Negeri Sembilan FC 1-1 Sabah FC: a substitute's penalty, and a lead that did not last

Negeri Sembilan FC and Sabah FC drew 1-1 at the Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium in Seremban on 17 October. Each side got something it had been asking for, and neither got enough.

How it went

The first half belonged to the visitors on the scoreboard. Yamamoto was booked for Sabah FC at 25’. Di Renzo then put them ahead at 45+2’, so they led at the interval.

The second half turned on the home bench. Motika came on for Minagawa at 59’, and it was Motika who levelled from the penalty spot. Stadium Astro reported that the penalty was given after a VAR review found that Fazrul Danel of Sabah FC had handled the ball.

After the equaliser, Negeri Sembilan FC sent on Kamara for Hakim at 75’. At 84’ they made three changes at once: Piee for Oshiro, Mutalib for Rashid and Sasaki for Azizol. Sabah FC replaced Zulkifi with Roslan at 77’ and Abdullah with Batuil at 79’. Lim was booked for Sabah FC at 86’, and nothing changed on the scoreboard after that. Both sides were booked: Negeri Sembilan FC’s 2 bookings and Sabah FC’s 2 bookings.

What each coach wanted

The build-up explains why this result reads differently at each end. The Malaysian Football League’s preview of the match said that under head coach Daniel Gimenez, Negeri Sembilan FC had not yet won a league match on the pitch: their one win was awarded for the match against Kuala Lumpur City on 22 August, which was never played. Gimenez, Spanish by that account, told it that building a team with new ideas, players and coaches takes time. A draw does not change that count.

At the other end, Sabah FC coach Juan Torres told the Malaysian Football League that his side had often conceded first, and that he wanted them disciplined enough not to. They had lost their two league matches before this one, 2-0 at home to Kuching City FC on 5 September and 2-1 at home to DPMM FC on 13 September. Here they scored first. It was not enough to win.

So why did a match that Sabah FC led at half-time end level?

Why it ended level

The easy answer is the new forward. It does not hold. Gimenez had described Kamara, the French-born attacker, as an important addition who might not yet be ready to be listed. He came on at 75’, after the equaliser had already gone in.

The other easy answer is that Sabah FC slipped back into the habit their coach had named. They did the opposite of that habit: they scored first, and the match turned only in the second half.

The real reasons, ranked. Above all, the penalty: the goal came from the spot, after the VAR review that Stadium Astro described. Next, the bench: the scorer was a substitute, on at 59’. Last, the lead itself. Sabah FC took it at the very end of the first half and held it into the second, but not to the end.

There is a smaller story inside the changes too. Negeri Sembilan FC’s own site had said on 15 October that Takumi Sasaki, a midfielder recovering from a hamstring injury suffered in August, might not be fit in time for this match. He came on for Azizol at 84’.

Where it leaves them

The point keeps Sabah FC fourth in the Malaysia Super League, with seven points from five matches. Kuching City FC, third, have 12. Negeri Sembilan FC are ninth, with five points from five matches. The two sides had also drawn 1-1 at Likas Stadium on 28 February 2026.

Negeri Sembilan FC travel to DPMM FC at the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium in Bandar Seri Begawan on 30 October, kicking off at 4pm Malaysian time. Sabah FC host Terengganu FC at Likas Stadium in Kota Kinabalu on 31 October, kicking off at 7.30pm.

Verdict

StraitScore’s view: Sabah FC fixed the problem their coach named and still left Seremban with a single point, so the work Torres described is only half done. Negeri Sembilan FC owe their point to a substitute and a VAR review. That rescued the afternoon, but it is a thin base for a side still waiting for a win earned on the pitch.