
Singapore U20 women's team ended Asian Cup qualifying campaign with a loss
SINGAPORE: The Singapore U20 Women's Team has ended their AFC Under-20 Women's Asian Cup qualifying campaign with an unfortunate 3-1 loss against Hong Kong, China. Despite this, head coach Fazrul Nawaz encourages the national team to keep their chin up and carry the lessons and positive attitude that they had displayed in the campaign into their future games.
With this, Nawaz expressed: 'They were brave to play the football that we wanted them to play. They showed fighting spirit and a 'never give up' attitude. They should bring these three things forward into the future, and they will get it one day… And once they get it, it will flow smoothly for the team.'
During the game, Singapore still managed to score their first goal, all thanks to Geylang International midfielder Kyra Taylor. The athlete took the ball near the opponent's goal, where it eventually passed Hong Kong defender Cheng Tsz Tsing and went straight over to the goal. This is Singapore's first goal in the qualifiers. View this post on Instagram
A post shared by FAS (@fasingapore)
Nawaz admitted that the goal was a 'morale-booster' for the girls, especially after the difficulties that they had faced in the past two matches. Moreover, Kyra received a special commendation from Nawaz, stating that the athlete was not only a good leader, but she truly wanted to 'push the team to the next level.'
'I'm very happy because the girls are very united. They've stayed together, stayed positive, and have always maintained that positivity. To see them celebrate in that way was really pleasing for me,' Nawaz added.
Given the performance of the team and the goals that he had set at the start, the head coach is eager to see the team's improvement in the future, if only they believe that they can get the results that they dreamed of.
The head coach further stated: 'We must maintain that focus throughout the 90 minutes and not only during the moments, that's the thing that I felt that they need to improve on… And of course, to be responsible and to be accountable for their performance on the pitch.'
On social media, Natasha Naszri shared her experience in the qualifiers. She remarked, 'Disappointing that we didn't win, but we came close. We didn't get the results that we wanted, but I think that the younger girls and everyone in the team did their best, and their effort was 100%. That was a kudos to them.'
Naszri also added that this experience is a learning opportunity for the team and something to look back on as they prepare for the next campaign. View this post on Instagram
A post shared by FAS (@fasingapore) document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { const trigger = document.getElementById("ads-trigger"); if ('IntersectionObserver' in window && trigger) { const observer = new IntersectionObserver((entries, observer) => { entries.forEach(entry => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { lazyLoader(); // You should define lazyLoader() elsewhere or inline here observer.unobserve(entry.target); // Run once } }); }, { rootMargin: '800px', threshold: 0.1 }); observer.observe(trigger); } else { // Fallback setTimeout(lazyLoader, 3000); } });
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

New Paper
2 hours ago
- New Paper
Japan thinking out of Arc box in Prix Le Marois
The €1 million (S$1.5 million) Group 1 Aga Khan Studs Prix Jacques Le Marois (1,600m), one of France's most international features on its racing calendar, has spread its wings to even further afield at its 2025 renewal at Deauville on Aug 17 - Japan. From the original three entries filed back in June, two have made the final cut of 11 runners facing the starter at 9.50pm Singapore time - Ascoli Piceno and Go To First. Japan is not testing new Group 1 ground in France, as they did win the 104-year-old race once in 1998 with Taki Shuttle. But it is better known for its frustrating chase of the elusive Holy Grail of French racing, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (2,400m). Japan has come to Longchamp and seen its showpiece 22 times since 1969, but never conquered. By despatching two worthy contenders to the seaside resort, the powerful racing nation will be hoping they can go one better than the four Arc runner-ups - El Condor Pasa (1999), Nakayama Festa (2010), Orfevre (2012 and 2013). The most agonisingly close was Orfevre famously passing Solemia, only for the latter to unexpectedly get back in front where it mattered. While Yasuda Kinen winner Jantar Mantar, the Japanese entry who pulled out, would have been the undisputed drawcard for the Land of the Rising Sun, the other two are not there for a holiday either. Sunday Racing's Ascoli Piceno is a globetrotting mare who bounced back from a defeat in the Golden Eagle (1,500m) under Joao Moreira in Sydney in November to claim the Group 2 Turf Sprint (1,400m) in Saudi Arabia on Feb 22. The Daiwa Major four-year-old is known as the reigning mile queen back home, with the Grade 1 Victoria Mile (1,600m) in Tokyo on May 18 her crowning glory. Japanese-based rider Christophe Lemaire partnered the Yoichi Kuroiwa-trained six-time winner to both the Victoria Mile and Saudi wins, and will be back to his place of birth to ride her. "I think she's more comfortable on quick ground, so that's why she was close to the pace in Saudi over six and a half furlongs, and she was off the pace on soft ground in Tokyo over a mile," said Lemaire. "We're going to have a warm temperature, and the ground should be quick enough for her on Sunday. I'm quite confident." The surprise guest is Go To First who, unlike Ascoli Piceno, has not chalked up any frequent flyer point, but also presents a much less glittering resume than her travelling companion. With a career forged only domestically, the Koichi Shintani-trained Rulership entire won only once in five starts, in a stakes race over 1,600m at Nakayama in December. On paper, the five-year-old will struggle to fly the Japanese flag high in such lofty company in the Prix Jacques Le Marois. But Japan will still be up against stiff challenge, especially against the bulk (six) of the foreign brigade made up entirely of the awesome Great Britain-Irish armada, winners of eight of the last 10 editions of the Deauville classic. England spearheads the charge from across the Channel with four top milers, 2024 Irish 2000 Guineas (1,600m) winner Rosallion, 2024 English 2000 Guineas (1,600m) winner Notable Speech, Dancing Gemini and Docklands. The latter just beat Rosallion in the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes (1,600m), while Aidan O'Brien saddles Diego Velazquez and The Lion In Winter for Ireland. The home team has only three runners, though they are anything but outclassed. The executors of the late Aga Khan hold two aces who can both win the race it is sponsoring - Zabiari for in-form trainer Francis-Henri Graffard and Ridari for Melbourne Cup-winning (Dunaden in 2011) trainer Mikel Delzangles. Unbeaten in three runs (Group 3 Chantilly mile last start) since going to Graffard, Zabiari, a Wootton Bassett four-year-old colt, is the flagbearer for the iconic green and red epaulettes silks. "Francis is happy with Zabiari's gallop at Chantilly on Tuesday (Aug 12). Mickael Barzalona has picked him," said Aga Khan's racing manager Nemone Routh. "We'll see if he's Group 1 material or just a handy Group 2-3 competitor. It'll be his first time down a straight, I think he can run a place. "Ridari will also have to get used to the straight as he can be hard-going, but Mikel has trained him over a straight course a few times." The third French runner is the 11-time winner King Gold for Chantilly trainer Nicolas Caullery. The Group 1-winning (2023 Maurice de Gheest) grey last won his third Group 3 De La Porte Maillot Stakes (1,400m) on June 19 and also boasts a Group 3 win in Dubai, the Firebreak Stakes (1,600m) on Jan 24. manyan@


New Paper
2 hours ago
- New Paper
Pallaton to bloom further in the Rosebud
With the rainy weather in Sydney not letting up, the Rosebud meeting will still take place on a heavy track at Rosehill on Aug 16. Nonetheless, plenty of hot action is to be expected across the eight races (starting at 10.10am Singapore time) picked up by the Singapore Pools for wagering. The A$200,000 (S$167,000) Listed Rosebud is a three-year-old feature over 1,100m that kicks off the Spring campaign, and has garnered a small but select field of six youngsters following the scratching of Shaggy. On face value, Pallaton may have put a dampener on his cracking Randwick debut last December and all the hype as ex-Kranji trainer Michael Freedman's best two-year-old last season, with two subsequent unplaced starts. As a result, his Golden Slipper plans were scuppered, even if Freedman still ended up winning the Australian premier sprint for two-year-olds with Marhoona. Jockey Tommy Berry is convinced the deflating runs did not do the Wootton Bassett colt justice. "He took all before him at his first start, then had a little break and was a bit big going into the second run and you saw that late," said the jockey, who won the 2013 Singapore Gold Cup aboard Tropaios for Freedman. "His third run, he'd had a bit of a setback and he had a horse either side of him in the run, got his mouth open and wanted to charge a little bit. "He was his own worst enemy towards the end of his prep but it was a long prep for him as well. "Coming into this preparation, we've put a crossover noseband on him which he seems to have adapted to very quickly. He has put two really nice trials together, so we're pretty confident going into the weekend." The wet does not daunt Berry either as Wootton Bassett's are known to thrive on such surfaces. The top Sydney jockey, who finished a distant eighth to perennial champion James McDonald last season, has sprung off the starting blocks this term. On three wins in only three metropolitan meetings, he is just one win behind early leader McDonald and can bank on not just pre-race (3-2) favourite Pallaton to pad up his score. Tuileries (5-2) and Our Gold Hope (8-1) are among his other decent chances from his six other bookings, the latter a value hope in the A$200,000 Captivant @ Kia Ora Handicap (1,400m). The Robert and Luke Price-trained Lope De Vega mare's narrow third to Ceolwulfin the Group 2 Neville Sellwood Stakes (2,000m) sticks out as the best formline. She will, however, have to be wary of Palmetto (5-1) who is first-up for ex-Kuala Lumpur-based Kiwi trainer John Sargent (Malaysia champion trainer in 2000). Palmetto had a mixed Autumn campaign that yielded a Listed Canberra Cup (2,000m) success and midfield finishes in Sydney. Though the son of Ghibellines is seven, Sargent believes he is a late bloomer, but needs to run well on Aug 16 first before taking the path he has plotted for him towards more serious targets like the Group 2 Chelmsford Stakes (1,600m) at Randwick on Sept 6 and the Group 2 Feehan Stakes (1,600m) at Moonee Valley on Sept 26. "He has finally matured, being a New Zealand-bred horse and being slow-maturing," said Sargent. "His trials have been super and I'd expect him to run well on Saturday." However, the 14-5 favourite War Eternal may be the horse they all have to gun down. The Bjorn Baker-trained four-time winner looked in a spot of bother in a small four-horse field in a Benchmark 94 (1,300m) on a heavy track at Rosehill on Aug 2, but rallied late to keep eventual winner The Novelist honest to the line. It is an open race but the Pierro seven-year-old can score in the expert hands of Jason Collett. manyan@

Straits Times
5 hours ago
- Straits Times
Sesko 'ready to play' as Amorim plots United's return to European football
MANCHESTER - Newly-signed Manchester United striker Benjamin Sesko is ready to play but it is too early to say if he will start when the club kick off their Premier League campaign against Arsenal on Sunday, United manager Ruben Amorim said. Slovenia's Sesko joined United from RB Leipzig last weekend for a transfer fee of 76.5 million euros ($89 million) with 8.5 million in bonuses. United have spent around 200 million pounds this summer after finishing 15th last season. "We didn't have a lot of time but he is ready, physically he is ready, that is a big component in our league. Then, he's really smart... he is ready to play, we will see if he is going to start," Amorim told reporters on Friday. Amorim said United, who last season had their worst finish in the English top-flight since 1973-74, will go into the 2025-26 campaign aiming for a return to European soccer. "We cannot change everything in four weeks, but we are better. We're training harder and are more prepared to cope with the demands of the game," he said. "We want to return to Europe. We have to be realistic with our fans. We will have to fight a lot because there are more teams with time together than us. We have to focus game by game. We want to win against Arsenal." GYOKERES 'IN A DIFFERENT LEAGUE' Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Ong Beng Seng fined $30k in case linked to ex-minister Iswaran after judge cites judicial mercy Singapore Why was Ong Beng Seng fined instead of jailed? Key points from the case Singapore ICA to review Ong Beng Seng's PR status after he was fined for abetting obstruction of justice Singapore Man on death row granted clemency in rare move to 'reduce disparity' between outcomes Asia Sun Haiyan, ex-China ambassador to S'pore, detained for questioning: Sources Singapore Over 600 orchids on display at Gardens by the Bay to mark 60 years of Singapore-Malaysia ties Singapore Father of 4 among S'poreans arrested in CNB raids; drugs worth over $128k seized Sunday's match will pit Amorim against one of the most successful signings in his coaching career, with former Sporting forward Viktor Gyokeres joining Arsenal in the summer. Sweden's Gyokeres, who joined the Lisbon-based club in 2023 under Amorim, was the top scorer in the Primeira Liga for two seasons in a row, helping Sporting win back-to-back titles. "Viktor is in a different league. Sporting have good scouting because they live from the players they can buy and sell to survive. I think he's a very good player. It's not a surprise to see him with a big club in England," Amorim said. The manager said defenders Lisandro Martinez and Noussair Mazraoui were out for the weekend but forward Joshua Zirkzee and goalkeeper Andre Onana had recovered and would be available against Arsenal. "I learned a lot last season. I don't need to focus on the future. That doesn't matter and I don't care. I need to live day by day. Everything that is noise to our team, I take out of the picture, so I just prepare my team against Arsenal," Amorim added. REUTERS