LionsXII roar in Perak Skipper Shahril the hero once again as Sundram's men march on

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IPOH - A goal in each half by skipper Shahril Ishak earned the LionsXII a stirring victory over Perak last night as the Singapore outfit continued their winning ways in the Malaysian Super League (MSL).

The 2-1 win was the second on the road for the LionsXII and ended Perak's unbeaten home record this season.

The win pushed the LionsXII level with third-placed Terengganu on 14 points, just three behind table-toppers Kelantan, but coach V Sundramoorthy refused to be drawn on whether his team are now legitimate title contenders.

"I'm delighted with the win. We will do our best and prepare well for every game but most importantly we must have enough time to prepare the boys," said Sundram after the game.

"I'm very delighted that Shahril is pulling the team forward but Hariss, Baihakki and Juma'at did well, while the others also worked their socks off."

Facing a team that entered the game in second place in the standings and backed by a vociferous 17,000-strong home crowd, including Perak's Sultan Azlan Shah, the LionsXII refused to be cowed, stringing together counter-attacks with Hariss Harun combining well with Juma'at Jantan in the heart of the midfield.

The trio of Shahdan Sulaiman, Irwan Shah and skipper Shahril Ishak also provided good support for marauding lone striker Sufian Anuar.

The breakthrough came in the 35th minute when Irwan Shah's cross was expertly headed back across goal by Sufian for Shahril to hook in past Perak goalkeeper Nastril Nourdin.

It was all Perak after the break and the hosts earned a penalty when Lazar Popovic was brought down needlessly in the box by Safuwan Baharudin.

Firecrackers went off in the stands and flares were set off by the Silver State ultras and the game was delayed for five minutes after LionsXII goalkeeper Izwan Mahbud complained of being distracted by a laser pointer.

After the fans were issued a warning through the PA system, Michal Kubala stepped up to blast the ball home.

Credit to the LionsXII, they never let their heads drop, with midfield strongman Hariss leading the recovery. Reward came in the 74th minute with Shahril rising high to head home a delicious Shaiful Esah cross to continue his rich vein of form, with five goals from three matches.

Said a disappointed Perak coach, Norizan Bakar, after the game: "I think we did everything we could except for the two defensive errors that led to the LionsXII goals.

The MSL will now take a two-week break to accommodate World Cup qualifiers and the preliminary rounds of the Malaysian FA Cup, with the LionsXII set to meet UiTM this Saturday in the latter competition.