Giselle Blümke, one of our students in the graduating class of 2023, joined the Women’s Premiere League (WPL) in Singapore as a professional football player in December 2022. We talked to her about how she got there and what it’s been like to play with the Tampines Rovers.
How long have you been at GESS and in Singapore?
I was born and raised in Singapore and attended GESS since kindergarten in 2010. I started at the kindergarten building at the old Main Campus and continued at the Junior Campus at Jalan Jurong Kechil. After this, I returned to the Main Campus at Bukit Tinggi Hill, and now I am finally completing my Abitur at this new campus in Dairy Farm.
When did you start playing football and what got you interested in it in the first place?
I started playing girl’s football as a CCA in first grade, after having enjoyed playing football during breaktime with the other boys in pre-primary. I can’t remember what specifically made me decide to play the sport but the movie “Die Wilden Kerle”, a German movie where a girl plays football with a group of boys, motivated me to start playing football and joining my guy friends in school when they played during the breaks. Also, growing up in a German-Brazilian household, football was always somehow a conversation topic which, among other things, made me want to start playing. After playing for the school team for a while, I joined my first football club “CUFA”, where most of my friends were already playing. It was a boys’ team, but since the team consisted of some of my school friends, it felt natural and I enjoyed it a lot.
Just recently you made your professional debut in the Women’s Premiere League (WPL) in Singapore with the Tampines Rovers. How did you become part of the team and how has it been so far playing at such a professional level?
It has been very exciting these past few months. I signed with Junior Soccer School League (JSSL) – soccer academy in Singapore Tampines Rovers FC at 17 years old in December last year. Since then, we have had a pre-season Kuala Lumpur trip, pre-season friendlies against various teams, and a few WPL games. The pre-season KL trip took place one week before my Abitur exams, which was very stressful for me but definitely worth it, as I got really close with my teammates and made life-long memories.
I was also very happy to be awarded the Player of the Week and top goal-scorer after my first game, scoring 3 goals as a centre-back. This was special to me, as it was my first professional game, in a new team, and also a new position for me. I used to play forward and have now taken a new position as a defender. The stress and excitement I experience at games are not the only areas influenced by my switch to professional league. My game day schedule has also changed. When our game starts at 7pm, we usually meet up 5 hours earlier, at 2pm. We meet at our training ground at the Arena, get served lunch, have a pre-game meeting, and then drive off to the field together in a bus.
Before committing to the professional league, my parents used to drop me off one hour before the start of the game at the field but this has now changed. A very positive thing that also came with playing in a professional team is the support from the fans. You can definitely say that Tampines Rovers have left a mark on Singapore’s history of football. With strong roots in their men’s team, they recently launched a women’s team. The loyal supporters followed this new path and provided our team with immense support. From the close-knitted online fan accounts using their voices to uplift us, to the fans showing up at our games and using their loud voices to chant, while drumming a beat on the side, they really bring a good atmosphere with them. Even the youth players at the JSSL academy cheer us on in the stands. It truly is nice to be able to interact and share this passion with the younger players that look up to us.
I also had the pleasure of coaching the girls who come down to support us in the JSSL 7’s tournament (7-a-side tournament hosted by JSSL – largest youth tournament in Asia), which definitely was an experience to remember. This season, Tampines Rovers and JSSL collaborated to create the new “JSSL Tampines Rovers” WPL team. I grew up playing football in the JSSL leagues in my first clubs, “CUFA” and “Anza”, in both the girls’ and boys’ leagues. Thus, after coming in contact with the JSSL Tampines Rovers coach Joe O’Sullivan, the signing process was pretty quick, as JSSL already knew me through my presence at the JSSL leagues and also through winning tournaments such as the JSSL 7’s in the years prior to joining the JSSL Rovers.
How has GESS supported you on your journey?
I started playing football at the GESS girls’ football CCA in first grade. I played for the GESS school team every year until COVID19 hit. After lockdown, we sadly couldn’t get enough players to make a u19 team to play in the ACSIS league. I hope that there will be one again in the near future and that the next team of players find what I found 5 years ago, not just a football team, but a family.
Having played with older teammates in the past, most of them have continued with their studies in Europe. As I‘ll be graduating and will be in Europe too, I have already made plans to meet up with some of them, which I am really looking forward to. Growing up playing football for GESS, the most anticipated events were the GESS Volkswagen Cups with their bratwurst stands and the “Milo Cup”. The GESS Volkswagen Cups were hosted annually by GESS and in the past before we moved to our Dairy Farm campus, held at the Swiss Club. There we would play small-sided futsal matches against other schools. I still remember the smell of the sausage grill outside, that the older students organised. The “Milo Cup” was a tournament held at the Astro field at Swiss Club, sponsored by Milo thus its name. At the tournament, we got free Milo drinks, ice cream, hats and reusable bottles that were included in our goodie bags. Sadly, I‘ve heard that this Cup is no longer being held anymore.
Throughout the years of playing football at GESS, I had many great coaches. Each and every one taught me something that contributed to how I play football today. I do have to say that Herr Thomas Teichert has played an important role in my football journey at GESS. He started being my coach when he asked me to play for the u16 team as a 5th grader in the junior school campus, where some of my teammates and I trained and played games with the older girls after school. Not only did he help us on the field, motivating and supporting us, he also always asked after us when we see him in the school halls, outside of football.
What are your plans after graduation? Will you continue playing football?
After I graduate this year (2023), I am going to study economics in Amsterdam. After living in Singapore my whole life, it will be quite difficult to adapt to living in a new country, on a completely different continent, away from my family. At first, I was not sure if I was going to continue playing football at university. If you asked me a year ago, I would have said no. But ever since I signed with a professional club this year, my love for football has grown, even after losing touch with it during the pandemic. I have already found a women’s team in Amsterdam that wants to sign me on, where I can continue playing football while I start my new life in Amsterdam. I am very excited about what’s to come and where this new chapter in my life will take me.
