INABILITY TO MAINTAIN MOMENTUM COSTS IFC A WIN

BATU KAWAN, Oct 26 (Bernama) -- Imigresen FC (IFC) head coach Yusri Che Lah lamented his players' inability to maintain their momentum in the second half, which led to the team conceding two goals and dashed their hopes of notching their first league win this season.

The former national player said that while his squad showed strong determination throughout the match, lapses in focus after gaining the lead allowed their opponents to come back and equalise.

"Of course, there is still a lot of work for my players because today, once again, we were punished early in the game and failed to maintain our rhythm in the second half.

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"Not only the players, but I also take full responsibility for this result. We always aim to finish the match with a win, but unfortunately, luck was not on IFC's side today," he said after the match against Sabah FC at the Batu Kawan Stadium here today.

Although IFC have yet to secure a win after seven matches, Yusri said this should not dampen their morale and urged his players to reflect on their performance and maintain focus on the upcoming matches.

He added the team must not give in to pressure but focus on improving their weaknesses to climb the league standings.

Ahead of their upcoming clash against Penang FC on Nov 2, Yusri said their opponents have demonstrated improvement in the last three matches, and therefore, he wants The Mighty Tigers to bounce back and build a winning momentum.

Meanwhile, Sabah FC head coach Jean-Paul de Marigny said his players began slowly in the first half before responding more aggressively after the break.

"We started a bit slow, the players weren't aggressive enough and lacked courage on the ball, but credit to them for fighting back and performing much better in the second half. That's the kind of football and mentality we want to see," he said.

The Australian coach added that his team's focus now shifts to recovery before facing Kelantan The Real Warriors (TRW) in the FA Cup second-leg match on Wednesday, followed by a league encounter against Selangor on Nov 1.

Earlier, the match involving the two teams ended in a 2-2 draw, forcing IFC to settle for just one point. IFC remain at the bottom of the league table with three points from seven matches, while Sabah FC are in 10th place, just one point ahead.

-- BERNAMA