Malaysia Cup: Selangor still winless; Kelantan claim derby, LionsXii stumble again

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Saturday's Malaysia Cup Results

Group A
Selangor 2-3 ATM
Sime Darby 1-2 Johor FA

Group B
Johor Darul Takzim 1-0 FELDA United
T-Team 0-1 PKNS FC

Group C
Kelantan 2-0 Terengganu
Negeri Sembilan 3-5 Pahang

Group D
Sarawak 2-1 LIONSXII
Kedah 1-1 Perak

Selangor's bid to win a record 33rd Malaysia Cup title took another blow on Saturday as they fell to a 3-2 defeat to Group A rivals ATM at the Shah Alam Stadium.

The Red Giants got off to a poor start against ATM as they fell behind in the 14th minute after Hairuddin Omar opened the scoring.

Selangor did manage to equalise a minute before the half-hour mark when talismanic striker Amri Yahyah netted, but the visitors reclaimed the lead in the 40th minute when Fitri Omar scored, before D. Christie Jayaseelan made it 3-1 a minute after the break.

Despite their best efforts, Selangor were unable to break down their opponents until the second minute of injury-time through an S. Kunanlan effort, although it proved to be little more than a consolation.

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Johor FA are now top of the group after coming from behind to beat Sime Darby 2-1 at the Majlis Perbandaran Selayang Stadium, despite having to play with ten men for almost an hour.

After Karlo Primorac had fired the hosts ahead in the 13th minute, Sime Darby pulled level five minutes before the half-hour mark through a Khairul Ismail strike.

Khairul Ismail turned from hero to zero when he got sent off seven minutes later.

But four minutes after halftime, Izuan Jarudin netted to put the visitors ahead, and they managed to hold on to their lead for the remainder of the game to claim a valuable three points.

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Defending champions Kelantan claimed the spoils in the East Coast derby after seeing off Terengganu 2-0 at the Sultan Mohammad IV Stadium.

Dickson Nwakaeme fired the Red Warriors ahead after just nine minutes, but they then wasted a good chance to double their lead after Obinna Nwaneri's weak penalty was saved by Sharmiza Yusoff.

However, the hosts were always in control of the tie and eventually killed off the contest in the 73rd minute when Zairo Anuar Zalani added a second.

Kelantan are now second in the group behind Pahang on goals scored, after Tok Gajah claimed a thrilling 5-3 win over Negeri Sembilan at the Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium.

After Azamuddin Akil fired the visitors in front in the 23rd minute, S. Sivanesan levelled the scores in the 48th minute but parity was restored for just two minutes before R. Gopinathan made it 2-1.

Matias Conti then added a third in the 63rd minute before Pahang went further ahead when Gopinathan doubled his tally for the evening three minutes later, but the hosts refused to back down and pulled one back in the 69th minute through Sivanesan.

Sivanesan then capped off a fine individual display two minutes later when he completed his hat-trick to make it 4-3, but just when the Deers appeared poised to make a comeback, Amirulhadi Zainal popped up with Pahang's fifth to seal the win.

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Over in Group B, Johor Darul Takzim (JDT) got their campaign up and running after claiming a hard-fought 1-0 win over FELDA United, thanks to Safee Sali's 76th-minute winner.

However, Harimau Selatan remain three points behind PKNS FC, who continued their perfect start with a 1-0 victory at T-Team, with the only goal of the game coming four minutes after the half-hour mark when Roman Chmelo netted.

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Finally in Group D, reigning Super League champions LIONSXII were stunned at the Sarawak State Stadium as they fell to a 2-1 loss to newly-promoted Sarawak.

The visitors fell behind after 11 minutes through an unfortunate own-goal from Shakir Hamzah, before a moment of madness from Shahfiq Ghani saw him slap Muamer Salibasic and receive his a straight red as well as concede a penalty, which was calmly converted by Joseph Kalang Tie in the 70th minute.

Six minutes after, the LIONSXII did manage to pull one back when Safuwan Baharudin headed home a Hariss Harun cross, but the Crocs ultimately held on for a deserving triumph.

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In the group's other game, Alen Guc struck in injury-time for earn a point for Kedah for the second game running as they held Perak to a 1-1 draw.

After both sides had failed to open the scoring in the opening 45, the deadlock was broken in the 58th minute when Khairul Asyraf Shaizah fired Perak in front.

But in the first minute of added time, Guc - just like he did in Tuesday's 2-2 draw against LIONSXII - popped up to earn his side a share of the spoils.