PHUKET: FC Phuket has a new coach, former 10-year national team defender Sompong Wattana, and his self-imposed deadline for turning around the Hulks' fortunes is three matches.
The on-pitch after-match sacking of his predecessor by chanting Phuket fans at the weekend - following four games without a win - has been condemned by Phuketwan but condoned by some Phuket supporters.
Whether a new coach can quickly turn around the fortunes of the ambitious Phuket club in such a pressure-cooker mid-season environment remains to be seen.
Fifty-three-year-old Sompong has a fine record as a player between 1979-89 and in more recent work with Rajavithi FC and Ayuthaya FC.
Speaking to the squad of FC Phuket players at home-ground Surakul Stadium yesterday, Khun Sompong said physical training was their weakness.
He said the team usually performed well for the first 20 minutes of matches, but quickly fell away. After halftime, players were often weak.
''I am from Songkhla, so being from the south we should have no problems communicating,'' he told his Phuket charges.
Discipline will be strictly enforced, with late nights and smoking now on the list of banned activities.
Khun Sompong rates a win in this weekend's match with Airport United FC as a 50-50 prospect, and added that he would impose a deadline of three matches for the turnaround in fortunes.
''If we work together and we get better results, we will be able to bring better players to Phuket,'' he said. His contract runs until the end of this season.
FC Phuket is ninth on the Division One table, while Airport United FC sits two spots further back. It's an away game for FC Phuket.
The on-pitch after-match sacking of his predecessor by chanting Phuket fans at the weekend - following four games without a win - has been condemned by Phuketwan but condoned by some Phuket supporters.
Whether a new coach can quickly turn around the fortunes of the ambitious Phuket club in such a pressure-cooker mid-season environment remains to be seen.
Fifty-three-year-old Sompong has a fine record as a player between 1979-89 and in more recent work with Rajavithi FC and Ayuthaya FC.
Speaking to the squad of FC Phuket players at home-ground Surakul Stadium yesterday, Khun Sompong said physical training was their weakness.
He said the team usually performed well for the first 20 minutes of matches, but quickly fell away. After halftime, players were often weak.
''I am from Songkhla, so being from the south we should have no problems communicating,'' he told his Phuket charges.
Discipline will be strictly enforced, with late nights and smoking now on the list of banned activities.
Khun Sompong rates a win in this weekend's match with Airport United FC as a 50-50 prospect, and added that he would impose a deadline of three matches for the turnaround in fortunes.
''If we work together and we get better results, we will be able to bring better players to Phuket,'' he said. His contract runs until the end of this season.
FC Phuket is ninth on the Division One table, while Airport United FC sits two spots further back. It's an away game for FC Phuket.
