Sports
Penang fight back for draw with KL City FC
Ten-man Penang FC needed a dramatic 85th-minute equaliser to complete a magnificent comeback from 2-0 down to hold Kuala Lumpur (KL) City FC to a 2-2 draw in the opening Super League match last night. — Picture via Twitter/Bernama

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 26 — Ten-man Penang FC needed a dramatic 85th-minute equaliser to complete a magnificent comeback from 2-0 down to hold Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup runners-up Kuala Lumpur (KL) City FC to a 2-2 draw in the opening Super League match last night.

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The City Boys enjoyed a perfect start at the Kuala Lumpur Football Stadium in Cheras when skipper Paulo Josue, their latest naturalised player, scored the first goal with a wonderfully taken freekick.

A goal down, Penang then found themselves a man down when referee Tuan Mohd Yassin Tuan Mohd Hanafiah sent off defender A. Namathevan for a second yellow card offence in the 58th minute.

The Brazil-born Josue capitalised on their numerical advantage to put KL City 2-0 up with a piledriver in the 71st minute.

Just when it looked like the City Boys were coasting to victory, Penang suddenly burst into life with Muhammad Hadin Azman narrowing the deficit in the 73rd minute before their Brazilian import Giovane Gomes finished off a cross from Faris Shah Rosli in the 85thh minute for a well-deserved point away from home.

Meanwhile, Saddil Ramdani inspired Sabah FC to a 4-0 victory over PDRM FC with two goals and an assist at the Likas Stadium in Kota Kinabalu.

The 24-year-old Indonesian put the Rhinos 1-0 up in the 13th minute before floating in a cross for South Korean Part Tae-soo to head home goal number two in the 37th minute.

Coach Ong Kim Swee’s Rhinos were not done yet, though as Saddil notched his second, and his team’s third, goal off a swift counterattack in the 71st minute before Stuart Wilkin wrapped up the proceedings with goal number four in injury time (90+3).

In the Northern Derby at the Perak Stadium, Kedah Darul Aman (KDA) FC showed no mercy en route to a comprehensive 4-1 drubbing of home team Perak FC, who had two players sent off.

Although it was the home team who opened the scoring through Mohamad Ikwan Hafizo after just four minutes, Kedah slowly but surely got back into the game and found the equaliser through Lee Tuck in the 21st minute.

Perak ended the first half with 10 players when referee Zulkarnain Zakaria sent defender Ahmad Haziq Ahmad Puad off the field in the 36th minute for a foul on Amirbek Juraboev.

With Perak a man down, the visitors, nicknamed the Canaries, were on song as they edged ahead with a goal by Willian Sousa in the 67th minute.

Perak suffered another body blow in the 78th minute when their foreign signing Sunday Afolabi was red-carded for a foul on Manuel Hidalgo.

With Perak now down to nine men, the Canaries were in full flow, scoring two more goals through Muhammad Arif Farhan in the 84th minute and Johnathan Dos Reis at the stroke of full time.

Earlier, Kuching City marked their debut in the top tier with a stunning 2-1 win over Kelantan FC at the Sultan Muhammad IV Stadium in Kota Baru. — Bernama

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