Undoubtedly the biggest surprise in Thai football during the 2021-22 season was the sudden rise of second division side Lampang FC. The Northern minnows were widely expected to drop into the third tier but instead went on to seal promotion to Thai League 1 for the first time in their history against all the odds.
After beating Trat FC in the playoffs, Thai League social media pages were flooded with pictures of the players, staff and fans celebrating and looking forward to their chance to shine in the big time.
The team’s blissful atmosphere seemed almost unimaginable just a few months prior. Ahead of the season, Lampang F.C were crippled with major financial issues, and its owners were forced to consider abolishing the team. Though they were saved and allowed to continue, they assembled a squad of loaned players that had only played in Thai League 3 and had no experience of top-flight football whatsoever.
Lampang went from being a team everyone expected to fail to a dark horse who took exceeding expectations to a new level. Main Stand talked with Suchoke Lerswattanakomes, the club’s president, about the secret behind the success of a team that once stood at the edge of the abyss and nearly sank into oblivion.
Looking back before the start of the 2021-22 season, Lampang FC faced significant financial issues. Please tell us how the team pulled through that.
"I think that everybody already acknowledged Lampang FC’s situation from the end of (the 2020-21 season) when our team had to face many crises," shared president Suchoke. "By the end of that season, to be honest, we still didn’t know how we would get out of this.
"But I was fortunate that I got help from Mr. Suthep Poomongkolsuriya, the president of (Thai League 1 club) Nongbua Pitchaya FC, who I am familiar with and have a lot of respect for.
"Mr. Suthep came in to help Lampang by sending in footballers from Nongbua Pitchaya’s academy, and a sponsorship deal that allowed us to continue."
How was the reaction of the fans, and Thai football as a whole, to the new direction of Lampang FC?
"When I revealed this roster of players we were slandered by people around us," he said. "They said things like, ‘why do you use no-name footballers?’ or, ‘how will you survive using (Thai League 3) footballers like this?’ To be frank, every pundit and news outlet that season predicted that we’d be relegated from Thai League 2.
"However, I must clarify that the players we got from Nongbua Pitchaya partially are the kids that graduated from Nongbua Pitchya’s academy and grew up in one of their schools like Pitchaya Bundit school. Another part of the roster is made up of the players from Udon United, who nearly got promoted to T2 the previous season.
"Furthermore, about this set of kids from Nongbua Pitchaya that were sent to us. Personally, I’ve been following them since they played in the youth divisions. They have won every championship possible in the northeastern region already, from the Coke Cup to the Thailand Youth Football Championship. They are considered one of the best academy or student teams in the country, so I was very confident in them."
Given how unlikely it was that you would be promoted to Thai League 1, what was the goal you set for the team that season?
"Actually, our goal last season was to develop the skills of the players; that was more important to us than fighting for promotion because 80% of the players in our team had no experience in T2 at all," he shared.
"So for me, not getting relegated was enough. I was also happy that the kids were able to get experience in T2, which they rightfully earned by winning the northeastern division of T3 with Udon United before losing in the playoffs. I saw it as my duty to create the opportunity for these players to shine and play in a bigger and better league.
"Therefore, our true purpose was to develop the players more than to win. But, somehow, success came to us much faster than we expected."
What’s the main thing that was truly behind the success of Lampang FC this season?
"I think our team spirit is what was behind everything," he said. "Everybody in our team lives like a family and is willing to play according to the coach’s plans. Nobody took themselves as a superstar.
"I give the credit to Coach Ton (Sukrit Yothee), who trained and stayed with these kids for so long. To be honest, our success was all because of him. These players have been working under him from the Amateur League to T3 and now in T2. I believe that because Coach Ton has been working with these players for so long, he was able to achieve this incredible result for us.
"Also, the kids were able to play without pressure. Our goal was just to survive in this league, but for the whole year, we were never less than sixth in the table. So, when we found the team’s true potential, I shifted my goal to stay in the top half until the end of the season. But the first leg ended and our team was still in the top six, so our goal shifted again.
"This time I hoped we could move up to the big league, or at least be able to qualify for the playoffs. At the start of the season, I would never have imagined that we would be able to go all the way and make it to the top division."
Even though your budget was lower than in previous years, Lampang FC managed to win promotion to the top division for the first time ever. What methods or strategies allowed you to perform so well with these limited resources?
"I think that Lampang FC doesn’t need superstars because we focused on our spirits and our team’s system. Coach Ton has already talked about this: If anyone thinks they’re superstars, they can sit on the side bench and prepare themselves to move to another team, for Lampang, spirit comes first.
"So you can see that many times, we didn’t play our foreign players at all and fielded all local players instead, and still managed to do well. This is because our team is clear about our characteristics, which prioritize the system and team spirit first.
"I think that these days the trend in Thai football has already changed. The team system has become the most important thing, and the influence of individual players has subsided. We can see now that using enormous money or having a full superstar team doesn’t always mean success for every team anymore. Each team has its own needs and characteristics.
"By that, I don’t mean that the methods and goals of every team have to go in the same direction. For instance, big teams might want quick success so they invest a lot of money in buying expensive footballers or superstars for their teams. So all I’m saying is that it depends on each team’s characteristics and how you plan to move forward."
How did you feel when Lampang’s promotion to Thai League 1 was secured?
"I felt so happy and overwhelmed," he said with a smile. "I thought that we would be able to do it that day. As I said before, we only hoped to give the kids a place to shine. I am very happy, and more than anything, I’m surprised that we have made it this far.
"Sometimes it is all up to our luck, destiny, and timing too. For example, we met with Trat FC four times last season and we didn’t manage to beat them a single time. Playing in the league we had lost to them both home and away, and in the play-off finals, our matches against them ended in a draw both times. Eventually, though we were still unable to beat them, it’s us who are going up to T1."
What’s the plan for Lampang F.C’s first season in the top division?
"I don’t think there will be any changes with the players and coaches," he revealed. "We will all stay together because, as I said since the beginning, our goal is to develop the players.
"I think that if they are already capable of making it this far, we should allow them to move up and test themselves at this new level. However, they will be supported by some foreign players and Thai League veterans too.
"Our goal is still the same, which is to survive in the league and not get relegated. However, we know as well as everybody else that doing so will be way harder this season."
Do you think a “miracle” will happen to Lampang F.C again this season?
"I really hope that another miracle will happen, but I don’t think they tend to happen so often! (laughs) But at least, if our kids can play without pressure again, we have a good chance to show our quality and play against the strongest teams in the country."
