Malaysia football legend Santokh Singh leads rural football outreach programme in Bario

KUCHING (April 10): A rural football programme led by Malaysian football legend Datuk Santokh Singh has been launched in Bario to identify and nurture local talents.

Together with a distinguished group of national sporting icons, Santokh launched the Royal Selangor Club (RSC) Soccer Section’s Rural Community Football Outreach Programme in the remote interior settlement.

“There is no greater pride than wearing a jersey with the state or country’s flag next to your heart.

“I hope this programme inspires the youths here to work hard and one day represent Sarawak and Malaysia,” said Santokh in a statement following the launch today.

Santokh, a former national team captain and a key figure in Malaysia’s golden era of football, represented the country at the 1974 Asian Games in Tehran and was part of the squad that qualified for the 1980 Moscow Olympics.

He was joined by former international Vincent Thambyrajah, who represented Malaysia in a match against English club Arsenal in the 1970s, and K. Balasingam, a member of Malaysia’s historic 1975 Hockey World Cup semi-final team.

Pemanca Caleena Sakai represented the Bario community at the launch, highlighting strong local support for the initiative.

A key component of the programme is its leadership by Bobby Pian, a former Malaysian international and Sarawak captain who hails from Bario and will oversee player development on the ground.

The launch featured a ceremonial kick-off, a veterans’ exhibition match involving the visiting legends, and the inaugural youth academy training session with a pioneer group of 25 students from SMK Bario and nearby villages.

RSC Soccer Section representative Collin Swee said the initiative aims to extend structured football development beyond urban centres while creating meaningful opportunities for rural youths.

“This programme is about creating opportunity and belief — giving rural youths access to proper coaching, mentorship and a pathway to develop their potential,” said Swee.

The Bario initiative will serve as a pilot project, with plans to develop a scalable model for rural football programmes nationwide.

Set in the highlands of northern Sarawak, the programme also reflects broader efforts to bridge communities between East and Peninsular Malaysia through sport, while nurturing discipline, teamwork and resilience among young participants.