A DRAMATIC DAY FOR FAIZ
Stoppage time winner gives Rompin Pahang Diaspora title at Pekan’s expense
DEVINDER SINGH devinder@nst.com.my
ADRAMATIC stoppagetime winner by Faiz Soffian saw Rompin emerge champions of the Pahang Diaspora in the Klang Valley Football Championship with a 2-1 win over Pekan in the final on Wednesday.
Pekan finished runners-up for the second consecutive year despite taking an eighth-minute lead through Jasman Haniff Abd Razak’s free-kick.
But Rompin, who dominated the game thereafter, scored a deserved equaliser through Farid Majid’s shot from outside the box in the 65th minute before Faiz struck just before the final whistle.
Faiz took a long ball out of defence in his stride before advancing two paces to lob the ball into goal.
“I am very happy we won the final at the first time of asking,” said midfielder Faiz, who once featured for AirAsia in the Selangor league, at the Inspen Stadium in Kajang.
“It’s a proud moment for all of us. We gave it our all and never gave up until the last minute.”
Faiz described his goal as the perfect way to end the match.
“We tried to use the flanks to penetrate their defence and attacked whenever possible,” said Faiz, as Rompin avenged a 3-1 defeat to Pekan in the group stage. “But with time running out, I gambled on chasing the long ball and once I beat the defender to it, I was confident of scoring.”
The tournament saw 11 teams, fielding Pahang-born players residing in the Klang Valley, split into two groups with the top two from each advancing to the semifinals.
Rompin ousted defending champions Kuala Lipis 1-0 in the semi-finals while Pekan edged Maran 4-2 on penalties after a 00 draw.