Replies to Forum ● Nov 21, 2013
FAS: Women’s Football Integral Component of our Strategic Plan
We thank Mr Ivan Goh for his letter (“Missing out on women’s football in SEA Games”, 12 November 2013).
The Football Association of Singapore (FAS) appreciates the continued support of our local football fans and is committed to the development of women’s football, which forms one of the components of our Strategic Plan.
We are adopting a phased approach to develop a broad base of talent for the future of women’s football. In early November 2013, over 50 girls attended the FAS trial for the National Girls’ Under-14 team, who will be participating in the AFC Under-14 Regional Championship 2014.
We are also working with schools to raise awareness of women’s football, so that we can reach out to the widest and youngest pool of talent. The various schools girls’ tournaments at the primary and secondary levels are organised in a league format, which ensures the players get to participate in football regularly. We are constantly working with FIFA and AFC to leverage on their expertise on developing women’s football in Singapore.
We are pleased to note that the Young Women team, comprising women predominantly aged below 21, finished an admirable second position in the Women’s Premier League and are currently in the semi-final of the Challenge Cup. For next year’s competition, the Young Women players will join different Premier League teams, thus making the Women’s Premier League even more competitive.
Last December, the Singapore America Soccer Exchange Programme saw four coaches from the United States Women’s National Team coming to Singapore to conduct both football clinics and motivational talks. As part of this Programme, 15 of our women players and three coaches travelled to US to train with their counterparts in May this year. The experience of training and playing with the USA Women’s team, the world’s top-ranked team, can only benefit our players and coaches.
In recent months, the women’s national team went on a training tour to Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur as part of a comprehensive plan to further develop women’s football, and we can look forward to more of such initiatives in the near future. We are also preparing our women’s team to participate in the 2015 SEA Games. National team Head Coach Bernd Stange will also be involved with some training sessions for the women’s team.
Once again, we thank the writer for his feedback, and appreciate and look forward to the continued support of our stakeholders, including our fans.
Yours Sincerely,
Jita Singh
Senior Head, Game Development
Football Association of Singapore
