PETALING JAYA: Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT) moved closer to defending their FA Cup title after securing a 2-0 away win over Brunei in the semi-final first leg at the Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Stadium in Bandar Seri Begawan on Friday (Oct 23).
The Southern Tigers took the lead in the 20th minute when a miscommunication between Brunei centrebacks Ebenezer Abban and Clark Robertson led to a failure to deal with a lobbed ball from playmaker Manuel Hidalgo, which was capitalised by striker Bergson Da Silva, who slotted the ball past goalkeeper Samuel Somerville.
The away side extended their lead in the 71st minute when Azerbaijani centreback Eddy Israfilov bundled the ball in by capitalising on a loose ball off a corner taken from winger Arif Aiman Hanapi.
JDT, who won the title in 2016, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025, will look to seal the final spot, when they take on Brunei in the second leg at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Iskandar Puteri on Nov 8.
