Room for improvement

KOTA KINABALU: Second-half substitute Azrul Ejati Damsah levelled the score for the Rhinos to salvage a 1-1 draw against DPMM of Brunei in the Sabah FA’s Triangular Football Tournament that ended at the Tawau Sports Complex field on Tuesday.

With this result both teams were declared joint champions as they were on level terms with four points each.

In the opener, Sabah blanked Persiba of Balik Papan 2-0, while DPMM scored a 3-1 victory over the Kalimantan outfit.

However, the match (DPMM-Persiba) was only played for the first 45 minutes due to a thunderstorm.

“It was a good two matches for the team,” said Rahman Zakaria.

“Overall, we are happy with the way they approached these matches. But there is certainly room for improvement,” the Rhinos team manager added.

“We have got about three weeks left to prepare, and I believe we will be prepared and ready to face Armed Forces in the opener of the Premier League on December 17 in an away battle.

“Now our only task left is to find that final jigsaw, which is to look for a foreign striker,” said Rahman.

Currently, they are two Nigerians on trial with the team, but Rahman said they still need to have a good look at them before a decision is made.

At the same time, he added that they are also expecting a few more foreign strikers for trials. A top Croatian striker was supposed to have agreed to come and sign for Sabah without attending trials. But his current club refused that.

Assistant Minister of Rural Development Datuk Taufiq Abu Bakar Titingan and Sabah FA Deputy President Datuk Lawrence Gimbang were there to present the prizes to the winners.

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JAMIE DELIVERS FOR RHINOS

KOTA KINABALU: Englishman Jamie Anthony Lawrence Phoenix guided the Rhinos to a 2-0 victory over Persiba in the opener of the Sabah FA Triangular Tournament at the Tawau Sports Complex on Sunday.

The former England Under-17 player scored a brace, netting one goal in each half before being replaced late in the game to receive five stitches on his ear after a clash with a Persiba player.

Jamie drew first blood with his 41st minute strike before adding his second in the 65th minute.

Rahman Zakaria said that it was quite a convincing show from the Rhinos throughout the match.

“I’m happy with the way we approached the game,” the Rhinos’ team manager commented.

“The team seemed to be getting better. Our momentum was also there and the same for the combination among the players.

“Nevertheless, overall, we still need to improve on certain aspects of the game.

“I’m delighted to see that we managed to create a lot of chances. Although we only managed to put two behind the net, but this is an encouraging development from the team,” he added.

Sabah started the game with three foreign players with Bosnia-Herzegovina Dragic Dalibor marshalling the Rhinos’ backline alongside skipper Rosdin Wasli, Wong Sai Kong on the right and Munir Amran on the left.

Nafuzi Zain orchestrated the midfield together with Jamie, Zulamri Amri Muhammad and Eddie Gapil, while Nigerian striker, Andrew Amakuro, currently on trials with the team started in attack alongside Zainizam Marjan.

According to Rahman, Chow Chee Wing, Azrul Ejati Damsah, Hardy Charles Parsi and another Nigerian striker Gabriel also featured in the game as second-half substitutes.

“Overall, it was quite a competitive game because we played a side that paraded five foreign players,” Rahman said of Persiba, who interestingly is coached by former Sabah coach Peter Butler.

Persiba also paraded ex-Rhino striker Julio Cesar Rodrigues. However, another ex-Rhino Robbie Gaspar did not feature for the team, as he is seeking treatment back in his homeland Australia.

Tonight, Sabah will take on DPMM of Brunei to conclude the tournament.

Rahman said the head coach Drago Mamic is likely to make a minor reshuffle with Jamie likely to sit out the match due to his injury.

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SHOW MUST GO ON

KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah FA’s planned Quadrangular Football Tournament is now a Triangular affair.

Its Executive Secretary Harry Baking said that the championship will be a three-team affair with a team each from Brunei, Indonesia as well as Sabah. DPMM of Brunei and Persiba of Balik Papan will be the two visiting teams after Persibom from the Sulawasi opted out due to time constraint.

Harry also confirmed that the tournament will be held from November 25 to 27 at the Tawau Sports Complex. “Actually it would be great if it is a four-team tournament, but time is limited especially for the teams from Indonesia. “For instance, Persiba will be heading home on Nov 27 as they have a game on Dec 1 back home.

“Nevertheless, we firmly believe that this will still be positive warm-up matches for the Rhinos ahead of the Premier League kick-off on Dec 17. “We are thankful to the two teams for coming and hopefully this will be a good trip for them too.

Sabah will take on Persiba in the opening match on Nov 25 with the kick off set at 7.30pm. The second match will see Persiba taking on DPMM (Nov 26) before Sabah and DPMM conclude the tournament on Nov 27. Tickets are priced at RM10 and RM5 for all these matches.

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QUADRANGULAR TOURNAMENT ON

KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah FA is going ahead with its plan to organise the Quadrangular Tournament.

Its Executive Secretary Harry Baking said that so far three teams have confirmed their participation, including the Rhinos.

The other two teams are Super League outfit DPMM of Brunei and Persiba from Balik Papan.

“We are now waiting for confirmation from another club from Indonesia,” said Harry, referring to Persibom – a Sulawasi North outfit.

Harry said that he is expecting to get confirmation by next week.

He then pointed out that the tentative date for the tournament is from Nov 25 to Nov 30 at the Tawau Sports Complex.

On the format of the competition, Harry said that it will be discussed during the managers’ meeting.

Harry said this tournament is part of the Rhinos’ preparations ahead of the new season that kicks off next month.

The Rhinos will kick start their Premier League challenge by playing away to Armed Forces on Dec 17.

On another development, Harry revealed that they are expecting the Croatian striker to arrive next week.

“We are expecting him to be here on Wednesday,” said Harry.

With the arrival of the Croatian, Sabah’s search for foreign players would be over.

They already have the services of Bosnia-Herzegovina defender Dragic Dalibor.

Besides the Croatian, they are also set to sign an Englishman – Jamie Phoenix – a striker, who can also play as an attacking midfielder.

Harry said that Jamie had verbally agreed to terms and conditions of the contract that has been offered to him.

However, Harry said that Jamie is back in England to attend to a personal matter before returning to Sabah on Nov 21, which will be on time for the Quadrangular Tournament.

Interestingly, the Quadrangular Tournament will see Sabah parade its full squad with the arrival of the Croatian and the Englishman.

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THRASHING OUT A DEAL

KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah FA is close to getting the signature of an ex England Under-17 player.

They are currently in talks with the said player and at press time nothing has been finalised as both parties are still in the midst of negotiating a deal.

Jamie Phoenix, 23, arrived in the State for trials about 10 days ago and had played in three friendly matches with the Rhinos. And during these trials, Jamie, who also had a stint with Bolton Wanderers in the English Premiership, impressed the FA Selectors including its head coach Drago Mamic.

The FA Executive Secretary Harry Baking confirmed to the New Sabah Times Sports yesterday that negotiations are still ongoing with Jamie. But it is going to take sometime before everything is finalised as Jamie has told the FA that he needs to go back home to England as he has personal matters to attend to. He is expected to leave today with the FA providing the air tickets.

If the deal is through, then the Rhinos can finally end their search for a foreign player as they have already hired a Bosnian-Herzegovina defender, Dragic Dalibor. Another is expected, a Croatian striker, whose identity is still being withheld until his imminent arrival, which is expected to be at the end of this month.

Jamie meanwhile, can play as a striker or an attacking midfielder. He joined the Manchester City Youth team from 1994-1998 before signing for Bolton Wanderers in 1998-2000. He played for a few lower division clubs in England, among them Nantwitch Town, Altricham and Stafford Rangers, FC United being the last before venturing into ‘greener’ pastures like playing for Dong Tap in the Vietnam Premier League before coming to Sabah.

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PREPARATIONS ON SCHEDULE

KOTA KINABALU: Drago Mamic is satisfied with the team’s progress in their preparations ahead of the new season that kicks off next month.

The Rhinos’ head coach has no complaints whatsoever in their build up to the new season, pointing out that their preparations have been going on smoothly.

And what delights him most is that he has been getting undivided support from all parties, right from the top level officials to the players.

And this has made the Croatian optimistic about the team’s chances in the new season.

“This year, I have been getting very good support right from the team management to the players. Every one has been helping and showing their support towards our preparations … the President, the managers – Firdaus (Anifah Datuk Aman), Rahman (Zakaria) – my assistant coaches Khairul (Azman Mohd), Bob (Burhan Ajui) and Paing (Henry Soimpon). They have been giving me a big helping hand.

“The players have also shown a positive attitude and have been working really hard. I must thank all of them for the trust and support they have given me.

“In fact all this has prompted me to be very optimistic and have confidence in the team. With this kind of support, I firmly believe we can achieve something if we work together as a big family, like what is happening now.

“I can feel that we are breathing the same air and working towards realising the same dreams. I’m very satisfied with what has been happening, surrounding the team because once this is happening to the team it will only help us to become a better squad,” Drago said.

He then insisted that they have a better chance (compared to last season) of gaining promotion into the Super League.

“We have a better chance to get promoted this time around. But having said so, I cannot guarantee that we will surely gain promotion because we don’t know how the other teams have progressed. We don’t know their strength because in the new season, it will be different.

“But as long as we can show progress, I firmly believe that we have a squad that is good enough for the challenge.

“With no disrespect to the players … last season I can say that I had a squad of 12 players, but this time I have about 17-18 players who are ready for the job and I’m very happy with what I have now.

“I could say that we have a very interesting team here, but we must pay attention not to make silly mistakes as it could cost us our game.

With the league going to be less hectic compared to last year after the FA of Malaysia decided to play the Malaysia Cup after the completion of League matches and the FA Cup, Drago has quietly set his sights on helping the Rhinos end their title drought.

For the record, it has been more than a decade since the Rhinos last won any major honour in the M-League. The last time was in 1996 when they emerged the Premier I champions, now known as the Super League.

Commenting on the Rhinos’ recent friendly against Tawau Selection, Drago said: “It was a good trip for the team.

“It was a good game. We were playing under good conditions, on a good pitch and overall I’m happy with the trip.

“We played really well and although our opponents were not very strong, still it was a good show from the players.

“They played at the highest level and managed 20 passes at one time and I can see that the team is getting better and better.

“Nevertheless, we still need to improve in training, especially in possession of the ball because this will be a dangerous weapon.

“Once we can take possession in a game, it would be easy for us to dominate any game. It would also brighten our chances of winning the game.

“Overall, I’m happy with the way we play, but I must remind the players that they have to keep on improving as by doing this it will help the team progress.

Drago also said that at the moment they are 95 per cent ready for the new season.

“I have to slow down a little because the League only kicks off next month. We need to peak at the right time,” said Drago, before declaring that they will be in top gear when they kick start their season up against Armed Forces in an away battle on December 17.

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Croatian striker set to join Rhinos

KOTA KINABALU: A Croatian striker is almost certain to don the Rhinos colours for the new season.

He is likely to be the second foreign player to sign for the team after Bosnia-Herzegovina defender Dragic Dalibor.

The striker in question is personally recommended by his countryman, Drago Mamic who is the Rhinos’ head coach.

The New Sabah Times Sport was told that Drago has been given the green light to bring the player.

But due to the unavailability of flights from his home country, his arrival in the State has been delayed.

He is now on the waiting list and would make his journey to Sabah upon the availability of a flight with November 16 probably his departure date from Zagreb.

When contacted yesterday, Drago confirmed that the player in question will be his second signing.

He pointed out that he is expecting the said player, who has been plying his trade in the Croatian First Division League, to arrive in Sabah at the latest end of this month.

Drago is still unwilling to reveal the identity of the said player until everything has been finalised.

“It is still not the right moment,” he said.

“Once he signs for us, then the team management will make an appropriate announcement.

However he insisted that the said player is one of the top strikers in the Croatian First Division League.

“I know him personally and I have watched him play. And I firmly believe that his presence will give the team a big plus.

And if the deal is concluded (with the Croatian striker), the Rhinos will be looking for one more import player to fill in the last quota.

Drago hinted that he is keeping a close eye on an Englishman – Jamie Phoenix – who is currently undergoing trials with the team.

“He has showed us something. He showed us he has something special and quality. But we still need to have a good look at him before offering him a contract.

“For now, what I can say is he is close to landing a deal with the club. We need a good professional not only on the battlefield but also off the field because we have so many youngsters in the team,” said Drago.

Tonight, the Rhinos will be playing against USM in a friendly at the UMS Mini Stadium at 7pm.

And Drago will have another chance to have a good look at Jamie, who is a former Bolton Wanderers player.

He also played for the England Under-17 squad while doing the apprenticeship with Manchester City, who currently occupy the third spot in the English Premiership.

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STRONG BATTLE FOR FIRST-TEAM ACTION

KOTA KINABALU: The Rhinos take on Tawau Selection in a friendly to be played at the Tawau Sports Complex field tonight. And this will be another opportunity for the players to prove their worth to earn a place in the first team when the Premier League kicks off next month. The Rhinos will kick start their campaign playing away to Armed Forces on Dec 17 before playing their first home game against debutantes Proton FC at the Tawau Sports Complex on Dec 28.

Rahman Zakaria sees that competition for first team action for the new season will be tough. “I’m happy to note that a majority of our players are almost of the same quality. In order to be in the top 11, 16 or 18, they must keep the momentum going. They also have to show it in training as well as in friendly games.

“With the Premier League only kicking off next month, I think there is ample time for them to prove their worth to the head coach (Drago Mamic), and tomorrow’s friendly will be no exception as we will be looking at their performances,” the Rhinos’ team manager said. Commenting on the match, he said: “We are not really looking at the result, but what we want to see is the players showing what they are capable of. We want them to adapt well to the system we play.”

“This friendly will also be an opportunity for the head coach to know the players more and to see what needs to be rectified ahead of the big kick off,” said Rahman.

Rahman also said that they would also be trying out the import players in the match. At the moment, he pointed out that there are currently five foreign players undergoing trials with the team including two Senegalese strikers – Leum Abboul Karim and Sylla Pape Birane, who arrived yesterday morning.

The other three are strikers in Nigerian Obasi Churchill, Brazilian Oliveira and Englishman Jamie Phoenix. “This will be an opportunity for these (foreign) players to prove their worth as well,” said Rahman. “With the delay in the kick off (Premier League), it gives us more time to pick the best players we can get. We will not rush into signing any foreign player because we want to make sure he fits well into the team,” Rahman added. At the moment, Bosnian defender Dragic Dalibor is certain to don the Rhinos colours, and the Rhinos are looking for two more foreign players to fill in the three foreign import quotas for each team.

On the local players, Rahman said that it is a done deal, pointing out that upon signing the two foreign players, it would complete their jigsaw puzzle for the new season.

All the local players with the exception of Mohd Radzi Hussin, Ahmad Tharmini Saiban, David Johnny, Ebby Roy, Bobby Gonzalez and Rezuan Radzy Muhammad will make the trip to Tawau.

Radzi is sick while Tharmini is out injured. As for Bobby, he is currently with the national under-23 team while Ebby, David and Rezuan would have to work extra hard in fighting for a place in at least the top 18.

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HECTIC SCHEDULE

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah will be playing the first round of their Premier League 2007/08 campaign at the Tawau Sports Complex field.

The second round matches could also be played in Tawau unless the faulty Likas Stadium will be ready to host night matches.

However, Likas Stadium will be the venue for the second round.

“We have received a letter from the Sabah Sports Board stating that the Likas Stadium will be ready in February,” said the Sabah FA Executive Secretary Harry Baking.

“However, we have no idea on the exact date so we will be playing our first round matches all in Tawau,” he added.

For the new season, Sabah will kick-start their season against Armed Forces in an away battle at the Selayang Stadium on December 17.

They will play their first home match of the season on December 28 against Premier League debutants Proton FC.

The first round ends on February 22. The second round tie will be played three days later (Feb 25) which is likely to be held at the Likas Stadium.

Sabah will be playing six home matches in the first round and may play the first round of the FA Cup in Tawau when the competition starts in February.

A look at the fixtures, released by the Sabah FA office yesterday, one can see January as a hectic month for the Rhinos. They will be playing a total of six matches; three away and three at home.

There will be three matches in December, four in February and five matches each in March and April and one in May, which will be the final League game.

For the new season, a total of 13 teams will slog it out for the crown as well as the two promotional slots to the Super League. This includes two debutants, Proton FC who are the FAM Cup 2007 champions and Felda United.

The rest are Kuala Lumpur, Johor, ATM, Kelantan, Kuala Muda Naza, KL Plus, Selangor PKNS, Melaka, Shahzan Muda and National Under-19.

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Better to lose now than in the season

KOTA KINABALU: The Rhinos lost 1-3 to Brunei’s DPMM in a friendly match played in Labuan on Sunday, but the Rhinos’ head coach Drago Mamic is not too concerned about the outcome of the game.

The Croatian pointed out that the result is not important at this moment of time, as what matters most is their preparations ahead of the new season that kicks off on December 17.

He said it is better for the team to make mistakes now as they would have time to rectify it rather than during the season.

“I cannot be more satisfied than this,” he said, when commenting on the Rhinos’ friendly against the Super League outfit.

“We showed quality, especially in the second half and I thought we dominated about 75 per cent of the game.

“It is better to lose the game now so that we can work on our weaknesses. They (DPMM) are a good team, but we showed more quality,” Drago said.

“This game is only part of our preparations.

“We have quality and have a team who are playing football, but we must pay attention to individuals making mistakes which could cost the team valuable points,” he added.

The only disappointment of the game said Drago is the way the team conceded two early goals.

While not wanting to blame or point figures at anyone, Drago said that they just could not make such mistakes that resulted in their opponents scoring two easy goals.

On Sabah’s No 1 custodian, he said: “He is still very young, and I don’t want to blame him for the two goals, but he could have done better.”

“Nevertheless, it is good this is happening now so we have time to teach him.

“We need him because we have no other options. First he is still Under-21 and secondly he is the best that we have got.

“But we certainly need to work something in improving him and we have ways to improve him.

“He needs to grow as a player and needs to work hard because we have no time to tolerate a player committing the same mistake. “But I’m convinced he will be ready for action.

On the three strikers – a Brazilian, an Englishman and a Nigerian – Drago sees there is still a need to bring more strikers for trials.

While the Englishman – Jamie Phoenix a former Bolton Wanderers and England Under-17 player has caught his eyes, Drago insisted that the team need a more deadly man up front.

“The Englishman is showing something, but then again, a good player only needs one match to show his quality.

But nevertheless, Drago said he will have a good look at the trio in the next one or two weeks before making a recommendation to the team management.

On the Croatian striker he is recommending to the FA, Drago said that the ball is now in the team management’s court before the player in question would come to Sabah.

“Once I get the green light from the team management, then he (the Croatian striker) will come,” added Drago.

Sabah’s next friendly is up against an Indonesian side which will be played in Tawau on November 10.

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Sumardi turns back on Rhinos

KOTA KINABALU: Sumardi Hajalan has turned his back on his State team Sabah for the new season.

Instead the Tawau lad has decided to extend his contract with his current team Johor FC, who will be playing in the Super League.

The national left-back, who initially had expressed his desire to make a return to the State team, quietly signed for Johor FC, behind the back of the Sabah FA, who was willing to listen to his demands.

The Rhinos’ team manager Rahman Zakaria told the New Sabah Times Sport yesterday that Sumardi is “history” as far as they are concerned.

“He was the one who contacted us expressing his desire to play for the Sabah team for the new season.

“We told him he was more than welcome to join the team. After the national team played their World Cup qualifying round late last month, he contacted us again that he wanted to play for Sabah.

“And we were willing to listen to his demands. However, when we tried to contact him (last week) we could not get in touch with him. We tried several times, but to no avail.

“A reliable source told us that he had signed for Johor FC.

“We will not stop him from playing for other teams, but the way he treated us was just unacceptable. I think, as a player, he needs to be more professional.

“If he received a better offer elsewhere, we would be more than willing to listen to him. We will not stop him from deserting the team because we know this is his rice bowl.

“But what irked us is the way he tried to hide from us because in the first place it was him who contacted us – wanting to play for the State team,” said Rahman.

Sumardi is the second ex-Rhino to have turned his back on the State team. The other one was Madzalan Emoi who ironically also signed for Johor FC.

Meanwhile, Rahman revealed that the Rhinos would start their season on December 17.

He said that the Premier League would only kick off after the Sea Games in Korat.

Rahman said they were informed about the postponement to the start of the new season during the team managers’ meeting held at the national capital on Saturday.

However, Rahman said that the Super League would kick off in November where two matches will be played during this month before taking a break during the Sea Games.

In another development, Rahman pointed out that for the new season, it is compulsory for all teams to play one Under-21 player for the entire match.

“The player (Under-21) must play for the whole 90 minutes. If we want to substitute him, we must substitute him with another Under-21 player. In case there is no under-21 player on the bench, then the team will have to play with 10 men,” said Rahman.

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Duo on trials with Rhinos

KOTA KINABALU: Two strikers – an Englishman and a Brazilian hitman are the latest foreign hopefuls to attend trials with the Rhinos.

The duo arrived in the State Capital yesterday and will be put to test when the Rhinos take on Super League outfit DPMM of Brunei in a friendly match at the Labuan Sports Complex field tonight.

The 23-year-old Jamie Phoenix is a former England Under-17 player. He was with the Manchester City Youth team from 1994 to 1998 before signing for Bolton Wanderers (1998-2000).

After the Bolton Wanderers stint, he signed for Stafford Rangers before joining FC United of Manchester last year. He left United of Manchester early this year and signed for Dong Tap FC of the Vietnam Premier League before coming to Sabah.

The little known Brazilian – Paolo Di Oliveira – had played for a few top sides in the Brazilian League. He also has had stints with several clubs in Guatemala and El Salvador.

Assistant team manager Firdaus Datuk Anifah Aman said that they will have a close look at them before making any decision.

“We’ll give them enough time to prove their worth. Besides the Labuan trip, we will also be playing against an Indonesian club on November 10. We will also be using the match to try out the foreign imports,” Firdaus said.

Firdaus said they have named a 21-member squad for the Labuan trip including Jamie and Paolo.

The other foreign players in the team are Bosnian defender Dragic Dalibor and Nigerian striker Obasi Churchill Emmanuel.

While Dragic is almost certain to don the Rhinos colours, this trip could be the final place for Obasi to impress the FA selection panels.

The rest of the players making the trip are Irwan Jamil, Azrul Ejati Damsah, Harold John, Hisamuddin Othman, Mohd Munir Amran, Mohd Nafuzi Mohammad Zain, Wong Sai Kong, Chow Chee Wing, Radzi Mohd Hussin, Julamri Muhammad, Rosdin Wasli, Hardy Charles Parsi, Zainizam Marjan, Henry Parsi, Eddy Gapil, Salvester Sindeh and Zuraindey Jumai.

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Sabah take on Brunei in friendly on Sunday

Labuan: Fans here will be treated to a rare chance of watching "big time" football when two titans of the East - Sabah and Brunei clash in a friendly at the Sports Complex here on Sunday.

Both are first teams of the States. Sabah is represented by its Premiere League team and will be fielding its stars including former Brazilian striker from Flamingo - Gomez, Sumardi Hajln who last played for the under-23 national team, Nafuzi Zain from Kelantan, Wong Sui Kong of Perak, Nizamuddin from KL Plus.

While Brunei's Duli Paduka Mahamulia (DPMM) team would have its line-up of well-known players.

The friendly is organised by Langkah Aktif and MIC-Layang-Layang branch. Organising Chairman, Suresh Kumar said that some 2,000 entry tickets for students were sponsored by Langkah Aktik, while Sara Hotel (100), Pantai Enterprise (100), U Murni (150), Zafirah Const (150), Labuan Ferry Corporation (200) and Indera Jati (200).

Suresh said he expects a "full house" capacity crowd for the friendly which he said was the first such match to be held here.

He added that a thrilling game was in store because the friendly was a pre-season warm-up. The football season will commence on November 19th (Malaysian League). He said in the last league Sabah was at 2nd place in the Malaysia Cup, while Brunei was 3rd and had now advanced to Super League.

On the present on-going Division One league for Datuk Suhaili Cup, Suresh said that two semi-finals would be held on November 16th. The first was between Beverly FC (Sabah) against Flying Merlin (RMAF) while the other are St Labua against Beaufort Youth (Sabah).

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SABAH EYEING TOP CROATIAN STRIKER

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah is eyeing one of the top strikers in the Croatian First Division League. The New Sabah Times Sport can confirm that negotiations are ongoing with the striker in question. If the deal materialises, this is going to be a big catch for the Sabah FA, at least according to the Rhinos’ head coach Drago Mamic, who personally recommended the player.

“He is one of the top strikers in the Croatian League. I know him personally, but I’m not going to reveal his identity until everything is finalised,” Drago said. “At the moment, I can rate the negotiations as 70 percent done,” he added. According to Drago, he has the blessings from the team management as well as the FA’s top brass in negotiating with the player. “I’m getting very good support from the management as well as the President. They have given me a free hand, and I hope this deal will go through. Drago also hinted that besides the said player, a Serbian striker is also expected to be here for trials. As for the former Flamengo striker Flavio Barros as well as former Brazilian midfielder Zee Alias, both players are unlikely to come due to the fault of their agents.

Meanwhile, Drago said that the team’s preparations will go on as planned despite a possible postponement to the start of the new season. He said that he only needs to make a little adjustment if the Premier League kicks off in December instead of this month. On the possible postponement, he said that there is the positive effect as well as the negative effect.

The positive effect, he said, is that it will give all teams more time to prepare while the negative effect is that it might see tight fixtures for the new season. “Like the recent season, playing seven or eight games was just too taxing for the players. So I would rather start the season early than having to play seven to eight matches in a month.

Nevertheless, Drago said that he will leave it to the authority to decide, pointing out that what is important is for the team to prepare well ahead of the new season.

On the Rhinos’ upcoming friendly games against DPMM of Brunei on Nov 4 in Labuan and a club from Indonesia in Tawau on Nov 10, Drago said he will be using the two matches to fine tune the team. See Page 29

“I’ll be looking at technical and tactical aspects of the game. From now on we will be working on these areas,” he said. He also said that for the new season, he is not going to stick to one system, pointing out that he is still working on the best system that suits the players best. “This is not a mere one job because when you look at the players, some of them play well in the 4-4-2 formation but some play better if we play the 3-5-2 formation.

“So for the time being, we will play a few formations from 4-4-2, 3-5-2 and 3-4-3. It will depend on the availability of the players. “However, I will be looking to find a system that we will be sticking to, but this cannot be done in six months, as it takes some time to master it,” Drago said. Overall, Drago is happy with the development of the team thus far ahead of the new season.

Drago together with team manager Rahman Zakaria as well as the FA Executive Secretary Harry Baking will head to Kuala Lumpur today to attend the managers’ and coaches’ meeting.

The draw for the new season would also be held today.

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AMPLE TIME

KOTA KINABALU: The Rhinos may have an extra one month to prepare for the new season. It was learnt that the FA of Malaysia (FAM) will likely defer the Premier League’s kick off from November 19 to December with a date yet to be fixed.

However, no change is expected for the Super League as it is expected to kick off as scheduled on November 17. But then, the Super League will still get a break during the Korat Sea Games in December. Super League action will résumé soon after the Games.

For the record, the 24th Edition of the Sea Games in Korat, Thailand will be held from December 6 to 15. And it is likely that the Premier League will kick off once the Games are over; with December 17 as the likely date.

The Rhinos team manager Rahman Zakaria welcomed the postponement to December.

“If the Premier League starts in December it will give us more time to prepare, and of course it will do us good. It is also an opportunity for the players to try and improve themselves.

“Furthermore, if it starts in December, we’ll have ample time in signing foreign players as we are still looking for two more, and also with this breathing space we won’t be in a rush for any signings.

On their upcoming friendly matches against DPPM of Brunei and a club from Indonesia, Rahman said that it will go ahead as planned.

“We will be up against DPPM on November 4 in Labuan and will take on a club side from Indonesia on November 10 in Tawau,” said Rahman.

“And now we might consider hosting a quadrangular tournament if the Premier League kicks off in December,” Rahman added.

For the record, the draw for the new season will take place on November 3 in the national capital.

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