Junior Rhinos look to extend winning streak
The State football junior squad will go all out for victory when they host Johor Darul Ta’zim III in the President’s Cup Group A match at the Likas Stadium at 4.15pm, today.
KOTA KINABALU: The State football junior squad will go all out for victory when they host Johor Darul Ta’zim III in the President’s Cup Group A match at the Likas Stadium here at 4.15pm, today.
The top-of-the-table clash will see the Sabah Under-21 side maintain their status as leaders in spite of the outcome. They are top of the 11-team standings on 24 points, while JDT III are four points adrift in second spot.
And coming off a fifth straight win after Monday’s 4-1 victory over Kelantan means Sabah are highly charged and determined to keep the run going.
The match today will be a test of credentials for the junior Rhinos and victory will help instill greater confidence for the team to keep on winning.
“This is a tough match but an important one and I think the boys are ready to do the job,” said team manager Mohd Yassin Aman.
“They know that victory would further boost their confidence and strengthen the team’s position at the top of the standings.
“There will be another tough tie against Kedah which means we must go all out to try and win against JDT III,” he added.
Yassin hinted that the team would likely go into the match with an unchanged side. Any changes, if any, will be minor.
“All our players are available, including those who started the last game against Kelantan. But our head coach (Johnny Dominicus) is still undecided about the first-eleven, but it is very likely that he will stick to his winning squad.
“Even if there are changes it will be minor because we are still thinking whether to start with Hamran Peter or Mohd Shariman Mukarim.
“Hamran scored his first goal of the season against Kelantan, and we feel it is important for him to maintain momentum, after all, he is our main striker,” Yassin said.
After today’s game, Sabah will face Kedah on April 19. They have edged the same opponent 1-0 in the season opener back in February.
This has been one of the best President’s Cup league campaigns for Sabah and they seem determined to keep the points coming.
Sabah registered eight wins and the 1-0 away defeat to Perlis earlier is the only thing keeping them from achieving a perfect record this season. JDT III have also lost only one match this season. They lost 2-0 to Pahang in a home game.