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Hello everyone!

So this is my first tenure as SGP U21 manager. Hopefully everything will go well. First and foremost I would like to thank The Carpenters, manager of Yesterday Once More, for training up such a wonderful prospect in Amir Quiyum. It is indeed great to see a star in the team.

Today has been a productive day. I have formulated a database of players from the drafts of SBBL and all div II leagues from Season 44 to last season, and managed to generate a player pool of 60 players. Out of those 60 players, I have selected the top 2 players of each position into the U21 squad, and will be contacting their managers soon to discuss regarding their progress throughout the season (or for the future, depending on age), hence the rosters will not be finalized until this Saturday when the enthusiasm reset kicks in. I will only pick 10 players for now so we will have plenty of space to add players later on (and maybe save prospects with MVP or above potential in teams going bot, hope there won't be any), as dropping players would cause the team to lose enthusiasm. Players who get better and surpass the current crop of players will be given chances throughout this season.

If you have a player who was called up by me recently, do expect a BB-mail from me soon to discuss your player's training program (or you can drop me a BB-mail too).

We are currently ranked 3rd in our pool, behind powerhouses Hong Kong U21 and Philippines U21. If all goes well, we should be able to make it into the second round qualifiers.

I look forward to working with you all. Let's have fun together peeps!

All the best! my desk will be waiting for ur callup on my new guy :)

Thank you! I look forward to calling him up one day :D

Just some progress here: I have started to send out BB-Mails on training plans for U21 candidates (sorry I'm following alphabetical order of teams so not everyone has gotten their BB-Mails yet). I'm looking forward to two way communication with all the managers with prospects for our national team.

We are currently blessed with quite a number of talented young players. Although the standard of the team has significantly dropped compared to last season (iirc we had 4 players with salaries above 20k? and our starting lineup had at least 6 figures a week?), but I guess it gives us the chance to showcase our future youngsters. We currently have only four 21 year old players in the squad, and judging by the shortlisted players, I don't foresee any more getting added into the team.

We will be hosting Pakistan U21 this Saturday. Stay tuned for more info!

Alright everyone! I have finished sending off all the necessary BB-Mails to our countries top prospects. The final player pool is less than 60 players. I did not contact players who were star potential or below, or has pretty bad starting skill sets (there's a player with superstar potential but very poor OD and Rebounding. While he is a perfect height for a forward, but his skills makes him a very hard player to build), but I will still have them in the player pool. So if you were not contacted by me about your player(s) being on the U21 shortlist but you hope to be involved, the door is always open and do reach out to me. We can try to see how things can work out.

As for current U21 players, today was the first training update of the season where game shape gets updated. I hope managers with U21 players would be able to maintain their player's game shape and do not overplay them.

We completed our first game shape update of the season, and 5 of our 10 initial players have dropped in game shape, either due to overplaying or underplaying. I have BB-Mailed the necessary managers and will drop them until I get a response. It might be a bit harsh, but it's just a safety net with the enthusiasm reset happening tomorrow, and I do not want to waste roster space on players who aren't fit to play.

Let's hope that our U21 will continue to strive!

MAJULAH SINGAPURA!

This is it! Tomorrow is the big day! Enthusiasm has finally reset, and we are set for the first round of the Asia U21 Championships!

Our group currently consists of Philippines U21 (16), Hong Kong U21 (17), Korea U21 (62), UAE U21 (72), Vietnam U21 (76) and Pakistan U21 (96). We are the third seed, ranked 53rd in the World.

Here is a bit of write up, where we take a look at how our roster stacks up against our opponents'.

Pakistan U21: 2nd December 2019
As of now, Pakistan has only called up 3 players, two with poor game shape. Would they add anymore player into their roster?

If there are no roster changes, a W would be in the bag as they would have to play with 2 lucky fans.

Vietnam U21: 9th December 2019
Vietnam U21 has 13 players on their roster as of today. On Nguyen (47173044) is their most expensive player, and apart from Amir Quiyum, our roster is comparable to them (since our only other 5 digit salary player has poor game shape and is sadly on a team that has been inactive for a week). Should there be no changes until then, Amir Quiyum should be our difference maker.

UAE U21: 16th December 2019
With 17 players in their roster, UAE U21 has a pretty decent squad, with two players earning 5 digits a week. Rahman Isam (47173182) and Kalil Ibraheem Abu-Najjar (46865861) both earn 14k and 11k respectively. This is going to be a tough game, hopefully Tan Leong Kwan's manager has logged in and have his game shape sorted out, or else we might face some problems against them. That said, if our players are in top game shape, we might be able to grind out a positive result.

Hong Kong U21: 30th December 2019
Gotta be realistic: this is a sure lose game for us. They have 3 players who earn more than Amir, including their great titan Ling Huy Hoang (46797549) who has a 50k salary, while the player with the lowest salary on their roster earns more than Murphy Ang, who is currently our second highest paid player (due to game shape issues). Probably the only way we can stand a chance is if BB-Anthony trains all our players xD

Philippines U21: 6th January 2020
We're in for a bad start to the year (sadly) as we're pitted against top seeds Philippines U21. If the game was played today, right now, we would win 50-0 for sure as they still haven't called up any players yet. But sadly it's still weeks away (and they would probably call up their players tomorrow anyway) so it's definitely a loss against Asia's pedigree team.

Korea U21: 13 January 2020
They're ranked above UAE U21, but a first glimpse on the surface of their squad, they seem to not have as good a squad as the latter. However it's still early, and players can improve throughout the course of the season. They currently have two players earning five digit salaries: Kim Hee-Tae (46905374) with 14k salary and Shin Ji-Dong (47173081), who earns 10k a week. After two guaranteed losses, it's refreshing to play against a team closer to our quality. Let's hope we can pull off a W from this as well.

Based on the current squad quality (and assuming Philippines U21 are their future self), we should be able to qualify for the next round in 3rd place. However, I hope all managers continue to train their players and manage their game shape well. Our performance is in your hands. Let's hope this will be a decent campaign!

An update on the previous game shape issues:
We had 5 players with poor game shape. I have messaged their respective managers, and only got a response from 1, who has explained about the situation and thus has his player restored into the team. A further check on the managers of the other 4 made me realize that their managers have not logged in for a week, hence I might look to players belonging to more active managers for the meantime.

good luck man! all the best

Thank you! I managed to get a reply from a previously inactive manager and looks like we got another star in our team!

Now that our first match is about to start, without further ado, let's get round to introducing our nation's young heroes:

Amir Quiyum
Introducing, the captain of our team! Standing tall at 7'1", Amir towers above all his teammates as the only seven footer in the team. He's been having a great season so far, setting a season high 25 rebounds in the curtain raiser. Currently first in the SBBL in rebounds per game, Amir should be raring to showoff his ability in the air at international level this season.

Tan Leong Kwan
Together with Amir, they form the Twin Towers of our team, much similar to Tim Duncan and David Robinson. The talented player is just 20 years old tho, which means he will probably be having another run with the team next year. He is also quite a force inside, having averaged 17.5 rebounds last season.

Murphy Ang
One of the senior players in the squad, Murphy Ang is what some would call a pedigree player: having drafted and trained by PhantoMech, last seasons playoff finalists. Drafted on the season where PhantoMech picked up their last SBBL title, he has been surrounded by winner all his career. Let's hope his winning mentality gets picked up by our team

Wilson Johnny
While he's currently being shopped, Wilson brings a lot to the table with his all-round play. Averaging 8.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.0 steals last season, he shows the traits of a dependable versatile player that can create and defend.

Ho Meng Chi
The 21 year old guard has a tendency to put in great numbers at times, and this was seen last week as he blew away his opponents with a double double, scoring 29 points while dishing out 10 assists. He has also broke the 40 point barrier in every season since he was drafted, and we look forward to him achieving the same this season. His explosiveness and willingness to let fly will certainly be a boost to the team.

Zhang Fu Qiang
Entering his second season as a pro player, Zhang Fu Qiang is still a pretty raw player, albeit talented. The player is known to explode in some games, but still lacks consistency. However, he managed to put up an awesome double double in his first start of the season, hitting 22 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. Will this be his breakout season?

Sylvester Andy
Sylvester is an awesome prospect, some even tout him to be part of the senior national team in the future. Teammate and understudy of captain Amir Quiyum, it will be exciting to see how the both of them show off their on-court chemistry at U21 level

Our first U21 game will commence soon. Stay tuned and watch our heroes strut their stuff on court!

MAJULAH SINGAPURA!

Asia U21 Championships Game 1: vs Pakistan U21
Our first game didn't really go too smoothly, despite facing 3 man Pakistan U21. Since they could not dress a full starting lineup of of 5, 2 lucky fans took to the field.

The referees were a little too strict with us while being pretty lenient on them, probably afraid that the lucky fans will get hurt by our players. We managed to rack up a total of 22 fouls against their 3. Amir Quiyum and Sylvester Andy were the biggest victims of the biased refereeing, as both of them got fouled out, mostly being called for reaching in during on ball defense. I guess it was also partly because we were defensively aggressive tonight, having quick hands and trying to force turnovers.

Ho Meng Chi was our best player on court tonight. Being given floor general duties tonight instead of his usual role as the go-to scorer, he put in an all-round display and was just one steal short of getting a quadruple double. He was a force on both ends, creating and scoring on offense while rejecting shots and stripping opponents of the ball. His final stat line was 10 points (5 of 9 shooting), 13 assists, 12 rebounds, 9 steals and 7 blocks.

Murphy Ang had a field day torching the oppositions with his hot hand, hitting 69% from field and 50% from behind the arc to finish with a game high 55 points. He also hustled well and grabbed 8 rebounds. Meanwhile captain Amir Quiyum also stood out despite being fouled out by the third quarter. He put his height to good use as he grabbed 17 boards en route to a double double, as he also scored 12 points from 6 of 8 shooting.

We will be facing Vietnam U21 next Monday. The Viets opened their season with a tough 50 point loss against second seed Hong Kong U21, and will surely be out to make amends. Let's hope our players will be in tip top shape going into the clash.

Just a week ago we had some game shape issues which caused almost half the squad to be released. This week's training brought us good news!

We have three players at proficient game shape! We also have a further two players at strong game shape. All but one of the players with poor game shape last week had a turnaround, so things are looking good.

Also, introducing four new additions this week. Two of them were players are recalled back to the team, while two more are new additions! Without further ado, let's take a look at them!

Sung Jien Ming
This talented floor general will give add an extra punch to our backcourt! Drafted by Horcruxes last season, Jien Ming's potential and talent was obvious from Day 1, having posted a double double with 23 points and 10 assists on his debut. He picked up another double double early this season with 11 points and 13 assists, and almost managed a triple double in his last game (9 points, 9 assists, 8 rebounds in 22 minutes).

Waleed Khaleque
While Jien Ming brings an offensive boost to the team, Waleed will solidify our team on the other end of the court. The second year guard is having a career season, especially on defense. In the last 5 games, Waleed averaged 1.4 steals and 2.0 blocks per game in 25.0 minutes per game. Other than his defense, he is also a decent scorer, having scored double digit points in 5 of his 6 matches this season.

Seet Woon Long
This talented bigman will join team captain Amir Quiyum as the only 7 footers in the team. The Hougang native is just 19 years old, but seems set to be a future star of the senior NT. He is an inside force who can post up, clean the glass, and protect the rim at a high level.

Yap Tse Leng
Another product from Hougang outfit Lorong Ah Soo Leopards, the 20 year old Yap Tse Leng might often play second fiddle to teammate Seet Woon Long, but the second year bigman is no pushover. He averaged a double double in his rookie season (last season) and is showing off the quality of a premium rim protector, averaging 3.0 blocks per game in 4 league games. He also showed off his all round game in the first round of the Cup this season, filling the box score with 45 points, 22 rebounds, and 4 steals, all career highs.

Our next match will be against Vietnam U21, who put up a decent fight against Hong Kong U21 last week. Their top 2 players, Om and Nien Nguyen are also in great form this week. Expect them to give us a lot of trouble. Let's hope our boys pull off a W!

Asia U21 Championships Game 2: vs Vietnam U21
Our boys picked up a satisfying 21 point victory against Vietnam U21 today.

Amir Quiyum showed how to lead from the front today, as the captain picked up his second double double in two U21 games this season by scoring 28 points and grabbing 15 rebounds. He was also a force on defense, with 2 steals and 2 blocks, holding Vietnam U21's star bigman Nien Nguyen to only shoot 40% (6 of 15) from the field.

After having a hot hand last week, Murphy Ang had a quieter game tonight, scoring just 16 points at 47% (8 of 17). However he was still equally focused on defense, with 3 steals and 1 block to his name.

Vietnam was pretty tough in the post, while their 2-3 defense allowed our outside players to drive into the lane more often, it also allow them to box our players out, preventing us from crashing the boards. This saw us grab 9 less offensive rebounds compared to them. We also committed more fouls and sent them to the line more often, with Zhang Fu Qiang getting into foul trouble and his opposing counterpart Om Nguyen having a game high 7 free throw attempts. Our players were also quite nervous at the charity stripe, only hitting 7 of 13 of our free throws.

Despite not playing a perfect game, our boys came out with a big win. Our next game will be against U.A.E. U21. After two tough games against Hong Kong U21 and Philippines U21, the we will be their easiest opponent yet. Quality wise, they better players than Vietnam U21, and have players with good game shape as well.

Let's make sure our players stay fit everyone! Don't overplay or underplay them this week. Hopefully we increase our winning streak to 3 games next week.

Asia U21 Championship Game 3: vs U.A.E. U21
After enduring an early scare which saw our boys trail by four in the first quarter, our boys found their groove and never looked back. Trailing by 2 with barely a minute left to go, Zhang Fu Qiang found Sylvester Andy open in the paint, and the 20 year old forward threw down a powerful jam to tie the game. This was followed by a corner three by Zhang Fu Qiang to finish the quarter ahead by 3.

The Emiratis were pretty stubborn opponents - they kept our defense busy by crashing the board throughout the game (22 OR). But your boys were resilient and stood strong against the onslaught, holding them to 29% from the field (25 of 85) and 17% from the arc (4 of 23). However, we still gave up 20 free throws (14 made) from 17 fouls. Nevertheless, our boys defensive play won it for us this time, and even though the referee was stricter on us tonight (as usual, for the record we currently commit 16.6 fouls per game and our opponents shoot 17 free throws per game, while we have drawn 7.3 fouls per game and only shoot 9.3 free throws per game), we still managed to pull through. Credits to our big men Seet Woon Long and Amir Quiyum for anchoring the defense. Seet stripped the ball off his opponent 3 times and rejected another, while Amir produced 4 blocks and 1 steal. Seet also led our team in rebounds, grabbing half of our offensive rebounds to finish the game with 15 boards.

Other than defensive effort, our offense wasn't too shabby, with 6 players hitting double digit in points and hitting 48% of our shots from the field (43% from beyond the arc). The offense was led by Zhang Fu Qiang, who finished the game with a team high 18 points (42% from field) and 3 assists. However our free throw numbers, as usual, was pretty abysmal. We have currently only made 50% of our attempts from the charity stripe despite having some good shooters. Must be the butterflies in their stomachs.

We have a break next week, which will be a scrimmage, before facing off against Hong Kong U21 and Philippines U21. Hopefully everyone will continue to maintain our players game shape. We are currently 3-0 and on top of the pool standings (although not for long). Let's hope to get one more win and make it to the next round!