Rajagopal fumes after defeat at lowly Negri

PETALING JAYA: PKNS coach Datuk K. Rajagopal has slammed his players for failing to step up their game against Super League relegation battlers Negri Sembilan.

The Red Ants were stunned 3-1 thanks to Flavio Beck Junior’s brace from the spot (35th and 61st minutes) and a strike from Ferris Danial Mat Nasir (69th) at the Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium in Paroi on Sunday.

Romel Morales’ thunderous volley at the 72nd minute ended up as a mere consolation for Rajagopal’s men who are now winless in three matches.

Rajagopal said his players failed to reflect their true qualities in their error-strewn game.

“We didn’t play to our actual strength, there were so many mistakes and the players’ movements were jaded and it enabled the hosts to get two goals,” said the former national coach.

“Our opponents played a good game, they were well organised and put up a spirited display. We tried to bounce back in the second half but their third goal subdued our players fighting spirit ... we reduced the deficit but it was too late.”

Despite the defeat, PKNS remain sixth in the 12-team Super League table with 19 points, while Negri moved a rung up to 11th spot with 11 points.

Rajagopal also said he had no complaints over the two penalties which were given due to handballs by K. Gurusamy and Zachary Anderson. He added the referee would have had better view of the situation before awarding the spotkicks.

“We should not be questioning the decisions, my players clearly failed to clear the ball from danger,” said Rajagopal.

“They didn’t have a good game and I need to congratulate Negri for their hard-earned victory.”