Former Johor great, the tough-tackling Darren Stewart, dubbed the “Ironman” during his playing days, passed away at the age of 52 in Singapore on Friday.
Described as a great player and one of the hardest, toughest defender-cum-midfield player, Stewart, was born on 17th May 1966 in Newcastle, Australia and played for Johor from 1993-1998 and made 244 appearances. He also scored 38 goals.
Stewart skippered Johor to the FA Cup title in 1998, defeating Sabah in the final played at the Likas Stadium in Kota Kinabalu, under coach Steve Darby.
Darby had this to say of Stewart.
“Daz (Darren) was a tough hard player, who was a better footballer than many thought. But he was also an honest and loyal character. Excellent qualities for a Captain.
“He led by example on and off the pitch…a true natural leader. He also made the effort to understand the local culture so he could adapt better as a foreigner. I was delighted he went on to be a top coach,” Darby told Sports247 from London.
He also played for Balestier Central in the Singapore League after quitting Johor. Stewart later managed several clubs, including Balestier and Geylang United and Woodlands Wellington in Singapore after his playing days after retiring from competitive football in 2002.
His last international appointed was as the chief coach of the Maldives until a few months ago.
No details are forthcoming on his untimely death but the football community across the world, including current and former players, are shocked by the news of his passing.
Before donning Johor colors in the Malaysian League, Stewart plied his football trade in the Australian National Soccer League (NSL) and played for Newcastle Rosebud, APIA Leichhardt, and Newcastle Breakers.
As a mark of respect, Newcastle Jets will wear black armbands on Sunday when they play Wellington Phoenix at Westpac Stadium in New Zealand.
Meanwhile, the Southern Tigers (as JDT is known) posted a touching post on its Facebook.
“We, the JDT FC Family, would like to extend our deepest condolences to the family of Darren Stewart, a Johor football legend, who passed away on 19th Oct 2018. May he rest in peace.” – BY RIZAL ABDULLAH
