Six goals short, Rhinos face uphill battle to reach final
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah must overcome impossible odds to try and turn the tables on Perak in the Malaysia Cup semi-final match at the Likas Stadium here tonight.
A 5-0 drubbing in the first leg match in Ipoh two weeks ago meant that all Sabah had was an outside chance to reach the final.
They must pull out all the stops to try and get their biggest win of the season in order to prevent Perak from going through.
It will take an aggressive performance and some early goals to set the tone for an unlikely comeback against the Bos Gaurus.
With the odds stacked against them though, head coach Jelius Ating knows it will take luck to see his side go through.
“We will do our best to put pressure on them (Perak) and an early goal will help to lift our spirits. But at the same time, we must be cautious not to concede.
“Our strategy is to play aggressive. It will not be easy because Perak are a strong side. They are solid in all areas and they have plenty of quality.
“But we will do our best. Even if we fail to go through, we will try our best to at least win the match,” Jelius said when contacted here yesterday.
Meanwhile, Sabah will welcome the return of two main players, Rawilson Batuil and Azzizan Nordin. Both sustained injuries before this.
“Rawilson has returned to training and he will be in the squad for the clash. Azzizan has also recovered but we will see later if he is fit enough to be in the line-up,” Jelius said.
Hector Omar Ramos, on the other hand, was still doubtful although his services were needed in this crucial encounter.
“We are still uncertain about him (Hector)...he has yet to resume training. But we hope he will show up and be fit enough for duty,” Jelius said.
Sabah did well to reach this far in the country’s most prestigious football tournament. It was the first time in six years that Sabah has qualified for the competition.
Before this, they had struggled to improve their standings in the Premier League.
Sabah must win 6-0 in order to go through. Their last appearance in the final was in 2002 against Selangor. They lost to the same opponent in the 1996 final.