Phnom Penh Crown have a Japanese double-header of friendly matches this Saturday (18 Jan). Both games will be played back-to-back at RSN Stadium in Tuol Kork. At 1.45pm Crown will meet Albirex Niigata, the new Japan-funded team in the MCL, who already have teams competing in their homeland and in Singapore. They have been putting together a team of young Khmer players and have this week added a couple of Japanese players, one as player-coach, 21-year old defender Tatsuya Sase, who was previously with Albirex in Singapore. They expect to sign 4 Japanese players in total. Then at 3.45pm Crown take on  newboys TriAsia PP for the first time, also with Japanese cash behind them and a host of former Crown players in their ranks, namely Dani Kouch, Thul Sothearith, Vi Lika, Leng Narin, Friday Nwakuna and Suong Virak. We are also scheduled meet TriAsia PP in the Hun Sen Cup kick-off on Wed 29 Jan. Also in town this weekend are Tampines Rovers from the Singapore League and they will play two matches, against Svay Rieng on Friday and then NagaWorld, sorry, Corp, on Sunday in the imaginatively-titled NagaWorld Cup. Naga have just signed a couple of South Koreans and a Japanese player ahead of hostilities.


Crown have announced their jersey numbers for the new C-League season that will begin on Sat 25 Jan. The players/numbers are as follows:
Sou Yaty - 1
Sen Sarak - 2
Thourng Da - 3
Liam Hutchinson - 4
Khim Borey - 7
Ouk Sothy - 8
Bin Thierry - 9
Kouch Sokumpheak - 10
Neou Sosela - 11
Chea Dara - 12
Um Tola - 13
Touch Sokheng - 14
Long Boran - 15
Sos Suhana - 17
Kok Boris - 18
Ly Morslim - 21
Yok Ary - 22
Leng Makara - 23
Hong Pheng - 25
Ngoy Srin - 26
Odion Obadin - 30
Keo Soksela - 32
Mak Phearun - 33
Chhom Pisa - 39
George Bisan - 40
In Sodavid - 41
Sraing Titchhy - 42
Seut Baraing - 43
Orn Chanpolin - 44.

For the Hun Sen Cup, the following players will wear different numbers:
Mak Phearun - 6
Orn Chanpolin - 16
In Sodavid - 19
Sraing Titchhy - 20
Chhom Pisa - 27
Seut Baraing - 28
Keo Soksela - 29.

Now back on an old hobby-horse of mine, the lack of a fixture list for the Metfone C-League that is due to begin in 9 days time. Yes, a mere 9 days away and still no fixture list released to the press or published. Goodness knows how teams are supposed to prepare properly without even knowing who they are going to face. Maybe the FFC think teams get out of bed on the Saturday morning and decide then how they will counter their opponents that day. Maybe in their day, that's what they did. But these days, teams in the C-League are much more professional, working on set-pieces, formations and tactics in the week leading up to the match and watching video of their opposition. Not something the FFC seem to be remotely on-board with. I know who we are going to play on the opening day as it was leaked but the clubs, players and fans deserve better from the people in charge - instead of being treated with contempt.