The one with the year that was 2012

Its time for the annual ‘the year that was’ post. 2012 was another eventful year despite the world ending was looming large. Since I haven’t been actively blogging, trying to recap the year isn’t that easy, but I’ll stick to the highlights I remember.

My son now as of writing is 15 months old. Aidan year one was awesome. Watching him grow and develop has been a joy. Now that he has legs, he just can’t stop moving and playing. He has grown so much and I’ve been fortunate enough to be around during his growth. He can be very cheeky and mischievous while being cute and cuddly at the same time. My wife says i spoil him too much and i let him get away with everything that I’m easily fooled by his cuteness.

Sports-wise I believe I’m no longer the player I used to be. I even don’t have the same fire and passion to play every game I can. I guess this year has probably been the year with the least sporting appearances for me. Overall in 53 futsal games, I average 2-goals and an assist per game. Basketball wise, I averaged 10-17-5-1-2 in 47 games. Didn’t get much of tennis action this year. Mainly due to the inability to get a court date and the weather hasn’t been tennis friendly. I tailed off towards the end of the year, as my will-to-play is no longer there. I now need to feed off the energy and will-to-play from others. Hopefully I can rejuvenate myself for 2013.

In May I finally made a career move. I left the Bursa Malaysia gig for a gig at Bank Simpanan Nasional. Also, I’ve rejoined the treasury line and now I’m doing what I was doing when I started my career. So far the move has been good, but I still feel unsettled.  Not plotting any exits as of yet, but will keep my options open.

So 2012 has been an eventful year on its own. Here’s hoping for a better 2013.

The one where its been a while

Hello all. How do? Happy fasting to the Muslim community.

Guess its been a while since I wrote something here. Surprised I still remember my password.

So whats new? Well, now I'm coming into 3 months at my new gig. So far so good, doing what I used to do when I started my career.

Aidan is growing right before my eyes. Its a joy to see him grow and watch him reach new milestones everyday. He will be 11 months next Sunday. And when I look back at his photos, he has grown so much.

Earlier this month, me and the Mrs celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary.

Also, just bought the new Spurs jerseys for next season. Yup, I bought both home and away jerseys, and boy do they look sexy.

 aidan at 10 months

 celebrating our 2nd wedding anniversary

the new spurs jerseys for the upcoming season

The one with The Avengers

The first of the summer-comic-book-movies has been screened - The Avengers. A fan-boys dream come true. And I must say it was surprisingly fun.

I was a bit sceptical about the movie. I was worried about chemistry, screen time, character development and the flow of the story. However I was glad I was wrong.

Each character was given a fair amount of screen time and presence in the film. Though I believe Loki had more screen time than most and Tony Stark had the best lines especially with his verbal sparring with Steve Rogers.With Steve playing the patriotic soldier and Tony being himself, the clash of ideas really had an impact on the team. And their on-screen chemistry was beautiful.

Mark Ruffalo's portrayal of Bruce Banner surprised me. I for one really enjoyed Ed Norton's portrayal of Bruce, as he embodied the inner struggle he endured brilliantly. Mark played a Bruce who seem more in control of 'the other guy'.

My favourite character Thor was probably the most awesome of them all (yes, I'm biased). His early battle against both Captain America and Iron Man was one of my favourite scenes. Thor himself enjoyed watching both Steve and Tony go at each other. Also the Thor against Hulk fight was awesome. (Wonder if we would have a Hulk vs Wolverine soon?)

The other characters Natasha and Clint had their share of screen time too. The were normal humans who didn't have powers like their teammates. Nick Fury, Phil Coulson and Maria Hill had their screen time.

Come to think of it, Joss Whedon really did a good job developing the characters. Unlike the X-men trilogy where Wolverine was the main focus of the story.

The movie is about the different personalities of each team member and how they all came together to fight the common enemy.

My overall review for Avengers would be awesome and fun. Just enjoy the ride.

The one with another disastrous futsal tournament

Last Saturday 14th April 2012 was the 2nd edition of the EPL supporters club futsal tournament. It was bigger then the last tournament with a total of 12 teams. Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United and Newcastle all sent 2 teams while Manchester City and Spurs sent 1 team.

Prior to the tournament we didn't really prepare well. All attempts for centralized training was met with lukewarm response and injuries. With that, I came into the tournament with zero expectations. And how wrong I was. I didnt know we were suppose to win the whole shindig. The best part was the players who never turn up for training are the ones demanding a win. 

First I'll get to the results. We drew our first game against Chelsea B 0-0 and I didn't see any playing time in that one. Next we lost to Man Utd A 2-3. I came in after half-time and we were already 2-down at that point. I came in and help stabilize the defence (sometimes you just need big guys at the back). I also got yellow-carded in that game. I was carded because I ran over a very small Man Utd player which I didn't see when going for a high ball. Funny call but it was against Man Utd. Craig pulled us level with 2 quick goals. Then disaster happened. I under hit a pass forward which was intercepted by a Man Utd player and I was caught out with a quick 1-2 counter. I was blamed for that goal which I owned up too. But the rest didn't accepted it. They claim that I should have been subbed because I was 'tired'. Well that was suppose to be their call on who comes in and out. My number wasn't called so I carried on. With that I knew I was going to be benched for the rest of the tournament. I missed our next 2 games, a 2-1 win over Arsenal A with goals from Leonard and Conrad and a 1-3 loss to Liverpool A with Conrad scoring our lone goal. We were already eliminated from the semis before our last game against Newcastle B. I was asked to start because there was nothing to play for. Due to be out cold, I wasn't ready for the game and made 2 early errors which lead to their goals in the first 3 minutes or so. Everyone was making me the scapegoat and then I had it. I walked out on the team, asked someone else to replace me. We lost 1-3 with Shahrul getting our goal. I didn't say goodbye to the team and walked back home straight after the game. The tournament was just across the road from my in-laws place so I decided to just walk to the tournament venue.

So i just played less then 8 minutes in the tournament from a total of 50 minutes playing time. Only played in 2 games while I was benched for the other 3. I didn't appreciate being made the scapegoat for the losses in which I played a part in. We didn't even prepare as a team. What do you expect? You think we can win by just showing up? Even Barcelona don't win without any preparation. With that I officially quit the team (like I was needed anyway). I will not make myself available for any future Spurs Malaysia futsal teams. 

A frustrating tournament and also a wasted weekend.

The one with the evening with Gary Mabbutt

On Tuesday, 27th March 2012, was a memorable occasion for the Spurs Malaysia fans. We had the opportunity to sit down, chat and dine with our legendary captain during the late 80s to 90s, Gary Mabbutt. The event was held at Seri Pacific here in Kuala Lumpur.

When he arrived, he was greeted with rapturous applause from all of us. It was my first experience seeing a Spurs legend up close. I had goosebumps and didn't know what to do with my hands but clap.

He shared his experiences and stories from his playing days as well as his opinions on the current Spurs squad.

When asked about the current squad, his believes it can go places, and he also says that if Harry Redknapp wants the England job, then the team should let him pursue his dream. As for who could replace him, he had 3 names - Carlo Ancelotti, Jurgen Klinsmann and Guss Hiddink. He felt British names like David Moyes and Brendan Rodgers could be within a shout for the Spurs managerial post should Harry leave.

Gary also shared the work footballers do during the off-season. While a majority of players will make the headlines for the wrong reasons, footballers actually do a lot of community work. He talked about the charities and community work done by the club in Africa.

Gary also shared about his playing experiences. Who were his toughest opponents and such. He always wanted to play fair. He wasn't the "out-to-break-your-legs" type of defender. He always won the ball fairly. And how the current Spurs team could use a defender like him now to stabilize the squad. He was also the last captain to lift the FA Cup back in 1991. It was one of his proudest moments in his career.

There were topics we avoided asking, but Gary talked about it anyway. He talked about his own-goal in the 1987 FA Cup final. And how he became on of Coventry's influential people in their history as well as getting meals for free there for life. The other topic was Paul Gascoigne. His life story is well documented and Gary said its good to see Paul try to get his life back together.

The evening ended with an autograph session. And I didn't bring anything for him to sign. So I only got his autograph on the invitation card. I admit I was star-struck the whole evening and even when we chatted during the autograph signing, I was at lost for words. It's not everyday a Spurs legend comes to town.

The one with plotting another exit

Finally I have a way out. Another chance for a new start. I will be taking my 'talents' to Jalan Ampang. Also it will be back to what I used to do.

Now that I will be heading back to my previous field, I need to brush up on the latest market developments. Also need to find my swagger back and get my revenge (the revenge part was just for dramatic effect).

The timing is just nice too. Our 'bonus day' is this coming Friday. After that, I will tender my resignation and serve my notice (1 month).

I now have a chance to get my career back on track. I can try to regain that 'lost year' in my career. 

I for one know the grass is never greener on the other side, but the move was solely for the money. Given all my financial woes, the increase is very much needed.

While most people will see this a pick-me-up, I refuse to believe that my life is changing. Because knowing me, there will be a sick punchline somewhere, the killing joke as one may say.

The one with the exile from sports

My "exile from sports" still continues. Though no one really noticed or missed me except one teammate.

With all the work issues and personal problems I have, playing was the one thing that helped me forget about it all, even for a while. Doing what I do on the courts, will help de-stress and keep my sanity in check. It was the one thing I know where I can be awesome and help me feel good about myself.

But lately, I guess everything is taking its toll on me. I no longer have the same swagger and mojo to play. I'm not even confident in my own game. With this loss of confidence, I have bad and lousy games, which I can't take. Playing was the one thing that can help me be awesome, but if I keep having bad games, what am I?

With all this said, I find myself no longer having fun playing. Which is really the point of playing - having fun. But now that I'm no longer having fun, I guess I should just walk away or stay away.

The Mrs says I'm in my head too much. I think too much. But that's what I am. I have 'high' standards to my play. I want to entertain, I want to keep the game sexy. But now I can't seem to do anything right.

How long will I be out? I have no idea. I need to find that spark that ignites my interest in playing again.