SINGAPORE, March 22 — Singapore’s hard-fought draw against China last night has left some long-suffering Lions fans feeling excited about the national team’s future, their optimism further stoked by new coach Tsutomu Ogura declaring that he was “not satisfied” with the result.

China, ranked 88th in the world, 68 places above the hosts, were 2-0 up at the break but the Lions pulled one back through Faris Ramli in the 53rd minute, before defender Jacob Mahler smashed in the equaliser nine minutes from time.

The Lions could even have nicked a famous victory, but veteran defender Safuwan Baharudin had a penalty appeal waved off in the dying minutes.

While it was the Lions’ first match under new coach Ogura, who took over from the much maligned Takayuki Nishigaya in early February, Singapore fans among the 28,414 crowd at the National Stadium were encouraged by what they had seen.

The atmosphere was electric throughout the game, with noise levels going through the roof when defender Mahler struck the equaliser.

“I thought the players fed off the energy from the crowd and the crowd fed off the performance on the pitch,” said digital marketer and Lions supporter Roystonn Loh, 34, who was among the crowd.

Despite the Lions falling two goals behind at the break, there was none of the despondency seen in the last few matches of Nishigaya’s tenure, former football player turned pundit Rhysh Roshan Rai noting that the fans at the stadium “stuck around and tried to lift the team”.

By the end of the game, Singapore had racked up 15 attempts at goal compared with China’s 11.

Mr Rai, a commentator for the Singapore Premier League (SPL), said that it was a commendable effort from the Lions who played “some really brave football against a pretty strong team”.

And despite having been in charge for less than two months, Ogura’s ideas were visible in the way the Lions played, the fans felt.

“There were more outlets and attacking output compared to the games under coach Nishigaya,” said 17-year-old Nanyang Polytechnic student Chuan Rei Hern.

The players’ “heart and fighting spirit” during the game were evident as well, said Republic Polytechnic student Zun Rey, also 17.

“Under Nishigaya, it felt like the tactics were stale and the players were unmotivated. Ogura’s tactics and his enthusiasm on the sidelines felt like a breath of fresh air,” he said.

Rei Hern believes that there is a tangible “anticipation and excitement” in the air following the team’s spirited showing — which he hopes would get more people to rally for the national team.

“Fans will be eager to witness the rest of the Lions’ campaign, for sure,” he said.

Praise for Ogura, but Lions have ‘long way to go’

After the match, Ogura told reporters that he was not satisfied with the result as Singapore had chances to win the game. This struck a chord with pundits and fans alike.

“It is good that the head coach keeps a level head and looks at the game objectively, it’s still a results business at its core,” said Lions’ fan Mr Loh.

He added: “It’s unrealistic to think that one game is sufficient to turn it around, but it does serve as a good starting point for the team and the fans to start regaining confidence.”

SPL commentator and former football player Shasi Kumar agreed.

He believes that while the Lions should be encouraged, “we should not get carried away” by the result as Singapore’s defensive shortcomings were evident in the goals they conceded.

As to whether Ogura will be able to turn the national team’s fortunes in the long run, the pundits said that the Japanese should not be judged purely on results alone.

“For him, it’s about the style of the team, whether there is improvement in players, and whether they’ve picked up from where they were before,” said Mr Kumar.

Mr Rai added that it is still “very early days” for Ogura, and that the coach needs to be given time to help the team find “consistency”.

“There’s a long, long way to go,” he said.

“Fans just want to be encouraged by something, they want to have hope. They want to believe that things are going to change for the better, and what Singapore did last night gave people that hope.” — TODAY