27 JUN 1979 – PEMBUKAAN TIRAI PESTABOLA MERDEKA
45 tahun lalu pada hari ini, Pestabola Merdeka 1979 membuka tirai dengan perlawanan antara Malaysia A dan Jepun. Pesaing jemputan tersebut seri bersama Malaysia A 1-1 di mana kedua-dua goal dijaringkan pada separuh masa pertama.
Abdullah Ali berjaya menjaringkan gol Harimau Malaya pada minit ke-19 sebelum Jepun menyamakan kedudukan melalui Hideki Maeda lapan minit kemudian.
Pestabola Merdeka telah memasuki edisi ke-23 pada tahun 1979. Walaupun masih dianggap sebagai kejohanan berprestij di rantau Asia, terdapat perbincangan tentang sama ada idea yang tercetus dari Tunku Abdul Rahman itu telah melepasi zaman kegemilangannya. Pada tahun sebelumnya, Persatuan Bolasepak Malaysia dalam usahanya untuk menaikkan taraf kejohanan telah menawarkan hadiah wang tunai kepada pemenang buat kali pertama.
Sebelum Pestabola Merdeka 1979 bermula, perhatian tertumpu kepada juara bertahan dua kali berturut-turut Korea Selatan yang menjadi pasukan kegemaran untuk membawa pulang Piala Merdeka sekali lagi Sementara itu, kali terakhir Malaysia telah dinobatkan juara adalah pada 1976, selepas menewaskan Jepun 2-0 pada perlawanan akhir.
Edisi kali ini menyaksikan lapan pasukan bertanding termasuk Jepun, Myanmar, Indonesia, Singapura, Thailand, Korea Selatan, Malaysia A dan Malaysia B.
Dibimbing oleh ketua jurulatih Mohamad Bakar, skuad penuh Malaysia A terdiri daripada R. Arumugam, Hamid Ramli, Mokhtar Dahari, Soh Chin Ann, Tony Wong, Bakri Ibni, Abdullah Ali, Kamaruddin Mohd Noor, Hassan Yahaya, Spawi Joll, Jamal Nasir, Hussein Muhd, Ramli Abdullah, Abdah Alif, Shukor Salleh, Wan Jamak, Razali Zinin, dan G. Torairaju.
Manakala pemain-pemain Malaysia B terdiri daripada Lim Chuan Chin, Ong Yu Tiang, Khalid Ali, Talib Sulaiman, Aziz Mahmud, D. Devendran, Ibrahim Saad, Ho Hon Seong, Yunus Alif, Wong Hung Hung, Tajuddin Noor, Jamaluddin Norbit, Remeli Junit, Tukamin Bahari, Zulkifle Hamzah dan Fadzil Ismail.
Nantikan paparan kami yang seterusnya. Kami akan teruskan mengimbas kembali perjalanan Harimau Malaya di Pestabola Merdeka 1979.
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45 years ago on this day, the 1979 Merdeka Tournament opened with a match between Malaysia A and Japan. The visiting team held Malaysia to a 1-1 draw, with both goals scored in the first half.
The Harimau Malaya team scored first with a 19th minute goal from Abdullah Ali while Japan managed to equalise eight minutes later through Hideki Maeda.
In 1979, the Merdeka Tournament was in its 23rd year. While it was still considered a prestigious tournament in the Asian region, there was talk about whether or not Tunku Abdul Rahman’s brainchild was past its prime. The year prior, FAM raised the stakes by introducing a cash prize of its winner.
Two-time defending champions South Korea were already a popular vote to win again before the tournament started. Meanwhile, Malaysia were last crowned champions in 1976 after defeating Japan 2–0 in the final.
This edition saw eight teams competing, which comprised Japan, Myanmar, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, South Korea, Malaysia A and Malaysia B.
Coached by Mohamad Bakar, Malaysia A’s full squad included R. Arumugam, Hamid Ramli, Mokhtar Dahari, Soh Chin Ann, Tony Wong, Bakri Ibni, Abdullah Ali, Kamaruddin Mohd Noor, Hassan Yahaya, Spawi Joll, Jamal Nasir, Hussein Muhd, Ramli Abdullah, Abdah Alif, Shukor Salleh, Wan Jamak, Razali Zinin, and G. Torairaju.
Meanwhile, the Malaysia B team consisted of Lim Chuan Chin, Ong Yu Tiang, Khalid Ali, Talib Sulaiman, Aziz Mahmud, D. Devendran, Ibrahim Saad, Ho Hon Seong, Yunus Alif, Wong Hung Hung, Tajuddin Noor, Jamaluddin Norbit, Remeli Junit, Tukamin Bahari, Zulkifle Hamzah and Fadzil Ismail.
Stay tuned as we continue to recap Harimau Malaya’s journey at the 1979 Merdeka Tournament.
