THE MOMENT OF TRUTH: Sudarsono (right) and team captain Shahrol Saperi holding the Premier League trophy high.
TASTING SUCCESS: Muamer Salibasic and Junior Eldstal sharing their moment of glory.
KUCHING: The night of June 24 will long be remembered by Sarawak football fans.
The Premier League may be the second tier of Malaysian football, but the success of the Crocs was still long awaited by their loyal supporters.
Since winning the Piala Sumbangsih (Charity Shield) against Selangor in 1998, Sarawak have gone without a football trophy for 16 years.
So when the whistle blew to confirm Sarawak’s 4-0 win over Kuala Lumpur two nights ago, fans celebrated the whole night at the Stadium Negeri singing songs of praises for their heroes for clinching the Premier League title.
They are also keeping their fingers crossed that Sarawak will create even more history by staying unbeaten all season for the first time in local football history. The Crocs have only one more match to play against Sabah away on July 5 to wrap up the season.
Meanwhile, Sarawak Football Fans Club (SFFC) president Peter Moni Selat rang The Borneo Post yesterday to pay tribute to the Crocs for their magnificent feat.
“On behalf of the members of the club, I would like to offer a huge thanks to the team management and the coaching staff for the very good job done for Sarawak football,” he said.
He also shared that Sarawak’s playing style under head coach Robert Alberts last Monday reminded fans of the Dutch total football era of the 1970s. Alberts is of course Dutch.
“During the match, Sarawak scored four goals and all the goals were scored by different players. First it was (Muamer) Salibasic then it was Ronny (Harun), then Joseph (Kalang) followed by (Guy) Bwele. We just could not resist comparing our favourite team to the Netherlands national team which was spearheaded by Johan Cryuff during the time where every player in the team can score,” he added.
Football Association of Sarawak president Datu Sudarsono Osman is hoping that the famous victory will steer Sarawak football to greater heights.
Speaking to reporters after the match, he thanked all parties involved with the team and supporters for the tremendous effort they have put in throughout the season.
Now, the Crocs have just one more assignment left for the season which is to win their last match in Kota Kinabalu on July 5.