When footballers from a professional football club do not have proper changing room facilities, then it is obvious that we still have not gotten our basics right.
On 10 June, TMSG was alerted about how players from Geylang International were changing on the spectators stand at the Serangoon Stadium, their more recent training base.
The quick background is that Our Tampines Hub is undergoing restoration works, which has meant that both Tampines Rovers and Geylang both need training venues, while their home matches are held at Jalan Besar Stadium.
On 13 June in the morning, TMSG paid a visit to the Serangoon Stadium and found that players belongings were lying on the cemented area near the centre of the stands, while they were going through their paces.
Bags, shoes and slippers were among the items seen.
After the training was over, the players came to the stands and got their bags.
Is this how professional our Singapore Premier League is?
Can we not get such basics right for our football, almost 30 years since launch of a professional league?
TMSG understands that the Geylang players had not been given access to the changing rooms since 10 June.
This was supposed to have been sorted out, and they were due to get the access to the changing rooms on 13 June in the morning, said sources close to TMSG.
However, this was apparently not the case due to an alleged miscommunication.
Serangoon Stadium comes under the purview of Sport Singapore.
NO PROBLEM FOR TAMPINES ROVERS
The other team which has been displaced from Our Tampines Hub does not appear to have any issues with a training facility.
On 13 June in the evening, TMSG spotted the team training at the Geylang Training Field, usually a training venue for the Young Lions and national teams.
Interestingly, that location used to be the home ground of Geylang International prior to the start of the S-League, when the club used to play in the National Football League of old.
How is it one team has a proper facility while the other has one where dressing rooms were not opened, is just inexplicable.
PHOTOS: TMSG