Football gives Geylang International youth player Denilson purpose and new experiences

Written by Deepanraj Ganesan / The Straits Times / 27 Nov 2024

Geylang International Under-17 centre-back S.C. Denilson has always dreamt of playing in the Singapore Premier League (SPL) and representing Singapore at the National Stadium. But his ultimate ambition is to play professionally overseas.

For the Singaporean teenager, it is not just about football, but also discovering a world beyond the Republic’s borders through the sport.

On Nov 14, clutching his passport and boarding pass at Changi Airport, Denilson saw that dream take flight.

The 17-year-old ITE College East student is one of 18 youth players from Geylang’s U-17 and U-15 teams who have flown to Japan for a training stint at J3 League club Matsumoto Yamaga till Nov 25.

Over there, they will also take part in the U-17 Razuso International Cup organised by Yamaga, a long-time partner of Geylang.

Denilson, who is unsure of the origin of his name, which he shares with the Brazilian 2002 World Cup winner, said he could not contain his happiness when he found out about the trip.

He added: “I was so excited but also very nervous because it is my first flight and I did not know what to expect.

“But after those initial feelings, I thought about how I want to see where I stand against the Japanese players and also hopefully try to impress scouts there. Who knows? Maybe if I do well enough, I can even earn a future contract there.”

While it is common for his peers to fly overseas for holidays, he has not been able to enjoy that luxury.

He said his parents divorced shortly after he was born. As they could not care for him, he lived with his paternal grandmother until he was 10, when he moved in with his paternal uncle Muniandy Maha Vishnu, whom he calls appa (father in Tamil), and Vishnu’s wife Marina van Huizen.

The couple form his main support system, along with his sister Rachael, 29, helping him with school fees and daily expenses.

Denilson, who is still in touch with his parents and visits them from time to time, said he is extremely grateful to his “appa”, aunt and sister.

He added: “They are very supportive, very caring and very loving. But to not have that parents’ love, from young, was a bit difficult, especially when you don’t get to see them often.

“I grew up always seeing my friends and schoolmates have their parents waiting for them outside the gates after school and I always wondered why I couldn’t have that.

“But seeing the love I get from my sister, appa and auntie makes me very determined to make it in football and my studies.”

Van Huizen, a receptionist, said she and her 67-year-old husband, who is a logistics executive, make it a point to attend Denilson’s matches. The couple, who do not have kids, see him as their own son.

Van Huizen, 64, added: “We know he is really passionate about football and we want to support him. He needed structure in his life and we are very happy to be able to provide that for him.”

Football has given Denilson a purpose in life and kept him away from negative influences.

“It gave me something to work towards. Because of how busy I can be, with training and matches, I have also been able to avoid bad influences,” said Denilson, who started playing football while in Primary 2 at Cedar Primary School, before joining LFA Protectors (now Lion City Sailors Academy) and then the Eagles in 2022.

He has also shown leadership qualities and has been appointed vice-captain of the Geylang U-17 team, who finished second, five points behind champions Sailors, in the 10-team Singapore Youth League U-17 Division 1 League.

In 2023, he was also part of their team who won the Football Association of Singapore’s Centre of Excellence Under-17 League.

Knowing Denilson’s background, the club “sayang” (dote on in Malay) him even more, said Eagles’ general manager Bernice Wong. For instance, an official gave him football boots recently.

“While we are aware that he has a rougher childhood than others, Den has always had a good head over his shoulders and does not need positive actions or external motivation to keep him going,” said Wong, adding that the club subsidised almost half of his travelling expenses to Japan.

“The club provides him a platform, but the sport is the one that empowers him. Our plan is to keep him in our youth pathway for the next couple of years with a promotion to the SPL team in mind. Head coach Noor Ali sees great potential in Denilson.

“We recognise Den is still a raw diamond in the rough, but with the right guidance and some polishing, he could potentially be able to dazzle on a bigger stage.”