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Cup competitions have a special emotional aura around them, and this year’s League Cup will be no different.
Contested solely by the 12 teams in the S.League, the 2009 League Cup draw has paved the way for exciting match-ups and potential upsets throughout its 19 day run.
SAFFC and Albirex Niigata will savour their chance to topple the newcomers Brunei DPMM FC in Group A, while Tampines Rovers, Geylang United and the Young Lions will duke it out in a three-way Eastern battle.
Both Balestier Khalsa and the Super Reds will be looking to avenge defeats earlier this season to current holders Gombak United in Group C; while in Group D Home United will face Sengkang Punggol and Woodlands Wellington, two teams that the Protectors have scored seven goals and conceded none against in the league so far.
The inaugural League Cup in 2007 was won by Woodlands Wellington, who defeated Sengkang Punggol 4-0 in the final, while Gombak United took the winners’ podium over the Super Reds in 2008.
This season’s competition looks set to keep football fans busy in the European off-season with a whopping 13 out of its 20 matches to be shown live on StarHub’s Football Channel (Channel 27).
As Central Singapore District Mayor Zainudin Nordin, who is also the President of the Football Association of Singapore put it, the Cup is already soaring to new heights in its third year of existence, and StarHub’s coverage is a reflection of the growing demand for S.League football, along with this year’s increased coverage and attendances.
The Mayor, along with FAS General Secretary Winston Lee, also unveiled the official tournament logo in a ceremony held at the FAS head quarters at Jalan Besar stadium. The logo, which was designed by competition broadcast partners World Sport Group, will be used for the first time this year.
Both officials then drew the top four teams in the 2008 S.League season, SAFFC, Super Reds, Home United and Tampines Rovers, who were seeded to avoid each other in the group stages, while the rest of the eight were drawn afterwards by members of the media.
Albirex Niigata (S) team manager Bogdan Brasoveanu was delighted with the draw, and warned that the White Swans will be no pushovers in Group A.
“The League Cup is different from the Singapore Cup as we have to play two other teams in a group,” said Brasoveanu. “Both teams are the favourites to go through but we will go out and play our own game.”
“Remember, DPMM almost lost against us earlier in the season,” said the Romanian as he took his leave.
Meanwhile, Home United head coach P N Sivaji may have the easiest group on paper, but he is not taking his prospective opponents lightly.
“It is a good draw for us and the league organizers are kind enough to seed us so we can avoid the top teams,” said Sivaji. “But the Cup is a fresh competition with a certain romance and we should never write off teams.”
“These kind of things usually come as a sudden surprise, but like I have said before, we have a stronger bench this season and Prime League players capable of stepping up to the first team,” continued the former FAS Technical Director, when asked if the team would miss its national players in the event of any training camp, like the previous seasons.
“Right now, we have the one of the easiest groups on paper, but this year’s league shows that any team is capable of beating any team.”
| Group A | Group B | Group C | Group D |
| SAFFC | Tampines Rovers | Super Reds | Home United |
| Brunei DPMM FC | Geylang United | Gombak United | Sengkang Punggol |
| Albirex Niigata (S) | Young Lions | Balestier Khalsa | Woodlands Wellington |
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