Highs and Lows: 2009

My end of season 'Highs and Lows' list from 2009 makes for interesting reading, ten years on:

Chonburi FC
High Points:
Boycotting the match against Thai Port. The atmosphere on the car park at Supachalasai was as good as any I’ve ever experienced in over 40 years of following football.

The signing of Michael Byrne

Beating Tero 4-1 in the Queen’s Cup

Magna Pattaya’s display against us the FA Cup (We won 4-1, but the part timers gave us a real scare)

Our away support – the original and still the best

The 3-0 home win against PEA



Low Points
The ridiculous decision by FAT to make us play our final home match of the season, against Thai Port, at Supachalasai following a large scale riot* at our game against Chula Utd.

*OK, it was a couple of blokes squaring up to the Siam Sport film crew on the car park, but it amounts to the same thing.

Our treatment at the Thunderdome. Incompetence on a grand scale. (Muang Thong Utd's ground clearly wasn't ready to host what, at the time, wad the biggest match in Thai league history)

The way certain sections of the crowd behaved towards Zico – especially during the latter stages of the season

Failling to beat Binh Duong at home in the AFC Cup

Realising that for the second season running we were destined to finish as runners-up after failing to win games we really should have won

PEA away

Thai Football
High Points

The best footballing side (Muang Thong Utd) winning the TPL

The re-introduction of the FA Cup

Increase in crowd numbers and general interest– but where have you all come from?!

More provincial towns and cities establishing football clubs - but let’s not run before we can walk.

The chat on the Thai football message board

And the Lows...

The ridiculous treatment of Steve Darby after the SEA Games defeat to Malaysia

Coaches blaming referees for everything – and the treatment of refs in general

Teams walking off when a decision goes against them. GROW UP!

New fans claiming to be “hardcore” when they’ve only just started going to games after years of not bothering

Siam Sport’s love affair with all things Muang Thong United related. So much for unbiased reporting.

Pattaya Utd not being docked the points after fielding an ineligible player and ultimately costing SriRacha their place in the TPL.

The poor organization of the FA Cup – How to completely ruin a good idea

Clubs being allowed to buy their way into the TPL and others moving around with no regard to the fans they were leaving behind

Thailand’s sponsorship deal with McD*nalds

The complete cock-up that is Division(s) 2

The linesman being banned (thanks to about a million and nine replays on Siam Sport TV) after wrongly flagging Leesaw offside. Nothing short of a witch hunt