It was not a welcome habit but it seemed to be entrenched in the way Terengganu play at the moment. Conceding a silly goal early in the match before making a comeback to take something out of the encounters with their opponents.
The match against Harimau Muda 'A' was the third time they conceded early in the match, this time a mis-kick by a Terengganu defender presented the chance for Syahrul Azwari Ibrahim to put the Young Tigers ahead just after seven minutes of play.
But one good thing from going behind in previous matches is the mental strength of the Turtles seemed to grow as they did not panic and played to their strength. Irfan Bakti's boys seemed to create a number of good scoring chances but were unable to convert these opportunities into goals.
Ten minutes after going behind Terengganu forced a corner when Harimau Muda skipper Mohamad Muslim blocked a shot from Ashaari Shamsudin. However, the Terengganu topscorer would not be denied his goal, connecting with Ismail Faruqi's corner with a powerful header that hit the bar before rebounding behind the goal line.
Terengganu continued their dominance after the equaliser. Ismail himself and Joseph Kalang saw their shots saved by Harimau Muda goalkeeper, Izham Tarmizi Roslan. The young custodian however could not do anything to prevent Abdul Hadi Yahya's shot from going past him in the 36th minute.
The goal was a result from a quick counter attack after the home defence managed to clear a corner by Harimau Muda. Ismail Faruqi made a long pass which found Abdul Hadi who managed to evade challenges from two Harimau Muda players before slotting the ball home.
Izham denied Hadi another goal with a wonderful save two minutes before the interval but he was beaten again when Abdul Manaf Mamat was put through and beat him with a delicate lob. Fortunately for the Harimau Muda goalkeeper, the goal was not counted as Manaf was flagged offside by the referee assistant.
Terengganu continued to press after the interval as they went out looking for the security of a third goal. Ashaari's hardwork and persistence paid off in the 64th minute when he won the ball in a midfield challenge.
He played the ball to Hadi who laid the ball into Ismail's path, giving him a clear run to Harimau Muda's goal. The midfielder kept his cool and finished the move with a side-foot which nestled gently in the Young Tigers' net.
Three-one to the Turtles and the margin could have been bigger had their players converted the chances that came their way after the third goal was scored. In the end it was enough for Terengganu to keep pace with the leaders.
PBDKT T-Team shock 2-0 win in Shah Alam against Selangor saw the Red Giants being pegged back by Kelantan who themselves were beaten by T-Team on Tuesday. Both teams were level on twenty points but the Stags have a better goal difference.
Perak missed the opportunity to climb to the top of the pile when they lost their unbeaten record this season, going down 2-1 to a Sabah team, struggling at the lower part of the Super League table. The defeat saw them dropped to third, just a point in front of Terengganu.
Goals from Norfarhan Mohamad and Indra Putra Mahyudin were enough to see off a poor Selangor side, which missed the chance to go in front in the first half when T-Team experienced goalkeeper, Syamsuri Mustafa saved a penalty by Razman Roslan.
Thirteen minutes into the second half Norfarhan rose unchallenged inside the box to head home a Zairo Anuar's free-kick. Part of the blame should also be borned by Selangor goalkeeper, Mohamad Iqbal who should have done better.
Then six minutes from time, Indra Putra latched onto a quick pass from Zairo and with consummate ease evaded challenges from the home defenders before finding the back of the net with a low shot.
The win was the third in succession for Yunus Alif's charges and they maintained their seventh place in the Super League charts. It should finally ease the pressure on the Head Coach who struggled to find the right mix for his team before the break for the FA Cup competition and the international friendly.
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