Biase la, Melayu...

"Oh, my soccer team will play in the tournament at 5pm today," my boyfriend informed me.

Since my boyfriend does play football regularly, I just wished him good luck. He used to play everyday, or every other day, to keep fit. He had an ankle injury, which stopped him from playing so he concentrated on his work. Now that he is getting better, I support him to do sports whenever he can. Dah tua kena jaga kesihatan.

That night, I asked my boyfriend, "Did you win?"
He said, "No, it was a draw. *Fariz requested for it. So I told the players not to win. But we are still qualified for the next round!"
I was confused with this little arrangement and I demanded an explaination.

It turned out that my boyfriend didn't play for his team. 'His' team actually the team the company is sponsoring. *Fariz is our friend, who is the boss of the other company sponsoring *Fariz's team.

"What's your team name?" I asked.
"No name. Nama team ikut nama DUN kawasan. We are competing for Piala UMNO," he said.

Didn't I tell you not to be involved in politics?

"Abang bukan nak join sangat...But it is for the company's sake. Kena buat promotion sikit, biar orang kenal and percaya company ni. You jangan risau sayang, I behind the scene saja. Yang dekat Putrajaya, I tak masuk campur, I suruh *Lan yang turun padang," was my boyfriend's answer.

It's his job, I shouldn't interrupt too much, he knows what he is doing. My speciality is not in business or finance or marketing or PR anyway, so, what do I know?
Well, as long as I am not marrying an actual politician...

I changed the topic, back to the game.

My boyfriend said he enjoyed the tournament very much because his players played really well.
"I cakap dengan diorang, kalau menang, dapat RM100, kalau seri, dapat RM50 sorang. Terus main bersungguh-sungguh lepas tu," he said.

Macam professional football players pula ada gaji.

How did you select the players? Are they teenagers?

"We held a try-out. They are in their 20s and 30s. I used to play alongside with them. But since I am busy now, I need to take care of my health. I can't risk an injury, I need to attend many meetings," he said.

He continued to tell me,

"Team Abang ni...Kena sogok dengan duit baru rajin nak main! You tau tak, masa datang training pun mintak RM10 sorang! Kalau tak bagi duit, tak mahu datang. Biase la, Melayu..."

Biase la, Melayu...