Sabah Eagles' huge win over Perak signals contention for title
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Eagles cruised to the semifinals after a convincing 8310 victory over Perak in the Agong's Cup quarterfinal match in Kuala Lumpur, yesterday.
The match held at the National Defence University of Malaysia (NDUM) Stadium in Sungei Besi, saw Sabah Eagles in a league of their own against the 2016 champions.
Powered by a solid mix of young and experienced players, Sabah Eagles lived up to their billing as a formidable squad with multiple titles under their belt.
The Sandakan-based Eagles are now one step closer to achieving their target of a fifth champion's crown in this 36th edition of Malaysia's most prestigious rugby tournament.
They dominated their opponent from the start as Serupepeli Nagasima opened the account with a penalty for three points.
The Fijian fly half eventually went on to score 10 times throughout the match including four conversions that helped Sabah take a commanding lead of 36-7 at the break.
Inside centre, Sakiusa Terence Gavidi contributed two of Sabah's five first-half tries, while the rest came from national player Nathanael Tan (No. 8), Muhamad Amirul Aqil Kamsol (fullback), and former All Blacks and Eagles captain, Charles Luke McAlister (fly half).
The Eagles then continued their dominance as the weather held up under the cloudy sky.
Nathanael went on to score another two tries as former national teammate Badrul Musa@Muktee (outside centre) left it late to put his name on the sheet with the final try of the game.
Scrum half Mohamed Rafeel Sulaiman also scored a try as did props Bryan Wilfredoline and Zamorin Mingo.
Serupepeli added another five conversions as Sabah closed with a huge victory to announce their contention for the title.
Meanwhile, Sabah Rugby Union deputy president Dr KH Tan said it was a great day for Sabah, who must now face Kedah for a ticket to the final.
"As always, the boys played their hearts out," Tan said when contacted shortly after the match.
"We have been rebuilding the team for the last three years especially with our younger players where we have 10 who are between 19-23 years old.
"Our head coach (Bradley Moni Mika) did well to blend them together with our senior players and got the result we needed," Tan added.
Sabah face Kedah in the semi-final on Wednesday after the latter edged Kuala Lumpur 39-32 in another quarterfinal match, yesterday.
The other quarterfinal matches scheduled to be held today will see defending champions Johor taking on Negeri Sembilan and Terengganu against Kelantan.
For the record Sabah made their first appearance in the final back in 2005. They eventually went on to become one of the most respected teams in the country after winning the title in 2007 and 2009 before consecutive victories in 2014 and 2015.