Persija bows 0-1 to Persita Tangerang

Persija bows 0-1 to Persita Tangerang

JAKARTA (JP): Home favorite Persija Jakarta was routed 0-1 by
Persita Tangerang in the western division's first round at the
2001 Bank Mandiri soccer league at Benteng stadium, Tangerang, on
Wednesday.

Persita's Uci Sanusi scored his team's only goal in the 65th
minute.

"Persita's victory was sheer luck, plus we received unfair
treatment from referee M. Saugi ever since the match started, and
it demoralized our players," said Persija coach Andi Lala.

He said all his players had followed his instruction and had
displayed high individual skills to earn points but the team was
out of luck.

Persita coach Beni Dolo denied that it was sheer luck that his
team won the match, saying that it resulted from hard work.

"How can any player expect to win a match with luck alone,
without good teamwork?" he was quoted by Antara as saying.

Another Jakarta club, Persijatim, tied 0-0 with PSBL of Bandar
Lampung at the Lebak Bulus stadium, South Jakarta.

Persijatim coach Dananjaya said he was disappointed by the
results because the players missed many chances to score a goal.
"Our rival had a solid defense and we were not lucky," he said.

In Bandung, Persib defeated Persikab 1-0 in a derby match at
the Siliwangi stadium.

Striker Nana Setia Permana scored the sole goal for Persib in
the 86th minute after he escaped a scrimmage in front of
Persikab's net.

In Sidoarjo, East Java, league runner-up Pupuk Kaltim (PKT) of
Bontang, East Kalimantan, had a scoreless tie with host Gelora
Putra Delta, formerly Gelora Dewata of Bali.

PKT almost won the match but a goal by its top striker Marthen
Tao in the 76th minute was disregarded by referee Maman as
Marthen was in the offside position.

In Malang, East Java, Ahmad Junaidi scored a goal in the 57th
minute to ensure Arema Malang 1-0 victory over visitor Putra
Samarinda (Pusam).

Ahmad escaped the scrimmage and kicked a pass from teammate
Nanang Supriadi, who saw Pusam's goalie Ahmad Nursadi leave his
post. A Pusam official protested the goal, saying the ball was
kicked from an offside position. But the referee stuck with his
decision.

In Banda Aceh, host Persiraja outclassed PSMS Medan 4-2 at
Harapan Bangsa stadium.

Irwansyah of Persija scored two goals in the 31st and 46th
minutes. Fauzi Irvan scored one goal in the 23th minute and one
minute later, Suharyono scored another.

Marbanda Marco scored all the goals for PSMS in the 10th and
68th minutes, the agency reported. (ivy)