Besides winning the S.League, Singapore Cup and AFF Championship, Indra also emerged the top scorer of the AFC Cup and South East Asian Games.
PHOTO: SPORTFIVE
In the late 1990s, a teen prodigy by the name of Indra Sahdan Daud made an immediate and indelible mark on the S.League upon joining the local tournament. On the international front, Indra captained the Singapore Lions at the tender age of 16 to win the Singapore Cup. Touted as ‘the next Fandi Ahmad’, Singapore’s number 10 scored many memorable goals for Singapore and for the different clubs that he played for. By the mid 2000s, the coveted player rose to become Singapore’s highest paid local footballer.
Here to Play was delighted to get in touch with this local hero, who recounted what made him successful in football and in life. Although he is retired and no longer scoring awe-inspiring goals for Singapore, Indra is still contributing to the local sporting scene by applying his wealth of knowledge to grooming young footballers.
Very few players have ever been named ‘Young Player of the Year’ twice.
PHOTO: SPORTFIVE
Here to Play: Hi Indra! What are your favourite memories from your footballing career?
Indra Sahdan: My favourite moment was being able to represent Singapore and playing in the National Stadium. I used to walk from my home in Potong Pasir to watch the National Team play in the Malaysia Cup, not knowing that one day I would be playing in this tournament.
What was your lowest low in your sporting career?
It was when we lost to Malaysia 0-4 at the National Stadium. I got over it when we won the same tournament in front of our home fans two years later.
How have your footballing skills translated to your personal life?
Since football is a team sport, I learned a lot about teamwork. Football taught me how to deal with different types of situations and also different types of personalities.
Are you still involved in football?
Currently, I am coaching and running my own personal Strikers Programme.
Please tell us more about this programme.
The kids attending this programme concentrate on just finishing at goal. We conduct very specific training sessions focused on just finishing. It’s personal coaching and not academy-type training.
What kinds of drills do you conduct to help these footballers get better at finishing?
We put these boys through different situations in front of the goal. The idea is for them to keep practising before these situations happen in actual games, so that they know what to do when they happen.
When coaching, what are the key pointers that you give these strikers?
I remind them to remain calm in these situations, which helps them find solutions faster. For me, it’s all about practise and concentrating on your game plan. Mentally, these players have to be prepared and remind themselves what they are going to do in the game. I also advise them to not worry too much about the opponent and to just play their game and enjoy it. When you focus on your game, things will be alright.
In terms of personal effort, what can young forwards do in order to improve?
It’s all about the hard work you put in before a game. If you keep practising and doing drills over and over again in training sessions, you will replicate them in the game. There’s no way that you can slack off during training and think that you will do well in games. Practice will make the game become second nature to you.
In your personal opinion, what are the most important virtues that a young striker needs to possess?
Be disciplined and hardworking, on and off the field. Being very positive and having self confidence are important too.
How can young footballers sign up for this programme?
They can check out Finishing Touch By Indra Sahdan on Facebook.
What do you think the current National Team, its players and staff need to do in order to reach the next level?
I really hope that we do very well in the near future and are able to produce players who can represent us by playing in overseas leagues. I guess we all have to sit down and work together towards a common goal. No hidden agendas, and only focus on what’s important in order for the National Team to do well.
