My interview with Kevin Watkin, who followed and reported on Thai football from 2009-2016.
I'm well. Thanks for asking me to contribute to your site again. I'm currently living in Porirua, New Zealand (just north of Wellington). I moved back here at Christmas 2013. I've been working in a bank for the past 6 years, and watching my sons grow up and running them to Saturday morning sports. I've also returned to the pitch myself in the last couple of years, having joined a Masters (over-35) team. I've also coached my boys' teams on and off, and recently completed a Level 1 Goalkeeper Coaching course with NZ Football.
What is your connection to Thai football?
Mostly as a fan, but also I worked on the Thai League Football (TLF) website between 2011-2016. I was also asked to occasionally contribute to the old Chonburi FC and Asian Football Feast sites.
How did you first get interested in Thai football?
It wasn't until my third spell in Thailand that I became really interested in Thai football.
During my first two stints, I mostly watched the EPL. While living in Kamphaeng Phet (1999-2001), I was vaguely aware of theThai league. I saw the odd game on TV, and there were league tables in the English-language papers, with their list of uninspiring teams representing various government and financial institutions.
My colleague Stephen had a letter published in the Bangkok Post, calling for more regional representation in the league as a way of increasing interest and attendance. I also remember seeing quite a bit of the 2000 Asian Cup featuring Thailand. When I was back in 2004-05, I remember some noises about a Provincial League initiative, but not much else.
My wife and I went to Rajamangala Stadium to see Germany beat Thailand in a friendly in 2004, and I visited Thailand during my summer holidays allowing me to see three matches at Rajamangala in the 2007 Asian Cup.
When I returned to Thailand in 2009, I came off the back of three years as a season-ticket holder at the newly-minted Gyeongnam FC in South Korea, and arrived with a keenness to see more local, live football. While picking up a newspaper for my father-in-law while 'in town' in Phimai, I came across Football Siam magazine. I was trying to find suitable material to practice reading Thai, and this fit the bill in terms of length (about 50 or so pages) and frequency (every 5 days, and later weekly) allowing me to usually finish one issue just before the next one came out. From there, I started going to games. Then I discovered the (old) Thai Football Forum. Through this I was able to arrange to meet some of the forum members at games.
What are your happiest memories/experiences of watching Thai football?
Meeting other fans. At Port, I regularly sat with Alex, Andy, and Malky near the top of Zone C, and enjoyed the match, the smuggled-in "monkey" beers (see below), and general chat.
Over the three and a bit years of attending matches, I also met up with other fans who had their own websites including Dale, Paul (Nakhon Rachasima), Greg (Muang Thong), and Anthony (Jakarta Casual), as well as the other TLF crew (Nigel, Matt, Joseph & Lilian).
I have fond memories of spending a couple of afternoons watching U-19 Asian Cup Qualifiers with Sven (Thai Fussball) and Malky at Thepsahadin Stadium. Sven was over on holiday from Germany, while Malky and I had gone stir-crazy (Taiwan 11-0 Guam, anyone?) with Bangkok locked down due to floods in nearby provinces
And any negative experiences?
I can't remember anything related to actually attending games - there was a minor skirmish between fans away at Samut Songkram. Apart from that, a few delayed matches due to waterlogged pitches or failed floodlights was about as bad as it got.
In terms of following the Thai game, there was the off-field politics where individuals put their own interests ahead of the game's. Admittedly not just a Thai problem. Worawi Makudi's FIFA scandals, as well as his ongoing feud with Newin Chidchob reflected badly on Thai football. Team walk-offs and attacks on referees were an issue. Too often the punishment seemed to reflect how much money or political clout the chairman of the offending club had, rather than following any sort of consistent structure.
Which grounds, clubs, sets of fans did you like best and why?
Grounds:
You can't beat a packed PAT Stadium. No running track means you're on top of the pitch (I usually sat in the top section of the Meccano set that was Zone C), and the fans were there to get into the football, not play follow-the-leader to a couple of guys with a megaphone and a drum.
Lat Krabang 54 was a ground I loved visiting for the setting; surrounded by rice fields and greenery, with a gilded Buddhist temple in the background. The journey out this ground was epic as well - from my place it was a 10-15 walk to the Skytrain, then a bus, a minivan, and finally either a motorcycle taxi, or a friendly football fan in a car for the last couple of km down Soi 54. On the way back, it was a songthaew back to the main road before repeating the minivan/bus/train route home.
Fans:
The Port fans got me early. As I've written in another contribution to this site, there was an edge to them. At Gyeongnam, and the first couple of Thai games I went to (at Bangkok Glass and Chula), the fans had occasionally been more focussed on their chants than the game and the songs they sang were happy and positive. On my second or third visit to PAT Stadium, the home fans turned on their team who were losing a 2nd-leg League Cup tie to Bangkok FC, to the point where they were encouraging the away team to shoot and score the away goal that would have seen Bangkok progress.
There was a group of Khon Kaen fans that welcomed me into their group (I'd bought an away shirt on my way into Air Force's ground) for the last few away games of the season that saw the T-Rex become the first Isan club promoted to the TPL. I bumped into a couple of them at random games around Bangkok over the next couple of seasons (Army Stadium, an FA Cup Final), and we'd have a quick catch up.
I always found the Chonburi fans welcoming and friendly as well.
Teams:
I took a while to find a team to support.Port were the team I saw most often, as they were closest to where I lived, and right outside my work. I was initially reluctant to support a "government" team over a "place-name" team. I eventually caved in 2011, purchased a season ticket, and Port became my team.
I kept an eye on Kamphaeng Phet's results (the first town I lived in), but unfortunately never saw them play.
I also followed Nakhon Rachasima (my wife's home province), but the lack of games in Bangkok meant I never developed a passion for them. I saw them lose to Port in the FA Cup in 2009, and saw them gain promotion to Division 1 versus North Bangkok in 2011. The only home game I went to was in the 2011 promotion playoffs, but the floodlights failed as the game was about to start. After waiting almost an hour, I needed to get my young son home, so we left. The lights came back on as we exited the car park.
As already mentioned, I temporarily became a Khon Kaen fan as they gained promotion in 2010. I continued to try and follow them, getting to about four matches around Bangkok during their first TPL campaign.
I eventually found my "place-name" team in Bangkok FC, and got along to a few of their promotion playoff games in 2010 and a few more in Division 1 the following season.
What was the best match you watched while you were here?
To be honest, I don't remember any outstanding games, but there were plenty of memorable days at games.
- The Port fans turning on their team in their League Cup loss to Bangkok FC.
- Being part of the Port fan motorcade prior to the 2011 League Cup Final in 2012.
- The two FA Cup finals I attended.
- Talking my way past security at Supachalasai to see Port play Da Nang in the AFC Cup in 2010 (Port were playing behind closed doors after the infamous Kor Royal cup match against Muang Thong).
Are their any individual players that particularly impressed you?
The three strikers I felt should have played more for Thailand while I was there: Pipop On-mo, Sarayut Chaikamdee and Anon Srangsanoi.
Pipop always played with a massive smile on his face, and scored way more headers than a man his height should expect.
The Chonburi midfield duo Adul Lahso and Therdsak Chaiman were excellent, as was Muang Thong 'keeper Kawin Tammasatchanan.
At Port, I enjoyed the whole-hearted displays of midfielder Ekkapoom Potharungroj. Of the overseas players, Ulrich Munze was a fine, if sometimes erratic figure in goal, and centre-back Moudourou Swa Moise was a rock in defence,
Which was the last match you watched in Thailand?
The 2011 League Cup Final (Port 0-2 Buriram) in February 2012. I left Thailand at the end of that month, before the 2012 season started.
What do you miss most?
Meeting other fans at the games, and also the online chat with the other foreign fans. Living in rugby-dominated New Zealand, I also miss the media coverage of the game in general, especially the local game.
How did you get involved in writing about Thai football?
I was posting quite regularly on the Thai Football Forum, and Nigel Bayne (who started the TLF site) picked up that I was quoting news from Thai sites and papers. He got in touch, and we met for a beer. He initially asked me to write/translate stories - I felt my family and work commitments meant I wouldn't have the time to commit fully to this.
He then suggested I use the TLF Twitter account to tweet headlines and news when I had time. He had created the account, but hardly used it. For the most part, I took my headlines from the Thai League Online and Siam Sport websites. I went through periods where I used both, or one or the other, depending on how each site's latest update suited my purposes. I tweeted news from the TPL, Division 1, and the Regional Leagues, typically spending about two hours an evening on Twitter.
I also maintained the fixture lists and tables.
Towards the end of 2013, I wrote brief histories of about 50 clubs, but these were lost when the site reverted back to its old format in 2014.
What did you enjoy most about reporting on the game?
I started reading about the Thai league as a way of improving my Thai. Running the Twitter account and translating headlines gave me a focus and probably kept me improving my language skills more than if I'd been left to my own devices. I probably gained more knowledge of the players than I would have otherwise. My Korean is completely rubbish, and although I have followed the Korean League for longer, I couldn't name more than a handful of star players in the K-League.
What was your best experience writing about the game?
Even though I didn't really report on matches for TLF, I enjoyed getting to a few post-match press conferences during the season we had press accreditation.
Are there any funny stories you can tell us?
There were a few.
At PAT Stadium, the was a ban on alcohol in the stands. Before the match, and at halftime, we'd head behind the stand for food and drink. One enterprising woman would pour our beers into tall coffee cups (with something like "Monkey Coffee" branding) so we could get them past security, Given how close her stall was to the entrance, I'm pretty sure the security guards knew exactly what was going on, but let us carry our drinks in anyway.
At the World Cup Qualifier against Australia in 2011, Malky & I had arrived quite early, and were killing time in one of the side streets near Supachalasai. We'd just bought a couple beers (served in plastic cups of ice) off a street vendor, when we got chatting to a group of Aussie fans. After a minute or so, I started getting some gentle ribbing for sipping my beer through the straw the vendor had kindly provided. I glanced at Malky, but he'd quickly disposed of his straw to avoid the same fate.
I was far more excited than someone my age should have been when the first TPL sticker albums were launched in 2011. However, I hardly saw any Thais swapping stickers in or around grounds on matchdays. I think there was a thread on the forums, but filling my album was a fairly solitary activity until I discovered that fellow Port fan Andy was also collecting. We'd eagerly meet before Port games, and sit up at the top of Zone C swapping spare stickers. I think on at least one occasion, I caught the Skytrain during a lunch break from my work to his, just to pick up a couple of stickers. A few of my colleagues in Korea visited Thailand on their holidays, and were instructed to buy the 2012 album and a couple of boxes of stickers, but unfortunately, they all returned empty-handed
Finally, there was the afternoon I was supposed to meet you (Dale) at Leo Stadium to see Bangkok Glass host Chonburi. Anthony (Jakarta Casual) happened to be in Bangkok and was going to the game as well. He arranged to meet me in a bar in Patpong before we would head out to Pathum Thani. My usual way of getting to games was to catch the Skytrain or subway as far as I could, and then bus the rest of the way. After a couple of beers, I mentioned we should get going, but Anthony said we'd catch a taxi, and therefore had time to move on to another bar and another drink. This conversation repeated itself a few times, punctuated by a few texts from Dale, until it became obvious we weren't going to make it for kick-off. At this point, an apologetic text was sent to Dale, and Anthony and I settled into a few more beers and games of pool, while watching the match on TV. Apparently this isn't uncommon for Anthony, to the extent it didn't warrant a mention in his latest book.
Are there any stories that you wished you'd covered - but didn't - while you were writing about the local game?
It would have been nice to have had the time, resources, and connections to dig into some of the murkier stories that seemed to get swept under the carpet while I was there, such as the allegations of attempted bribery made by the Japanese referee after the FA Cup Final, the allegations made by Australian journalist Jesse Fink regarding Worawi's World Cup tickets and the FAT land that was actually owned by him.
Probably the biggest regret was that we (TLF) weren't able to find a way to work with the FAT/TPL to produce English content for them, or find outside sponsorship as a way of generating income. in the way the K-League United team have done recently in Korea.
Do you still follow Thai football?
I keep an eye on the results, and read articles posted on this site, as well as some of the stuff written by Paul Murphy and Gian Chansrichawla. I spend about an hour on the train travelling to and from work, and usually listen to football podcasts during this time. I've not had much luck finding podcasts about Thai football, so I feel I'm losing touch. Part of this is my fault - I don't have a smartphone, so I'm restricted to pods that are on platforms that allow me to download to my PC, which I then transfer to my ancient MP3 player. I simply don't get enough quiet time to sit and listen to a pod when I'm at home with my family.
What are the biggest differences you notice between when you were here and now?
I'm not following the off-field stuff as much as I did, but there seems to be less bickering about the way the game is run, compared to when Worawi was in charge. Oh, and Port have money. I recently saw Port described as a 'big' club recently (or something similar) - as someone who has consistently supported teams doomed to mid-table obscurity (or worse), I'm not sure how comfortable I am with this.
Is there anything else you'd like to add?
Thanks again for the opportunity to contribute, and I look forward to catching up for a beer and a game next time I'm in Thailand.
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