Perak eased their relegation worries with a priceless 2-0 win over Terengganu at the Perak Stadium on Saturday night in a rain-soaked round of the Malaysia Super League (MSL), which saw other games delayed due to the downpour.

Their third league win of the season sees Perak move out of the drop zone into eighth position in the 12-team league, above PDRM FA, Penang and Sarawak, with the latter losing to Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT) on Friday night.

The Bos Gaurus stamped their authority from the offset, with Xhevahir Sukaj unlucky to see his curling shot sail inches wide from Sharbinee Allawee's goal.

The Terengganu custodian would have been thanking his lucky stars as his goal remained intact two minutes later when Elias Fernandes should have at least made him work. When Oybek Kilichev's 25-yard effort was deflected into the Brazilian's path, the forward swung wildly and his lack of composure saw the ball roll away to safety.

Perak were eventually rewarded for their dominance midway through the half, and it was a collector's item from Perak's enterprising midfielder Kenny Palraj.

Fazrul Hazli lost possession on the edge of the Terengganu goal. The ball fell kindly to the holding midfielder, who rifled home into the bottom corner for his first Perak goal.

Terengganu could have levelled almost immediately, but Bogdan Milic headed wide from close range when he should have scored.

The home side were thriving on the left side through the Nazirul Naim-Elias combination which Terengganu met with some heavy tackles. As a result, Mohd Fakrulrazi found himself into the referee's books after one too many fouls.

Terengganu replaced him with Canadian hitman Issey Nakajima-Farran as interim boss Mustaffa Kamal looked to get his side back into the game. But Perak, still buoyed by the 4-1 thumping of PKNS in the Malaysia Cup on Tuesday, comfortably contained the threat of their visitors.

Sukaj, who scored in midweek, should have extended their lead, but headed way off target, despite being completely unmarked in the penalty box.

It would not matter, as Fernandes sealed the game two minutes later with a precise finish from a counter-attack as Karl Heinz Weigang's men ended the game worthy winners.

Felda United continued their sterling run in the MSL courtesy of a 2-1 away win against PDRM FA, with Lutfulla Turaev and Forkey Doe on the score sheet to stay within two points of leaders JDT. Doe's goal meant he has scored six times in all of their MSL travels to date.

In other games, Patrick Wleh grabbed the equaliser for Selangor in their 1-1 draw at Penang, Kelantan and Pahang drew 0-0, and Shane Smeltz scored his third goal in two matches -- and his first in the MSL -- as Kedah defeated T-Team 1-0.

Perak: Hafizul Hakim (GK), Syahrul Saad, Syazwan Roslan, Xhevahir Sukaj, Ridzuan Azly, Kenny Pallraj, Elias Fernandes, Fazrul Hazli (Fikri Sudin 67'), Nazirul Naim, Thiago Junior (C), Oybek Kilichev

Terengganu: Sharbinee Allawee (GK), Norshahrul Idlan Talaha, Bogdan Milic (Ashaari Shamsuddin 82'), Hafizal Mohamad, Hasmizan Kamarodin, Muhammad Fakrulrazi (Issey Nakajima Farran 45') , Nasril Izzat, Ahmad Nordin Alias (C) (Zairo Anuar 69'), Joseph Kallang Tie, Hairuddin Omar, Shahrin Sapien

Source:
courtesy of ESPNFC

by Nicolas Anil

If you have any stories or news that you would like to share with the global online community, please feel free to share it with us by contacting us directly at [email protected]