Withe tells fans to keep it clean

Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

National soccer team coach Peter Withe is appealing to local fans to behave during Saturday's Tiger Cup final against Singapore -- for the sake of their side.

"To the supporters, (I say) please don't throw bottles, don't launch fireworks," the Briton said after Wednesday's afternoon training session.

"Instead of doing such bad things, they could sing during the match, which will be good enough to motivate our players and put pressure on the visitors."

Hooliganism would not only disrupt the tempo of the home team, Withe said, but the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) was closely watching the conduct of notoriously ill-behaved local fans.

During the first semifinal between Indonesia and Malaysia on Dec. 28 in Jakarta, local supporters set off fireworks and threw bottles onto the field in the second half when the visitors took a winning 2-1 lead.

However, Indonesia bounced back to crush Malaysia 4-1 on Jan. 3 to secure a final spot.

In looking ahead to Saturday, Withe said both teams overcame difficult obstacles.

He characterized Singapore as a good team with tall defenders and solid organization, but also noted that it had conceded five goals in its semifinal matches against Myanmar.

Singapore defeated the relatively unfavored team 4-3 in the first semifinal match, but only eked out a 4-2 win in extra time in the second encounter, after being behind 1-2 at the end of 90 minutes. The close contest was despite three of Myanmar's players being sent off for indisciplinary conduct.

He pointed to Indonesia's home field advantage, as Singapore would have to adapt to playing at the Bung Karno Stadium in Senayan, South Jakarta, and deal with the weight of fan support.

"We're playing at home...we will surely attack them," he said.

Withe kept mum about his strategy for the final, but said his players were highly confident, having scored in every match except their goalless draw against Singapore in a preliminary round.

Meanwhile, the National Sports Council (KONI) head of development affairs, Djoko Pramono, said that the performance of the national soccer team, after many years of mediocre results, was very impressive, and he singled out Withe for praise.

"It was because we have a good coach, Peter Withe, that emphasizes discipline in players and improved their mentality," he said.

"Now, we have a sharp attacking soccer team who are not afraid of playing away, as they can win at home and also in other countries."

He was particularly hopeful of Indonesia taking the biannual title, because the team had never been daunted by the prospect of playing Singapore.