Fans were decked out in red and white, singing in cohesion and cheering on the national football team in the first leg of the Suzuki Cup 2012 final.
As the team lined up on the pitch, the fans broke out in chorus of the national anthem, proudly declaring their undivided loyalty to Singapore.
These are some of the scenes of Jacen Tan’s film, Lions All The Way, a short video based on a group of Singapore football fans which has the same name as Tan’s film.
A local fan of Singapore football, Tan made Lions All The Way as he believed ‘a new breed of Singapore fans’ deserved recognition for their fervent support of the Singapore national football team.
“I have been following local football for many years, and have realised that local fans are rather reserved,” Tan told Goal.com Singapore.
“But in recent times, a new breed of Singapore fans has emerged.
“[The newer breed of Singapore fans are] young, passionate and energetic. They stand and sing throughout the whole match. They wave their scarves in choreographed motions. They have a song for every player.”
This is not Tan’s first film, having filmed various football-related videos over the years, with the most notable being Tak Giu, a short skit lamenting the lack of spaces for football use in Singapore. The video has since garnered over 100,000 views online.
Despite his vast experience in filming videos, Tan sheepishly admits that the filming process was a fairly simple one, as filming was done during the Suzuki Cup final.
“To be frank, I let my GOPRO camera do the work, I was busy watching the match for most of it!” he added.
It was a fair point to make, as scenes will show of the epic 3-1 victory over Thailand, and how the fans celebrated and grappled with each goal scored and conceded.
However, Tan was keen to point out that the simple filming process only helped to portray the genuine emotions emitted by the fans.
“In fact, nobody in LATW [Lions All The Way] knew I was filming that day. I wanted to capture something that was spontaneous,” the 30-year-old revealed.
“In a football match, you can capture all sorts of emotions - happiness, sadness, anger, disgust, surprise, joy. It's great to see Singaporeans show their passion for the country, and at a football game it's real and unrehearsed.
“I join them at matches whenever I can, as I believe that as fans, we can make a difference by cheering for the team, rather than just 'watching' the game.”
A firm believer that fans can influence changes, Tan added that Lions All The Way was a tribute to all Singapore fans in their efforts to support Singapore through thick and thin, adding: “This film is dedicated to all the Singapore fans and fan groups who have dared make a difference to Singapore football.“