Nathaniel Shio Hong Wan scored the first goal. - Photo by JDT FC
PETALING JAYA: There is no stopping the Johor Darul Ta’zim train this season.
The Southern Tigers won the FA Cup after beating Kuala Lumpur 2-0 in the final at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Iskandar Puteri, Johor on July 22 (Saturday).
They defended the title they won last year when they beat Kedah 3-1.
In the first-half, JDT dominated possession but Kuala Lumpur was organised and made sure to frustrate their opponents by forcing lots of turnovers.
Kuala Lumpur’s best chance came in the 16th minute when captain and midfielder Paulo Josue’s freekick was controlled by centre-back Matko Zirdum but his shot was superbly saved by JDT goalkeeper Ahmad Syihan Hazmi.
The closest chance for JDT came through midfielder Afiq Fazail, who could have opened the scoring in the 35th minute but his shot was saved by Kevin Ray Mendoza.
In the second-half, JDT thought they drew first blood when Bergson Da Silva capitalised on a rebound off an Arif Aiman Hanapi shot in the 60th minute but the linesman called it offside.
However, it proved to be contentious, when replays showed that Bergson was onside when Arif took the shot.
JDT eventually got the lead in the 65th minute when midfielder Nathaniel Shio Hong Wan unleashed a superb shot from outside the box to score his first-ever goal for the club.
They got their second in the 73rd minute when playmaker Leandro Velasquez took advantage of a rebound by thumping a shot in between two defenders to score past Kuala Lumpur goalkeeper Kevin Ray Mendoza.
They held onto their lead and won their second title of the season after winning the Community Shield on Feb 24 by beating Terengganu 2-0.
