Circuit 1 Recap: Selangor and JDT Announce Themselves

Selangor put thirteen past Wipers without reply in the opening match of the campaign, Marlon scoring five times, before following it up on the second matchday with a 9-2 win over ATM in which he again found the net three times to claim a second consecutive Player of the Match award. Johor Darul Ta'zim were almost as ruthless on the opening day, beating USM FC 9-1 with a Bruno Taffy hat-trick, though Circuit 1 also produced their first dropped points of the season, a 3-3 draw with Pahang Rangers salvaged by two own goals as much as by their own attacking play.

Elsewhere, the circuit set early markers for sides at both ends of the table. Pahang Rangers began with a routine 6-1 win over ATM, Felipe De Souza scoring twice, before being held by JDT on the second matchday. KL City opened with a 2-2 draw against PFA Odin Sarawak, Lucas Araujo among the scorers, before responding with a comfortable 5-0 win over Wipers built on a Dinesh Kumar hat-trick. Terengganu's Alif Mat Amin scored four times in a 5-4 win over USM, an early sign of the goalscoring form that would define his season.

For Wipers and USM, Circuit 1 offered an early glimpse of the season ahead. Wipers shipped thirteen and then five without reply across their two matches, while USM's only goals of the circuit came in defeat, against JDT and then Terengganu. Neither side would find their first win for several circuits yet, but the gulf in class on display in these opening fixtures would prove to be one of the more consistent features of the season.

With four matchdays played and the carnival format's first double-header weekends now complete, the shape of the season was already becoming visible: Selangor and JDT setting the pace at the top, Pahang Rangers not far behind, and a clear gap opening up to the sides who would spend the rest of the campaign fighting to close it.