Kurniawan on his way to professionalism

Kurniawan on his way to professionalism

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's striker Kurniawan Dwi Yulianto stole
the show in the final match of the Independence Cup Sunday when
the host team defeated Iraq 3-0.

He might not end up as the top scorer of Sunday's final or of
the overall event but he assisted teammates in setting up goals
with his feeds. Many missed the chances, however, but others,
like junior striker Gendut Doni Christiawan, were more
successful.

The former member of the Primavera junior team, which trained
in Italy in 1993, only earned one goal when Indonesia routed
Myanmar 4-1 last Monday.

It seems that Kurniawan, who will play his first Asian Cup
final in Lebanon in October, has left behind his gloomy past and
is looking ahead to a brighter future.

He was in the headlines in local media for several months for
allegedly taking shabu-shabu (crystal methamphetamine). The
illicit activity has torn away his chance to compete in the 1999
Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Brunei Darussalam.

In June, he and another two players entered the Wijaya Kusuma
Sports Campus to undergo a medical check. Although he admitted to
having consumed shabu-shabu when socializing and for occasional
recreational pleasure, the campus recommended that Kurniawan be
returned to the soccer field.

He joined the Makassar-based PSM club in the Bank Mandiri
national league this year and helped the club to lift the
President's trophy as league champions.

"I want to close my dark past. I don't want it to return in my
memory," he said after Sunday's final.

Kurniawan said he has ended his contract with PSM. Besides
looking for another club to play for in the next league, a new
and heavier responsibility is awaiting him.

"Insya Allah (God willing), I will be a father on Sept. 12,"
said Kurniawan, who married TV-star Kartika Dewi last year.

He said that his ambition was to increase his selling points.

"I want to be a professional player and I want to be able to
decide on my price. I am thinking far into my future. I want
local clubs to set a high value for me," said Kurniawan, who was
born in Magelang on July 13, 1976.

He said he had no idea which club to join for the next league.
He indicated, however, that a club had offered him the job but
refused to mention the club's name.

He started his career in training centers at Salatiga, Central
Java, and Ragunan Sports School in South Jakarta. He played for
FC Luzern in Switzerland from 1995 to 1996 before joining home
favorite Pelita Mastrans (now Pelita Solo). (ivy)