.
Also present at the closing ceremony were PETRONAS Group Strategic Relations and Communications vice president Nooruddin Abdullah@Liew Sze Hoon; PETRONAS Group Strategic Relations and Communications senior general manager Khairuddin M Jaafar; MYSED permanent secretary Morshidi Fredrick; SSC chief executive officer Awang Putrayusrie Awang Redzuan; Sarawak Media Group (SMG) chief media officer Sardon Zainal; and Kuching City FC chief executive officer Iswandi Ali Hassan. — DayakDaily
