Punch in the gut
Goalkeeper’s howler hands Thailand the coveted gold
HISTORY repeated itself at the Shah Alam Stadium.
The stage was set for Malaysia to avenge their 1-0 defeat to Thailand in the men’s football final at this same venue 16 years ago (2001 Kuala Lumpur SEA Games).
Then, the Thais broke the hearts of the sellout crowd after goalkeeper Kamarulzaman Hassan’s bizarre own goal at the tailend cost them the gold. That team was coached by Englishman Alan Harris.
Last night, another bizarre mistake by goalkeeper Mohamed Haziq Nadzli cost Malaysia dearly when he inexplicably punched the ball into his own net from a Thai corner kick in the 38th minute.
The lead-up to the goal was equally strange, with Safawi
Rasid conceding the corner when his back pass, aimed at a teammate, rolled out of play.
To everyone’s surprise, Phitiwat Sookjitt hum ma ku l’ s corner- kick resulted in Haziq’s mistake and the only goal of the match – silencing the 80,000 fans.
Earlier, there were anxious moments at both ends, with Malaysian four-goal hero N. Thanabalan having the first look at goal.
But he was a fraction too slow to connect Jafri Firdaus Chew’s header off Safawi’s corner kick in the 12th minute.
The Thais began to take control of the engine room and enjoyed a good spell in the Malaysian half with skipper Chenrop Samphaodi a real menace with his quick turns in the box.
The Malaysian goal could have been breached earlier but Haziq made a super reflex save when he stopped Phicha Au-Tra’s thunderous goal-bound header off a corner kick in the 28th minute.
But 10 minutes later, Haziq went from hero to zero.
After the breather, coach Datuk Ong Kim Swee’s men came out baying for blood but they lived dangerously as they often left gaps at the back in their haste to find the equaliser.
The Thais could have killed off the game off with a quick counter attack but Nopphon Phonkam’s effort was cleared off the line by Adam Nor Azlin in the 60th minute.
The Malaysians’ attempt to find the equaliser slowly faded away as the heavy pitch took its toll on the players.
Malaysia’s dream of landing the “mother of all gold medals” at the 29th KL SEA Games went up in smoke when the referee blew the final whistle after four minutes of added time.