Durakovic laments Perak's profligacy in front of goal

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 BY       OOI KIN FAI      Follow on Twitter

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Perak's hope of finding their home league win under the guidance of Mehmet Durakovic was smashed as T-Team rose from their first half disappointment to take a 1-2 lead going into injury time in the second half. However, Perak was awarded a late penalty which Hadi Yahya converted to save the face of the home side.

The 2-2 draw against a team five rungs below in the league table was not what the doctor prescribed and Durakovic was also puzzled as to the difference in performance of his team before and after the half time break. The Australian was left ruing the lost two points against the Titans.

"In all honesty, I was really happy in the first half. We played so well in the first half. In the second half, it was basically a couple of mistakes and we conceded a couple of silly goals. At least my players pushed on to get the equaliser and we did but we should have gotten three points," said Durakovic in the post-match press conference.

While Yashir Pinto did get on the score sheet in the first half, the other Perak forwards especially Faton Toski and Vladislav Mirchev were a shadow of the best self. Chance and chance went begging in the first half and in the end, it proved costly for the home side.

"That is what [missing chances] is happening the last few games. We have so many chances but we didn't put the ball into the net and that put the pressure on the defenders. If you don't score sooner or later, they will have chances and that's what happened," added Durakovic.

The former Selangor head coach was also particularly displeased of the conditions that the game was played. Showers in the evening meant that the pitch was taking in a lot of water prior to the match and the ground cut up badly as the game progressed, something which Durakovic points to as a factor hampering their second half. 

"I think in the second half especially where we played, the pitch was very very heavy. We made a couple of mistakes and they caught us on the break. I don't want to make excuses but it was not the best pitch to play football," explained Durakovic.

As for team captain, Shahrom Kalam, it was a mixed bag of emotions after the match. Shahrom's missed interception allowed Fakhrurazi Musa the chance to score the second goal and the centre back wants the team to draw on the good character not to give up until the final whistle.

"First of all, it's a disappointment to only get a point because we are playing at home. But it's good character to draw it so late in the game. We'll need to continue improving and remain positive for the next game," said Shahrom.

Shahrom also went on to say that his team should not underestimate teams from lower positions in the table as doing that may come back to haunt them during matches. With Sarawak on the horizon, it's a similar situation for Shahrom and his team in the next match.

"We have to look at game by game. For me, it's not easy to play against these lower teams. They are the underdogs and have nothing to lose, so they will fight very hard," added Shahrom.

Perak last win in all competitions was the 1-0 away win against Selangor on 4th March.