Roy Krishnan
IHFS EXCELLENCE AWARD FOR SPORTMAN – FOOTBALL
Ramasamy Krishnan, popularly known as Roy Krishnan in local football circles, is best remembered for the dramatic equaliser he scored against China before more than 50,000 cheering fans at the National Stadium on 3 November 1974.
It was a magnificent goal by Krishnan who snapped up a chance at midfield and sprinted for more than 40 metres before shooting the ball past Chinese goalkeeper Hu Chih-Kang to the thunderous roar of the fans. The friendly match ended in a 1-1 draw.
The following year, Krishnan stole the thunder again with three goals against Malacca in a Malaysia Cup match at the National Stadium on 23 March 1975. Singapore won that match 6-2.
Krishnan, once reputed as Asia’s fastest left-winger, also scored the winning goal in Singapore’s fabulous 3-2 win over Chilean champions Union Espanola on 5 February 1973.
Espanola, with six Mexico World Cup players in their ranks, had beaten all Asian national teams in their tour except Singapore.
He also represented Holiday Inn in Singapore Business Houses Football League tournament in 1978 and 1979.
The former national left-winger suffered a knee cartilage injury in 1976.
He sustained the injury during the Singapore team’s tour of China in May 1975 and aggravated it while preparing for the Asian Cup tournament.
Krishnan, who made his debut for Singapore in the 1971 Merdeka tournament, was one of our most dedicated and fastest left-wingers who was considered an indispensable feature of our wing play.
The wing wizard also played outstandingly against the visiting All-Japan team in a friendly match at Jalan Besar Stadium on 12 February 1974. The Singapore team did very well to hold the fancied Japanese to a slim 1-0 win.
Injury-prone Krishnan made a comeback with Tampines Rovers after a lapse of 18 months on 17 September 1976.
He was out of action for almost two seasons because of a knee injury.
Krishnan took to coaching in 1980 after a knee injury forced him to retire from international soccer in 1976.
The two-and-a-half week-long coaching course was conducted by Football Association of Singapore’s Director of Coaching, Trevor Hartley.
Krishnan felt that it was an important step towards his goal of making himself useful in the sport. He took over the helm as coach of Holiday Inn football team and was the “brains” behind the team’s stirring performances.
He mentored and guided the hoteliers to the semi-finals of the Singapore Business Houses Football League (SBHFL) First Division in 1981.
It takes a lot of hard work, sacrifices, dedication, perseverance and determination to make it as a soccer star. Krishnan had all these qualities in abundance.
Here’s a case in point :
The national team was preparing for the Vietnam Independence Day (October 28 to 31) and Thai King’s Cup (November 6 to 16) competitions. Krishnan was on his way from his Jurong home to the training ground at Farrer Park. He met with a motor accident at 7.15am on 18 October 1971 (Deepavali). The taxi he was travelling in met with a lorry at Jurong in a head-on crash. Despite suffering superficial cuts on his face and sacrificing his obligatory Deepavali holiday, he joined his teammates at training.
That’s the spirit of Roy Krishnan for Singapore football.