“The brick-red track at the National Stadium was new, the grandstand crowd was noisy. The setting was out of this world.”
- Alan Koh, 1983 SEA games bronze medalist (4x100m), talking about the 1975 National Schools Track and Field Championships
“I
had some great moments at the National Stadium. The atmosphere during
Malaysia Cup matches was fantastic. The matches we often played to
capacity crowds, and when you realize that 60,000 people are crammed
into a 55,000-seat stadium and fans are even sitting on the steps and
walls, you can only draw inspiration and motivation from that. The
Kallang Roar and the orchestrated singing during the Kallang Wave were
two elements that brought out the best in me and my team-mates. So it
was a bitter pill whenever we lost a match, because we felt that we had
let our supporters down.”
- Former Singapore soccer captain Terry Pathmanan who played for Singapore from 1978 to 1992.
“The National Stadium is close to my
heart. I always enjoyed playing there. The big crowds were a sight to
behold. The fans were tremendous. The matches were interesting. And the
stadium built dreams, not just for players but the spectators as well.”
- Fandi Ahmad
“That was an emotional match. I
remember that I scored. That goal was for the fans who had supported and
backed me from when I was a scrawny schoolboy player.”
- Fandi Ahmad, at his last competitive match at the National Stadium in a testimonial for David Lee, Malek Awab and himself.
“I won’t miss the National Stadium
structure. The concrete means little to me, and maybe it is time we had a
major sports facility. The object can be replaced. But I will certainly
miss what the stadium provided - those happy memories of huge crowds
cheering, the football we played, the friends we made and the tremendous
atmosphere we enjoyed during the Malaysia Cup days.”
- Quah Kim Song, former national player and now football administrator.
“For almost nine months of the year,
there was at least one game every ten days at the National Stadium, and
you cannot quantify what it brought to the country in terms of
people-bonding, racial harmony and inter-nation friendship. The Kallang
Roar silenced everything else. And its echoes resonated with a young
nation’s spirit and sentiment; that of facing challenges and overcoming
adversity with the might of togetherness. A big story, in fact, if you
believe that pictures tell a thousand words.”
- Jerry Seh, former award-winning newspaper
photographer, who was a permanent fixture behind the goal at soccer
matches in the National Stadium.
“My first visit to the National
Stadium after its official opening on 21 July 1973 was to watch my
daughter Carol winning a medal in a 400m event in a school meet, before a
crowd of about 600. My last visit was in August 2001 when Manchester
United played Singapore before a crowd of 65,000. I wore a Man U
T-shirt, as did almost 90% of the crowd. But we were all cheering for
Singapore… and I smiled as I remembered the Lion’s roar in its prime in
the 1970s. The National Stadium was officially closed on 30 June 2007,
but the Kallang Roar still echoes in the minds of the tens of thousands
who were fortunate to be there when it was at its loudest and proudest.”
- David Kraal
“By the time the National Stadium
came about in 1973, I had retired from playing national soccer, but I
used to watch matches there, and thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere and
national passion and pride. Later, as coach of the national team, it was
always a tremendous feeling sitting on the pitch and watching
Singaporeans thoroughly enjoying themselves. There is nothing like
sports, especiall soccer, to bring the nation together.”
- Robin Chan, 63, former international and ex-Singapore coach who took the Lions to Malaysia Cup runners-up spot in 1990.
“It has become a part of my life.
During football season, I’m here even on weekends. So I will definitely
miss those happy moments.”
- Hussein Mophit, SSC Groundsman
“We cannot relive those times. I
used to enjoy watching Quah Kim Song, S. Rajagopal, Nasir Jalil and
Dollah Kassim at soccer matches then. I miss those good times.”
- Eileen Boey, Sports Management Division, SSC
“I will miss it: where Singaporeans
let their hair down. It also gave Singaporeans many heartwarming
moments, especially during the Malaysia Cup matches. And I will always
remember when my B division boys emerged champions at the National
Schools Championships in 1975.”
- C. Kunalan
“It was terrific to win the SEA
games discus gold. During the event in the morning, there weren’t that
many people around. But I still raised my game to be crowned king of
Southeast Asia. And the victory was better felt during the prize
presentation in the evening, when the stadium was almost full. Hearing
the strains of Majulah Singapura when I stood on the main podium gave me
a deeper sense of patriotism. The crowd was truly appreciative of my
effort, although most had not seen me perform.”
- James Wong
“I was in lane three and could not
see the favourite, Than Than of Burma. I went all out at the starting
gun and as we rounded the bend, Than was just ahead of me. Then, with
the crowd roaring, I gave it my all and at the last stride I thought I
had just made it.”
- Gloria Barnabas
“It’s sad. A part of me will be taken away. The stadium gave me so many great memories. It won’t be the same again.”
-Mdm Zalia Jaafar, receptionist, SSC
“The Singapore stadium should be a
model for any country wanting to build an ultra-modern complex. They
should send their architects here to study the structure and model their
stadium in a similar way. It is the best stadium I have seen.”
- A.Waterworth, Everton’s chairman in 1974.
“I
had heard of the National Stadium. I enjoyed the atmosphere during our
club’s game against Singapore. The pitch was in superb condition and the
crowd was fantastic.”
- Mike Phelan, one of the coaches at English Premiership side Manchester United, 2001
“I have travelled and played
extensively in many parts of the world and Singapore’s National Stadium
is comparable to the best. When compared with stadiums in Europe, it is
just as good as the ones in Frankfurt and Rome. These two are rated two
of the best in Europe.”
- Billy Bingham, manager of English professional club Everton in 1974, when he visited Singapore.