Sabah confident of avoiding defeat against Penang

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Under19 squad will take on Penang as they look to strengthen their position in pursuit of a quarterfinal place in the Youth Cup challenge.

The Group A tie will be played at the Penang State Stadium in Batu Kawan starting 4:45pm today.

And Sabah are determined to avoid defeat to protect their current position in second place of the 10team Group.

With four games to play, the team coached by Mohd Aiyyman Shah Johny Abdullah have collected 23 points from seven wins, four draws and three losses.

In fact, Sabah cannot afford to drop points despite their highly placed league position as the second to sixth placed teams are only separated between one to four points.

Sabah, however, could at least breath a little with their games in hand, having played only 14 matches along with third placed PKNS FC (23 points).

Kuala Lumpur (22 points - 15 games), Selangor (22 points - 16 games) and PKNP FC (21 points - 15 games) are the other quarterfinal hopefuls.

Meanwhile, Sabah will go into the match with their confidence intact after scoring back-to-back 3-0 wins over Pahang and Bukit Jalil Sports School (BJSS) Under-16 in their previous outings.

Acting team manager Lokman Sunggim, however, said recently that the squad must not be carried away but must focus on their remaining games starting against Penang, who are eighth in the table on 19 points.

In the first round meeting,an own-goal as well as a brace from Muhammad Faqhrurazi Ahmad gave Sabah a 3-2 home win.