KUCHING: An early defensive lapse proved costly for Negeri Sembilan as Kuching City FC climbed to second place in the Malaysia Super League with a 2-0 win at the Sarawak State Stadium on Saturday night (Jan 31).
Gabriel Nistelrooy Tamin punished a wayward back pass by Muhammad Amirul Adli Azmi to slot home from close range in the 11th minute, giving the hosts an early advantage.
The Miri-born forward nearly doubled the lead in the 21st minute before heading narrowly wide seven minutes later.
Kuching continued to press, with Japanese international Yuki Tanigawa forcing action in the 34th minute with a long-range effort as Negeri Sembilan struggled to settle.
After the restart, Ramadhan Saifullah tested goalkeeper Muhammad Azri Abdul Ghani in the 46th minute, but the Negeri Sembilan custodian reacted well to deny the effort.
The hosts finally made their dominance count again in the 66th minute when Cameroonian striker, Ronald Ngah Wanja, pounced on a loose ball following Ramadhan’s initial attempt to calmly make it 2-0.
The victory, Kuching’s ninth of the season, lifted them to 31 points and into second place in the standings, overtaking Selangor on goal difference, with the two sides set to meet in their next league match on Feb 22.
