By Arfandi Jaafar
Farid's late goal helps Kota Belud down Miri
KOTA KINABALU: A late goal from Farid Saibun helped Kota Belud edge Miri 3-2 in the Liga Bolasepak Rakyat (LBR) second round group phase on Friday.
Played at the Butong Sports Complex in Kota Belud, the teams cancelled each other out before former state player Farid converted a penalty kick late on to seal victory.
Kota Belud had scored through team captain Zikrey Ramlan and Ikmal earlier.
Team manager Awang Fadli Juanas hailed the players never-say-die attitude that led to the three points in front of a 3,000 strong home crowd.
"The determination to achieve victory was one of the factors that led us to the three points.... hopefully it will continue in our future fixtures," he said.
The win saw Kota Belud level on four points with Kuching but the former are ahead in the standings with superior goals difference.
And Kota Belud hoped to retain their position when they take on Kuching also at the Butong Sports Complex today.
"It will be a tough game and I hope the players will show the same attitude when they edge Miri last Friday," he added.
Fadli went on to urge the fans especially in Kota Belud to cheer on the squad and be their 12th player to tackle the opponents.
The LBR is the brainchild of Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) president Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah in efforts to enhance football development at grassroots level.
Over 100 district teams from all over the country took part in the tournament which started in October last year.
The champions will receive RM100,000 followed by RM75,000 for the runners-up and RM25,000 for the joint third and fourth placing.
Papar are the other team representing Sabah in the national level tournament.