Kota Kinabalu: Sabah FC head coach Martin Stano lamented the poor pitch condition due to the heavy downpour as Rhinos had to settle for a 1-1 draw with Kuala Lumpur FC in the Super League clash at Likas Stadium on Friday night.
The match originally scheduled to start at 7.15pm was delayed for two hours due to the heavy downpour in the evening.
Advertisement (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});When the match finally started, Sabah FC took an early lead in the 7th minute when S Kumaahran headed in a cross from Farhan Roslan.
It became a scrappy affair as the match progressed with both teams struggling to play on the soapy pitch.
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“Unfortunately, the weather won tonight and not football. It gave us a lot of problems especially in the first half.
Advertisement (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});“It was very difficult to play under such circumstances. It was no longer about tactical patterns or technical skills, but the players had to play accordingly and try to do something with the ball,” said Martin after the game.
His counterpart Miroslav Kuljanac on the other hand was happy with the result and praised his players for snatching a point.
Advertisement (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});The start of the second half saw both teams exchange some dangerous attacks but the goal only came in the 81st minute for KL City FC.
“I am satisfied and I think we played well. We tried to play but the pitch condition was not so good for us to play our style of football.
“It was also not easy for the players due to the long delay. We arrived here at the stadium at 5pm and the game only started at 9pm.
“Psychologically it was not good for the players. I told them to adapt to the conditions and avoid making back-passes. As the game progressed, we became better and better.
“I am very proud of them and in the end I have to be happy with the one point,” he said.
With the stalemate, Sabah FC remain third in the table with 34 points from 10 wins, four draws and five losses.
Their next match is away to second placed Selangor FC on Thursday (February 27).
Terengganu FC (TFC) had to settle for a point after being tied 2-2 by Kuching City FC in a Super League 2024/2025 action at the Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium (SSMZA) also on Saturday night.
The hosts started the match aggressively when Manuel Ott blasted the opening goal as early as the ninth minute through a volley from outside the box to surprise the visitors.
Shocked by the goal, Aidil Shahrin Sahak’s squad immediately set up several counter attacks and almost equalised in the 16th minute but James Okwuosa’s shot deflected to the right side of the goal.
In the 61st minute, Ismaheel Akinade brought cheers to the home crowd with the second goal to extend TFC’s advantage to 2-0.
But the joy of the home supporters did not last long as three minutes later Jordan Mintah closed the gap with Kuching City FC’s first goal in the 64th minute before Petrus Shitembi equalised two minutes later (66’) to dash the home team’s dreams of collecting all three points.
