Mum of former women's national player takes on 'walking football': 'I've been active all my life'

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Hamidah Bee, 53, was at a loss. The stay-at-home mum had spent decades shuttling three of her four children to and from football training, supporting from the sidelines, and maintaining close relationships with their coaches and teammates. 

But in 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the world came to a halt. 

“I was lost. I love sports. I love football. I felt unproductive,” she said. 

Hamidah herself grew up playing football. As a child, she would watch as her younger brother played with the kids in their Telok Blangah neighbourhood.

“I started out just sitting in a corner at the void deck or basketball court but after a while, I joined in. We played football, rounders, hide-and-seek, even spinning tops,” she told CNA Women. 

When Hamidah started having children, she told her two eldest boys to pick up a sport. “Any sport,” she said. 

They too developed a love for football. In primary school, the brothers attended a football clinic that earned them spots at the Tampines Rovers Academy.

Hamidah committed to attending almost every training session, even as she became pregnant with one of her daughters, Mira Ruzana. 

“Mira and her brothers are about eight years apart (so she didn’t really play with them) but she grew up watching them play. I continued to support my sons during my pregnancy so you could say her love for football was cultivated while she was still in my tummy,” said Hamidah. 

When Mira turned 12, JSSL Arsenal Soccer School coach Lawrence Lee asked if she was interested in playing. 

Mira shared: “I just attended the tryouts because I wanted to participate in kickabouts. But I ended up falling in love with the sport.” 

Quite ironically, both Mira’s brothers decided not to pursue football