Back to winning ways as Rhinos defence stands firm
Published on: Saturday, July 27, 2024
By: GL Oh
Daniel Ting scored the opener for Sabah FC against Negeri Sembilan FC.
Kota Kinabalu: Head coach Datuk Ong Kim Swee praised the defence as Sabah FC returned to winning ways with a 2-0 win over Negeri Sembilan FC at the Likas Stadium on Thursday.
This followed their three losses in a row including the two defeats to Terengganu FC in the FA Cup.
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The win also lifted them up to second place behind leaders Johor Darul Ta’zim FC with 10 points from three wins, one draw and a loss.
“It is the result that we wanted after the last three consecutive defeats. The most positive aspect from the win tonight was not conceding.
This is important for us. Our defence tonight showed a high level of commitment, but there is still room for improvement,” he said.
He admitted that their finishing was poor without Saddil Ramdani and Darren Lok who were both out injured.
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“We lost Ramon (Machado) and at the same time Saddil Ramdani and Darren Lok also suffered from injuries.
“This inevitably affects our finishing and hopefully during the transfer window we will be able to do something as we need a striker that can help us.
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“We still have many matches ahead of us and players such as Jafri Chew, S. Kumaahran, Farhan Roslan, Azhad Harraz Arman and Farhan Roslan must ensure that they not only have to play well but also to improve their finishing.”
The match on Thursday started at a fast pace with both sides trying to take the early lead.
It was left back Daniel Ting who broke the deadlock first in the 14th minute after receiving the ball from Telmo Castanheira.
The visitors, driven by the speedy Takumi Sasaki, caused Sabah FC all sorts of problems but the defence managed to thwart any attempts on goal.
Sabah FC were also handed a one-man advantage in the 65th minute when Norfiqrie Talib was shown a red card for a dangerous tackle on Azhad Harraz Arman.
Jafri then sealed the match from the spot kick in the 81st minute following a foul on Telmo Castanheira by Zainal Abidin Jamil.
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