Rhinos’ biggest win of season

0

Park Tae Su is joined by Amri Yahya and Saddil Ramdani celebrating Sabah’s third goal, courtesy of the South Korean defender in the 4-0 win over UiTM FC in Likas on Saturday night.

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah FC made short work of UiTM FC as the Rhinos registered their biggest Super League win of the season with a 4-0 outcome at the Likas Stadium on Saturday night.

Foreign imports Sam Johnson, Saddil Ramdani and Park Tae Su as well as veteran striker Bobby Gonzales were all on the scoresheet to help the squad achieve their second league win in the current campaign.

Head coach Kurniawan Dwi Yulianto hailed the performance and commitment of his players, whom he said did not take things easy despite being up against a team rooted at the bottom of the league.

“We could see the pressure on UiTM players from the off due to their lowly position but were determined to win, especially after only managing a draw in our last match.

“The team had a slow start but (after the first goal), we did not look back and the players regained their focus and gave 100 per cent on the pitch.

“I have to praise the players for their commitment … they did what were asked of them regarding how we should approach the match and execute our game plan

“It is a very important three points for us,” said Kurniawan.

Kurniawan made two changes to the side that held Penang FC to a 1-1 draw last week, with Johnson and Mohd Syukri Baharun coming in for Bobby Gonzales and Dendy Lowa.

It did not unsettle Sabah FC as they were always in command that saw them rewarded with the opening goal in the 28th minute.

From an Alto Linus’ cross from the left, Amri Yahya powered a header that UiTM’s goalkeeper Dominik Picak could only parry into Johnson’s path and the Liberian striker had no problem slotting home from close range.

Sabah FC continued to pile the pressure on the visitors and the lively Saddil was the next scorer with Johnson providing the assist.

The Indonesian winger’s fierce drive from just outside the box hit a UiTM FC’s defender before sailing past the wrong-footed Dominic in the 41st minute.

Kurniawan made a double change at the start of the second half by bringing in Rawilson Batuil for Levy Madinda and Azzizan Nordin for Hamran Peter and five minutes later the hosts were celebrating again.

Park, now operating as a defensive midfielder, played a clever one-two with Saddil and the South Korean coolly struck the ball beyond the reach of Dominik from close range to make it 3-0.

Substitute Maxsius Musa saw his 72nd minute free kick tipped over the bar while at the other end of the pitch, Sabah goalkeeper Robson Rendy Rining pulled a couple of smart saves to maintain the squad advantage.

The fourth goal finally arrived just three minutes before the final whistle, where Bobby fired a precise left-footed shot from inside the box for the icing on the cake.

With the win, Sabah improved to nine points from two wins, three draws and four losses. The squad are currently eighth in the 12-team league.

“Our next opponents are Selangor FC and we will use the time we have to prepare our game plan and to select the best players to carry out the tasks on the pitch,” added Kurniawan.

The league game against Selangor FC will take place at the MBPJ Stadium on April 23.