PETALING JAYA: Bringing in reinforcements mid-season proved key for Immigration as they capped an impressive debut Super League campaign with a sixth-place finish.
A hard-fought 1-1 draw against Melaka at the Tuanku Syed Putra Stadium in Kangar, Perlis, on Saturday was enough to confirm sixth spot, with the team ending their season with 32 points.
After a slow start to the season, the team found their rhythm in the second half of the campaign as head coach Yusri Che Lah credited the turnaround to strengthening the defensive line during the January transfer window.
One of the key additions was centreback Nicholas Swirad, who quickly established himself as a key player after making 10 appearances since arriving in January.
“We needed more solidity in defence, and that was something lacking for us in the first half of the season,” said Yusri.
“So in the January window, we signed Swirad.
‘‘And I have been very impressed with what he has done for us in these past five months.
“With his previous team (Kuala Lumpur), he did not play much, and in the first half of the season, he was focused on his fitness and rehabilitation.
“But when he came, he balanced our defence. He was the stabiliser.
‘‘We hope to keep him for the upcoming season because he has been great for us.”
The Malaysian-heritage defender, through his mother, joined Immigration after enduring a difficult period following his contract with Kuala Lumpur not being renewed last year, and he was in Manchester for six months rebuilding his body and fitness.
During their final match of the season, Immigration scored first through Fayadh Zulkifli in the 46th minute, before visitors Melaka equalised in the 60th minute.
A strong showing this season has also led the club to unveil a new identity for their second Super League season, with rebranding and a possible solution to their home turf arrangements in the works.
N. SEMBILAN 2 KELANTAN 1
IMMIGRATION 1 MELAKA 1
P W D L F A Pts
JDT* 24 23 1 0 117 10 70
KUCHING CITY 23 15 5 3 44 14 50
SELANGOR 23 15 4 4 53 20 49
K. LUMPUR 23 12 7 4 40 28 43
TERENGGANU 24 10 6 8 39 34 36
IMMIGRATION 24 9 5 10 38 43 32
N. SEMBILAN 24 6 11 7 39 35 29
PENANG 24 6 7 11 26 41 25
SABAH 24 5 8 11 29 44 23
BRUNEI 24 6 5 13 30 57 23
MELAKA 24 4 7 13 18 45 19
KELANTAN 24 4 3 17 17 63 15
POLICE 23 2 5 16 17 73 11
*Champions
