KUALA LUMPUR – Selangor FC head coach Nidzam Jamil has assured that some of the club’s finest players will feature in the Sultan of Selangor’s Cup (TSSC) on August 17.
The 20th edition of the tournament will see Selangor take on their arch-rivals Singapore at the iconic Merdeka Stadium, which can host up to 20,000 fans.
The stadium, once the venue where the national football team qualified for the 1980 Moscow Olympics, was home to legendary players such as the late Datuk Mokhtar Dahari, the late Datuk R. Arumugam, Datuk Santokh Singh, and Datuk Soh Chin Ann, all of whom contributed to the national team’s qualification for the Olympic Games.
As Merdeka Stadium starts hosting a football match for the first time in many years, fans can look forward to a variety of fun-filled events, including a fireworks display, a parachuting demonstration by the Royal Malaysia Police, a Honda City lucky draw contest sponsored by Tg Balai Group, and performances by Malaysian icon Datuk Jamal Abdillah, among others.
Inaugurated by Selangor’s Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah in 2001, the TSSC has been an annual event, except in 2015 due to the haze and in the past three years because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Speaking to Scoop, Nidzam said the tournament will be a perfect opportunity for his players to gain some game time before their FA Cup final clash against Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) on August 24.
For the record, the Red Giants have won the FA Cup five times (1991, 1997, 2001, 2005, and 2009) in their 119-year history.
“We only have a few weeks left before the final against JDT, and in between that, we need to play against Kelantan United and Sabah FC in the Super League.
“So, playing against the Singaporean team a week before the final will be a great boost for our preparation.
“On top of that, the TSSC is such a prestigious tournament, and as a coach, I need to ensure that our best players are on the field. The fans will be flocking to the stadium, and we need to respect that.
“Of course, as a coach, I would love to win the tournament and present it to the fans. The rivalry between us and Singapore is huge in this tournament, and we would love to win this tournament for the third time in a row.
“Since I’ve been busy with my team’s preparations for both the Super League and FA Cup, I haven’t started my analysis of the Singaporean team’s gameplay yet. I’ll be doing my homework in the next few weeks,” Nidzam said when contacted.
The tournament will see both teams competing for the prestigious trophy and RM80,000 in cash. Additionally, a veterans’ match between former Selangor and Singapore players will take place as the opening event.
In the veterans’ category, Selangor dominated Singapore, winning eight out of 17 meetings.
Selangor have clinched the TSSC title nine times – in 2001, 2003, 2005, 2008, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2018, and 2019. Singapore secured the title seven times – in 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2016, and 2017.
Both teams shared the championship in 2015 when the match was cancelled due to haze.
In the previous edition of TSSC, Selangor defeated Singapore 1-0. – August 9, 2024