Shariff Abdul Samat

Shariff Abdul Samat (5 January 1984 – 10 February 2020) was a Singaporean international footballer.[1]

In this Malay name, there is no family name. The name Abdul Samat is a patronymic, and the person should be referred to by the given name, Shariff.
Shariff Abdul Samat
Shariff Abdul Samat speaking with the press after Woodlands Wellington's match against Home United on 5 March 2013.
Personal information
Full name Shariff Abdul Samat
Date of birth (1984-01-05)5 January 1984
Place of birth Singapore
Date of death 10 February 2020(2020-02-10) (aged 36)
Height 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s) Centre-back
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2003 Sembawang Rangers 17 (0)
2005 Home United 1 (0)
2006 Young Lions 11 (0)
2007–2009 Tampines Rovers 70 (1)
2010 Home United 13 (0)
2011 Hougang United 22 (0)
2012 Admiralty 8 (2)
2012 Tampines Rovers 0 (0)
2013 Woodlands Wellington 11 (0)
2014–2015 Tampines Rovers
2016 Geylang International
National team‡
2008 Singapore 1 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 16 July 2013
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 4 June 2013

Shariff is the son of the former Singaporean international footballer, Samad Allapitchay.[2] Like his father, he usually played as a centre back. He died on Monday 10 February 2020.

Club career

Shariff previously played for S.League clubs Sembawang Rangers FC, Young Lions and Tampines Rovers FC.

He was brought into the Tampines Rovers squad from the Young Lions after a stint with Sembawang Rangers FC, largely as a back-up player for the 2007/2008 highlighting season. However, due to teammate Sead Muratovic's failure to pass the annual fitness test, he became a major part of the first team's fixture in the S-League. He then joined Home United FC in 2010.

He was also known as a hot-tempered player, and was once handed out an eight-month ban by the Football Association of Singapore for throwing a punch at a Geylang United FC player, Peter Bennett in a S-League match when he was a Sembawang Rangers FC player.

Shariff spent half a season in the NFL Division 2 side Admiralty FC during the first half of 2012, and it was announced that he would rejoin S.League side Tampines Rovers for the second half of their 2012 season. However, he failed to break into the squad and was released at the end of the season.

On 2 February 2013, Shariff was unveiled as a Woodlands Wellington player during the team's pre-season fanfare.[3]

He made his debut for the Rams on 5 March 2013 in an away game against his former club, Home United FC.[4] Shariff put in an outstanding performance against the Protectors, his clearance off the line of Masato Fukui's shot being heralded as the turning point of the game by Woodlands coach, Salim Moin, during the post-match conference.[5]

Shariff rejoined Tampines for the 2014 season, but was not retained for the 2015 season and played for another NFL side Singapore Recreation Club that year. He then was signed by Geylang International for the 2016 season, but was released at the end of the season.[6]

International career

He first earned an international call-up for the games against North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Australia and the UAE. However, he was unable to break into the squad back then under Radojko Avramović.

In 2013, Shariff was called up by new national coach Bernd Stange due to his impressive performances for Woodlands Wellington in the S.League. He made his international debut on 4 June 2013, coming on as a substitute against Myanmar in a friendly match in Yangon.[7]

Personal Life and Death

On 31 May 2001, Shariff, then 17 years old, encountered the 8-member gang 369, known as Salakau, who attacked him and his two other friends while they were walking along South Bridge Road, having mistook them as members of their rival gang Sakongsa (303). The gang killed one of his friends, then-17-year-old football player Sulaiman bin Hashim (with whom Shariff was close to). During the attack, Shariff, who was named Muhammad Shariff bin Abdul Samat in court documents at that time, was stabbed on the back but survived. Despite being stabbed, Shariff managed to escape to the nearest police station with his other friend (footballer Mohammed Imran bin Mohammed Ali) to inform the police. Six of the attackers were eventually arrested, jailed and caned for rioting and culpable homicide, but the remaining two assailants remain at large till this day.[8] The case was re-enacted in local crime show True Files, which features the death of Sulaiman and the murder trial of the Salakau gang members. Shariff, who was the survivor and witness of the attack, was portrayed by actor AL Imran; Shariff was addressed solely by his given name in the episode to protect his real identity.[9]

On 10 November 2015, Shariff assaulted his brother-in-law over an incident. He later pleaded guilty to voluntarily causing hurt to his brother-in-law and on 24 May 2016, he was sentenced to 2 weeks' imprisonment.[10]

On 10 February 2020, Shariff died of a heart attack at the age of 36, leaving behind a wife and 4-year-old daughter.[11][12]

Career statistics

Club
As of 16 July 2013

Shariff Abdul Samat's Profile

Club Performance League Cup League Cup Total
Singapore S.League Singapore Cup League Cup
Club Season Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals   Apps Goals
Tampines Rovers 2009 24 (2)1000041024 (2)1
Home United 2010 12 (1)0000050012 (1)0
Hougang United 2011 2200000910220
Singapore NFL Division 2 Singapore FA Cup
Club Season Apps Goals Apps Goals - -   Apps Goals
Admiralty FC 2012 8200--00082
Singapore S.League Singapore Cup League Cup
Club Season Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals   Apps Goals
Tampines Rovers 2012 00000000000
Woodlands Wellington 2013 1101020201140
All numbers encased in brackets signify substitute appearances.

International Appearances
#DateVenueOpponentResultCompetition
1.4 June 2013Thuwanna Youth Training Center, Yangon, Myanmar Myanmar2–0International Friendly
Updated as of 4 June 2013.

Honours

Individual
  • S.League Young Player of the Year: 2007

References
  1. "Shariff set for S.League return". Axross The Line. Archived from the original on 19 December 2013.
  2. "Hougang captain gives his side of the story". AsiaOne News.
  3. "Woodlands Wellington Unveil Top Local Signing, Shariff Samat". Woodlands Wellington Football Club.
  4. "Profligate Protectors sink to home defeat". Goal.com Singapore.
  5. "Lee Lim Saeng: I think I can't sleep tonight". Goal.com Singapore.
  6. https://www.fourfourtwo.com/sg/features/nfl-sleague-ones-who-did-it?page=0%2C2
  7. "Stange starts Singapore reign with victory in Myanmar". Goal.com Singapore.
  8. "Stabbed, Samad's son: It hurts too much". National Library Board. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
  9. "True Files S4 Ep 12". meWATCH. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
  10. "Geylang's Shariff jailed for attack on relative". The New Paper. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
  11. Kwek, Kimberly (10 February 2020). "Football: Former Singapore international Shariff Samat dies at 36". The Straits Times. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
  12. "Football: Tampines Rovers ready for busy year; next up is Indonesia's Makassar in AFC Cup". The Straits Times. 11 February 2020. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.