Singapore miss top-90 target with 141st finish at FIFA Under-15 event
Adryan Alfian scored 10 goals across the tournament, including two in Singapore’s closing victory over Eswatini in Baku.
A 4-1 victory against Eswatini on Oct 30 concluded Singapore’s campaign at the inaugural FIFA Under-15 World Cup and Festival, where they placed 141st among 189 participants. The Cubs fell short of their target of a top-90 finish in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Singapore played 10 fixtures across seven days under an eight-a-side format with halves lasting 20 minutes. In the final game, Adryan Alfian struck twice within 14 minutes to bring his tally to a team-leading 10 goals. Iman Naqib and Kyen Sasikumar supplied Singapore’s other goals, with Kyen taking his tournament total to seven.
Four defeats opened Singapore’s Group P campaign before a 12-0 win against American Samoa left them fifth in the six-team standings. That position sent the Cubs into Tier E, the second-lowest tournament-stage tier, comprising 32 teams.
Their Tier E results included a 9-0 victory against the British Virgin Islands and a penalty shoot-out defeat by Bangladesh, who prevailed 4-3 following a 1-1 draw. Singapore subsequently lost 7-0 against Hong Kong, then defeated St Vincent and the Grenadines 8-3 before meeting Eswatini.
Coach Ashraf Ariffin said the team’s build-up and movement through the pitch offered encouragement. However, he identified chance creation, finishing and individual defending as areas needing improvement, alongside greater intensity, resilience and competitiveness in duels.
