Praise for Harimau Malaya superfan who sacrificed motorbike
The fighting spirit of the Harimau Malaya players who fought hard in the last Group E match against South Korea, despite realising that the chance to progress to the next stage had long been buried, deserves praise.
But the same praise must be given to a fan of Harimau Malaya who still roared despite knowing there was as much as no ghost of a chance for the national squad to advance far in the Asian Cup, but who was still willing to travel over 5,000 kilometres and gambled to be part of that historic moment.
And historic it was. When the national team scored the second goal and took the lead in the match against the Taegeuk Warriors squad managed by former German star Jurgen Klinsmann, the camera lens recording the frenzy of cheering supporters at the Al Janoub Stadium in Qatar froze on only one face – a fan crying his eyes out with tears of unbridled joy.
The scene stole the hearts of many Malaysians watching the match that was telecast live, till the video went viral and netizens managed to track the man down as ‘Derrick Gan’ who advertised his motorcycle for sale to cover the cost to Qatar.
Speaking to Bernama, Derrick, 30, who was nicknamed ‘brown haired bro’ by netizens said he scraped RM4,500 from the sale of his beloved motorbike which he advertised on Facebook in December last year.
Unknown to all other diehard fans, Derrick, who had meticulously planned his 5,892-kilometre trip (in airline distance) to Qatar, said the decision to give up his motorcycle was made since he was still short despite saving RM1,500 over a year.
“I have a car, but my wife uses it (for city driving) in Kuala Lumpur. But I didn’t mind selling it (the bike) because I really wanted to go to Qatar to cheer Harimau Malaya in this historic round of football.
“My total expenditure for Qatar was around RM6,000, my savings alone was not enough,” he said when contacted on Friday.
Derrick, who hails from Bandar Hilir in Melaka said he left for Qatar on Jan 19 to watch the second and the last match, against Bahrain and South Korea, and was expected to return yesterday.
Talking about his experience watching the Kim Pan Gon-led squad against South Korea, he said it was a really meaningful experience because Malaysia managed to secure a 3-3 draw against the third best team in Asia.
“There are no words to describe my feelings at that time (when Malaysia suddenly went into the lead at 2-1), I was happy after sacrificing and seeing Malaysia fighting with enthusiasm, it was really touching,” said Derrick, who works in a shop selling motorcycle accessories.
“Stealing a draw with South Korea is very meaningful, it’s like a dream come true for all of us Malaysian football fans,” he added.