Stanley Bernard Stephen Samuel

Stanley Bernard Stephen Samuel (born 10 March 1986) is a retired Malaysian footballer who last played for Kuala Lumpur FA and has represented the Malaysian national team, including two games against Manchester United. He also been an import player in both India and Indonesia. He currently works as a football pundit and match commentator for Asian broadcasters Astro SuperSport and Astro Arena.

Career

Kuala Lumpur FA

Growing up in Kuala Lumpur, Stanley was a prodigy from the elite Bukit Jalil Sports School. At the age of 18 he made his debut with Kuala Lumpur FA in the second tier, Malaysian Premier League. He played for Kuala Lumpur FA for 5 seasons. In the 2008 Malaysia Cup group stage, Stanley was top scorer with 5 goals in 6 matches.

Perak UPB My/Team

Stanley moved to UPB-MyTeam in 2009, scoring 12 goals in 28 appearances in the Malaysian Super League, FA Cup and Malaysia Cup. In the same year, Stanley made his debut for the Malaysia U-23 team and also earned his 1st caps for the full national side.

Sporting Clube de Goa

Stanley was offered a trial at Indian League (I-League) team Sporting Clube de Goa in November 2009. His trial was successful and he signed for them mid-season as one of the two AFC import player quota. He became the first Malaysian to play his trade in the I-league. When Stanley signed, Sporting were facing relegation, sitting at the bottom of the I-league with just one win from 13 matches. In the second half of the season Sporting managed 7 wins out of 13 matches to finish a respectable 12th place on the ladder and made the final of the Indian FA Cup. Stanley contributed 5 goals in 14 matches in all competitions. But he was released at the end of the season due to new regulations that took away the quota for AFC foreign players at Indian clubs.

Sabah FA

After a successful trial in Indonesia, Stanley was offered a contract at Indonesian Super League (ISL) outfit Persibo Bojonegoro. He scored on his debut in the pre-season Java Cup but due to political tensions between Malaysia and Indonesia, Stanley’s deal fell through. Instead he joined East Malaysian club, Sabah FA, for the 2011 Malaysian Super League season under coach Gary Phillips.

Kuala Lumpur FA

In 2012, Stanley rejoined his first senior club, Kuala Lumpur FA. But towards the end of the season, he suffered a double fracture of the tibia, which put his professional career in doubt, eventually leading to his retirement after unsuccessful attempts at a comeback.

International career

Stanley first represented his country as a 12-year-old in 1998. He would play numerous times for various age group sides, including the Malaysian Under-20 team in 2004-2005 under Jordan Viera and the Malaysian Under-23s in 2009. Later that year, he played for the senior national side for the first time. He earned his first full caps in two games against Zimbabwe and would also face regional rivals Indonesia. He was also in the 23-man squad for two friendlies against touring Manchester United in July 2009, coming off the bench in both games.

Broadcasting career

In 2012, Stanley made increasingly regular guest appearances for Astro SuperSport on the popular Bola@Mamak programme, which was nominated for Best Talk Show in the Asian Television Awards. From August 2013, he contributed as a pundit on SuperSport’s English Premier League coverage and was a regular guest on the FourFourTwo Snapshot radio show on LiteFM in Malaysia. Stanley also works regularly as a co-commentator for the coverage on Astro Arena of the Malaysia Super League.

External links

• Stanley Bernard Stephen Samuel profile at Soccerway