DAD'S THE WAY I LIKE TO BE BACKED

Young Stags chasing their football dreams with the support of their parents and club

- Ervin Ang

Four months ago, Tampines Rovers’ youth footballer Caelan Cheong performed well enough in his O levels to get into junior college.

But, instead of making sure that Caelan focuses only on his studies to get into a top university, his father Clive, 49, is not averse to him pursuing football as a profession.

Clive, a director of a used car company, said: “We always listen to what Caelan has to say. He has his own set of opinions and what we do is to give him our point of view and advice.

“In the past, my parents never gave me that kind of opportunity (to turn professional).

“Now that my kid has the passion and as parents we are able to support them, I think as long as he can manage his studies and football well, we can’t ask for more.”

Clive and his wife let Caelan decide whether to focus on his O-level revisions or answer a national call-up for last October’s Under-17 Asian Cup qualifiers in Bangladesh, which took place just before his exams.

Caelan eventually chose to prepare for his O levels fully and called it a “huge disappointment” having to skip the tournament.

But it paid off when he recorded a commendable nine points for his L1R5 score, which helped him get into Anglo-Chinese Junior College.