1974: The year of football

Posted by noelbynature under Lifestyle, National History
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Liverpool won the FA Cup, Germany won the World Cup, and soccer legend Pele visited Singapore. Jerome remembers why 1974 was an eventful year for football.

It’s pretty hard to top that level of awesomeness in football in one year, but for Jerome, the international names come in second place to what was happening at home:

What would, however, leave a greater impression on me that year was not seeing Pelé in person, or the World Cup, but, watching the first leg of the semi-final of the Malaysia Cup between Singapore and Penang at the National Stadium. That match played on 26 May, was the first that I ever watched live in a stadium and would be one that got me hooked on the Malaysia Cup. As a match, the semi-final was filled with much drama as the tide ebbed and flowed. Penang took the lead early on before Singapore equalised. At the interval Singapore was trailing 1-2 and the game looked beyond Singapore. However, a second half revival which saw wave after wave of Singapore attacks, and Singapore’s Jaafar Yacob hitting the bar from the penalty spot, saw Singapore first equalising through Quah Kim Lye, and scoring a winning goal through its captain Seak Poh Leong.

Sadly, Singapore lost to Penang on the return leg; but more significantly, it was also the beginnings of the Kallang Roar - the Kallang Stadium only having been built a year before. Read more about the year of football in The Long and Winding Road.

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