KUANTAN: Sri Pahang FC went on defensive mode after gaining a 1-0 lead against PJ City FC in their Super League match at the Darul Makmur Stadium here last night.
Head coach Dollah Salleh said this pattern was adopted by his players after taking the lead in the 15th minute, possibly due to fatigue apart from wanting to avoid defeat after just draws in their previous two matches.
Dollah said he had instructed the players to follow the game plan but saw it was difficult to sustain throughout the 90 minutes of the match.
“In the last minutes, I had to accept the mentality of the players who wanted to play defensively to maintain the 1-0 result in our favour,“ he told the post-match press conference.
In the match, the solitary goal by Sri Pahang FC import striker Aung Kaung Mann who beat PJ City goalkeeper Kalamullah Al-Hafiz Mat Rowi in the 15th minute enabled the hosts to collect three full points.
Dollah also stressed that such a performance should not be repeated if the players want to go further this season.
Meanwhile, PJ City FC coach P. Maniam admitted that the hosts deserved to win because his men did not show a neat performance, especially in defence.
Maniam said the change in the actual rhythm of his team’s game, however, could be seen in the second half where they organised more attacks and got three chances to create goals, but did not manage to break through the opponent’s “wall”.-Bernama
