Premier League outfit Sabah is basking in the glory of reaching the Malaysia Cup quarter-finals from Group D which also had the like of 33-time Malaysia Cup champions Selangor and four-time champions Pahang.
To top it all Sabah even finished on the top of the group with 13 points – winning four of their matches, one draw, and one defeat. The defeat came in Sabah’s last match which was against Pahang at home at the Likas Stadium.
Pahang won 4-0 but Sabah head coach Jelius Ating decided to throw in his reserves to give them a “taste of Malaysia Cup action” after his team had already secured a place in the last eight.
The reserves left Jelius disappointed but the former Sabah skipper is confident his team is “ready to do battle” for a place in the semi-finals and their opponents are another surprise Malaysia Cup package Kelantan.
Sabah is away to Kelantan this Saturday in the first-leg quarter-final match while return-leg will be played in Kota Kinabalu on Sept 29.
“Kelantan has our respect but I have told my players not fear the Red Warriors,” said Jelius from Kota Kinabalu on Wednesday.
“It will be a tough match as Kelantan also had some good results – defeating JDT and Kedah at home to make the quarter-finals. This alone is an achievement considering that JDT won the Malaysia Cup last year after beating Kedah (2-0) in the final.”
Jelius, known as a tough-tackling defender during his playing days, is surprised with Sabah’s run in the Malaysia Cup as many had written off the East Malaysians against the likes of Selangor and Pahang.
Sabah, however, did the impossible, winning both their home and away matches against Selangor by 2-1 margins and held Pahang to a draw in Kuantan. Against PKNP (Perak SEDC), Sabah notched a 1-0 win at home and 2-0 away.
“I have been drilling into the players to keep the momentum in the quarter-finals. For one the team’s confidence is at a high and I hope we can ride on that to face Kelantan,” added Jelius.
For the record, Sabah finished seventh in the lower-tier Premier League this year. RIZAL ABDULLAH
