What a difference a year makes. Around this time last year, FC Phuket, as the island's football team was then known, were languishing at the bottom of Division 1 (Thailand's second tier league), plagued by financial trouble, a high turnover of managerial staff, and a growing level of resentment among a dwindling number of fans.
All sorts of fanciful ideas were put forward to save the side, including 1,000 fans buying shares at B10,000 a share. Things became so dire that a suggestion was made to move the team to Bangkok.
Just 12 months later and the island's sole professional football club – now known as Phuket FC – are second in Yamaha League 1, with eyes firmly on promotion this year to the Thai Premier League.
This dramatic change in fortune can be largely attributed to the efforts of one man: Kata Group President Pamuke Achariyachai, who became chairman of 'The Islanders' on May 17, 2012.
Although his support of the side has earned him the undying gratitude of Phuket FC's growing army of fans, Mr Pamuke believes the last year of hard work has taken its toll on him.
“Look at my face. It’s a stressful job,” he tells The Phuket News. But Mr Pamuke still manages to look relaxed, calm and happy as he talks from the sofa of his home in Chalong. Indeed, he should.
“When they first approached me [to help the club], I knew it would be business and a hard job, a long job. I’m old already – I didn’t want to do any more.
“But I knew if nobody helped, Phuket FC would have closed, and I thought that would have been a shame for the people of Phuket,” Mr Pamuke says.
It is for this reason that the Nakhon Si Thammarat native decided to embark upon a mission to rescue the football team, but right from the off he faced major headaches.
“There were so many problems when I first started. Problems with the coach and lots of financial problems. The players felt like they had no future, and the spirit was gone.”
Mr Pamuke says that one of the most difficult things to do was reinstate that team spirit, which in many ways involved breaking it all down and beginning again. “When I started, some of the players thought they were superstars, but that was wrong, I had to change that.”
Nowadays, the footballers are playing for each other not themselves, with the strong team spirit showing in an excellent start to the season that includes last Sunday's 1-0 victory over Ratcha Navy FC.
“My only aim now is to make it to the Thai Premier League and I will do it this year... I can’t wait,” Mr Pamuke says with a smile – and a clear vision for the future that has stood him in good stead so far.
Though promotion is the immediate goal, Mr Pamuke is laying the groundwork for a long-term future.
“My son will come home from Boston [where he has been studying] soon, and it is his dream to launch the Phuket FC Football Academy. This he will help me with.”
Starting a football academy is just one method by which he hopes to improve the talent pool available to the club, the other he says is to rely on the pull of the island itself.
“I plan to form sister clubs around the world, this way we can get players on loan – one from Japan, one from Indonesia, one from Australia and so on.”
Mr Pamuke believes that as Phuket is increasingly a world-class destination, many players will relish the opportunity to come and play on the island.
“I believe Phuket could be very exciting for a lot of players and investors. I can see the future of Phuket FC, it’s an international city with huge potential.”
At the moment though, the burden of improving the team lies squarely on the chairman's shoulders.
“It takes around B60 million to run the team every year – this is my budget. Only B10m comes from sponsors, so that’s a lot of money I need to find for myself.”
Putting his money where his mouth is, Mr Pamuke has already broken ground on a new club training complex in Chalong. When completed, the Phuket FC Sports Complex will include an Academy Centre, full-sized football field, swimming pool, fitness centre, and physical therapy facilities.
It would seem that the next logical step would be for Phuket FC to have its own stadium – as Phuket FC’s current stadium, Surakul Stadium, is technically public land, the team has to pay B10,000 every time they wish to use it. Is that then something the chairman also has his eye on?
Mr Pamuke is in no doubt that the team should have one, especially when – not if – they get promoted.
“In the future we would like to have our own stadium, on our own land. Phuket deserves it. I have my eyes on a few plots of land, but there is nothing definite just yet.”
“Step by step,” says Mr Pamuke.