CARNIVALATMOSPHERE: Scenes (more below) from outside the
stadium yesterday

KUALA LUMPUR: The atmosphere outside the National Stadium yesterday was akin to a carnival, with
 thousands turning up, despite some without tickets, to watch the second leg of the Malaysia vs Singapore
 pre-World Cup qualifiers yesterday.

About 10,000 football fans, wearing the national's yellow and blue jerseys, gathered outside the stadium
and stayed on until the game ended late at night.

Many were seen patronising booths set up around the premises selling all kinds of items ranging from food and drinks, jerseys and football merchandises, to an Election Commision voter registration kiosk.

Despite not having tickets to watch the game, many were sporting enough to cheer, sing, dance and wave flags outside the stadium.

Shazwani Sulaiman, 25, and her two friends waited for hours for a another friend who was supposed to bring the tickets to them.

"We paid him two days ago for the tickets but he didn't show up or pick up the phone," she said.

The three of them ended up cheering for those who made it into the stadium.

The loudest of the local fans was the "Ultras Malaya" group who arrived in stages from 3pm, singing patriotic songs, their club theme and beating drums as they marched in.

Meanwhile, a trader who wished to be known as Idris, had his own special way of showing support -- by providing face-painting services.

His booth saw a never-ending queue of supporters since it was opened yesterday.

"This is my special way of supporting our team, by painting these fans in the national colours. I feel satisfied whenever a fan is happy with my work," he said.

Allyn Helmi, Kamal Umar and Jemmy Astral were among those who painted their faces with the
national jersey's colour.

Jemmy, 26, a freelancer from Jalan Ipoh, said it was his way of paying tribute to the national team.

"As this is the first time watching our national team play, it is only fitting I do something special.