THE failure to fix the leaking roof at the Malawati Stadium in Shah Alam before the start of the AFF Futsal Championship proved to be an embarrassment for the FA of Malaysia (FAM) yesterday.
The final match of the day between Malaysia and Brunei was halted for 10 minutes in the 35th minute after rain water poured through the roof and onto the arena due to the heavy downpour.
Volunteers worked tirelessly to mop the arena and continued doing so inside Brunei’s semi-circle after the match resumed. General coordinator Juan Miguel David gave Malaysia and Brunei the option to play the remainder today but the latter chose to resume the match.
FAM and the Asean Football Federation (AFF) must hold responsibility as they had chosen and inspected the venue before the tournament. The Shah Alam City Council is responsible for maintaining the stadium.
But the leaking roof did not affect Malaysia as they notched their first win in Group A by thrashing Brunei 6-1.
Malaysia’s scorers were Saiful Aula Ahmad (19th and 27th minutes), Muhd Fariq Mohammad (31st and 39th), Muhd Fitri Muhd Yatim (20th) and Saiful Nizam Ali (22nd). Mohd Sharifuddin Marji replied for Brunei in the 33rd minute.
“I expected my boys to score more than 10 goals today (yesterday) but it did not happen. We dominated the first half but netted only two goals,” said Malaysia coach Maizal Hairi Marzuki yesterday.
In another Group A match, Australia thrashed Timor Leste 9-0. Defending champions Thailand hammered the Philippines 16-1 while Myanmar defeated Laos 6-0 in Group B.
FIXTURES — Today, Group A: Australia v Brunei (2.30pm), Indonesia v Timor Leste (5pm);
Group B: Thailand v Laos (9am), Vietnam v Philippines (12pm). By Ajitpal Singh