Alif's result and Harimau Malaya

Alif scored 471 over a total of 500 marks in his exams. That is equivalent to 94%. He also got 5As. However, he's ranked 18 out of 36 students. The total of students who scored 5As in his class is 26. Wowww.....

He was shocked when he got to know his ranking. Well, that is understandable. He topped his class in the kindergarten; so being ranked 18 is something alien to him.

However, the class teacher said there's no need to be alarmed. He did well, but the competition was very fierce. He is after all in the first class of the best primary public school in Ipoh. So, I'm not that worried. He's still in standard 1. Still a long way to go. And being in a competitive environment would good for him. So, hopefully he will get better results in the future.

My wife and I have decided not to push him too hard. We want him to enjoy learning. As long as he could grasp the concept of the subjects; that's good enough. If he got into the top 3, that would be a bonus. Good luck Alif!

Let's move to Harimau Malaya.

It's hard to ignore the achievements of our football team - Harimau Malaya of late. Since winning the gold medal in the SEA Games in 2009, they refused to slow down. They won the AFF Suzuki Cup early this year, and recently won a place to the final qualifying round for the Olympic Games.

I'm proud to say that I did play a role in their success :) I went twice to Bukit Jalil for the games against Vietnam and Indonesia. It was awesome. Those who missed the chance to witness the victories should regret their decision not to go to the games. It was historical.

Now, we can see young people wearing the national colors with pride. I'm so proud of this development. 5 years ago, Malaysian fans could not care less about our football. They were hopeless and nauseating to watch. But now, every time we play, the fans come to the stadium with high hopes in their hearts. Even if we lose, we do it with honor.

That's what I think the players finally got to understand - HONOR. Fans want them to play with honor. The fans understand that winning or losing is just part of the games. We just want to see them losing after giving all they have to the game.

I hope that the team would continue to progress from now on. Bring back the pride and glory of our football. Justify football as the No. 1 sport in the country. Let's us now try to conquer Asia. And maybe one day, we will be on top of the world!