PETALING JAYA: Negri Sembilan coach Nidzam Jamil believes the passionate home crowd has given his team a new edge, after the Deer powered to a convincing 3-0 win over Sabah in their Super League clash at the Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium in Paroi on Saturday.
The victory marked Negri’s second league win of the season, with their foreign trio delivering in style.
Jovan Motika opened the scoring in the 25th minute, Alex Agyarkwa added a second in the 40th, and Joseph Esso sealed the result with a tidy finish in the 79th minute, sending the home fans into raptures.
It was also Negri’s first clean sheet of the campaign, something Nidzam credited to tactical balance and growing belief within the squad.
“I want to thank the fans for their faith and belief. The support has been amazing,” said Nidzam after the match.
“I’ve not seen this kind of atmosphere for a while, especially in our last three home matches.
“We tried to play better offensive football, but we also needed to be cautious because in previous games we conceded too many.
“This time, the balance was right. We are happy with the outcome of our preparation.”
The Paroi faithful have certainly witnessed an upswing. Before the Sabah win, Negri stunned Selangor 2-1 at home on Aug 24, followed by a hard-fought 2-2 draw against Kuching City five days later. Nidzam credited his team’s progress to both the quality and flexibility of his players.
“We have players who can change a game – A. Selvan, Motika, then Luqman (Hakim Shamsuddin) and Mio (Tsuneyasu) coming in. We follow their dynamics instead of putting too strong an emphasis on tactics,” he explained.
Negri’s season started on a tough note with a 3-5 defeat to defending champions Johor Darul Ta’zim in Iskandar Puteri on Aug 12.
They then shared points in a 1-1 draw with Immigration in Batu Kawan on Sep 20.
But with back-to-back positive home results and renewed defensive solidity, Negri seem to be turning a corner.
As Nidzam summed it up: “The fans lifted us – their energy has made a real difference. We’re building something together.”
