By Wang Meng Meng

When Vietnamese referee Dang Thanh Ha whistled for full-time at Jalan Besar Stadium yesterday, he not only blew an end to 80 minutes of football but also broke the hearts of Singapore's Asian Youth Games footballers.

They had lost 1-2 to Iran in their opening Group A game, a result that dented their hopes of qualifying for the semi-finals via a top-two finish.

Slumped to the ground, frustrated that their hard work and gutsy play had not been rewarded with at least a draw, David Sivalingam's boys meekly applauded the 2,500 fans as they trooped into the tunnel.

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