PETALING JAYA - A day after bringing shame to national
football by disrupting the Malaysia-Saudi Arabia match with flares and
fireworks at the Shah Alam Stadium, the diehard national football fans known as
Ultras Malaya remained defiant.
On its official Twitter account, the group posted:
"Sorry players. Sorry Malaysians. Sorry Saudi Arabians. But it had to be
done."
A senior member of the group, who wished to be known as
Freddie Ben, said they had exhausted all the proper channels to express their
frustrations with the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM).
"Our protests have been going on for three years. We
have gone through all the official channels. Why do people question our
supporters who are tired of FAM's leadership? Who dares to challenge FAM's leadership?"
he asked yesterday.
Ultras Malaya, which comprises fans from various states,
boasts a membership of around 15,000.
Asked whether any of its members were involved in attacking
the Saudi Arabia fans, Freddie said he had no information about it.
"If I had seen it, I'll admit that we did it," he
said.
He added that the group did not understand why people were
blaming the fans instead of focusing on improving the declining state of the
country's football team.
"We do not care what others think. They keep blaming
but they never come down to the stadium to support the national team.
"I challenge them to make the same remarks in front of
our supporters," he said.
Asked to comment on Youth and Sports Minister Khairy
Jamaluddin's remark that the incident had embarrassed the country, Freddie
said: "I should ask him, when we were beaten 10-0 to the United Arab
Emirates (UAE),
did he not feel embarrassed?"
did he not feel embarrassed?"
Source: The Star
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