Rising star Boas looks to foreign fields
Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta
At 18, Boas Salossa is already a big fish in the small pond of soccer here, rated one of the best left wingers in the country.
Local fans dutifully chant the national team player's name at every game at home. Getting a photo with him and his autograph are prized by supporters who show up at team training sessions.
Yet Boas knows that moving up a level will mean leaving the comfort zone of home. In fact, it's his dream.
"I wish I could play overseas to develop my skills in a competition better than we have at home," the Papuan youth said.
He will be in select company if he does go abroad. Others include Kurniawan Dwi Yulianto, who once played for FC Lucerne in Switzerland, Rochi Puttiray in Hong Kong, Ricky Yacobi in Japan, and now Bambang Pamungkas in Malaysia.
Boas has the skills to play abroad, perhaps in Europe. Quick and sharp, with very good individual skills and deft, innovative plays, he strikes fear in the opposing team's defenders.
Boas' four goals for Indonesia in the 2004 Tiger Cup puts him third among goal scorers after Ilham Jaya Kesuma (7) and Kurniawan (5).
His fourth goal in the second leg of the Tiger Cup semifinal against Malaysia displayed his trademark style.
Boas got the ball from a midfielder, then flicked it with his right foot to pass a Malaysian defender.
After beating the defender, he came up against the Malaysian goalkeeper. Instead of taking a shot, he nimbly dribbled it around the goalkeeper, leaving him wrong-footed, and tapped it into the empty net.
His impressive performance has led some newspapers to tip him for the title of best player of the competition.
Boas, a nephew of Papua Governor Jaap Salossa, started his international career in the Under-20 national team at the age of 17.
He was quickly promoted to the senior team following his outstanding performance in the U-20 Asian Cup in Kuala Lumpur in September and October, where he scored two of Indonesia's three goals.
National coach Peter Withe acknowledged Boas' talent, but added that he needed to exercise more self-control.
"Boas is a young and very good player, but sometimes he should learn not to do stupid things in the field that get a yellow card."
Boas got his second yellow card in the qualifying matches held in Vietnam; it kept him out of the first semifinal match against Malaysia at home, where Indonesia lost 1-2.
He was also booked in the second leg of the semifinal in Kuala Lumpur, which Indonesia won 4-1, for his strong protest to the referee for issuing a yellow card to another player.
It's the mix of natural talent and his erratic, emotional edge that have made him a player to watch among fans.
"My male friends and I always talk about Boas, the captain Ponaryo Astaman, and top scorer Ilham," said Ananda, a 15-year- old North Jakarta junior high school student who watched the team practice on Friday morning.
She and her friends will be watching for Boas' bag of tricks when Indonesia meets Singapore in Jakarta on Saturday, and in the second leg match in the island-state on Jan. 16.
"I hope Boas could help Indonesia win the Tiger Cup," she said.