Zainal Abidin hopes first win will spur team to better times

GEORGE TOWN: Penang FC coach Zainal Abidin Hassan wants his boys to maintain the determination they displayed against Terengganu FC last night which earned them their first win in the Super League.

"We could see they worked hard to get their first win, and I hope they can maintain it moving forward.

"I am proud of their determination. However, there is still plenty of room for improvement," he told reporters after Penang edged Terengganu 2-1 at home.

With the win, the Panthers now have seven points from 10 matches to lie in 11th place out of 12 teams.

Zainal Abidin said six Terengganu players - Manuel Gelito Ott, Habib Haroon Haroon Saeed, Mohd Faiz Mohd Nasir, Mohamad Faisal Abdul Halim, Tchetche Hermann Brice Kipre and Kpah Sean Sherman - were a strong combination who contributed to Terengganu's solitary goal.

"But Penang players managed to control them very well, and from that you could see we were determined to win," he added.

For the next match, Zainal Abidin said he needs to reassess every player and revamp the attack as imported player Anselmo Arruda Da Silva is recovering from surgery and will be out of action.

The Brazilian import, better known as Casagrande, fractured his right cheekbone during the Super League match against Petaling Jaya City FC last Saturday.

Terengganu coach Nafuzi Zain said his squad lacked fire compared to Penang, who seemed motivated playing on home ground.

"We simply fell short, especially in the first half. In the second half, we created many opportunities to equalise but the Penang defence and goalkeeper played brilliantly, "he said.

-- BERNAMA