No fear of giants: Kuching City’s Rodney Celvin Akwensivie tries to block a shot by Johor Darul Ta’zim’s Bergson Da Silva during a Super League match.
PETALING JAYA: Kuching City are going the extra mile to make a difference in the Super League.
The team led by Rodney Celvin Akwensivie have arrived in Kuala Lumpur to play in few friendly matches before taking on Negri Sembilan at the State Stadium in Kuching on Oct 18.
And Rodney hopes their extra initiatives to get high-quality games outside of Sarawak during the international break will reap huge rewards.
The Cats are slated to play against Police, Police II and hopefully an M3 club before they return to Kuching.
“These friendly matches will surely keep us on our toes and all of us, whether the regular first 11players or those in the reserves, will want to give our best in these matches,” said the 27-year-old.
“In Kuching, it is hard to get teams that are up to Super League standards. To ensure we continue this momentum, we need top-quality games, so the management has fulfilled that by bringing us to Kuala Lumpur.”
Rodney, who is of Ghanaian-Malaysian heritage, has played eight games in all competitions so far, five of them in the starting 11.
Coach Aidil Sharin has always rotated his backline, but the ones who remain regular are Nigerian centreback James Okwuosa and rightback Jimmy Raymond.
Rodney is ready to raise his game.
“I am not concerned if I am a regular starter or not ... what matters is that I give my best in whatever role I get to play,” he said.
“At times, I’ve been deployed as a fullback. I’m comfortable at which ever position.
“I’ve also learned from Okwuosa, who is highly disciplined and one who encourages the locals to give their all during games. He has brought that fighting character to the team.
“It is nice to see that all of us have a good bond on and off the field and I believe this trip to Kuala Lumpur will make it even stronger.”
Kuching City are currently sixth in the league with 14 points.
