New Sabah Times
By FRANCIS XAVIER
KOTA KINABALU: The spirited Tambadau Juniors fought back well to secure a deserved 2-2 draw with Selangor in a President’s Cup Group A tie at the Likas Stadium yesterday.
The visiting Selangor had gone into the tie on a good winning run and Tambadau Juniors did well to come back from a two-goal deficit to share the spoils that eventually saw them put their opponents’ five-match winning streak to a halt.
It was surely a well-deserved point for Justin Ganai’s boys where they could have even won the tie with better finishing.
The opening half saw the hosts dominate play, but failed to create any decent scoring chances as it ended 0-0.
When the second half resumed, Tambadau Juniors were punished early in the half as Selangor scored two quick goals in the space of four minutes, including one from the spot.
Midfielder Saiful Iskandar Adha bin Saiful Azlan drew first blood for the visitors in the 51st minute, before D. Kugan scored the second from the spot in the 54th minute.
But flanker Erick Odo put Tambadau Juniors back in the game through his 56th minute goal, before being replaced by Suhaizan Nazmie Etin @ Abdullah in the 72nd minute.
The lanky Suhaizan went on to score the equaliser for the hosts four minutes later by lashing home from close range.
But Tambadau Juniors were forced to play with one man lesser when Mohd Izzat Aziz was shown a red card six minutes from regulation time.
He was red carded after receiving his second yellow for a harsh tackle on a Selangor player. Head coach Justin Ganai, when met after the match, hailed his players’ spirited display.
“I’ve said we can measure our progress only against a top team like Selangor and I don’t think we are far off based on the performance just now.
“They are undefeated and are top of the league but we were able to match them…we created chances and scored the goals. I’m satisfied and proud of the boys’ performance.
“We have been improving from game to game and all we need is consistency. We can only get better and we will work harder to achieve it,” said Justin.
But it was quite a costly point for Tambadau Juniors as they saw striker Faizulnizam Aziz forced off following a serious shoulder injury where he was subsequently replaced by Muhammad Faqhrurazi Ahmad in the seventh minute.
Next, Tambadau Juniors will take on Johor Darul Ta’zim III in an away battle on April 15.
