KOTA KINABALU: Sabah were held to a one-all draw by visiting Johor Pasir Gudang in a Premier League tie at the Tawau Sports Complex last night – thanks to an injury time equaliser from second-half substitute Salvester Sindeh.Johor Pasir Gudang shocked the homesters by taking the lead as early as the third minute through Mohd Ibrahim. Sabah tried hard to look for an equaliser, but none of their attempts found the net, including a spot kick taken by Bobby Gonzales in the 13th minute that went wide.
Sabah were awarded the penalty kick after Chow Chee Wing was fouled inside the box. But as the match headed for a Johor victory, Salvester nodded home the equaliser to the delight of more than 5,000 home fans. Team manager Rahman Zakaria cursed their luck for the draw.
He said: “It was one of those nights where things weren’t right for the team. The boys tried their best and played their hearts out.” “I have no complaints on how we performed tonight because we created chances and just could not finish them off,” he added.
“We dominated the game throughout despite trailing to their early goal. I’m not looking for excuses, but I think the word here is we were just unlucky tonight. “But as much as we wanted to win the match, there was nothing we could do when this happened. So I think we should now look forward. “Furthermore, one point is better than losing the game,” Rahman said.
