I can’t remember my first time kicking a football. But I do remember one time in primary school where my good friend was chasing after a ball. I can’t remember how it happened but I remember that my friend tripped and rolled on the ground and few days later, he came back with a concrete cast on his hand. LOL.
Basketball was a craze during my first few years in high school. I got hooked for couple of years but eventually my interest drifted towards football.
Football jerseys were unheard off. The only method we had in order to identify the other side was by going topless or wearing a tshirt – first team that concedes a goal, the other team must take off their shirts. I never liked that. It’s gross. Imagine 11 sweaty topless boys grinding with other boys. Euw!
I eventually found out that there’s a term for it after seeing one online advertisement by Nike (through Nuffnang‘s advert). It’s called Togel. What the Togel?? Sounds like Bogel to me! But to think of it, bogel means naked. And togel means? Half Naked?
Visit Nike Togel Website at http://www.nikefootball.com.my/jangantogel/
Futsal was unheard of in Malaysia in the late 1990s. But my friends and I played something like that. It was fun. During high school, we had games in the late evening (until it turns dark) in parks. My friends would never forget this incident when one of them accidentally dented a car door after being hit by a ball (I think it was a Nike ball). The owner was so furious that he took out his machete and started chasing them. LOL.
My high school friends continued hanging out together after leaving high school and some of us eventually went to the same college or a college nearby. We would meet up occasionally to play football.
At one point during college, we played futsal in a shopping centre car park in the middle of the night. We started off from the ground floor car park and slowly moved to the 3rd floor (highest floor). It was quite interesting. We had to dodge pillars.
However, our enthusiasm died after we were sick of picking balls that went off the car park and having greased feet (thanks to the cars). But I think the last straw was when a security guard brought his friends along (with weapons!) to confront us – thinking that there was a commotion in the car park.
Years later, I had my first taste of amateur football when my friends organised a game with a bunch of Korean. We bought jerseys just for the game and I bought my first football boot, a Nike boot.
On that faithful day, we arrived late. But we somehow hoped that the Koreans would understand the Malaysian culture of being late.
We thought that the Koreans, just like Japanese, would turn up wayyyy earlier. But it seems that the Koreans were nothing like Japanese. The Koreans didn’t turn up for the match at all!!!
We ended playing with a bunch of locals and got thrashed. Boo.
Even though it been more than 9 years since we left high school, my high school friends would still bond over football/futsal (and not forgetting alcohol).
Thank you England for popularizing football. Hope you win the next world cup (HA! you wish!)
