The birth of champions – the Victoria Junior College football girls’ story
This beautiful article was written by my dear Jolyn Ang on redsports.sg. I'm just gonna rip it off the website and post it here coz i know i'll want to read this article for many more times and the search function on the website ain't very zai
Part 1:
When the final whistle sounded at this year’s A Division Girls’ Football Championship final, Azrulnizam Shah was coach of the first junior college side to retain the title since the tournament’s inception. He was also the architect of three gold medals and one silver since the start of his tenure in 2005. His teams have time and again chalked up impressive goal differences during the group stages, always qualifying convincingly for the knockout stages.
Few know however, of the effort it took to transform a side that had once languished at the bottom of the league in 2005 into a consistent title challenger.Great moments are born from great opportunity. When Azrul began his journey with the Victoria Junior College girls’ soccer team, he inherited a team that was recovering from a nightmarish game – the 0-8 haunting loss to eventual champions Saint Andrews Junior College, one that he would have to work hard to exorcise.
When asked about the expectations that he held when he first joined the team late in the 2005 season, he said, “I just wanted to create a competent team, one that is able to compete, infused with the values I believe in – disciplined, humble and hardworking.”
With the implementation of a structured programme that highlighted physical, technical and mental core competencies, the new VJC side started to learn how to win, but more importantly, they started to believe.
The 2006 team opened their campaign with an 8-0 trouncing of Nanyang Junior College which raised eyebrows. But it was not until they beat a technically superior Saint Andrews Junior College side 1-0 that Azrul, and indeed the team, “firmly believed we can”.
The 2006 team went on to make history in a fairytale season as they beat Temasek Junior College 2-0 in the final to become champions, not just in name, but in spirit. “We were not the best team around, but we believed, and it was a massive achievement. 2006 was all about revolution and change.”
Part 2:
Change. A word so widely used that people forget that it takes a lot of courage to deviate from the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new.
When asked about what were the greatest changes he had seen over the years, Azrul was quick to answer.
“The commitment levels and the maturity of play. We never shied away from playing a passing game, even if sometimes the execution wasn’t perfect, we tried.”In order to become competitive, the team started to increase training sessions, from 2 to 3 times a week to almost everyday nearing the start of the season.
For the batch that was caught in the midst of such dramatic change, it was difficult to adapt.
“Many girls take up soccer for leisure or purely out of curiosity, and it was difficult to impose my ideals gained from my years in the VJC boys’ soccer team.”
That being said, Azrul stuck to his guns and continued with his honest, earnest method of coaching, even if sometimes, he may have been deemed brutally honest.
“I wanted a healthily stressful training climate. I placed a lot of emphasis on the atmosphere at training as I think the girls have to get used to the rigour such that when they are put into the game, they are able to adapt much faster.”
As batches came and went, slowly but surely, the culture and identity of VIctoria Junior Soccer Girls (VJSG) started to materialize, and solidify. VJSG started to mature, from a collection of like-minded individuals, to a unit drawn together by the torturous training.
The fine-tuning process was not smooth sailing but the failures along the way gave way to success.
In 2007, the team was pursuing a double. Buoyed by the euphoria and expectations, the team “was not at an emotional optimum”. The girls shifted a gear too high, and when St Andrew’s Junior College scored what turned to be the only goal in the final, the emotional baggage took its toll on the players.
It turned out to be a timely lesson for a coach going into his third full season as radical change was abandoned for a much more subtle and complex balance.
“I realised that we needed to get a balance to match the context. I wouldn’t compromise on my ideals of hard work and commitment, but I had to compromise on my methodology. I did some tweaking in terms of interaction with the players. Whilst always committed to their welfare, I started to learn to cater to different personalities better, in terms how to get the best out of each player in my team.”
That he dedicated as much energy off the field as on it, was characteristic of Azrul’s holistic coaching style.
The training regime was likewise, not spared. Ask any student of VJC and they would no doubt highlight fitness to be one of VJSG (and the boys’ team) main strengths.
Such fitness was gained through raw long-distance training, and remains the core of Azrul’s training regime, but pure fitness did not automatically translate into match fitness.
The training regime was changed to mimic the game, giving the girls much more time on the ball than before.
“No doubt, 2007 was a year of mixed feelings, but it was to be our impetus for the next two years,” said Azrul.
Part 3:
The sense of mission that the team of 2008 carried with them can be expressed with one word: Redemption. Other than the changes in coaching style and the training schedule, the team went through long period of self-reflection, Azrul included. After all, change had to come from within.
Asked about what thought were his greatest mistakes, he said, “I was too eager to interject, jumping the gun a lot of times. I tried too hard to keep everything under control.”“Also I didn’t used to know who is in form, who is best for the team at the right time and tended to stick to a predictable lineup. I think if you look at the latest season, you will find that my starting lineup started to change from game to game. As compared to the previous years, our team has grown in depth and flexibility.”
Like Assistant Coach Lim Wei Quan aptly expressed, the team is an image of the coach. The 2008 team ran from the word go and never looked back until the final whistle, when they were met with tears threatening to stream down from a man that had invested so much time and emotion into the campaign.
Threatened with feelings of déjà vu after falling behind 0-1 in the 2008 final against St Andrew’s Junior College, they told themselves there would be no repeat of second-best and equalized, holding out till the end and regaining the title after a scintillating penalty shootout.
“The feeling was unbeatable. It was elation that was unmatched,” recalled Azrul. “Even when we won this year, there was less of that euphoria, but more of a mix of happiness and sadness as it was a slightly more comfortable win. My mood was flat, and I took the time to observe those around me.”
That ambivalence was shared by every member of the team, past and present, as 2009 was to be Azrul’s last campaign as coach. Looking to pursue coaching at a higher level, he will be completing his Master’s degree in Australia.
“I’m glad we were able to retain the championship, it was a good way to end, but I have to let go,” said Azrul.
Azrul’s coaching tenure may end, but all that have been mentored by him would testify that his spirit would live on, even if he had deliberately tried to keep a distance from the Year 1s this year.
“I hope the new coach can be given space to impose his own style. I don’t want to shape the future and neither do I want to leave my players’ development halfway,” said Azrul.
True to his word, the 2009 team only had 2 year 1s in the starting lineup.
The sense of continuity would probably be best felt in the culture and tradition that he has left behind.
“I thoroughly enjoyed it, I had the best five batches of VJSG and I have fulfilled all my ambitions. Hopefully, I have fulfilled the players’ ambitions as well.”
Asked for words of advice to the incoming coach, he said after much consideration, “I am just a decent coach, complemented with unbelievable teams of players, assisted by many brilliant people. Don’t fix what’s not broken. Allocate time and resources to give the girls the best chance (to win) possible.”
His sentiments were echoed by long time buddy and assistant coach Lim Wei Quan.
“I think it is very hard to predict the future, but whoever comes in has very big shoes to fill. He has to have similar qualities – dedication, drive and heart, to keep the team where it is.”
As the VJSG team undergoes revolution for upcoming campaign, it will sorely miss a coach who has shaped a team from one without hope to one that is full of it.
Characteristic of one full of hopes and dreams, Azrul’s parting words reeked of ambition.
“As attached as I am to VJSG, I believe in the totality of the situation. I laid the groundwork with VJSG, but I can improve much more. I want to move my coaching up to a higher level in Australia. Watch out for me.”
Wei Quan had nothing but well-wishes for Azrul. “All the best, have fun, and I hope to see him doing the same things he has done with VJSG on a higher level, or even the highest level.”
