Wasteful Pahang Pay The Price in AFC Cup

18 Mac, 2015



PETALING JAYA: Pahang were wasteful and paid the price.

The Elephants were stunned 1-0 by South China in their AFC Cup Group G match at the Darul Makmur Stadium in Kuantan on Wednesday.

Striker Chan Siu Ki struck the winner for the visitors in the 13th minute to cement themselves atop the group with nine points from three matches.

Pahang took control of the match after both teams started the match cautiously but the hosts, who were without injured foreign strikers Dickson Nwkaeme of Nigeria and Matias Conti of Argentina, struggled to make their chances count.

Nippy winger R. Gopinathan was Pahang’s main threat upfront with his speed and fancy footwork. But it all amounted to nothing.

South China went ahead against the run of play when Hong Kong international Siu Ki’s speculative shot from the edge of the box off a counter attack took Pahang goalkeeper Mohd Khairul Azhan Khalid by surprise.

Stunned, Pahang redoubled their efforts and almost got the equaliser in the 37th minute but winger R. Surendran failed to put the finishing touch to Gopi’s cross.

Pahang came back after the break and continued from where they left off, pinning the visitors in their own half.

But South China were happy to park the bus and defend their lead.

Pahang’s best chance in the second half came in the 52nd minute but Jamaican defender Damion Stewart was denied by South China goalkeeper Cristian Mora.

Coach Zainal Abidin Hassan’s men were left to rue the missed chances as they suffered their first defeat in the competition.

Pahang remained second with four points while Myanmar’s Yadanarbon moved up to third after notching their first win in the group.

Yadanarbon beat the Philippines’s Global FC 2-0 in an earlier match and now have three points. Global have just one point.

Sumber - K. Rajan, Star Online www.thestar.com.my