"Bring the Kallang Roar back."
That is one of the key objectives of new Football Association of Singapore (FAS) president Lim Kia Tong, who was elected into the top job in the sport on Saturday.
The 64-year-old lawyer led Team LKT to a 30 votes to 13 victory over Game Changers at the Black Box Auditorium at the Singapore Sports Hub to earn a mandate for the next four years.
Lim, who fondly remembers watching the likes of Quah Kim Song, Dollah Kassim, and S. Rajagopal in the 1960s and 1970s at the Singapore National Stadium in Kallang, wants to reinvigorate Singapore fans' love affair with the game.
"We want to bring the Kallang Roar back," Lim, told the New Paper, referring to the passionate fans who cheered on the Singapore team in the old Malaysia Cup.
"I [took part in the election] because this is a real call of duty to the nation."
A former FAS vice-president, Lim has also served football as deputy chairman of the FIFA disciplinary committee, and chairman of the Asian Football Confederation disciplinary committee.
He has practised law for the past 36 years and leads the criminal department at Hin Tat Augustine and Partners in Singapore. He says he embraced the prospect of going for the FAS presidency after discussing the added responsibilities with his wife and children.
"It really helps that I have a small but very supportive family," Lim said.
"My wife is fully supportive. My 26-year-old daughter is a practising lawyer, and she was so excited about the election and concerned about the outcome, while my 25-year-old son is also reading law at the Exeter University in England.
"When I do work for football, I sacrifice a lot of time that could be spent with them instead.
"But they recognise what I'm doing is good for the country. In that sense, they have also made a sacrifice to see less of me, so I would like to thank each and every member of my family."
Lim faces numerous challenges over the next four years, including reviving the fortunes of the 159th-ranked Singapore national team, rebuilding the flagging S.League, and finding a way to help neglected grassroots football.
After recent events, including an acrimonious election campaign, FAS does not have a good reputation among most Singapore sports fans. But Lim says he will embrace the task ahead, no matter how difficult it will be.
"I have no regrets. Once I'm in the game, I have to play the full 90 minutes," he said.
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