Lack of squad depth a concern
Published on: Thursday, May 09, 2024
By: James Wong
CONGRATULATIONS to Sabah FC on emerging as champions in the recent Sabah Maju Cup four-team competition involving KL City FC from the Peninsula, Kuching City FC from Sarawak and Hougang United from Singapore at the Likas Stadium.
In the final, we managed to beat KL City FC 1-0 through a penalty converted by Ramon Machado in the second half to take the title while Kuching City FC came in third with Hougang United finishing fourth.
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The tournament was a good testing ground for Sabah FC as Datuk Ong Kim Swee was able to try out a set of players in the preliminary rounds.
We started the tournament well with a 2-1 win over Hougang United but failed to score in the next two matches in the draws against KL City FC and Kuching City FC.
The team certainly looked rusty and the performance was just satisfactory. Hopefully, the tournament will provide Datuk Ong a rough idea who are his starting 11 players for the Penang FC match this Sunday.
What concerns me the most is the depth of the team this season. Are we only just dependent on 12-13 players for the whole period?
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Injuries to main players and other factors will play a part in this long season in addition to the FA Cup, Malaysia Cup and perhaps the Asian Cup competitions as well.
The final against KL City FC had highlighted the glaring weakness of the team in scoring goals.
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There were many scoring opportunities for both teams, but somehow the killer instinct was not evident and both teams’ defences were also loose but Sabah was slightly better.
Luckily we still have a few more days to rectify the shortcomings before the season opener against Penang FC.
A good start is vital to the team, and playing at home has given us the advantage and lets hope Sabah FC are well prepared for the match.
I am looking forward to a good 2024/2025 season for Sabah FC. I am sure the fans will feel the same and will come out to support the team.
On another note, I am sad to hear about the recent attacks on footballers in the country.
Terengganu FC player Akhyar Rashid was the first victim – an attempted robbery which resulted in head and body injury, followed by the acid attack on national winger Faisal Halim and I wish them a speedy recovery.
The latest attack happened to former national skipper Safiq Rahim who was threatened with a hammer and his car windscreen was smashed by two assailants on Tuesday.
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