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SIR Alex Ferguson once said that the thing that delights him more than winning trophies with Manchester United is breaking records.The 68-year-old must have wished he was in town when Aon Singapore unveiled the new Manchester United Shirt yesterday at Boys' Town.
For the staff at Aon Singapore decided just unveiling the new home shirt wasn't enough.
They wanted to set a new Guinness World Record to showcase their passion for football and to commemorate the start of a four-year global partnership with the Red Devils.
Together, with the youths of Boys' Town, Assumption English School and St Andrew's Secondary School, they attempted to set a new Guinness World Record for 'Most Number of Penalty Kicks'.
They needed to take 350 consecutive spot-kicks under the watchful eyes of referees from the Football Association of Singapore.
In the end, they did it.
All in all, 364 spot-kicks were taken as Aon Singapore wrote themselves into the history books.
Ah, how Fergie must have wished he were here.
Guinness World Records managing director Matt Boulton was flown in from London to adjudicate the record-breaking attempt.
He said: 'It (the record) may sound simple, but as you can see, it isn't easy getting so many people together.'
Asked how the minimum figure of 350 was set, Boulton said: 'The number was set based on its attainability.
'We didn't want something that was too difficult to achieve, neither did we we want to choose a number that was too easy it would belittle the event.
'After much discussion, we eventually decided that the benchmark of 350 kicks satisfied both criterion.'
Of course, among the crowd were some die-hard United fans.
So how did they find their team's new jersey?
Adrian Chang, 19, who has been supporting United for five years, said: 'I think the design is nice and simple, although the collar reminds me of Arsenal's jersey.'
Meanwhile, Steve Yong, 39, wasn't too concerned with how the jersey looked.
The Red Devils supporter of 30 years said: 'The design is retro, it has a classic feel to it, and I'm quite pleased.
'However, the most important thing is the performance of the team on the pitch.
'As long as United play well and win trophies, the design of the jersey doesn't really bother me.'
He said: 'It (the record) may sound simple, but as you can see, it isn't easy getting so many people together.'
Asked how the minimum figure of 350 was set, Boulton said: 'The number was set based on its attainability.
'We didn't want something that was too difficult to achieve, neither did we we want to choose a number that was too easy it would belittle the event.
'After much discussion, we eventually decided that the benchmark of 350 kicks satisfied both criterion.'
Of course, among the crowd were some die-hard United fans.
So how did they find their team's new jersey?
Adrian Chang, 19, who has been supporting United for five years, said: 'I think the design is nice and simple, although the collar reminds me of Arsenal's jersey.'
Meanwhile, Steve Yong, 39, wasn't too concerned with how the jersey looked.
The Red Devils supporter of 30 years said: 'The design is retro, it has a classic feel to it, and I'm quite pleased.
'However, the most important thing is the performance of the team on the pitch.
'As long as United play well and win trophies, the design of the jersey doesn't really bother me.'
