LionsXII may have won the Malaysia FA Cup for the first time with a sensational 3-1 victory over Kelantan in Saturday's final, but Singapore must not get carried away.
Here are three ways for Singapore football to build on the Bukit Jalil triumph, thereby recreating the 1980s and '90s love affair all over again.
1. Fandi must be groomed for Lions' hot seat
Singapore owe Radojko Avramovic a favour for helping them become one of Southeast Asia's football powerhouses. In the nine years he was head coach, the Serbian gave debuts to numerous fledglings such as Baihakki Khaizan, Shahril Ishak, Hariss Harun, Khairul Amri, Izwan Mahbud, Hassan Sunny, Safuwan Baharudin and Shaiful Esah.
They went on to become vital cogs in Raddy's tactical game plan that catered to the players' individual strengths, instead of trying to fit them into the tactical straightjacket of pass-and-move football.
After his departure, the Lions brought in Bernd Stange. The German has yet to win the hearts of the fans but he has done well by bringing in a group of budding local coaches as his sidekicks.
Aide Iskandar, V. Sundramoorthy and Fandi Ahmad have all had time alongside him, to observe and learn what it takes to be in the Lions' hot seat.
It's unclear how long Stange will decide to hold the reins, but his successor should be a local Singaporean.
Look at Malaysia and Thailand. Both have gone down the same route of appointing European coaches in the past but have gained more success when they reverted to their own homegrown legends.
Datuk K. Rajagobal won the AFF Suzuki Cup with Harimau Malaya in 2010 along with his SEA Games gold in 2009. Ong Kim Swee helped the Harimau Muda retain the SEA Games title two years later.
In Bangkok, legendary Thai striker Kiatisuk has been nothing short of a miracle worker. He won the SEA Games gold in 2013 before guiding the War Elephants to their fourth ASEAN title last year.
Singapore must resist the lure of going for a European big name and must give our own legends a chance. Like any good footballer will tell you, the only way to learn and improve is to gain match experience. So why not hand Fandi, Sundram or even Aide that golden ticket?
2. 6,000 conquered Bukit Jalil but we need more
About 6,000 brave hearts made the six-hour road trip up to fortress Bukit Jalil last weekend to witness Fandi and the LionsXII create history. There were another 2,000 of them packing Changi Airport's Terminal 2 for a glimpse of their returning heroes a day later.
Not since the 2012 Suzuki Cup victory have we been able to bring Singaporeans from all walks of life together in 90 minutes. Supporters of all ages -- from the '80s and '90s Malaysia Cup veteran followers to primary school kids -- are now screaming the names of Zulfahmi Arifin and Madhu Mohana.
Coupled with the end of season break in the European leagues, and the upcoming 28th SEA Games, this is a perfect opportunity for the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) to roll out a marketing plan.
This is to ensure the Cup success does not go down in history as just another flash in the pan for Singapore football. It needs to be the stepping stone to rebuild a strong fan culture that existed a decade ago.
While success must continue on the pitch, the Singaporean identities of coaches and players must be marketed so that the average man on the street can relate to the team. Sticker books or weekend meet-and-greet sessions in the neighbourhood could go a long way in engaging the main stakeholder: the fan.
3. Sahil proved a point that youngsters must be blooded
When Khairul Nizam went to the ground clutching his battle-weary knee in the 58th minute, Sahil took off his windbreaker and limbered up. He came on but could manage only flashes of brilliance initially alongside veteran forward Khairul Amri.
Twenty-two minutes later, Amri himself had to come off with severe cramps. Two minutes later, Singapore witnessed the birth of a new star.
Robbing Nik Shahrul off the ball, Sahil pierced through Kelantan's defence before rifling an unstoppable shot past a hapless Khairul Fahmi Che Mat. He then went on to fool Amirizwan Taj Tajuddin into a brash tackle to earn his team a spot kick that he duly converted.
The striker must be applauded for his calm and collected approach in the red-hot cauldron of 90,000 fans. But Fandi was brave enough to stick his neck out and put faith in youngsters.
Sahil is just one case that proves if you give the next generation of players more responsibility and faith, they will surprise.
Creative midfielder Zulfahmi Arifin and Nazrul Nazari are two other positive examples. Both spent most of their academy days honing their attacking talent higher up the pitch. But with a lack of defensive cover, Fandi played them at centre-back and right-back respectively.
While neither one is keen to stay in their newfound positions for long, both youngsters knuckled down and put in hardworking shifts without any complaints.
The likes of Christpher van Huizen, Al-Qaasimy Rahman, Zakir Samsudin and Faris Azienuddin are all below the age of 23 and raring to go.
If Fandi can instill confidence for the rest of the season, Stange may have to thank the Singapore legend for giving him more options as the Lion City tackle their 2018 World Cup Group E qualification matches in the coming months.