Kuching City FC v Kitchee: the stoppage-time lesson Kuching carry into matchday two

Kuching City FC host Kitchee at Stadium Taha Ariffin on 15 October, on the second matchday of their AFC Champions League Two group. They come into it beaten in their only group match so far, 2-1 away to Phnom Penh Crown at RSN Stadium in Phnom Penh on 17 September.

Stadium Astro, previewing this match, reported that the side coached by Aidil Sharin Sahak are still looking for a first win. That is the starting point for everything below: one match played, no points taken, and five group matches left to change it.

How the opener slipped away

The defeat in Phnom Penh was level for longer than the scoreline suggests. Phnom Penh Crown scored in the 55th minute, Kuching City FC equalised in the 73rd minute, and the winning goal came in the first minute of stoppage time. A side that had fought back from a goal down away from home lost the point in stoppage time.

There are two easy explanations of that night, and neither holds up. The first is that Kuching City FC were simply outclassed. The margin was one goal, and for the final part of normal time the match was all square. That is not what a one-sided match looks like. The second easy explanation is that the late goal was bad luck and nothing more. A goal conceded in added time is still a goal the defending side did not stop, and the only match of this campaign so far points to the closing minutes as the place where the result turned.

The real reasons, ranked, are these. First and most important, the score was level going into stoppage time and was not level at the end of it. Second, Kuching City FC fell behind first. The equaliser shows the response was there; the winner against them shows it was not enough to hold on.

What is at stake

The arithmetic is plain. Anything other than a defeat on 15 October gives Kuching City FC their first point of the group; a defeat would leave them with none from their first two matches.

The calendar adds weight all the same. After Kitchee, Kuching City FC face Gangwon FC twice: away at Chuncheon Songam Stadium in South Korea on 29 October, then at home at Taha Ariffin Stadium in Kuching on 5 November. Phnom Penh Crown visit Kuching on 26 November, and the group ends with the return against Kitchee at Mong Kok Stadium in Hong Kong on 3 December. Three of the five group matches still to come are at home, and this is the first of them.

Where it is played

Kuching City FC said in August that the Larkin stadium in Johor Bahru was its alternate venue, and that it could still host home games in Kuching. This fixture is set for Stadium Taha Ariffin, as are the club’s two later home group matches, both of which name Kuching as the city.

What will decide it

The question for Kuching City FC is not whether they can score in this competition; they did that in Phnom Penh. The question is a narrower one. Can they keep a level or better score through the final minutes, at home, when the match is there to be held?

StraitScore’s view: that is what will decide this match for the hosts. The only evidence this group has produced about Kuching City FC is a match that was level until stoppage time and lost in it. A team that has already shown it can answer a goal against it does not need to prove that again; it needs to show it can protect what it has once it has it. If the closing minutes on 15 October look different from the closing minutes on 17 September, that will be the clearest sign of progress this group can show.

Kuching City FC and Kitchee kick off at Stadium Taha Ariffin at 8.15pm Malaysian time on 15 October.