Sabah still looking for President Cup win

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah put on a brave fight before eventually conceding 2-1 in the President Cup Group B match against Negeri Sembilan at the Likas Stadium here, yesterday.

They came close to clinching their first win of the season, but despite their determination, the Justin Ganai-coached squad still could not outplay their opponent.

Sabah were the first to pose a threat when Muhd Zaki Sapri struck eight minutes into the match. The defender’s free kick beat Negeri keeper Muhamad Faris Kamarudin but the ball deflected off the crossbar for a fruitless corner.

The visitors responded to the early threat through Sean Eugene Selvaraj. Masran Masri found himself helpless against Selvaraj who was unmarked inside the penalty area.

Fazriel Stepanus later came close to making it level just before the break. He guided the ball with his head but was denied by good goalkeeping as Negeri headed for the dressing room with their 1-0 lead still in tact.

And Negeri caused problems again just five minutes after the game resumed. They made it 2-0 when Selvaraj’s shot from outside the area deflected off defender Dexy Juanis, which left Masran flat-footed on the goal line.

But Negeri’s 2-0 lead did not dampen Sabah’s spirits just yet. The home side pulled their socks up and looked livelier after Justin introduced some changes into the play.

Stanley Sulong came in for O’niel Shanahan, while Jaylanie Kamaruddin and Yuseddy Yusiman replaced Eddy Ladius and Azmizan Ruslih with 30 minutes remaining on the clock.

Sabah moved swiftly to create several chances in front of goal but in the end only one was successfully converted by Fazriel in the 72nd minute.

And if defeat was not bad enough, Sabah must now face the next challenge without Stanley after the player was shown red for a late tackle in the dying minutes of the game.

The defeat left Sabah without a win in three matches after earlier matches against Perak PKNP FC and Selangor PKNS FC ended 1-1.

Meanwhile, Negeri Sembilan extended their winning run to three games.

SABAH: Masran Masri, Ranilson Batuil, Dexy Mildy Juanis, Hamran Peter, Devid Ansurui, Eddey Ladius (Mohd Jaylanie Kamaruddin), Masmilan Anil Matlan, Fazriel Hanafi Stepanus, O’Neil Shanahan Marcelinus Bungkilan (Stanley Sulong), Mohd Azmizan Ruslih (Yuseddy Yusman) and Muhd Zaki Sapri.

NEGERI SEMBILAN: Muhamad Faris Kamarudin, Muhammad Faris Muhyiddin (Mohammad Farouq Adam Khan), Ahmad Hijazi Muhyiddin, Muhamad Asraf Roslan (Asmaie Alias), Sean Eugene Selvaraj, Durreswaran Letchumanan, Mohd Fauzi Abdul latif (Ahmad Nazri Muhamad), Mohammad Aiman Mohd Khalidi and Muhammad Idham Zuhair Roslisam.