By Ajarn Helen Jandamit
Photos courtesy of Bangkok Post
University Tips is here to help you prepare for the English exams and tests that are coming your way. It gives you practise answering questions similar to those you may have at school and also on the University Entrance Examination.
Read the following story by Jeerawat Na Thalang from the Bangkok Post. Then, answer the questions that follow.
The Thai Premier League’s roughest team has its headquarters near the Klong Toey slums. It was fined for crowd violence and faced relegation last year. Now it has been taken over by an heiress to the Muangthai Insurance fortune.
Many people were surprised when Nualphan Lamsam announced in February that she was taking over the Port Authority of Thailand Football Club. Although Nualphan is a well-heeled socialite, she is a powerful force behind the success of the Thai women’s national team and the national team at the Asian Para Games.
The club, formerly known as Singhtarua, has renamed itself Port FC and is attempting to change its reputation from one of hooliganism.
Nualphan stands out, but she does not feel out of place at Port FC.
“I am no longer a hi-so. I’m running in the football fields with Port FC and the national women’s football team every day,” she said. “I was approached by the old management of the Port Authority of Thailand’s football club, and they asked me if I was interested in being the team’s chairperson and to jointly invest in the team. I said yes.” Nualphan added that Port FC is one of the oldest football clubs in the country, with a long tradition and many fans.
Reporters met Nualphan about a month after she took over Port FC at the PAT Stadium in Klong Toey. Port was at home against Suphanburi FC in its fifth match of the season. Nualphan arrived at the stadium shortly before kick-off. Nualphan was wearing Port FC’s orange and blue shirt, a dark skirt and high-heeled shoes. She walked around the stadium greeting fans of both teams, thanking them for their support. A group of fans chanted back “Madame Paeng,” Nualphan’s nickname.
Running a professional football team seems an unlikely pastime for this 49-year-old businesswoman. Thailand’s professional football league is often perceived as men’s business, since it is tough both on and off the field. It depends not only on the athletes’ performance but also sponsorship, with club managers competing to recruit players both locally and internationally. For example, Newin Chidchob, the politician-turned-football club chairman, reportedly spent several million baht this season recruiting for Buriram United, the current premier league champion.
Running Port FC will certainly be challenging. The team is still in the lower half of the league. The club has lost several top players to other teams, although it has retained key players including midfielder Adisorn Daeng-rueng, forward Rachanon Srinok and Japanese football star Hironori Saruta, who is vice-captain of the team.
Another challenge is the fact that Singhtarua has been associated with hooliganism. Last season, the club had a nine-point deduction and a fine of 300,000 baht after the team’s supporters clashed with fans of Muangthong FC in October. About 10 people were injured.
Changing the club’s name is just one part of changing its image and, in the early games, the crowd behaviour improved.
“We haven’t experienced hooliganism so far this season,” Nualphan said.
Nualphan’s immediate priority is to rebuild Port FC. Port fans made their affection for the club’s new chairwoman very clear.
“Perhaps the fans see that I am the only chairwoman of all 18 Thai premier league teams,” Nualphan said.
Nualphan loves football. But there is something else that drives her.
“I think sport is a means to improve people,” she said. Nualphan entered the sports scene as a means of social service, guiding national Thai athletes with disabilities to win gold medals at the Fespic Games in 2006 and the Asian Para Games a year later.
Later, she was approached by the Football Association of Thailand to manage the national women’s team, which has secured a place in this year’s Fifa Women’s World Cup final. Her role as the manager is to take care of the team members’ well-being, not coaching them on the field.
“After running a women’s team, I wanted to try a men’s football team,” she said.
Exercises
Section 1
Read the story and answer the following multiple-choice questions.
1. What does FC stand for?
a. First class.
b. Football club.
c. Foreign correspondent.
2. What was Port FC’s previous name?
a. Buriram United.
b. Singhtarua.
c. Muangthong FC.
3. What is Nualphan Lamsam’s nickname?
a. Phan.
b. Nual.
c. Paeng.
4. How many key players has Port FC retained?
a. 13.
b. 11.
c. At least three.
5. Who approached Nualphan to be the team’s chairman?
a. The old management of the Port Authority of Thailand’s football club.
b. Newin Chidchob.
c. Hironori Saruta.
6. Who is vice-captain of Port FC?
a. Hironori Saruta.
b. Adisorn Daeng-rueng.
c. Rachanon Srinok.
7. The supporters of which team were fined for hooliganism?
a. Singhtarua.
b. Muangthong FC.
c. Buriram United.
8. What colour shirts do Port FC’s players wear?
a. Red, white and blue.
b. Orange and blue.
c. Green and yellow.
Section 2
Read the story and decide whether the following statements are true or false.
9. Disabled Thai national athletes won gold medals at the Fespic Games in 2006.
………………………
10. There are 18 Thai premier league teams.
………………………
11. Nualphan’s immediate priority is to manage the national women’s team.
………………………
12. Muangthong FC has its headquarters near the Klong Toey slums.
………………………
Section 3
Read each of the following sentences and underline the grammatically correct word in each from the choices given.
13. She was approached for/with/by the management of the company.
14. The team’s supporters clashed against/with/down police near the stadium.
15. Thailand’s professional football league is perceived as man/men/men’s business.
Section 4
Fill in the blanks in the following passage with the grammatically correct words from the choices given.
Port FC missed its opportunities and Suphanburi took the match 2-0. “I am …..16….. happy with the result,” she said. The fans showered …..17….. with consolation and one group of Port FC fans from the Klong Toey community …..18….. her with an advance birthday cake. “I love…..19….. football fans,” she said. “They came here to boost our morale. They have been the team’s supporters …..20….. years.”
16.
a. neither
b. nor
c. not
17.
a. her
b. hers
c. she
18.
a. surprised
b. surprises
c. surprising
19.
a. mine
b. theirs
c. my
20.
a. since
b. for
c. all
Section 5
Write down the noun forms of the following words used in the story.
21. national …………….
22. invest …………….
23. professional …………….
24. recruiting …………….
Vocabulary
- relegation (n): an act to move a sports team, especially a football team, to a lower position within an official league
well heeled (adj): very wealthy
hooliganism (n): a noisy violence that causes trouble to the public
sponsorship (n): financial support from a company, person, organisation, etc.
midfielder (n): a player in the central part of a sports field
