Victory a must

New Sabah Times

NO 9 ... Hendrik is set to orchestrate the Sabahawks engine room tonight.

 KOTA KINABALU: Justin Ganai insists that victory is almost a must when they take on Terengganu’s T-Team in a Super League tie at the Likas Stadium tonight. The Sabahawks head coach admitted that the way things are going at the moment, it’s like they are fighting for their lives in the competition, having had yet to find any consistency in their performances, especially when it comes to producing the results.

However, Justin remains convinced they will beat the drop at the end of the season. But this would only happen if the players are willing to pull up their socks and fight for their survival in the country’s top flight league. When contacted ahead of their home clash against the club side yesterday, Justin said: “We are fully aware of what kind of situation we are in, and my hope is for all the players to understand our position.”

 “There are another 10 games to go into the season (including tonight’s tie), and I firmly believe that if the players are willing to work hard and work together, we can overcome this challenge and remain in the Super League. “It must start tomorrow night, where we must not drop points, especially when it involves a home game.

 Sabahawks are currently lying 10th on 19 points in the 14-team standings, a mere three points clear of the drop zone, currently occupied by Johor FC. On the clash, he said: “T-Team won their last battle against Kuala Lumpur and they come here in high spirits. We on the other hand lost our battle to Sarawak.

 This is going to be a difficult match, but whether we like it or not, we have to try and win it.” Justin revealed that he will not have the services of youngster Md Rozaimi Abd Rahman, who reported for national training camp. He also hinted of giving nippy Juffrey Omopor more minutes on the field tonight after playing the Nabawan-born striker in the last 10 minutes against Sarawak.

 Apart from Rozaimi, almost all of the rest of the players are available for options, including his foreign duo – Hendrik Helmke and Brendan Gan.