Makassar welcomes home soccer heroes

MAKASSAR, South Sulawesi (JP): Thousands of people in the capital of South Sulawesi jammed the roads on Thursday welcoming their heroes bringing home the Bank Mandiri national soccer league championship. "The Old Brothers" team turned the Hasanuddin international airport into a red sea of fanatical supporters.

Fans began arriving at 7:00 a.m. local time to welcome their team, which defeated Pupuk Kaltim of Bontang, East Kalimantan, 3- 2 in Sunday's final. The team, coached by former national team coach Henk Wullems of the Netherlands and assistant Syamsuddin Umar, arrived at 9:45 a.m.

After the Garuda airplane touched down at the airport, thousands of people tried to approach the team members, specially top striker Kurniawan Dwi Yulianto. Luckily, tight security managed to save the players from being mauled.

South Sulawesi Governor HZB Palaguna greeted the team, saying that it would increase the province's pride in national events.

"This is the first title earned by South Sulawesi since the league kicked off in 1994. We are very proud of our players," he said. PSM's last victory was in the 1992 league in the Association Competition.

The joy included the naming of PSM midfielder Bima Sakti as the best player in the league.

PSM players led the parade, about five kilometers long, through the city causing a total traffic jam for about one hour.

PSM team manager Kadir Halid expressed his gratitude to Makassar soccer fans for the celebration.

"This celebration shows how much they appreciate the players' efforts to win the league champion title. The President's Cup belongs to the people of South Sulawesi," he said. (27)