12th player is the key player

When I Write all about those remarkably on this title post..I would say,..Of course,..They are, yes they are. The Ultras. The players resoundingly going to their curva seats to show their appreciations as well most of them aware their existences to watch them and to chant for them 90 minutes non stop. To some fan club or a so called fanatic club, cheering up for 90 minutes is something which extremely crazy; yet never being done before in the country. People might call you a wacko instead and some of them might think that there were no such peoples singing while watching the game. Hell nuts, they only watch and know the big stink of the English Premier League. Hypnotized by the sparkling visual on the TV commercials promoting the league they tend not to watch other league which I favorably said it's far more interesting than the premier league. And the atmosphere of the 'other' league shall never be found in the EPL. Yikes, what's the so-called atmosphere? Yes it is the Ultras!..everywhere in Bundesliga, France Ligue 1, Italia Serie A, Spanish Primera Liga, Dutch Eradivisie,.. Okay, enough about Europes, how about in other continents? Yes there are Ultras Ahlawy for the mighty Al-Ahly and Ultras White Knights for Zamalek in the Egyptian Premier League.. dude, it is in Africa., Others, Asia? we got Ultras Urawa Red Diamonds. we got Ultras AL Hilal in west Asia and yes, our neighbour, Indonesia which they got here with names such as Aremania, Jakmania, Bonek, Viking etc. Those ultras and the atmosphere, no such a thing like that in the EPL.


Credit to this picture

The person which I would like to share with you all is Mr. Freddie Marciano. He's one of the cool guy we meet and always shows the passion of supporting the team. He's also never stops of telling the scene when he was in Turkey with the Besiktas Çarşı.Well, he is the pioneer of the Ultras, he is the one who sparked the fuse and perhaps light up the soul of the stadium perhaps brighter than the stadiums' floodlights. Well I remember that time when the Ultras Malaya still remain as a subgroup of HMC(harimaumalaya.com), he did his best with all time he got promoting the way to support the national team with ultras culture instead of kuaci (sit down and watch the game quitely and full of concentration). He is the first person who light up smoke bomb made all by himself back in 2007 at KLFA Stadium Cheras. Well you won't get bent out of shape with him. And after 3 years all the magic comes, Ultras is a national display of support and also for those who made a big stink upon them; well there's always challenge to do a good thing.


Mr. Freddie Marciano


A quote from a German Ultra of a Bundesliga team “As a football fan, football is your life. It’s quite different from having a girlfriend; after all, your life suffers when you’re a hardcore supporter. We want to be a refuge for young people and everyone who thinks the Ultra idea is good. People come to us because they want to have fun. They see people having a great time and enjoying themselves.”

Well, it is about creating radical atmosphere in the stadium, which mainly with all colors and choreograph on terraces and an extra maximum noise significantly for chanting purpose. Which somehow you never found such a passion in English Premier League,. Uffhh, the commercial bastard league. Fabio Capello did mention some of his thoughts like...
"English stadiums are boring to me, as well as incredibly expensive. If there is a
good crowd then it gets a bit better, but it is nothing comparable to what you
get in Italy where the Ultras prepare the scenario for weeks before a big
game."



The proud little smoke bomb

Which I could understand from what Capello said is what is the meaning of big games to the players. Several players who did their spells in the Italian Serie A from 1990's untill today namely such Paul Gasgcoine; Lazio (1992-1995) Jürgen Klinsmann; Internazionale (1989-1992), Sampdoria (1997-1998), Andreas Andersson; AC Milan (1997-1998) Robbie Keane; Internazionale (2000-2001) where mostly clarified that the league itself is pack with pressure but the atmosphere of the stadiums is aesthetically amazing. What ha amazed them? of course the curva performers, the 12th players. Which I could only see no such a thing in the English Premier League; or known as the Barclays Premier League for its ruthless commercialism thus neglecting to what is the passion of football all about.



Locally the Ultras Malaya is known for it's natural being of the extraordinary passionate supports and efforts all to the Harimau Malaya. To me, the person who is responsible to promote such a beautiful supporting culture in football is no other man which is Freddie Marciano. Spontaneously said by me, he had done such a superb job to promote the culture. The press and medias most of them regard this as a new wave of supporting culture. Gently remarks it as maybe some or most of the reporters doesn't really do their homeworks about what are they and why they exist. Yet they had always a hostage to what we call as to ultras characteristics. Their view of authorities. Well these are the words from the interview done.

The writer: How do you see involvement of the authorities? You know like, Would you describe what sorts of prohibitions imposed by them? Let's starts with flares..

Mr. Marciano: So many of it. Can't really describes those really.

The writer: How do u see these things in order to pursue your activity? (those barriers and obstacles)

Mr. Marciano: Just do it. Fight the authorities in a manner

The writer: Okay..do you find the authorities so far has been supportive?

Mr. Marciano: Some of 'em

The writer: Okay.. tell me the cops

Mr. Marciano: Bastards.

I can't agree more on what he said about the police. We are getting stressed and annoyed with those prohibitions imposed by the authority such as the police. Police? I can't really say no to such an inner hatred to them by me as well. For many Ultras, police behaviour is disproportionate and arbitrary. Their main criticism of
the police is that they treat football fans/Ultras like second-class citizens or people with no basic rights, are often inflexible and arrogant and act condescendingly without showing any willingness to talk to the fans. They are also anonymous (have no name tags) and cannot therefore be identified, and they are said to have no background knowledge of the Ultra culture and its positive aspects. Furthermore, they lack self-reflection and self-criticism and expect too much of the Ultras, who cannot exert direct influence on every fan/Ultra, and their scene structure. They always see the ultras as a violent group of fans, their tifo as a mess and their loud cheering is a massive disturbance.

The writer: Okay,..as far as I'm gonna write here.. it shall be described as, annoying?

Mr Marciano: Constrain

The writer: Ultras does not need government to stand.. do you agree with that?

Mr Marciano: I can't agree more, we did an illegal stuff..see, the government and authorities always being a big problem (to us).

The writer: Okay,.how unjustful did the bubblemouth minister to you and your colleagues?

Mr Marciano: He didn't know anything,..let him.

Well could we come to this agreement, the minister was only pushing out the statements on the press just to ensure that he is doing his job, or just being pro to what so-called as sportsmanship ( in their way of course). Well he is a Youth and Sports Minister. Definitely the medias are always tagging him in the headline.

But one thing which has attracted me most is their chanting song, which most are catchy and easy to memorized as well as hardly to forget. The points are, the songs and chants are catchy and easy to remember as they could easily recruit newcomers as well. Where newcomers find them as a great influence for their identity as the characters of the ultras are remarkably attractive especially to those age of 15-25 years of age. Not just the songs, but the choreographic displays are just superb as well. This is what we call the true art of supporting football and some clearly disagree with that as it is not within the moral attitudes where these people packed it with accusations to the Ultras of burning the explosive fireworks and some welcomes it and even hail it up to the sky as it is one of the method to revive our football scene. Which one you agree with?

The songs are not merely come in its own originality. Some melodies are heard in the Scout camping Jamboree. Some is from popular folk songs and as well as other influences. No matter what type or how do the songs sounds like, the important thing is, they are not cheering for other than their own identity. This is what to be a highly respect and salutation for their efforts of defining football identity into deep love to the country. They already showed how they love their country, they won't stop cheering the lads to keep fight till the end. As they believe we will never fall. Of course until the last rebel. So, what about you Mancunians????? To be honest is I never impressed to the one who do look like a great knowledgeable people who loves football and also a die hard fan of an outside of the country team. Which actually he did awake until 3.00 a.m. and sometimes until the next morning just to watch those fagots playing their balls at their great stadiums. I rather feel happy to see a bunch of school boys who proud wearing the local teams and talk about their local idols and proudly show up in the stadiums at their town to show their love and proud to the team and enthusiasm to their homegrown and hometown, as well as the national team. Mancunians are rather stupid enough to be in that kind of category. What category? Ass holes.

This might be what Mr. Marciano wants everybody to be with him. Not just to be with him but also more than just respecting each other. Brotherhood. The simple word which so long in his head and this is what he is striving for. Selamanya, selamanya, selamanya kita bersaudara. Put the spirits of loving your land, loving your home, loving everybody you know, loving your hometown where you find everything there; love, security, comfort and happiness. Well what do Arsenal, Chelsea, Man Utd did gives us in the EPL.. they just want your fu**ing money, that's all,.. And stop being a slave of a MODERN FOOTBALL. We have our own colors, and always be proud of it!.

Credit to this picture


This why the post is entitled 12th player is the key player because they are the one. Mr Marciano couldn't really hide his proud of the lads, which he can easily gather around 800 strength of people if there is a match around the corner. Where it is a huge different back to 2007 where it had all starts. Where he painted the banner all by himself, and during that time he was proudly displaying the banner to the terrace and chanting the team together with us. Now, it is about educating the newcomers about the ultras movement here in the country.

Ain't going to be an outrages opinion if to say most of players; the stars of the national team such Baddrol Bakhtiar, Safee Sali, Khairul Fahmi Che Mat and Coach Fozi which also agreed by Mr Marciano that they are always needed in every game.


12th player is not just a key player. They are also the soul of the stadium, the game and the heart of passionate football. Thank you Ultras from all over the country keep doing it Until The Last Rebel. Yes, NO AL CALCIO MODERNO. I am not an enemy of commercialism but I am against anything which kills the passion of the game. So let's wipe off the Modern Football.



ps: don't forget to click on to http://www.ultrasmalaya.net. All the info is there, and of course they are planning for Taipei as well for the World Cup Qualifying.

Ultras is no such as hooliganism

"But the crucial difference is that we don’t fight – we paint flags instead.” Joachim Franzén of Fabriken group devoted to Swedish side Djurgårdens IF.

I had a small casual conversations with my colleague at nice mamak stall in the town, which suddenly the conversation was attracted to the issues on the flare which misunderstood by the authorities as they equated it as an explosive fireworks and that's how they did understood by several reports of the newspaper which providing good "air conditioner" to the bubblemouth minister about the supporters who burn flare. The conclusion came across them was, "ultras ni bahaya, silap-silap, dia orang bakar stadium" and another one added "dah la penyokong kelantan pulak tu, memang tau dah dia orang ni haprak, menang pun nak gaduh, kalah lagi la". Racism mentality, (I mean what's the problem if they are Kelantanese?), and very narrow thinking attitude. "Diorang yang tulis-tulis kat banner ultras itu la, ultras ini la semua nak jadi macam kat England tu, style hooligan." This is how it goes. Always something new related to what we call as negativism.Which most of them derived the ultras into hooliganism. Where they were accidentally recounting the ultras as a pro-violent supporters. I don't want to react to some of those who did not understand what are the ultras made of? They simply a super loyal fans, you never going to think how they did that.. Well I do some serious studies towards this culture which these words below could be best reflect to the situation where for those who doesn't know what is the ultras.



The word ultra roughly translates as ‘beyond’ in English. Renowned for their elaborate pitch side displays, this translation resonates.
Although fans on several continents call themselves ultras, the movement began in Italy during the 1950s. “Like the Palio in Siena, many
small districts in Italy have their own symbols, and that tradition soon extended to football,” explains Italian football journalist Giancarlo
Rinaldi. “As the Ultras used to get free tickets to games, they could afford to spend time and money on flags and choreography.”
This particular fan subgroup first appeared in Italy during the late 1960s when football teams reduced ticket prices in certain areas of the stadiums. The word ultra is Latin, which means radical in English. Since the early 1990s, the ultras subculture has increasingly become similar in style to the hooligan firm and casual cultures.Violent acts of hooliganism by groups of ultras have led to some deaths.



Ultras primarily want to support their team creatively as best as possible throughout a game both visually and acoustically. What is important for them is often not only the activities on the day of the match itself but the preparations and post-match work in a particular week, for which purpose they meet in special fan rooms, clubhouses or their local pubs. “The Ultras usually work for several weeks on preparing an intro choreography, for example, which may be seen for no more than 20 seconds during a game. They spend around 4,500 euros and might employ 200 litres of paint, 7,000 sheets of cardboard, 500 small flags or twopole banners, 90 metres of cash register roll and a 30 by 50 metre section banner." This might seem over-the-top to an outsider but for the Ultras it is a manifestation of their deep
love and affection for their club. Moreover, what is important for them is not only the few seconds of their choreographed display but also the time they spend together on creative design.”





These choreographed displays put on by the Ultras are financed in different ways: some collect donations on the terraces and others pay for them via membership fees or sell their own merchandising items, fanzines or videos.
Many activities and the behaviour of the Ultras in a stadium “are ritual-like. Situations in the game are commented on and symbolically imitated, such as waving the arms and shouting ‘Ah’ on a rising note when a corner is taken, stripping to the waist and pointing the bare buttocks in the direction of the
opposition, especially in winter, or boisterously pushing one another around after a goal has been scored.”
Some ritual postures and gestures can be compared to religious rituals, which is why the Ultra culture is also often referred to as a kind of “surrogate religion”.
The Ultras are not just interested in supporting the club but also in their own self-presentation: almost every group that takes pride in itself operates its own website for this purpose, “publishes its own Ultra magazine, puts video films of the group on the web and develops its own range of polo shirts, sweatshirts, caps and scarves with its own name, logo or symbol”. Almost like designers, they use logos and symbols to try to give their group a kind of corporate identity and project a collective image to the outside world that will bring about an internal identity.
The fact that the Ultras have an elitist attitude is sometimes reflected in, for example, the banners or choreographed displays in the stadium that only insiders understand, because they use internal scene codes that are incomprehensible to an outsider without specific background knowledge. Critics therefore accuse some Ultras of behaving as if they belonged to a secret society, especially when the planning of the choreographies remains the responsibility of a small group because they are
afraid of “moles” who might give their ideas away to rival groups. Ultras not only separate themselves off from the rest of the fan scene by such actions but also by the name they give their group. A German Ultra describes the naming of a group as follows: “Names may have different origins. The most important reason for the extreme names to be found in some cases is provocation or the need to stand out from the crowd, ie to be conspicuous. Names like Ultras, Inferno, Kommando, Brigade, Attacke, Meute (pack of hounds), Chaoten (anarchists) or Psychopathen (psychopaths) immediately attract attention, and the first time they hear them neutral observers will, ideally, think of a wild and crazy crowd of people – which fulfils the intention of the name adopted.”



With the so-called “mob march” (walking behind their own fence banner in another town at an away game), the Ultras also try to stand out as a group against the opposition. European Ultras often use similar names for their groups. For example, the name “Ultra Boys” or “Boys” (including in the spelling “Boyz”) is to be found in Belgium, France, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Holland and Switzerland. The situation is similar in the case of such names as ”Fanatics”, “Brigade”, “Commando XY”, “Tifosi/Tifo”, “Supras”, “Horda XY” or “Diablos”. Many political or ideological references in group names do not, however, necessarily indicate the group’s political views but are often only in opposition to rival scenes (“bricolage effect”), for the rivalry experience appears very important to the Ultras.
“The Ultras have transferred the sports contest between the football teams to the terraces or the internet and continue it as a choreography and support contest with the rival Ultras.” The groups concerned want to be the best in the country.
“They are not only original, amusing, creative and committed in the way they support their own team and critically examine problems in the club but also try to provoke club officials, sponsors or rival fans. However, the provocation is often in bad taste, especially when they demonstrate their hatred of their rivals.” Often, the biggest opponents, rivals or enemies are groups that support other clubs’ teams in their own town or region. However, as Ultras see themselves as a critical counterweight in this age of the “eventisation” of football and react as a kind of “seismograph” to things that are wrong in the everyday world of the sport, they also occasionally hold boycotts or silent protests (hanging their fence banners upside down in the stadium terraces, refusing to support the team or turning their backs to the pitch for the duration of a match). Or else they demonstrate, for example against stadium bans, the apparently poor performance of the players and coaches or regulatory measures. The Ultra culture can thus be understood as a culture of affection, protest, demonstration and provocation.




Many Ultra groups find their place in the stadium directly behind the goal in the standing areas (if they still exist) or in the stands. In clubs where some Ultra groups do not get along, there may be various places in the stadium – sometimes even opposing terraces. It is important to stress here that the Ultras are not a homogeneous group who all obey one person. Access to the Ultra environment is fairly easy and sometimes involves just being on the terraces and participating in specific activities in the stadium, but the ease of admission to the “hard core” of a
scene varies as this must be earned by gaining recognition and respect. Accordingly, almost throughout Europe the Ultra movements each have a “hard core” of a few
individuals (in our opinion, perhaps 20-50) plus a large group of Ultra-oriented fans. The group leaders together with their associates range for example from 10-50 people per scene in


Denmark to more than 1,000 “members” per group in France.
The figures for the total number of Ultras in individual countries also vary, ranging from a few hundred in Monaco to over 50,000 in Italy.
On the other hand, countries have one similarity in common: most Ultras (apart from those in Poland perhaps) see themselves as the “voice” of the terraces and as the heart that keeps football alive but they often make up no more than 1–5% of all spectators in a stadium. However, the situation is different with away games, where the concentration of Ultras and Ultra-oriented and active fans is larger almost everywhere in Europe than in the case of home matches.

The Ultras are critical of their clubs, the media and the police, Ultras want to provide the best and most creative acoustic and visual support for their club, they also attach importance to their self presentation and to the group experience provided by the scene during the week. Similarly, the Ultra movement’s positive efforts in the field of youth culture are a dominant feature. Another common aspect is that the various scenes to a greater or lesser extent face challenges posed
by problem areas, such as violence, as well as, in some cases, right-wing (and left-wing) politics, with outsiders often automatically equating Ultras with problem fans, perpetrators of violence or right-wing extremists – which is the impression conveyed by the media. Nonetheless, or actually because of this false perception by outsiders and the increasing problems with the police, it is necessary not only for the Ultra movement to assume more responsibility and reflect on and regulate its own culture but also for the associations, clubs, police and society to begin a rethink.

and of course! No Al Calcio Moderno!Against Modern Football! Let the people come to the venues and be passionate with their team!