HUNGRY INDERA DISLODGE AH UNITED FROM 6TH

Jason Thomas
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
Saturday, January 23, 2010

QUICKER to the ball and looking more potent on the attack, Indera FC were deserved 2-0 winners over AH United in last night's DST Group Brunei Premier League I action.

Displacing AH United in the 10-team table, Indera are now sixth with 18 points while AH United are seventh and trailing their conqueror by two points.

The first win for new coach Norilham Hj Jais, he felt it was a taste of things to come.

"I am very optimistic about the remaining three matches... I think we can get maximum points," said the former DPMM FC assistant coach in a post-match interview with The Brunei Times.

"Overall I am very satisfied. We dominated the first half and created a lot of chances.

"In the second half, both teams had their moments but it was a good thing we scored that second goal," he added.

Playing as a deep-lying playmaker, Indera's Azwan Salleh could have opened the scoring on the half-hour mark but for a weak free-kick from the edge of the box.

Indera got the break through they were looking for 10 minutes later when Sahrin Zaini rose the highest in the box to head home a corner from Azwan.

The midfielder had a golden opportunity to double his team's lead a few minutes later but his attempt from inside the box was wide off the mark.

Indera's Sairol Hj Sahri created the best chance 10 minutes into the second half, but the former DPMM FC midfielder dipping free-kick was tipped over by Ak Ahmad Fitri Pg Momin.

Ex-DPMM FC skipper Pg Sallehuddin Pg Haji Damit, now playing for AH United, played a pivotal role in protecting his back line.

He has lost none of his hot-headedness which characterised his spell at DPMM FC though, evident when he rushed to confront the referee for awarding Indera a penalty after he hacked down Md Helmi Zambin in the box.

A confident Sairol made no mistake from the spot, coolly slotting home from 12 yards with a low shot past Ak Ahmad Fitri's right.

Another former DPMM FC player, AH United's Muhd Maududi Hilmi Kasmi was not as influential as he would have wanted to last night — probably because of a lack of support from his teammates when the team were going forward.

Most of AH United's passes in the attacking third were cut out by Indera, and their strategy of using long balls to spark attacks was never rewarded.

AH United's Ak Asrul Asydnee Pg Sahdon had a free-kick that was saved by Indera's Ak Omar Nur Aqqmmaddin in the dying stages of the match, with Md Nazirul Nazreen Abdullah watching his attempt sail harmlessly over the bar seconds later.

Another ex-DPMM FC defender, Abdul Aziz Tamit, had the chance to make it 3-0 in injury time but his header off a corner was cleared off the line.
The night's other match saw Wijaya pick up their fourth win of the season when they beat Brunei Shell Football Team (BSFT) 2-1 at the Brunei Shell Recreation Club in Seria.

Ak Muhd Naqib Pg Timbang opened the scoring for Wijaya five minutes after the break, only for Reneil Ruani to equalise in the 72nd minute. Zulkefly Duraman then grabbed the winner for Wijaya in the 77th.

The result maintains the teams' standings, Wijaya at eighth and BSFT at ninth.