Kota Kinabalu: Sabah FC secured a perfect start to their Super League campaign by defeating Star City FC 3-1 in Monday’s season opener at Likas Stadium.
The new-look team proved their preparation from the kick-off, launching attacks from open-play before 4,000 cheering fans.
The first goal came in the 26th minute, when Dane Ingham, now in his second season, latched onto a perfect through ball from new local signing Fadzrul Danel and smashed it home.
However, the joy was short-lived as three minutes later, the visitors equalised through a Rafael Vitor header off a corner.
Sabah FC kept pushing forward in the second half and their persistence was rewarded in the 89th minute when substitute Darren Lok reacted fastest to a Fadzrul cross, tapping it home from close range.
South Korean import Park Jungbin then added the third in the dying minutes of added time with an assist from another local import Fayadh Zukfli to make it 3-1.
Head coach Juan Torres Garrido was delighted with the victory, expressing hope that the strong performance would draw larger crowds to the stadium for future matches.
“It is good to start well with so many new players in the team. We are happy to achieve our goal of getting the three points.
“It was a good home performance, a good start and we want to attract more fans to Likas Stadium for our upcoming matches,” he said.
He was also aware that his players struggled with dead-ball situations.
“They created many of their scoring chances from set pieces. We knew they were dangerous in that situation and the first goal conceded was a good one.
“So, we tried to limit their chances by avoiding unnecessary free-kicks and corners, which helped us play better in the second half.”Meanwhile, Sabah FC’s next game is another home tie against Penang FC this Friday (August 28).
