Kota Kinabalu: Sabah FC finally registered their first league victory of the new season by beating Penang FC 3-2 at the Likas Stadium on Sunday.
However, they have to come from behind twice to grab the maximum points.
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They found themselves a goal down in the 16th minute when the unmarked Dylan Wenzel-Halls scored the opener from close range.
Their response was immediate as they searched for an equalizer with attempts by Fergus Tierney and Stuart Wilkin both narrowly missed the target before Ajdin Mujagic drove home in the 21st minute.
A mistake by Rawilson Batuil in the 38th minute when he recklessly gave away the ball saw Penang regain the lead.
Dylan was again at the right time to poke home after the initial effort was palmed away by Damien Lim in goal.
Jafri Chew missed the chance to draw level when his effort struck the post three minutes later, but he managed to make amends in the 55th minute with a 30-yard screamer to score Sabah FC’s second.
The match winning goal was headed in by Daniel Ting in the 69th minute from a corner kick delivered by Stuart Wilkin.
Head coach Jean-Paul de Marigny was pleased with the players’ response after going down twice to snatch the victory.
“I thought we started quite well and had a few opportunities. We were punished because of a lapsed in our defense that we could have dealt much better.
“But we responded quite well. We wanted to play a high tempo game and the players were getting braver with the ball especially in the second half.
“The mentality of the players to be able to bounce back after half time must be congratulated. It showed great character and the desire to win games,” he said.
The three points from the win also saw Sabah FC climb to ninth place in the league with seven points from one win, four draws and four losses.
Their next match is the return leg of the FA Cup semi-final away tie against Selangor FC this Saturday (Nov 29).
