Cambodia strike late to hold Malaysia

 03 November 2013

A late equaliser saw Cambodia hold Malaysia to a 2-2 draw in the opening Group B match of the Mekong Region BIDC Cup Under-23 invitational competition at the National Stadium in Phnom Penh yesterday.National youth coach Ong Kim Swee's team appeared to be heading towards victory after Ahmad Hazwan Bakri gave Malaysia a 2-1 lead with nine minutes remaining only for the hosts to snatch a point with a stoppage-time strike.

A. Thamil Arasu opened the scoring when he put Malaysia ahead two minutes after half-time before Keo Sakngon drew Cambodia level just three minutes later.
In the absence of several regulars, Kim Swee is using the six-team tournament to give several fringe players a chance to stake a claim in the squad for next month's Sea Games
Sarawak winger Ashri Chuchu started for the national Under-23 team for the first time in over a year after recently recovering from injury and was joined in the first XI by Perak's Nasir Basharuddin and Japanese third-tier Ryukyu's Nazirul Naim Che Hashim.
Those missing from the squad include defenders Fadhli Shas, Zubir Azmi and K. Reuben, and midfielders S. Sivanesan, Nazmi Faiz Mansor and Syahrul Azwari Ibrahim, who are training with the national team, and injured duo Wan Zack Haikal Wan Nor and Junior Eldstal.
Malaysia play Laos tomorrow where a draw would be enough to seal a place in Friday's semi-finals. By Devinder Singh