Match Report: Pahang Rangers 4-2 JDT, Semi-Final 1st Leg
Pahang Rangers came out on top against JDT in a hard fought semi-final first leg.
Pahang Rangers took a 4-2 lead into the second leg of their MPFL 2026 semi-final with JDT, a Felipe De Souza brace either side of the interval setting the tone for a result played out in front of a bumper crowd of 1,700 at the Stadium Tertutup SUKPA in Kuantan.
De Souza opened the scoring inside seven minutes, and although Andresito levelled for JDT midway through the second half, Pahang responded almost immediately. De Souza restored the lead four minutes later with his second of the night, before Tuah Eizlan Bin Aminnudin made it 3-1 shortly after. The closing minutes were as frantic as the scoreline suggests: Mohamad Awalludin pulled one back for JDT in the thirty-ninth minute, only for Rodrigo Da Silva to restore Pahang's two-goal cushion moments later and settle the first leg at 4-2.
The result was played out with Pahang's leading scorer carrying a visible reminder of the game's physical edge. Felipe De Souza spent the entire second half with a bandage wrapped around his head following a first-half clash with Andresito, an injury that did nothing to blunt his effectiveness in front of goal and little to slow him down across a full forty minutes. Cautions for both De Souza and Rodrigo Da Silva in the first half, alongside one for Andresito himself, reflected a tie that had an edge to it from early on, and Rodrigo's eventual Player of the Match award, capped by the goal that made the game safe, was thoroughly deserved.
What Pahang have not done, despite the two-goal advantage, is secure their place in the final outright. Under this season's play-off rules, a side must win both legs of the tie to advance without further drama; a first-leg defeat does not eliminate JDT, and a JDT win in the second leg, whatever the scoreline, would send the tie straight to extra time and penalties regardless of Saturday's aggregate. Pahang go to the return leg needing only to avoid defeat to book their place in the final against either Selangor or Terengganu. JDT, by contrast, know a straightforward result of their own, a win by any margin, would be enough to force the tie into the sternest test the play-off format has to offer.
