High flying: S. Kumaahran celebrates his goal against Pahang. - MFL
PETALING JAYA: Chin up and let’s go for the next target.
That was the clarion call made by Sabah winger S. Kumaahran after his side were booted out of the Malaysia Cup by Pahang.
The Rhinos were looking to end their 22-year wait to play in the final but were beaten by Pahang 1-2 in the second leg at the Temerloh Stadium, which saw the Elephants sealing the semi-final tie 3-2 on aggregate.
Both sides entered the second leg after etching a 1-1 draw in the first leg at the Likas Stadium in Kota Kinabalu on Jan 17.
Kumaahran was the goalscorer for Sabah in the second leg when he finished off a pass from Brazilian striker Joao Pedro in the 76th minute.
Pahang drew first blood through an own goal from Sabah centreback Park Tae-su in the 71st minute and got the winner in extra time when striker and captain Kpah Sherman scored the winner in the 106th minute.
The 28-year-old Kumaahran said they were crestfallen after the defeat and admitted it was not an easy pitch to play on although it did not rain, but praised Sherman for a top performance.
“The field in Temerloh was not easy to play on because it was bouncy. We were unlucky, while they got lucky. I have to say Kpah is a superb player. He is like carrying the Pahang team. What a player!” said Kumaahran, who once played for Pahang in 2020.
“When we entered the dressing room, it was all quiet. After freshening up, our coach (Martin Stano) encouraged us. We did our best already but weren’t lucky.
Kumaahran now wants his teammates to shift their attention to the Super League and aim for a top three finish.
“This tournament is over. We’ll now focus on becoming the top three teams in the league. We’ll forget this result,” he said.
As for his performance, Kumaahran said this season had not been easy for him in terms of minutes as he made 11 starts in all competitions for Sabah,scoring two goals.
“I got the chance against Pahang and I believe I used it well. I’ve not been a regular this season but whenever I got minutes, I did my best and justified my selection.
Sabah are now third in the league with 32 points from 17 games and will have seven more matches to play.
They finished third in 2023 and 2022.
