Singapore vs Zimbabwe Youth Olympic Games football

Singapore captain Jeffrey Lightfoot (#5) in action against Zimbabwe during the 2010 Youth Olympic Games. Jeffrey, who recently picked up a Nike product sponsorship, is expected to lead the now Under-16 squad in the upcoming Lion City Cup. (Photo 1 © Les Tan/Red Sports file photo)

Jalan Besar Stadium, Monday, March 7, 2011 — The Lion City Cup will be staged again after a two-year hiatus. The invitational tournament will run from June 18th to 27th at the Jalan Besar Stadium.

The Lion City Cup is an under-16 tournament and organisers have invited the youth teams of Everton FC, Juventus FC, Benfica and CR Flamengo. Singapore will be represented by the Under-15 and Under-16 national squads. The U-16 squad players represented Singapore in the Youth Olympic Games last year where they won a bronze medal.

The six teams will be split into two round-robin groups. The top two from each group will move into the semi-finals to challenge for a spot in the final on June 27th.

FAS President Zainudin Nordin said: “In line with the FAS Strategic Plan 2010-2015, the 23rd Canon Lion City Cup is organized to provide Singapore’s elite young talents with the competitive match exposure by playing against top club teams from the top 50 ranked countries in the world.

“With our emphasis now on youth development, the tournament is also part of our long-term commitment to prepare our NFA (National Football Academy) U-15 & U-16 players who are now being groomed and developed to participate in the 2014 Asian Games, 2015 & 2017 SEA Games.”

The Singapore Under-15 football team recently played in the 2011 International Youth Football Invitational Tournament held in Hong Kong from February 11th to 13th. They beat the hosts 4-1, Taiwan 6-2 and Guam 20-0 to top their four-team group. Adam Swandi won a Best Player Award and was joint top scorer with his teammate Irfan Izeran. Goalkeeper Heirul Suhanes won the Best Goalkeeper award.

The Singapore Under-18 team did not fare as well. They finished last in their four-team group, drawing 1-1 with Hong Kong, and losing 0-2 to both Taiwan and Guam. Ngan Fok Lung scored the only Singapore goal for the Under-18s.