02/03/2026

SPORTS MONDAY | MAR 2, 2026

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National hockey legend Ramakrishnan dies at 72 THE national hockey arena has lost one of its leg ends, R. Ramakrishnan, who died today at the age of 72, believed to be due to a heart attack at a hos pital in Damansara, Kuala Lumpur. Former Speedy Tigers head coach Stephen Van Huizen, who had known the late Ramakrishnan since 1972, described him as a humble and courte ous individual who was always ready to lend a helping hand. “It is indeed a great loss because he is one of the hockey legends. Although his name is not often mentioned, he was truly one of the better players. He played in three World Cups, two Olympics, cap tained the team at the WC and was an Asian All Star. “After retiring from playing, he contributed to coaching at various age-group levels. For me, it is truly a loss because he was a very good person, a gentleman, an excellent hockey player, very hum ble and always willing to help. He never said any thing bad and always wanted to help others,” he said when contacted by Bernama. Throughout his career, Ramakrishnan cap tained the national squad at the 1978 World Cup and competed in two Olympic Games (1972 and 1976), three World Cup editions (1973, 1975 and 1978), two Asian Games (1974 and 1978) and four SEAP/SEA Games, in addition to various other international tournaments. – Bernama

Kumaahran equaliser saves Rhinos

RESULTS & STANDINGS

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE: Bourne mouth 1 (Evanilson 64) Sunderland 1 (Mayenda 18) , Burnley 3 (Kayode 45+3-og, Anthony 47, Flemming 60) Brentford 4 (Damsgaard 9, 90+3, Thiago 25, Schade 34) , Liverpool 5 (Ekitike 5, Van Dijk 24, Mac Allister 43, Gakpo 70, Disasi 82-og) West Ham 2 (Soucek 49, Castellanos 75) , Newcastle 2 (Ramsey 32, Murphy 82) Everton 3 (Branthwaite 19, Beto 34, Barry 83) , Leeds 0 Manchester City 1 (Semenyo 45+2) . TOP 10 P W D L F A Pts Arsenal 28 18 7 3 56 21 61 Man City 28 18 5 5 57 25 59 Aston Villa 28 15 6 7 38 30 51 Man Utd 27 13 9 5 48 37 48 Liverpool 28 14 6 8 47 37 48 Chelsea 27 12 9 6 48 31 45 Brentford 28 13 4 11 44 40 43 Everton 28 11 7 10 32 33 40 Bournemouth 28 9 12 7 44 46 39 Fulham 27 11 4 12 38 41 37 CHAMPIONSHIP: Derby County 3 Black burn Rover 1, Leicester 0 Norwich 2, Portsmouth 0 Hull 1, Charlton 0 Wrex ham 1, Coventry 2 Stoke City 1, Ipswich 3 Swansea 0, Oxford United 2 West Bromwich Albion 1, Preston North End 0 Millwall 2, Queens Park Rangers 0 Shef field United 2, Sheffield Wednesday 1 Southampton 3. TOP 6 P W D L F A Pts Coventry 35 21 8 6 72 38 71 Boro 34 18 9 7 51 34 63 Millwall 35 18 8 9 47 40 62 Ipswich 33 17 9 7 59 34 60 Hull 34 18 6 10 56 48 60 Wrexham 35 15 12 8 54 45 57 LA LIGA: Rayo Vallecano 1 (De Frutos 35) Athletic Bilbao 1 (I. Williams 47) , Barce lona 4 (Yamal 28, 37, 69, Lewandowski 90+1) Villarreal 1 (Gueye 49) , Mallorca 0 Real Sociedad 1 (Soler 36) , Real Oviedo 0 Atletico Madrid 1 (Alvarez 90+4) . TOP 6 P W D L F A Pts Barcelona 26 21 1 4 71 26 64 Real Madrid 25 19 3 3 54 21 60 Atleti 26 15 6 5 43 23 51 Villarreal 26 16 3 7 48 31 51 Real Betis 25 11 9 5 40 30 42 Celta Vigo 25 9 10 6 34 27 37 SERIE A: Como 3 (Douvikas 18, Rodriguez 35, Kempf 44) Lecce 1 (Coulibaly 13) , Inter Milan 2 (Dimarco 31, Calhanoglu 70-pen) Genoa 0, Verona 1 (Akpa Akpro 64) Napoli 2 (Hojlund 2, Lukaku 90+5) . TOP 6 P W D L F A Pts Inter Milan 27 22 1 4 64 21 67 AC Milan 26 15 9 2 41 20 54 Napoli 27 16 5 6 41 28 53 Roma 26 16 2 8 34 16 50 Como 27 13 9 5 44 20 48 Juventus 26 13 7 6 43 25 46 BUNDESLIGA: Borussia Dortmund 2 Bayern Munich 3, Borussia Moencheng ladbach 1 Union Berlin 0, Hoffenheim 0 St Pauli 1 , Bayer Leverkusen 1 Mainz 1, Werder Bremen 2 Heidenheim 0. TOP 6 P W D L F A Pts Bayern 24 20 3 1 88 23 63 Dortmund 24 15 7 2 51 25 52 Hoffenheim 24 14 4 6 49 31 46 Stuttgart 23 13 4 6 44 32 43 RB Leipzig 23 12 5 6 44 32 41 Leverkusen 23 12 4 7 44 29 40 FRENCH LIGUE 1: Rennes 1 Toulouse 0, Monaco 2 Angers 0, Le Havre 0 Paris

JUAN TORRES GARRIDO’S debut as the new head coach of Sabah FC failed to spark a significant turnaround as his side had to settle for a 1-1 draw against Negeri Sembilan FC in their 2025/2026 Super League clash at Kota Kinabalu on Saturday night. Substitute S. Kumaahran emerged as the hero for the home side, scoring in the second half to rescue“The Rhinos”and prevent Negeri Sembilan from walking away with all three points from the Likas Stadium. The visitors silenced the home crowd in the 33rd minute when Bosnian striker Jovan Matika found the back of the net off a swift counter-attack sparked by a brilliant through ball from midfield by Luqman Hakim Shamsudin. Sabah pressed for an equaliser after the break and French striker Chris Marlon Ondong-Mba came close in the 65th minute, but his powerful strike rattled the crossbar, leaving the “Skuad Jang” (Negeri Sembilan) unscathed.

The turning point occurred in the 69th minute due to a lapse in concentration by Negeri Sembilan goalkeeper Muhammad Azri who had abandoned his goalmouth to protest referee Muhammad Afiq Naim’s decision to award a free kick – given after the home team player Fergus Tierney was fouled by his own teammate. Croatian midfielder Duje Ljubic capitalised on the confusion with a quick free kick, finding Kumaahran, who spotted the empty goal and unleashed a shot from over 30 meters to level the score at 1-1. Despite heavy protests from K. Rajan’s squad, the referee upheld the goal following a VAR (Video Assistant Referee) review. A late attempt by Spanish defender Jose Angel to secure a winner for Sabah flew high over the bar and the result means Sabah’s search for their first win of the year continues since their last victory dates back to Dec 23rd, when they defeated Terengganu FC 3-1. – Bernama

Setback for Giants

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01/03/2026

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RM8,935,563.83

Selangor’s Tetteh Ankrah (centre) rises to head the ball during the Malaysian Super League clash against Melaka at Stadium Hang Jebat yesterday. – BERNAMAPIC

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RM195,167.06

Pan Gon wants Selangor to treat remaining matches as finals in second-place pursuit S ELANGOR FC head coach Kim Pan Gon reminded his players to treat every remaining match like a final as they continue their fight to secure sec only this game. If we want a better perform ance, we must improve this part. That is who we are at the moment,” he explained. Pan Gon said breaking down opponents who defended deep and compact inside the box proved difficult, but stressed that over coming such challenges is essential for teams aspiring to finish second.

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ond place in the league standings following a 0-0 draw against Melaka FC in a Super League match at the Stadium Hang Jebat in Melaka on Saturday night. He expressed disappointment after his team failed to secure a crucial victory, describing the result as a setback in their pur suit of a second-place finish. “We started well but we are very disap pointed with the result. If you want to catch up to second position, this kind of game you must win. We are not at that level yet. We were not strong enough and we must become stronger and work harder,” Pan Gon told reporters after the match. Both teams had opportunities to score the winning goal but were unable to convert their chances, resulting in the match ending in a stalemate when the final whistle was blown. Responding to a question on his team’s finishing despite creating numerous chances, the South Korean tactician admitted incon sistency in front of goal remains an area that requires improvement. “Sometimes we work very well and can score five goals. Sometimes it is like this. Not

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“It is very hard because the team played very compactly in the box. But if you want a second position, you must overcome it. We tried and I cannot blame anyone. The players have done a fantastic job. We cannot win all the time. It is very painful and disappointing, but we have to keep our heads up,” he said. Meanwhile, Melaka FC head coach E. Elavarasan said although his team failed to record a win in their previous two home matches, the players showed growing confi dence in the game. He noted that his players displayed good discipline, particularly in limiting the num ber of goals conceded from the opposition’s attacks. “With seven games remaining, of course the only thing is to fight for points,” he said. Selangor are currently in second place in the league standings with 36 points, while Melaka remain in 12th position with 11 points. – Bernama

RM12,215,343.76

RM206,795.41

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76691

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376

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91

P W D L F A Pts 24 18 3 3 53 19 57 24 17 2 5 45 21 53 23 14 3 6 37 23 45 23 12 4 7 48 31 40 24 11 7 6 38 35 40 23 11 4 8 36 31 37

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