FAN’S VIEW: 2025/26 – PORT FC by Mark Gelder

Oxford United were comfortably through to the Sunday final of Piala Presiden 2025, the President’s cup.  Our opponents were to be Thai team Port FC, the other invited side in the tournament.  

I had now moved from my hotel near the station to the Mercure hotel where most of the other United fans were staying in the Lengkong district.  This made logistics a lot simpler for meeting up, and the hotel also had a rooftop swimming pool and bar.  Breakfast options were extensive with rice, noodles, curry, congee, ramen, soups, bread and pastries, smoothies, juices, fruit, yogurts, salads and for the English traveller: chicken sausages, parmentier potatoes, baked beans and cheese and two dedicated egg chefs who would cook you an omelette, fried, poached, scrambled or boiled eggs.   Unsurprisingly there was no bacon, or pork sausages.  They did though have an ice cream dispenser and a candy floss machine.  

On the Friday night a few of us ventured down the Lengkong street-food night market. Every evening this sets up with probably 50 stalls on both sides of the road selling every snack imaginable. After having some dim sum at a hidden courtyard I then set off back through the market to meet the others at a music bar in Braga. En-route I snacked on a small prawn pastry and had to try the notorious durian fruit ice-cream.  This fruit smells so bad that it is forbidden on public transport and most hotels don’t allow you to keep it in your room. Unsurprisingly it tasted absolutely rank, and it took a couple of lagers to take the taste away. 

On the Saturday, six of us took an all-day minibus tour to the Kawah Putih volcano crater lake and tea plantations.  Four Dutch girls who were just starting their travels joined as well from another hotel.   At the first stop they were stopped for selfies with Indonesian tourists who wanted to have a picture with the tall white blondes. After a short hike for a mountain top view of the crater and tea fields, we were driven back down to the lake where you were only allowed 15 minutes because of the sulphur in the air. The signs said no swimming, but somewhat foolishly I dipped my fingers in to see what the taste was.  A bit sulphury, but luckily not acidic or boiling hot, and I swilled my mouth out with bottled water.  After a short stop for a zip line and lunch, we were then transported to the Kawah Rengganis hot springs and mud baths, accessed by walking across a wobbly 370m suspension bridge.  

The highlight of the day and week was that we chose to have our tour meal at a local’s house.   We parked up and walked through a village of small-scale commercial vegetable plots of spring onions, corn, and chillis, with open reservoir ponds which irrigate the plots below.  Young children were running free around the village, whilst elderly men sat chilled outside their houses.  We were invited in to the house which was little more than a single-story small living room, hallway, bedroom and kitchen with toilet.   Our hostess was busy cooking up rice, vegetables, chicken drumsticks and vegetable fritters with a fresh chilli sauce.   Furniture was cleared out of the way and 14 or so portions for us and the host and tour guide were spread out across the hallway on huge banana leaves for us to sit down on the floor and eat with our hands.    It was quite humbling how privileged we are in the UK.  

Sunday was match-day.  The Ole Romeny Fanclub twitter account had been in touch with an Oxford-Indonesia banner for us to hang up with our own flags.  

This time we had arranged a minibus to and from the ground, and we left around 5pm for the 7:30 kick-off.   As it was a Sunday night, traffic wasn’t quite so bad as midweek.  Once at the ground we met the Head of Security (“HOS”).  We picked up the banner, and then in one of the most bizarre experiences ever, once in the outer concourse of the stadium, as the ten of us were escorted by the military police to the same stand as previously, we had hundreds of children and young football fans cheering and screaming as we were walked past, high-fiving us, and stopping us to take selfies.  It gave a small insight into what it must be like to be a celebrity, pop star, or footballer who has to deal with this every day. 

Somewhat foolishly we sat at row 3. Lots of local kids and fans queued up for selfies and even asked us to sign their tops.  A handsome well-dressed young football presenter and tv crew, who were presumably their equivalent of Gary Lineker and MOTD was mobbed and greeted by cheers from the crowd and interviewed one of us pre-match. Row 1 had a bagged-up poncho placed on each seat which should have given us a clue why most people sat further back.   We had the usual match build-up of a singer and then the National anthem.

As for the football, Rowett had picked a starting eleven of perhaps six first team players.  I’m undecided whether he thought we wouldn’t need a full-strength team for this match, or that this was still a match not to risk injuries and tiring out too many of our squad.   

We had an early goal from Mark Harris, which some time after the restart got paused for a VAR off-side review.  Not given and we were one up and looked good value.   Port FC gradually got back into the game, in particular their no. 18, Columbian Brayan Perea who ripped past us on the wing several times.  If he wasn’t 32, I’d have been tempted to get him on trial.  Towards the middle of the first half, it started to rain, and we were just far enough back in row three that the roof of the stand gave us protection.  

Port FC got a deserved goal back just before half-time, which at first looked like a mis-placed cross but was actually a good lob over Matt Ingram.  

At the break I went down to find some snacks.   A lot of the outer concourses were fenced off for a rest area for groups of dancers in traditional wear, and the children who would be out on the running track later.  

Back in the stands, the children were by now doing keepy-uppies and passing footballs on the track, but it was absolutely hammering it down and the wind was blowing the rain many rows back.  The kids were soaked and puddles were starting to form on the pitch.  Anyway, the match started, and I had moved further back in the stands to under cover and to enjoy my grilled chicken skewers.  A local reporter stopped to ask me a few questions and spotting me choking on the chilli sauce, wanted to know about my experience of Indonesian food.  During this Port FC scored a quick goal which I completely missed.  By this time the pitch was waterlogged in places and the ball wouldn’t even roll or bounce.   In the UK the game would have been abandoned, but perhaps because it was the final, they kept on playing on. Then I think for a dangerous tackle and melee afterwards, a Port FC player was sent off.   The match was then halted until the rain had stopped, and a few grounds-men with brushes attempted to sweep the puddles away.  

After about twenty minutes the game restarted, and starting to see a pattern here, the stadium clock was reset to when the game had been stopped so we had a better idea of time remaining, just as it had with the power cut in the previous match.   Without any chance to play passing football in certain areas of the pitch, we made a few subs and in particular brought on Elliot Moore and Will  Vaulks in an attempt to bring a more aerial approach to the game.   In total we made nine second half subs.   Despite a few balls into the opposition box, we couldn’t get the break-through and lost 2-1. 

Attendance 15,358.  Also on the scoreboard was that 110 micro, small, and medium enterprises had been involved, I guess mostly the snack stalls in the outer concourses.   I guess that like with our own planning application for the Triangle, it is important to show the benefit to the local economy.  

Having met our HOS again and clubbing together for a decent tip for him, we got our minibus back to the hotel. Apparently, there was an extensive closing ceremony after the cup and medal presentation, with the traditional dancers, drone display and more. But like most losing football fans we were on our way out straight after the whistle.

Was it good for the club and pre-season?   I think we have done well in participating in the President’s Cup, featuring in the associated local media, community involvement, and other coverage on behalf of our owners.  Probably due to the long transfer times, I think we would have preferred this a week or so earlier if at all, with a return to “normal” pre-season training, though even English weather might have been a bit hot.  

Overall, as fans we saw different parts of Indonesia to the normal Westerners’ Bali beach holidays and had a good time, and saw us play in a new country and indeed continent.