2013 LionsXII season

The 2013 season was LionsXII's 2nd season in the Malaysia Super League, when they won their first MSL title.

LionsXII
2013 season
ChairmanZainudin Nordin
ManagerV. Sundramoorthy
StadiumJalan Besar Stadium
Malaysia Super League1st
Malaysia FA Cup1st round
Malaysia CupQuarter-finals
Top goalscorerLeague:
Shahril Ishak (8)
All:
Shahril Ishak (9)

LionsXII were set a target of finishing in the top five for the 2013 Malaysia Super League.[1] Five senior players, namely Shahril Ishak, Isa Halim, Fazrul Nawaz, Irwan Shah and Baihakki Khaizan were included in the 29-man squad,[2][3] while oher key players such as Shahdan Sulaiman and Shaiful Esah were left out. The main aim was to develop the U-23 players and prepare them for the upcoming 2013 Southeast Asian Games held in Myanmar at the end of the year.

Malaysia Super League

LionsXII began their campaign by defeating ATM FA 1–0 away. Subsequently, they vanquished the nation's traditional rivals Selangor FA. However, LionsXII stumbled to three losses against lowly T-Team FC and PKNS FC away. One sent them crashing out of the 2013 Malaysia FA Cup. In a turn of events, LionsXII went on a long unbeaten streak, securing important wins over Pahang FA (3–0), Kelantan FA (1–0), and ATM FA (3–1) at home.[4]

On 2 July 2013, a 4–0 win over relegation-threatened FELDA United FC in the penultimate league game made LionsXII league champions.[5] Singapore's Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong was present for the match played in front of a sold-out crowd at the Jalan Besar Stadium. The MSL trophy was also brought to the stadium as the LionsXII received it on home soil after the final whistle. LionsXII became the first foreign team to win the MSL, adding to the four Malaysian league titles it had won in 1979, 1981, 1985, and 1994. The title run was defined by a combination of good defence (15 goals conceded, the best record in the MSL) and goals from set-pieces (17 out of 32). The club chalked up their best home record (10 wins and 1 draw) in the league, making Jalan Besar Stadium a fortress.

The news of V. Sundramoorthy leaving to helm Negeri Sembilan FA was confirmed on 7 October 2013.[6] On 13 October, the Football Association of Singapore posted an advertisement openly to recruit the succeeding LionsXII coach. Former Johor Darul Takzim coach and ex-Singapore international Fandi Ahmad is speculated to take over the position.[7] Other candidates include former Warriors FC coach Richard Bok[8] and Liverpool F.C. stalwart Steve McMahon.

Date Pos. Opponents H/A Score Goalscorers
9 Jan5th ATM A 0–1 Shahril 66'
12 Jan2nd Selangor H 1–0 Fazrul 23'
15 Jan4th PKNS A 1–0
19 Jan3rd Terengganu H 2–1 Safuwan 64', Syafiq 74'
22 Jan4th T-Team A 1–0
16 Feb2nd Pahang H 3–0 Faris 12', Safuwan 64', Fazrul 76'
19 Feb2nd Johor Darul Takzim A 2–2 Hariss 4', Baihakki 38'
2 Mar3rd FELDA United A 0–0
9 Mar3rd Kelantan H 1–0 Shahfiq 87'
30 Mar1st Negeri Sembilan H 1–0 Shahril 79'
6 Apr1st Perak H 2–1 Shahril 7', 57'
13 Apr1st Negeri Sembilan A 1–1 Fazrul 19'
20 Apr1st ATM FA H 3–1 Shahfiq 27', 70', Shahril 45'+1 (pen.)
27 Apr1st Selangor A 0–0
7 May1st Terengganu A 1–2 Baihakki 78', Hasmizan 90'+1 (o.g.)
11 May1st T-Team H 3–0 Shahril 9', Shakir 28', Fazrul 35'
17 May1st Pahang A 1–1 Shahril 11'
27 May1st PKNS H 3–1 Hariss 54', Nazrul 58', Khairul Nizam 89'
22 Jun1st Johor Darul Takzim H 1–1 Safuwan 82'
25 Jun1st Perak A 1–1 Shahfiq 75'
2 Jul1st FELDA United H 4–0 Azrul 46' (o.g.), Shahril 57', Fazrul 61', Shahfiq 83'
6 Jul1st Kelantan A 2–0

Final standings

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 LionsXII[lower-alpha 1] 22 12 7 3 32 15 +17 43
2 Selangor 22 10 10 2 31 17 +14 40 2014 AFC Cup group stage
3 Johor Darul Takzim 22 11 7 4 32 26 +6 40
4 Kelantan 22 10 6 6 32 20 +12 36 2014 AFC Cup group stage[lower-alpha 2]
5 Pahang 22 10 5 7 36 32 +4 35
Source: RSSSF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored
Notes:
  1. LionsXII was not eligible for any AFC competition spots as they were a foreign side.
  2. Qualified as 2013 Piala FA winners

Malaysia FA Cup

Following inclement weather and a water-logged pitch, the match against PKNS was abandoned in the 38th minute with PKNS leading 1–0.[9] The scoreline was reset for the rescheduled match but the teams had to submit the same starting line-ups. LionsXII were forced to bring on two substitutes in Faris Azienuddin and Izzdin Shafiq in the first minute as initial players Faritz Hameed and Shahril Ishak were unavailable. Raihan Rahman was dismissed for a second yellow card in the 24th minute with his first caution from the abandoned match carrying over. Fauzan Dzulkifli scored the only goal in the match to knock the Lions out of the competition.[10]

Date Round Opponents H/A Score Goalscorers
26 Jan Round 1 PKNS A 1–0

Malaysia Cup

On 27 July, LionsXII were drawn into Group D for the 2013 Malaysia Cup with Perak FA, Sarawak FA and Kedah FA. They drew Kedah (2–2) in Singapore and succumbed to two collapses against Perak (1–0) and Sarawak (2–1). With those results, they nearly bowed out of the tournament. At that time, coach V. Sundramoorthy was rumoured to leave LionsXII at the end of the season to take charge of Malaysian Premier League side Negeri Sembilan FA.[11]On the contrary, LionsXII eked out three victories (2–1 versus Perak,[12] 1–0 versus Sarawak and 3–1 versus Kedah which marked the biggest away accomplishment of the season) out of the three remaining games to progress to the next round.

On 28 September, LionsXII narrowed a 1–0 victory over ATM FA in the first leg of the quarter-finals of the 2013 Malaysia Cup but squandered to a 1–4 mauling to the Gladiators in the return tie on 4 October.

Date Round Opponents H/A Score Goalscorers
20 Aug Group stage Kedah H 2–2 Shahril 10', Shahfiq 64'
24 Aug Group stage Sarawak A 2–1 Safuwan 76'
27 Aug Group stage Perak A 1–0
31 Aug Group stage Perak H 2–1 Hariss 61', Safuwan 84'
18 Sep Group stage Sarawak H 1–0 Fazrul 63'
21 Sep Group stage Kedah A 1–3 Hariss 23', Baihakki 37', Hafiz 65'
28 Sep Quarter-finals ATM H 1–0 Madhu 39'
4 Oct Quarter-finals ATM A 4–1 Hafiz 48'

Squad statistics
Squad
No.		 Pos. Name Malaysia Super League Malaysia FA Cup Malaysia Cup Total Discipline
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
1GKIzwan Mahbud 210108030010
2DFShakir Hamzah 141008022130
3DFFaris Azienuddin 4010005000
4MFIsa Halim 210108030050
5DFBaihakki Khaizan 1521081243131
6DFMadhu Mohana 4000317131
7FWGabriel Quak 110103015010
8MFHafiz Abu Sujad 1801072262110
9DFFaritz Hameed 160107024030
10FWFazrul Nawaz 185107126631
11MFSafirul Sulaiman 160000016020
13MFIzzdin Shafiq 90101011000
14DFHariss Harun (vc) 162008224430
15MFZulfahmi Arifin 5000308020
16MFFazli Ayob 1000102010
16*DFRaihan Rahman 4010005021
17FWShahril Ishak (c) 218106128920
18GKKhairulhin Khalid 2000002000
19DFIrwan Shah 150102018020
20FWQuentin Chen 3100104100
21DFSafuwan Baharudin 183107226590
22FWRandy Pay 0000000000
22*FWIqbal Hussain 1000001000
23DFNazrul Nazari 151006021140
24FWFaris Ramli 81006014100
25DFAli Hudzaifi Yusof 2000002000
26MFShahfiq Ghani 135006119631
27MFAqhari Abdullah 4010308020
28GKNeezam Aziz 0000000000
29GKSyed Sufian 0000000000
30FWSyafiq Zainal 8100109100
31DFFariss Hamran 0000000000

  Registered mid-season window
  De-registered mid-season window

  • Five senior players aged 23 and over were included in the 2013 squad.

Statistics accurate as of match played 4 October 2013[13]

References
  1. "Top-five target for LionsXII | The New Paper". Archived from the original on 12 February 2013. Retrieved 28 February 2014.
  2. "LionsXII 2013 unveiled". LionsXII official website. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  3. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 8 March 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. Malaysian coaches concede MSL title is Singapore's – TODAYonline, 27 June 2013
  5. "Football: LionsXII crowned Malaysian Super League champions". Channel NewsAsia. Channel NewsAsia. Archived from the original on 4 July 2013. Retrieved 3 July 2013.
  6. "Sundram leaves LionsXII | Goal.com".
  7. "FAS refute claim that Fandi is next LionsXII coach".
  8. http://voxsports.co/football/s-league-most-successful-coach-richard-bok-declares-interest-for-lionsxii-post
  9. "PKNS – LionsXII match called off due to heavy rain". Goal. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
  10. "PKNS 1–0 LionsXII: Red Ants send LionsXII crashing out of FA Cup". Goal. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
  11. Nair, Sanjay (29 August 2013). "LionsXII coach Sundramoorthy set to join Negeri Sembilan after Malaysia Cup". The Straits Times.
  12. "Football: LionsXII eke out 2-1 win over Perak, win a crucial boost to Malaysia Cup campaign". The Straits Times. 31 August 2013.
  13. "Season 2013/14 – Appearances and Goalscorers". Retrieved 1 September 2013.
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