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| FIRST STEP … Yusof (seated, 3rd right) is flanked by Gopal (3rd left) and Hasbullah after the opening ceremony held at the SFA office in Maksak Hall yesterday. |
Without disrespect to those who have brought glory to the State and made Sabah proud (in the past), what is more important now is the future. “We must instill this aim or determination, as this will give us the motivation to do what is best for football in Sabah,” Yusof said. “We must try and function well and be more matured in the development of the game.
On the part of the association we are serious in our development efforts,” said Yusof, who is also the Development Chairman of the association. Yusof said this when gracing the opening ceremony of the AFC Licence ‘C’ Course held in the State Capital here. The course is organised by the SFA with the cooperation with the FA of Malaysia and is attended by 24 participants.
He went on to reveal that one of the reasons why the FA decided to change its constitution is to give more room for the development of the game. “We believe by expanding our wings to every part of the districts in the State, it will give everyone an opportunity to contribute towards the development of football. And Yusof said they are open to suggestions and ideas.
“We are willing to listen and give advice to all districts. SFA are also looking at all aspects, from coaching, refereeing to grassroots development. On the course, Yusof appreciated the participants’ efforts in wanting to contribute to the game. He urged them to be serious in their coaching job and that the learning process does not stop here.
“You must keep learning and update yourselves from time to time. You must also be creative and have strong integrity and with good character. You must lead by example, and take the extra initiative in order to be the best,” he said. “You also must try to get involved in the game from time to time,” he added. He also revealed that Sabah still lacked coaches, especially those who possess Licence A.
“In order to develop football in Sabah to another level, we need to have as many coaches as possible. At the moment, it is still not enough. We only have a few with Licence A holders, who are active. And we have Licence B holders as well as C, but the figure that we have at the moment is far from encouraging,” he said.
“On our part, we will try to hold more course of this kind in the near future. We are also hoping to organise Licence A and B in the near future. Former State striker Mohd Jaya Kassim and Cebagoo FC striker Rainol Masaat were among those who attended the course that ends on June 29. The course is conducted by FAM Coaching Unit Chief Gopalkrishnan. SFA Executive Secretary Hasbullah Yahya was also present at the function.
