Fadhil Yunus
Brunei Darussalam’s national futsal team continued their campaign in the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Futsal Championship 2022 with a heavy 12-0 defeat to Indonesia in Group ‘A’ at the Huamark Indoor Stadium yesterday.
The national team nearly got on the score-board after hitting both the post and crossbar in either side of the half through Zairul Hazmin Saifuddin and team captain Azizam bin Roslan.
Brunei forward Awangku Muhammad Naqib Pengiran Timbang – the last national player to score against Timor Leste in 2018 – forced Indonesia goalkeeper Muhammad Albagir into making a rare save on another occasion.
However, the dominant Indonesians sent an instant reminder of their unrelenting threat after forward Holypaul Septinus Soumilena fired home a ferocious drive, leaving Brunei goalkeeper Muhammad Nabil bin Haji Maidin hapless.
The Indonesians doubled the lead moments later orchestrated by a simple set-piece move later as Holypaul Septinus effortlessly guided the ball home for his second of the game.
The third Indonesian goal was cleverly manufactured characterised by intelligent play and meticulous decision-making. Indonesia forward Rio Pangestu Putra had options on the flanks but chose to go alone. While the manner of his finish was undoubtedly pure and true, it was the way he utilised space that allowed him an unobstructed view on goal.
While he was attacking with the ball, his teammate Syauqi Saud – who had just been summoned to the pitch – made an overlapping run and pulled in Abdul Malik bin Yunus who was initially defending Rio Pangestu.
As he noticed that Syauqi was galloping, a brief moment of confusion when he appeared to turn away from Rio Pangestu saw the Indonesian make a decisive move before firing home.
Indonesia goalkeeper Muhammad Albagir made an accurate pass to Dewa Rizki Amanda who chested the ball before teeing off captain Sunny Rizky Suhendra for a simple finish.
Brunei conceded from a set-piece as Syauqi Saud was left wide open and punished the defence with an improvised finish. The Wasps had an opportunity to get their first goal of the tournament but Zairul Hazmin Saifuddin hit the post.
With the team possessing individuals with dribbling qualities, Indonesia forward Ardiansyah showed quick feet to leave his marker for dead before rifling an unstoppable shot past Muhammad Nabil.
There was still time for Indonesia to add to their collection before the first half drew to a close as Syauqi cheekily lobbed the ball into the net.
The Garuda continued where they left off early in the second half when Ardiansyah Nur bundled home the rebound after Holypaul Septinus had hit the post.
The second half saw Brunei appearing to be more adventurous in their attack as Azizam saw his shot inadvertently crash against the bar from an acute angle.
Dewa Rizki Amanda joined in the act with a neat finish to add to his earlier assist before coming back to terrorise the Bruneian defence again with a clinical effort.
With only one Bruneian defender separating between Ardiansyah and Syauqi, the duo exchanged a neat one-two with the former applying a routine finish to make it double digits for Indonesia.
In the final minutes, midfielder Khalil Saab became the third player to score an own goal in the competition.
Meanwhile, the other Group ‘A’ fixture saw defending champions Thailand strengthen their grip at the top of the table following a 16-0 dismantling of Cambodia.
The Wasps will next play Cambodia today before concluding their campaign against Malaysia tomorrow.
