KOTA KINABALU: It will be win or bust when the Rhinos continue their challenge on the road in the ongoing Malaysian League campaign.In fact it will be a massive three consecutive away matches for them starting with their Premier League clash against KL PLUS FC at the KLFA Stadium tonight.
This is a game that the Rhinos must win at all costs in order to keep their flagging hopes alive. Anything less than three points from this game will see all signs pointing to the Rhinos playing in the Premier League for the third consecutive season.
Mathematically, the Rhinos are still in the race for the two promotion slots to the Super League next season.
They are currently trailing UPB-MyTEAM who occupy the last promotion spot, by seven points.
For the record, Police are leading the pack in the 11-team Premier League on 34 points. They have a two-game advantage over UPB-MyTEAM, who occupy the second spot on 32 points, while Sabah are third on 25 points.
But with UPB-MyTEAM not playing tonight, this will be an opportunity for Police to extend their lead at the top of the table and for the case of Sabah this is their chance to close the gap.
“We know where we stand and all I can say now is our fight will go on until the end,” said team manager Rahman Zakaria.
“When you look at our results, it has been quite good. For instance in the Premier League, we are looking to extend our unbeaten run to 12 matches. It is so unfortunate that we could not win the matches that we could have won. I guess, luck was just not with us, although I would not take that as an excuse.
“Hopefully tomorrow, we will do better and win the game so that the race will go on … hopefully everything will be decided on the final day of the league,” said Rahman.
After the KL PLUS FC clash, the Rhinos will take on Police in a Malaysia Cup Group C tie at the MPS Stadium in Selayang on Saturday.
Unlike the KL PLUS FC clash, a draw would do for the Rhinos in the final group fixtures, which would mean they would secure a quarterfinal berth via the two best third teams in the three-group competition.
But a victory over Police could see Sabah finish second in the group should table-toppers Kedah get the better of or hold second placed Perak to a draw.
After the Malaysia Cup date, the Rhinos travel north to take on Perlis in the FA Cup quarter-finals return leg tie at the Main Stadium in Kangar.
The first leg saw the Rhinos squander a two-goal lead by allowing Perlis to score two goals in the last four minutes of the game.
But despite that, the Rhinos have a clear-cut mission. They just need a simple win to make it into the semi-finals.
