One Leg Kicking 2001

Tai Po and Vernon share a simple joy: soccer. Their friendly days take a sharp turn during a Youth Soccer Competition tryout when [Tai Po] injures his leg, blood staining the field as he pushes through the pain. From that moment, he avoids watching live soccer on the radio or television while at work, a quiet retreat from a game that once defined him. The story shifts to the arrival of a new face, Handsome, an ex-convict who enters the picture alongside Kim, who writes home to her loved ones overseas. The two set the stage for a clash of past scars and hard-earned hope.

[Handsome] walks into a job interview and is soon confronted by Sonny Lee’s factory world, meeting Sonny’s son, Gavin, who has just returned from studying in the United States. Gavin interviews Handsome and tests him with a tough line: half of Handsome’s salary must be donated to the company’s soccer team. It’s a grim bargain, but one that ties Handsome to the team’s fate and to the tenuous bonds between work, loyalty, and sport.

A plumbing mishap becomes a turning point for Tai Po, Kim, and Baka as they fail to fix a stubborn issue and accidentally break a customer’s expensive glass bowl. The price is steep: promotions are forfeited to cover the loss, leaving the trio with a dented morale and a stubborn debt. Sonny offers a path to redemption, proposing overtime to repay what’s owed by installing a swimming pool at Sonny’s estate. Gavin even suggests a shift in team dynamics, proposing that Baka and Tai Po be separated and that Handsome become Tai Po’s partner on the field.

Kim shares a horror story with Tai Po that unsettles Handsome and strains their fragile bonds. As the family sits together at home, a TV ad for a Starhub soccer challenge catches their attention—the prize is tickets to the 2002 World Cup Finals. Vernon, ever the strategist, toys with the idea of assembling a squad by calling in old soccer mates, while Tai Po reveals his connection to Handsome. The plan shifts into action as Vernon registers a team, but coach Eugene proves to be less than capable on the pitch.

The squad grapples with recruitment and morale. Tai Po tries to recruit Handsome’s partner, but Handsome misreads the intention, thinking it’s a challenge rather than an invitation. In the meantime, they stumble upon two Brazilian players, Adriano and Vernato, who join the group after a chance encounter with the construction crew. With Toh as the goalkeeper, the team—nicknamed the Durians, a name Ah Huat has suggested and sponsored—begins to take shape. Their first rival is a female team, Kosmos, a squad that includes Gavin as a player. The Durians’ early matches are rough, and they even endure taunts from a drunken field cleaner who turns out to be Sammy Best, a former soccer star now working at a construction site.

Getting Sammy on board as coach is a challenge, but his presence gradually steadies the team. The Durians start racking up wins, turning their underdog status into a genuine challenge. The group travels to a lively KTV pub where Handsome, while singing a love ballad, remembers Gwen, Gavin’s sister, and breaks down in tears as he tries to confess. A tense moment follows when Handsome steps in to save Kim from a rough encounter, revealing his long-simmering anger management issues; Kim soothingly reassures him, and she also starts to chart a path toward a future she wants for herself.

At Gavin’s party, a disturbing secret emerges: he keeps a Barbie doll as a symbol of his sadistic impulses. His father, Sonny, and others are shocked by the revelation of Gavin’s darker side. Gwen, worn down by the drama, resigns as Kosmos’ manager, leaving Sonny to confront the consequences of ego and cruelty that ripple through both teams. The finals approach, and the tension thickens as the Durians and Kosmos share a tense dinner with the organizers. Gwen flirts with Handsome, and Kim’s heart hardens as she watches. Gavin reacts with anger, threatening Handsome over the affair, while Handsome fights to keep control in a moment of volatile emotion. The drama peaks when Sammy ends up in the hospital for liver issues, and Tai Po’s looming bill threatens to pull the team apart.

Sonny steps in again with a tempting offer: 10 grand for the team to use as they see fit. But accepting the money would come with a price—the Durians would not be allowed to play the next day, and Handsome, Kim, Baka, and Tai Po could be fired. The team faces a crossroads, torn between immediate relief and long-term commitment. Sammy confides to Tai Po that he isn’t a failure after all; Tai Po’s youth tryout memory and Sammy’s own observations remind him of the talent he once had.

With the finals looming, most of the Durians’ regulars are missing. In a bold turn, Tai Po, Baka, and Handsome return Sonny’s money and choose to resign from the company—only to learn that the team still has a chance if Adriano and Vernato manage to join the lineup alongside a re-energized squad. Sammy slips out of the hospital to catch the match, while Vernon’s father watches with pride and Kim supports Handsome from the stands. Tai Po discovers that he can still succeed, and Vernon does something new, channeling his energy into a fresh purpose. Handsome steadies his temper in front of Gavin, earning a tense red card moment from the referee but keeping the game alive for his team.

Tai Po is finally tested on the field, getting tackled by Gavin but replying with determination and scoring the decisive goal that seals the Durians’ victory. The crowd erupts as the Durians triumph, while Gavin collapses into tears, his Barbie doll shattered in a symbolic outburst. The film closes with the Durians’ victory reshaping their lives: Tai Po begins a mobile phone shop with Baka, Handsome, and Kim, who later marry; Tai Po also takes his kids on a holiday, finding stability at last. Vernon pursues a singing career in Las Vegas, while Sammy becomes a full-time soccer coach alongside Eugene, signing autographs for fans who recognize him by name. The story ends on a note of resilience, community, and the unbroken link between sport and family.