V. Sundramoorthy is preparing himself for a year’s worth of “sleepless nights” in 2007 as he warms into his new assignment as Young Lions coach.
His remarks came shortly before the arrival of the New Year, which sees him take on his latest – and possibly most physically demanding – assignment in his coaching career.
The former national Under-18 coach already has his sleeves rolled up as he gets involved in training SingaporeÂ’s Olympic squad, who will face Pakistan in early February for the first phase of the Beijing 2008 qualifiers.
The match will raise the curtains on a year of non-stop activity for Sundram, who will then lead his charges through ten months of Malaysian FA Cup and S.League action, culminating in the biennial SEA Games, to be held in Thailand this year.
He is greeting the jam-packed year ahead with relish, as he gets himself acquainted with a new-look Young Lions outfit shorn of stars like Shahril Ishak and Ridhuan Muhammad.
In their place comes a group of players many of whom are generally unknown, most of them no older than 21, all of them aspiring to rise to the heights reached by their seniors.
“We’re working with a whole new bunch of players, some as young as 17,” said Sundram.
“Many of these new boys have never played in the S.League before, or maybe appeared for just four to five games. These boys only have experience in the Prime League, and looking at their clubs’ S.League squads, they might never get a break there.
“But players improve by getting games, especially against better opponents. For me, the point of bringing all these new boys to the Young Lions squad is to educate them so that they can go out there and compete with these tougher opponents.
“By giving the players more good games in their legs, I hope to make them better players, maybe even good enough for the national team. Once they show they’re good enough, we’re happy to send them back out to the clubs.”
SundramÂ’s squad is far from being finalized at this point, although it is largely certain that the likes of Baihakki Khaizan, Khairul Amri and Isa Halim will stay at Jalan Besar.
All three were mainstays in previous Young Lions coach Fandi Ahmad’s regime. Not everyone had the same fortune – last season’s 30-man squad included several players who rarely got on the field in front of the S.League-watching public.
Sundram promises the public will see a different policy with him in charge, as he strives to ensure equal opportunity for all his youngsters by letting everyone get game time.
“Basically, everybody needs a fair chance to play,” stressed the 41-year-old.
“If a player is performing well, he will start the next game. Maybe some players will form my first team, but the reserves, when given a chance, should perform and tell me, ‘I can play, I can score goals too, or I can defend just as well as these other guys.’
“I have a squad of 25, but only 11 can play, so 14 people will sit out every game. But we will still give them playing time by rotating around or arranging midweek friendlies if our next competitive match is far enough away.
“Some of these matches won’t be announced as loudly as the S.League games, so maybe the public won’t be aware of them. But I can assure every player that he’ll get a chance.”
The upside to the Young LionsÂ’ performance last year was that, at least for a time, they appeared odds-on favourites for the title on the back of some exhilarating football.
There will certainly be comparisons between the teams of this term and last, especially among the passionate legion of Young Lions fans, many of whom are eager to see their idols taste success.
But Sundram has refused to be drawn into title talk, believing it inappropriate to set exact targets on where he wants to see his team finish in the league table.
Instead, the former Jurong FC coach showed the same discipline he is known to demand of his players, sticking firmly to his focus on cultivating talent without the unnecessary pressure of a title challenge foisted upon him.
“We’re talking about developing the players and giving them a chance to a play, so must people ask me to set a target?” he asked, slightly upset by the thought.
“If you’re asking me to give all the players a chance to play, you can’t be turning around and setting a target for me. If you think about it, it is contradictory and not right.
“If I’m in Jurong and you want me to set a target, that’s okay. But now I’m here and I’m supposed to give the players a chance to see if they can kick a ball straight, so it’s not realistic for me to say I want the team to finish in this position or that position.
“We will go into the league to compete, and if the boys do well enough to finish high in the league or even on top, why not? But for us, the objective is clear; we are here to develop players, not to finish No.1 at all costs.”
What is also clear for Sundram is that the year ahead will be a busy one, as he devotes himself to his brief of developing youngsters and inspiring them to realize their potential.
It is by no means an easy assignment, and he will need every extra second of time he can get as he works hard to bring the best out of his players.
“There are going to be many sleepless nights, with so much work and so much planning to do,” admitted the former national striker.
“I’ve to think of the players’ game, plan when to push them and when to give them time for rest and recovery. Things like how much training to give, I’ve to think about that.
“And then there’s a bit of travelling for the Malaysian FA Cup, to Pakistan for the Olympic qualifiers, and then to places like Bahrain and Qatar if we make it into the second round. Throw in the S.League, and it’s going to be very hectic.
“For the players, they’ll have plenty of time to play. But for me and the rest of the coaching staff, it’ll be work non-stop with all the analysis of our own team and our opponents, and the training on skills and tactics.
“It’ll be a tough year, very tough, but I’m here to learn, and for me, there’s no better person to learn from than (national coach) Raddy (Avramovic),” he added.
“Seeing what he’s done with the national team, I can say he’s the man with the Midas touch. To work under him is an honour, and I look forward to learning from him and contributing to Singapore football.”