AFF Championship: Lions crash out after losing 4-1 to Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR – Singapore’s AFF Championship campaign ended with a whimper on Tuesday, when they were mauled 4-1 by Malaysia in their final Group B match at the Bukit Jalil Stadium.

As a result, the Tigers leapfrogged their old rivals into second place to make the last four at the Lions’ expense.

Malaysia will meet Group A winners Thailand in the semi-finals, with Group B winners Vietnam facing Indonesia.

Pre-match, Malaysia coach Kim Pan-gon had stoked the rivalry and called Singapore’s football “negative”, while proclaiming his side to be “proactive”.

The 53-year-old South Korean was proven right.

The Lions’ three changes to the starting XI that held Vietnam to a 0-0 draw last Friday – with Hafiz Nor, Song Ui-young and Amy Recha coming in for Ryhan Stewart, Faris Ramli and Ilhan Fandi – suggested Singapore coach Takayuki Nishigaya was holding back with Faris and Shawal Anuar on bench.

In comparison, the Tigers’ attack on the pitch was as relentless as the Ultras Malaya’s singing in the stands.

Nishigaya, however, insisted that it was the right tactical decision to start with Amy and use Shawal in the second half as "Amy gave a good performance".

He added: "We wanted to play higher up the pitch in the first half but we were constantly under attack...

"We wanted to change our defensive shape in the second half, but we couldn't do it.

"I don't regret how we set up. We tried to attack and go for goal, but we couldn't achieve this in this game. We will definitely work to improve on our attacking plays and defensively as well."

From the start, the visitors were indebted to goalkeeper Hassan Sunny who pulled off a brilliant double save from Faisal Halim and Ruventhiran Vengadesan in the ninth minute.

Eight minutes later, he came to the Lions' rescue again when he denied Faisal, who had stolen the ball from Hafiz.

But there was nothing Hassan could do in the 35th minute, when Shah Shahiran lost possession on the left flank, and Safawi Rasid whipped in the ball for Darren Lok to power home a near-post header.

In the absence of injured brothers Ikhsan and Ilhan Fandi, Singapore struggled without a target man up front.

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SINGAPORE – A full-time national serviceman who went absent without official leave (AWOL) for more than nine years was on Friday sentenced to 23 months’ jail.

Iryadi Ariffin Mohd Hambal, now 31, was posted to the Singapore Civil Defence Force headquarters in July 2011. He began failing to report for duty in July 2012. He continued to be absent for about nine years and three months before surrendering himself to the authorities in October 2021. Court documents did not state how he evaded detection during that time.

Iryadi pleaded guilty on Friday to a charge under the Civil Defence Act. He told the court that he had delayed reporting for national service duty as his mother was hospitalised at the time and his family needed money. “I was working because I needed to raise funds and the NS salary is a bit small,” said Iryadi, who completed his two years of NS this month.

He added that he eventually took his parents’ advice to turn himself in as he “did not wish to run any more” and hoped to “start life anew as a better person”.

The prosecution sought two years’ jail for the accused, which is the maximum punishment for going AWOL.

He said he regretted his actions and showed good conduct in camp after his surrender. “I need to be there for my family, as my father is undergoing check-ups for low haemoglobin levels that could be cancerous,” he said.

In sentencing him, District Judge Bay said Iryadi’s period of absence was rather extreme. “I am mindful of your family circumstances, but you should be aware that your national service obligations must come first,” he said.

The judge acknowledged, however, that the accused had voluntarily surrendered himself and had pleaded guilty at a fairly early opportunity. “Ultimately, it is essential to impose a sentence commensurate with the period of AWOL to act as a sufficient deterrent against these offences.

“And to encourage offenders to surrender, so as to break their AWOL period as quickly as possible, or face the ultimate consequence of a more severe term of imprisonment as punishment,” said District Judge Bay.

For the non singaporeans:

Monthly pay for a recruit in the SCDF starts at a WHOPPING $580

Working full time at mcdonalds for 1 month: around $1800 depending on branch

Funny that Crazy Rich Asians takes place in a Southeast Asian country but there is hardly any Southeast Asian representation besides token characters such as food vendors and shopkeepers. That's the Americanoid worldview of Asia forya.

— Comrade Confucius (@confucian_the) December 24, 2022

Merry, merry Christmas, lonely, lonely Christmas?

It doesn't have to be.

One couple in Singapore are looking to make Christmas a little cheerier for those who're feeling a tad lonesome during the festive season.

In a video posted to TikTok on Monday (Dec 19), David Loh and Esther Chua basically sent out an "open jio" to everyone for their pizza party on Christmas Eve.

"Many of you don't know but Christmas is a time when the lonely get lonelier," said Chua, 25, in the clip.

Loh also shared his experience of spending the last few Christmas seasons alone, where he felt "so lonely, and so sad".

"I can't imagine what that would feel like if you're already struggling mentally and you have no one else," added the 26-year-old art gallery manager.

That feeling of loneliness struck a chord with Loh, who got together with Chua, a social media manager, in April this year.

Said Loh: "The funny thing is, the past two years I just didn't happen to get any invitations. I know a lot of people but I wasn't close to them.

"So I guess the loneliness is amplified, when you know [many] people yet you have no one else to spend it with. And I hadn't met Esther then!"

Extending the invitation to their pizza party, the couple shared that there's "no huge agenda and no huge programme" to the event.

"So if you're free and you're alone and you have no one to spend it with, we want to invite you to a pizza party," said Chua.

"We just don't want you to be alone!" added Loh emphatically.

And it appears there are plenty of lonely souls out there seeking company this Christmas.

Speaking to AsiaOne, Loh shared that response to the invitation has been enthusiastic. They have already filled up the initial 15 spots planned although many more have expressed interest.

"We didn't want the group to be too big as it is hard to have [proper] conversations and people might feel out of place," said Loh, who intends to hold the function at a faith-based art gallery located near City Hall which he manages.

But he assured that the event, which would likely include board games and "heart-to-heart-talks", will be kept secular.

"Our heart is really to just create a space for people feeling lonely to hang out and chill."

Their generous act has also touched the hearts of netizens, with several appearing to take them up on their offer.

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TW: feelscow not lolzcow

90 days is this gay singaporean kid who makes angsty blog posts in the community tab of youtube (rember that feature?) about how much he hates being closeted and missing out on young love . he also posts a shit ton of gif captions

obviously the " IM NOT GAY IM NOT GAY IM NOT GAY " and "Day 1 of being straight ⏳⏳⌛.......relapsed "-posting is a joke. but like, its definitely a characture of himself. I live in stragmerica where I wont get for being gay, and even I went through that phase (im still in it tbh). idk. wish i could help him

(if you couldnt tell by now, this thread is barely about singapore. Im just emo posting )

Heres the hall of eternal shame:

(lotta these are gonna be jpeged because the yt community tab wasnt designed for desktop)

(taken 1/16/22)

couldnt find any of the ones where he mentions being singaporean, but trust me bro

I’m absolutely livid.

I’ve been living here for over 2 years - husband and I both moved here in 2020 from Sydney - bang in the middle of the pandemic - for both of our respective jobs. Found a place (was heaps easier than it is nowadays as no one was really coming into Singapore then), settled in to our home and our jobs, got an adorable pup - proceeded to try to make Singapore home.

My sister and her husband moved here from India about a month ago. And they’ve started looking for houses which is admittedly SO MUCH MORE difficult now than 2 years ago. They’ve also been rejected a few times - someone would usually say the landlord gave the house to someone with a better profile - which is totally fair! It’s your house/apartment - you give it to whoever you want.

But today, one of the Agents said Landlord wants no idol worship in the apartment. Not very happy with Indians lah but will give to you as long as no idol worship.

WHAT THE ACTUAL F? isn’t this discrimination, how dare you tell people how to live their lives - is this even legal. Who in the heck do they think they are?

You can make your city as clean and green as you want but nothing changes as long as SCUM like this live in this city.

I’ve always wondered why Singapore has never felt home. Now i know why - this underlying level of discrimination that has always existed is the reason why. Sometimes obvious, sometimes not,

EFF YOU TOO, SINGAPORE

I'm sorry but Indians just generally do not have a good reputation in Singapore and around the world for that matter.

As for your question on what the actual frick - landlords have total control over what goes on inside their property. You rent on their terms, not yours.

Remember - renters will always lose.

Where did you get that idea or is it how you personally feel about Indians? Seems like a very subjective or your own personal take on reputation of Indians…

Not everyone is the same just like not every landlord or agent is the same. A large majority of them are nice and respectful and there are a few bad apples.

The OP has the right to be pissed for being treated like that, everyone should have the right to feel like that when discriminated but the OP is also overreacting a bit and doing that here on Reddit is pointless.

Probably because you haven’t provided services to them before.

My wife works in the healthcare industry. Among the myriad of patients she attends to, the “fairer” Indians are usually more yayapapaya with the service staff.

Not saying that all are like that, but i can see why it’s been stereotyped.

Can concur. North Indians especially those CECA types are a pain to deal with. Low pain tolerance, bargain about pricing, always unapologetically late, rude to staff, compare pricing to India’s pricing. I always refer out lol.

I am a landlord and I'm sorry but put it bluntly, there is a good reason why we avoid people from a certain race. The maintainence, the neighbour complaints, the damages are just too much effort. Sorry but not really sorry. I tried once to be accepting but got burnt.

And who the heck do you think you are? I've had racist encounters in both Australia and India, from whites and Indians. What the actual F?

And hence we can be racist too?

That’s your conclusion?

Then what do yiu want me to conclude?

What did you conclude from OP’s post?

That her sister experienced racism here?

wow you sound like someone who hates all apples just because you had 1 bad one.

Just because you close your eyes doesn't mean the problem doesn't exist. It is a fact white people are worshipped in Singapore - this is one valid truth. Do you mean a people who consciously worships one race can't have the capacity to discriminate others?

im sure these are the "im indian and im always right" kinda CECA i abhor so much. bye sexy Indian dude

Sg lost a valuable talent today, but luckily there will always be more

More to displace local talent!!! Now more Hong Kong!!! We sinkie all very happy!!! 6.9 million by 2020 WOOOOO. Haiz how did 61.23% of eligible voters vote for this sia lj

Try England. They love your curries there enough to make one of your people reign. You guys must done something right.

The cost of housing may be the biggest factor

The list of things for which Japan enjoys a global reputation includes delicious food, cutting-edge technology, an oversupply of karaoke bars and an undersupply of babies. In 1990 it published a record-low fertility rate for the previous year—the so-called “1.57 shock”. For years it has been seen as a harbinger of how rich societies will age and shrink.

Much of Asia has now caught up with or overtaken it. Japan’s fertility rate of 1.3 in 2020, the latest year for which comparable figures are available, puts it on a par with mainland China, according to the Population Research Bureau, an American outfit. China’s birth rate is likely already to have fallen behind Japan’s: there were 10.6m Chinese births last year, down from 12m in 2020, a decline of 11%. The number of births fell only 3% in Japan.

Japanese fertility is still ultra-low compared with almost any society in human history. Yet it is now higher than that of any well-off East Asian or South-East Asian economy. The numbers in Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan ranged between 0.8 and 1.1 in 2020 (see chart). Nor is this a temporary blip caused by the pandemic: Japan’s figure was higher than all those countries in 2019, too.

Rich, baby-averse Asian countries in the region have three things in common. First, their people rarely have children outside marriage. Only around 2% of births in Japan and South Korea are to unmarried mothers, the lowest levels in the oecd, a club of rich countries. In wealthy Western countries that figure is typically between 30% and 60%. In China, the few who become pregnant out of wedlock are often denied benefits. The region’s decline in births has closely tracked a decline in marriages. The age at which people commit to a lifetime of entanglement has also been rising, further delaying child-bearing.

A second shared factor is expensive schooling. Pricey private tutoring and other wallet-emptying forms of “shadow education”, as such extras are known, are common in East Asia. The most frequent reason cited by Japanese couples for having fewer children is the cost of raising and educating them. Lucy Crehan, an education researcher, says that these problems might be even worse in other parts of Asia. Japanese pupils face their first high-stakes exams only at the age of 15. In contrast, children in Shanghai and Singapore must take such tests as early as primary school, piling on the parental pressure to perform and adding to the family’s tuition bills.

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good news for @August, @The_Homocracy and @ThatHoeOverThere

^{KILLERS: Mimi Wong (left) claimed it was her husband who killed Mrs Watanabe. Sim Woh Kum pretended to be a workman when he and his wife went to the victim's home.}

The case of Mimi Wong (1970)

The dance hostess was the first woman to get the death penalty in Singapore for murdering her Japanese lover's wife

It was the night of Christmas 1969. Japanese mechanical engineer Hiroshi Watanabe decided it was time for his wife Ayako to meet Mimi Wong Weng Siu, the dance hostess who had been his lover in Singapore for the last three years. Mrs Watanabe, 33, had flown into Singapore with their three young children only two days before, to live with her husband here.

That Christmas night, Mr Watanabe drove his family to Wong's house at Everitt Road.

It took some persuading from the Japanese to convince 31-year-old Wong to meet his wife. She was angry and abused him. But after he spoke to her alone for 30 minutes, she finally relented.

Along with Wong's servant and her daughter by a Hong Kong businessman, they all went out for dinner in his car. Wong also gave her lover's children sweets.

Six days later, on New Year's Eve, Wong even went to a party hosted by the Watanabes at their Jalan Seaview semi-detached house.

But behind the pretence, Wong was writhing in jealousy.

She was convinced that her affair with Mr Watanabe, who had been assigned to Singapore three years earlier to work on a reclamation project in the eastern part of the island, would fizzle out now that his wife was in town.

Her hatred was fuelled by Mrs Watanabe allegedly calling her a prostitute at the New Year's Eve party. On the evening of Jan 6, Wong returned to the Jalan Seaview home, with her estranged husband, 37-year-old Sim Woh Kum, a sweeper in financial difficulty. And they murdered Mrs Watanabe.

The killing was witnessed by her eldest daughter, nine-year-old schoolgirl Chieko.

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1. Tulsi gains brief national attention by dunking on Kamala in primary

2. Pleased with this, Tulsi continues dunking on Democrats, becomes Bernie Bro

3. Bernie loses

4. Tulsi begins parroting based Greenwald takes to dunk more effectively

5. Those takes are a bit too based. Democrats respond meanly

6. Tulsi cancels her Democratsy and is now independent

7. Midterms, redwave halted everywhere except Florida

8. Civil War in Republican party, people now backing Florida Man instead of Orange Man you are here

9. Primary. Florida Man wins

10. Orange Man announces as pro-choice independent

11. Tulsi centrist running mate

12. Against all odds, NateSilver.png, and due to various scandals in main parties, Orange Man wins

13. Orange Man dies (fat old)

14. Tulsi succeeds

discuss