KUALA LUMPUR: This season’s Premier League champions Armed Forces (ATM) ended their campaign on a high note by defeating Pos Malaysia 2-0 in the final match at the Selayang Stadium here Friday night.
Coached by B. Sathianathan, ATM had clinched the title, the first time in the history of the club, on July 6 after trouncing MP Muar 8-1 at the Petaling Jaya in their 21st match in the league.
Shortly after the match ended, ATM received the league trophy and winner’s purse of RM300,000 which were presented by the chief of the Armed Forces himself, Gen Tan Sri Zulkifeli Mohd Zain, who is also the president of the club.
Meanwhile, Pahang who emerged as runners-up, however, lost 2-4 to Police in their final match at the Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium in Paroi while third-placed Sime Darby ended their campaign on a winning note by beating Negeri Sembilan club Betaria FC 4-0 at the Hang Tuah Stadium in Melaka.
USM FC also recorded another victory, defeating Perlis 4-1 at the USM Athletics Stadium in Penang. They finished in sixth place.
Harimau Muda B who finished in eighth place after thrashing MBJB FC 6-0 on Friday at the Pasir Gudang Stadium could only carve out a 3-2 victory over MP Muar at the Tan Sri Hassan Yunos Stadium in Larkin.
From 2013 till 2016, the M-League will be adopting a new format whereby there will only be 11 teams in the Super League and eight in the Premier League as compared to 14 and 12 this season.
A number of playoffs will be conducted next week to determine which teams gain promotion and those who will face relegation.
Lions XII of Singapore who emerged as the runners-up in the Super League and Harimau Muda B, which are invited teams, will also feature next season as they signed a four-year contract with the FA of Malaysia on July 12 last year. — BERNAMA