Sarawak could have played better, says coach

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KUCHING: Sarawak’s coach Mohd Zaki Shaikh Akhmad  was visibly upset after his boys were held to a 1-1 draw by Selangor PKNS FC at the Sarawak Stadium on Monday night.

BELOW PAR: Sarawak’s Zamri Morshidi controls the ball during their match against Selangor PKNS at Sarawak Stadium in Petra jaya.  •  Photo by Johnathan Bullet

BELOW PAR: Sarawak’s Zamri Morshidi controls the ball during their match against Selangor PKNS at Sarawak Stadium in Petra jaya. • Photo by Johnathan Bullet

He was banking on the team to capitalise on homeground advantage to collect their first three points in their third Premier League match and also use the match to toughen up for the next encounter against Harimau Muda.

Moreover, Zaki was hoping his boys could settle an old score for him by beating the Selangor PKNS FC that forsook him in 2004 after he had helped them qualify for the Malaysia Cup and the semi-final of the FA  Cup.

Unfortunately, the Sarawak players could not live up to their gaffer’s expectations.

Despite creating many chances, they failed to find the net to put Selangor PKNS FC out of business on the night.

Met after the match, Zaki said he was disappointed with the way Sarawak played.

“The first half was okay but after the break, the players’ performance dropped,” he said without identifying the players.

Asked whether the rain-soaked pitch had spoiled Sarawak’s chances, the former national coach said he taken into account the soggy condition when drawing up his gameplan.

He thought it would make a difference when he substituted Sahran Abdul Samad with Sufizal Ismail in the second half.

However, half an hour later, he had to make a change again – by replacing Sufizal with M Hadera Bakri.

Even so, the move failed to make any impact on the team’s performance.

Zaki said he had changed his mind about fielding  the young players in the team for the upcoming match due to their poor showing on Monday.

However, Selangor PKNS FC coach Abdul Rahman Ibrahim thought the homesters played well.

“They gave us a run for the money,” he conceded.

Abdul Rahman said although his boys got only one point from the match, he was satisfied.

“The draw was a good result for us, considering we fluffed many of our chances,” he said.

Sarawak, with two points from three games, will play Harimau Muda in the Stadium Hang Tuah in Melaka on Friday.