Like the first few buds of greenery sprouting out of the ground after a long winter's thaw, the 80th edition of the prestigious Malaysia Cup tournament dawned upon MyTeam after a month and a half of contemplatious solitude in the aftermath of the Super League struggles. A new competition brings along with it a chance of new unbounded glory in as yet unchartered territory, with the scars and bumps of growing up in the Super League etched upon the hearts of all involved. First up on the list, the Premier League Armed Forces, a team considered if one can respectfully say, as little more than cannon fodder for the other teams in this group, but to borrow a cliche, one that must not allow oneself to be chocked upon.

New life, new hope and bearing the national call-up and the recently concluded SUKMA in mind, the personnel reads firstly with Faizal Rashid being given the nod to assume the goalkeeping mantle given Syed Adney’s yoyo form while on duty with the National team in the recently concluded Inter-Continental cup, with a backline made up of Azrul Azmi and Mijo Dadic in the middle, Aslam Najumudeen on the left and Juzaili Samion on the right side completing the quartet. The middle of the park duties fell to Shakir Shaari and captain Khaironnisam Sahabudin, with Norshahrul Idlan Talaha on the left flank and Azzamudin Akil on his opposite side. The shaft of the weapon wielded by Bojan tonight is spearheaded by the twin strikeforce of Edvaldo Goncalves and Sasa Branezac.

The scarlet army looks eager to trample the visitors underfoot from the word go, and the proceedings duly started in the 5th minute with a charge by Shakir, his searching pass from the middle ripping through to find Edvaldo drifting on the left flank. The Brazilian utilises his strength and speed guilefully to pull back a square pass to a lurking Sasa inside the box, but the Montenegrin's left footer sadly zoomed over the bar. A further underlining of MyTeam's intent was signalled in the next minute. Juzaili stealthily smuggling the ball to quicksilver Azzamudin on the right. The impish winger does what surely is as natural as breathing to him, skinning Forces’ Saiful Nizam before sending in a low grounder only just grasped by keeper Rahman Baba with Edvaldo's stance already adjusted to slam the ball in.

Bojan's boys, understandably wore the look of bloodlust and in the 11th minute, another offensive was launched and from the unlikeliest of sources too. Faizal's goalkick sails across everyone's head to the path of Edvaldo, whose knockdown header immediately releases Sasa with a genuine chance. The opening night jitters got to him in the end, however, his floated attempt ending up on the wrong side of the bar. Armed Forces were soaking up the pressure like sponge to water, and in the 13th minute, they began to unleash the weapons in their arsenal. Shahrul Nizam Mohd strides from his leftback position, his short pass to captain Zool Ihsan allowing for him to twist and turn his way through the middle before laying it on to Fadzli Ghazali outside the box. Fadzli creates enough opening for himself to shoot from outside the box, but his shot lacked any power and Faizal could have downed a burger and some fries waiting for it to trickle to him. The servicemen came again in the 18th minute, Zool calmly shepherding the ball out of his own half, before releasing Mafry Balang who cuts diagonally across from the right before slamming the ball straight into Faizal's waiting arms.

So, the Army boys want a fight, do they? Then, some fight, they'll get. Bojan's scarlet army upped their tempo in the 22nd minute, led by example by Khaironisam who wins the ball with a crunching tackle. Pounced upon by Juzaili, the attack reached another level of crescendo with a far post cross whipped in fury by Norshahrul from the right, forcing a cursing Saiful to run helter skelter to fuse out the danger with Sasa already lurking for a corner. Sasa found himself down alone on the ground in the ensuing corner, an act gone almost unnoticed in the bustle of the penalty area melee, but as the ball was cleared, Kharonnisam chips it back into play to Edvaldo sprinting in from the left with the whole Forces defence screaming for offside. Suhhaimi Ishak had no alternative but to bring Edvaldo down inside the box to the delirium of the home fans. The bleach haired no 15 steps up to take the spotkick, and ladies and gentlemen, the virgin goal of the Malaysia Cup campaign goes to Sasa, his left footer whacked with aplomb to send the whole bench bonkers. That felt good. Nothing like the Viagra of an early goal to harden one's resolve and in the 28th minute, another chance for further penetration presented itself to the boys in red. Suhhaimi, clearly head still reeling from
that body blow of a goal, muffs up a routine backpass, his prod felled short of intended target Rahman, and Azzamudin finds himself clean through. Rahman was quick of his line, however, and smothered it as Azzamudin tried to dribble past him.

Appetite’s whetted, the night's proceedings turned into a one way traffic into the direction of the Forces goalmouth. Norshahrul wriggles free on the right in the 32nd minute, feeding it off to Shakir who sprays the ball with ease to Sasa who had to contend with Mafry and Nazry Akui in hot pursuit. Two man on his back, no problem, but they did just enough to force Sasa into a hurried shot over the bar. Even the backline were joining in the charge into the fray, Mijo sweeping it out of his half in the 34th minute to Khaironnisam to find Edvaldo. A breathtaking reverse pass immediately releases Sasa, who cuts in shrugging of the attentions of Saiful only to place his shot too close to Rahman's body. A quick throw from Faizal opened the gates for another attempt from the home side, Azzamudin receiving the ball on the halfway line on the 36th minute before scampering away like some Mat Rempit biker on the left flank, cutting through Shahrul Nizam like he didnt exist before a woeful curler sailed away into the night sky. The wind was clearly in MyTeam's sails and the Military men were reduced to crouching in their bunkers from the blitzkrieg, as the next bombardment commenced in the following minute. Shakir's short prod to Sasa through the middle was wittily knocked over to the left flank, Azzamudin again the benefactor but just as the second goal was about to be born, James Mooney saved Forces with the most desperate of tackles to deny the no. 4. A wild shot by Suhhaimi outside the area in the 38th minute after a Zool throughball was the only evidence left that Forces was still alive, their scheming’s and plotting’s thrown to the winds by the scarlet army.

The left flank proved the base from which MyTeam's next attack was launched. Norshahrul feeding an overlapping Aslam who caresses the ball as smoothly as a emperor would a concubine before opening up play to Azzamudin in the 40th minute, who taps it onto the path of an onrushing Juzaili to whips in a cross from the right. Rahman strings across to claim it but suddenly developed a case of butterfingers and the dropped ball fell onto the path of Sasa who sadly lost his balance earlier. He still manages to stamp a shot through but unfortunately, it hits Rahman with more luck than judgement. The sands of time were slowly draining out of the first half , and in their eagerness to apply the mortal blow, a routine backpass in the 44th minute to Mijo was muffed up horibbly forcing Faizal to clear with feet from Johairi Ahmad but only as far as Fainizam Nordin who thankfully shoots over. It proved the last act of the half, a warning to Bojan's boys as they trooped off not to puff up their chests too much, a scorpion can still sting you even if you already have your foot over it.

The second half started with that a sign that, that warning was clearly heeded, Norshahrul feeding the ball to a tireless running Aslam, who rides past Saiful's tackle like a Californian surfer dude does a wave, but his low grounder from the right was claimed in the nick of time by Rahman just as Edvaldo's feet was about to make the fateful contact. Forces also showed that they were in no mood to be polite guests, as a Zool throughball into the box had the defence in their sixes and sevens before a half clearance by Mijo in the 49th minute was snapped up by Suhhaimi, forcing Faizal into a flying save, and he completes his Peter Schmeichel impersonation with a berating sermon to his rearguard.

Khaironnisam lives up to the captain's armband in the 50th minute, his ball passing skills setting the stage for a sublime Sasa run past three Forces defenders but he wastefully shoots into Rahman when it seemed all the harder work was done. Forces were breathing down on MyTeam's neck, and in the next minute their fangs so nearly ruptured a vein. A Suhhaimi pass to Johairi sees him gliding past marker Mijo before presenting it on a plate to Zool, who shoots just over with the MyTeam defence already lying spreadeagled and waiting to be had. Kharonnisam was seething with anger at Forces’ insolence and one can almost feel his Chi emanating from his body as he chips a sweet ball through the Forces backline for a drifting Sasa in the 50th minute, forcing Saiful to concede a corner. Substitutte Bunyamin only on five minutes earlier so nearly stabbed a second dagger into Forces' heart, his header of Norshahrul's corner headed off the line by Suhhaimi. The scarlet army's battle bugle was in full cry in the next minute, as Edvaldo shot was blocked by the bodies in the box only as far as Bunyamin whose attempt also went the same way before Sasa's shot flashes oh, just wide as the Forces coach must have been reduced to thumb sucking from that charge.

He would have run out of thumbs to suck and fingernails to bite as the match wore on as Bunyamin revels in his love affair with the pitch spraying it to Norshahrul on the right who swerves like a John Travolta wannabee before squaring the ball to Sasa in the 61st minute. Rahman's body must have hated him by now as he dives onto the floor again to deny Sasa. His colleagues took heart from his sacrifices, and in the 70th minute, a blistering counterattack sees Aslam conceding a freekick outside the box from Suhhaimi's drive. Zool lasts the freekick diagonally across but his team mates just were not there to take advantage. Forces were growing bolder and bolder and their passing was executed with more intent and purpose, and in the 72nd minute, Zool, who just about seemed unable not to be involved in an Forces offence, cuts the ball back for Suhaimmi to squeeze through to Johairi whose shot already had the Forces fans on their feet before it flies wide. The fresh legs of substitutte Haris tipped the fragile balance of the scales into MyTeam's favour, dancing his way in the 75th minute past 2 defenders before a cultured curler looks to be on its way in from Edvaldo's pass, but Rahman suddenly sprouted wings and flies off into a one handed save. There was more to come from the Haris & Edvaldo combo, the Brazillian's pass to the pint-sized forward in the 78th minute cut back onto the path of a galloping Bunyamin, who feints a shot before completing the triangle move by setting up Edvaldo, only for him to spurn it wide. The next minute saw another attempt, Rahman's goalkick killed stone dead by Norshahrul who zips past Mooney before planting his shot onto the stands.

The final 10 minutes dawned with the match still balanced precariously and Haris's fresh legs shone like a beacon in the dark as he won another corner for Myteam in the 86th minute, cutting in like saw through wood on the right channel. Norshahrul whacks in an outswinger from the left all the way for Juzaili to smash into the bodies inside the box before Edvaldo touches it in, only for the goal to be ruled offside as Bojan treats the watching fans to a tirade of Croatian swear words. One last charge up the hill for Forces in the 88th minute and Zool's short pass feeds Mazeri Izwan whose pass breaks through to Nazri, and with time appearing to be standing still, he shoots wide. Kilometres have been covered and litres of sweat have been drenched to the ground in Bojan's boys endavour to protect their lead, and the footballing gods decided to reward them in injury time. Khaironnisam's stretch disposses Zool of the ball for Edvaldo to wave his magic like Picasso with a brush, and subtitutte Azmi sprints clear from 20 metres out to weave past Rahman and slot into an empty net. Game set and MyTeam wins the match.

So there you go, MyTeam’s Malaysia Cup campaign off to a flying start against the underlings of Armed Forces in a gritty performance interspersed with moments of brilliance, catapulting MyTeam into the pretty zone at the top of the Group C standings, a place Bojan would his give left leg for to see it maintained throughout the duration of coming weeks. A fresh start obliterating the exasperation of the Super League run in. A clean sheet, an early goal and good interchagebility within the personnel are definite plus points that must not be lost. Next up, the Northern Lions in their own den, and whose to say whether that line will inspire fear or draw inspiration? Come on, MyTeam make it the latter.