| Fadhil Yunus |
INJURY-ravaged MS PDB sealed a place in the quarter-finals of the DST FA Cup after overcoming Kota Ranger FC 4-2 at the Berakas Sports Complex last night.
Kota Ranger, whose league title was extinguished in flames during their league outing against Tabuan Muda ‘A’ on February 3, began the second half all guns blazing with Md Hafis bin Haji Mahari slicing his shot narrowly wide.
As they were not able to make their opportunities and bulk of possession count, the police personnel made use of theirs as Md Forish Aryan bin Abd Rahman opened the scoring.
MS PDB nearly doubled their lead with Md Azri bin Zahari first getting a touch which Kota Ranger Azman Ilham Noor parried away to the path of Md Faizizzul bin Hussin whose shot was somehow kept out by the former DPMM FC shot-stopper.
With the police personnel posing questions, they extended their lead after Md Forish Aryan broke free and snatched his second of the game five minutes later.
Kota Ranger were handed a lifeline after Awangku Ammar Syafie bin Pengiran Hassanuddin latched onto a cross before coolly firing home from close range in the 70th minute.
But any hopes of mounting a comeback was instantly dashed in the 81st minute though it still took composure and balance to seal the game.
Abang Azim bin Abdul Rashid raced clear from the edge of the box and sidestepped past Kota Ranger captain Afi bin Aminuddin before slamming the ball home to make it 3-1.
The demolition was complete after Md Faizizzul bin Hussin curled a stunning free-kick at the end of normal time.
Abu Suffian bin Haji Adanan scored a consolation for Kota Ranger deep in injury time.
MS PDB came into the match short of their first-team players still not fit for selection including Jasriman Johari who could only make a place in the bench.
“We had a lack of players in the starting 11 down to injuries and most of them haven’t fully recovered yet,” said MS PDB deputy coach Muhammad Danial Haris.
He said that the performance carried a bonus because they were playing without any pressure.
“Tonight is a bonus because we did not have any hopes of progressing deeper into the tournament. They played without pressure and play normally.
“We also had a lack of stamina but we can improve in the future,” the deputy coach further added.
“In terms of performance, we had a slow start in the first half but once the goal arrived, it helped built confidence in the players.
“Credit also goes to Kota Ranger for providing good competition to our team,” he said.
Muhammad Danial also shared that most of the players in MS PDB first team made up of reserves.
With MS PDB set to play Kota Ranger again in the league, Muhammad Danial said that there is 48 hours until their next match and they will be monitoring the situation on the players.
The deputy coach also agreed that the big win over Kota Ranger will provide a morale boost ahead of the sequel tomorrow, whose side could jump to sixth in the DST Super League with a win.
MS PDB have been rewarded with a last-eight tie against Tabuan Muda ‘A’ in the DST FA Cup.
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