THE biggest and hopefully the best. The 2012 Hassanal Bolkiah Trophy (HBT) is set to be the biggest edition of the competition, with all 10 ASEAN member nations Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam and guest Timor Leste to take to the field at the Feb 25-March 9 event.

With a record 11 teams involved, organisers have said that they are spending nearly $1.7 million to make sure the tournament runs smoothly. But, it takes more than just money to make the tournament a success. Major sporting events are notorious for their intense demands on staff and volunteer time, thus even the biggest of budgets will go to waste without the support, dedication and hard work of the organisers, volunteers and sponsors.

Having said that, the HBT organisers should also ensure that their staff and volunteers if there are any are well trained to handle the teams, guests and fans. A super tough task, but one that can be made possible with concentrated planning, execution and training.

Success is also measured on the field not just off it. For the HBT to be deemed a success the national team must at least get past the group stage. After three editions in 2002, 2005 and 2007 the Sultanate has yet to reach the semi-finals, so it's time to train harder as well as play and compete fiercer.

And this is where the '12th player' can step in as fans' support will definitely motivate and encourage the players further. Brunei's team manager said last week they are counting on the fans to be out in full force to show their support for the national side. "We have shown in friendlies against foreign clubs that we are at their level, so hopefully with the public's support we can do well in this tournament," said Hj Feisal Hj Eusoff.

So get behind your team, ladies and gentlemen for win, lose or draw, we're in it together.