KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 12 — The Selangor men’s team got their 20th Malaysia Games (Sukma) football competition off to a winning start by downing defending champions Perak 2-0 in a Group A match at the Arena Universiti Malaya here today.
Two-time champions Selangor got their goals through Mohd Khairil Mohd Zain (21st minute) and Pengiran Mohamad Ilham AG Jumaat (79th minute).
Selangor coach Muhammad Firdaus Aziz, buoyed by the victory, is targeting a second win when they take on Negri Sembilan on Wednesday.
“We have never played against Perak at all, it was difficult to judge their playing style. But my boys worked out their game plan and managed to beat them. We should win our second game (against Negri Sembilan),” he told reporters.
Meanwhile, Perak coach Mohd Shahril Nizam Khalil told his men to work harder and tighten up their defence when they take on the Federal Territories on Wednesday.
“We still have a chance, just need to improve on our performance in both attack and defence. This Wednesday, we’ll bounce back,” he said.
Perak had completed a hat-trick of football gold when they defeated Kedah 2-1 in the final in the 2018 edition in Ipoh.
Meanwhile, in another Group A match, the Federal Territories edged Negri Sembilan 1-0 courtesy of Suhaimi Abu’s 48th-minute strike.
In a Group B tie, Sarawak pipped Melaka 2-1.
Sarawak scored through Mohamad Zharmien Ashraf Ismail (1st minute) and Ikhawan Firdaus Mohd Zaidi (29th minute) while Melaka got one back through Muhammad Luqmanul Hakeem Norizam (74th minute). — Bernama
