The national team captured the nation's heart last night by claiming the Hassanal Bolkiah Trophy (HBT) after a 2-0 win over Indonesia, a result that only the most fanatic of football fans may have imagined before the start of the fourth edition of the biennial tournament.
The Sultanate's greatest sporting achievement prior to this was the national team's 1999 Malaysia Cup win and last night's triumph trumps that considering the victory came against a national side and one that has long been regarded as one of the region's powerhouses.
Sure, the team had five overage (above 21) players in their ranks, but it was a team effort and a composed all-round play which won Brunei the championship.
Fans filled the 28,000 capacity Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium in Berakas hours before kick-off, and stormed the pitch after the prize-giving, spent another half an hour taking photos and mingling with the players and coaches a sight that will forever live on in the memories of those present last night.
With His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam presenting his namesake trophy to captain Md Najib Hj Tarif after the match, the smile on the midfielder's face spoke louder than words.
It wasn't always smooth sailing for the hosts though.
Led by their influential captain Andik Vermansyah, Indonesia dominated the opening exchanges and the champions of the inaugural HBT in 2002 looked poised to make it a double if they kept controlling the midfield and starving Brunei strikers of a sight on goal.
But Brunei came out charging in the second half and got their opener from 17-year-old Md Aminuddin Zakwan Tahir in the 48th minute.
Striker Adi Said who was later named the tournament's best player made it 2-0 nearly half an hour later, and a resilient defence would close out the game with a clean sheet despite a late onslaught by the Merah Putih.
Adi's sixth minute shot on target was the first real chance for either side, though Brunei would fail to find their tempo until the half-hour mark while giving away possession cheaply.
Indonesia's Kurniawan had two attempts that were saved by Md Fakhrul Zuhazmi Yussof mid-way through the period, with Brunei's best chance of the half coming from right-back Md Azri Zahari who headed a Md Azwan Ali Rahman free-kick wide of the left post in the 40th minute.
Brunei got a lucky break three minutes after the restart when the Indonesian defence failed to clear a cross from the left, and with Md Aminuddin Zakwan inside the box, the right-winger needed no extra persuading to slot the ball home from close range.
The goal seemed to galvanise the Indonesians though Yosua Pahabol created two chances in quick succession.
Central midfielders Md Hendra Azam Md Idris and Md Nurikhwan Othman were just starting to make their presence felt and the former's injury and the inclusion of centre-back Reduan Hj Petara in the 70th minute didn't seem to affect their new-found rhythm.
Adi who ends the competition with four goals had a hard time finding space or winning aerial challenges, but the former Majra FC player has the hallmark of every deadly striker knowing how to put away chances when they present themselves.
A 75th minute through ball from Md Najib had Adi through on goal on the left and created a two-on-two situation, with Md Najib in support down the middle.
The ever-confident Adi easily dribbled past his marker and slotted past Aji Saka's right, his well-placed shot giving the Bruneian fans the certainty they needed that this would be their night.
Though Andik would threaten late on, the playmaker wasn't able to lift his team on his shoulders like he had throughout the tournament especially with a five-man defense awaiting.
The game's only blemish came after the goal when certain portions of the Bruneian and Indonesian crowd began throwing projectiles at one another, though many Indonesian fans were already streaking out of the stadium by then.
But for Brunei though, nothing can take the gloss away from the most memorable night in Brunei football for years.
Taken from The Brunei Times
And that was the report by TBT... now off to pictures...
5.30pm and lots of crowds have already gathered outside the stadium...
By 7pm+, more crowds have gathered up... this is when the opportunist strikes... with more people trying to rush inside the stadium, the people who didn't have ticket and the people with scanned ticket joined the crowd in their bid to enter the stadium without having the proper ticket... and because of this, lots of those people with genuine ticket were unable to enter the stadium as the stadium have actually exceed the total capacity...
can't really blame the security coz even if more personnel were to be deployed, they will still be outnumbered by the thousands of opportunists who purposely avoid queuing up so they can enter without having being checked properly...
and here is the video that i managed to record about the condition at the entrance gate...
i actually got trapped among the indonesian fans who were also trying to force their way in... luckily there were about 3 - 4 policemen protecting me from getting crushed and somehow managed to pull me into the stadium safely... really thankful for their help there...
and inside the stadium, it was already almost full... some even have to sit at the stairs...
and here i go walking from one end of the stadium to the other end...
the arrival of His Majesty
Brunei national anthem were played once His Majesty have arrived at his seat...
after both teams entered the field and both national anthem were played, it's time to get the ball rolling...
Indonesian players reciting a prayer before the kick-off...
band performance at half-time... i didn't take any video though...
second-half... Brunei's first goal...
and the crowds went wild!!!
unfortunately... as all of the Bruneian fans were celebrating, few idiots decided to be idiot by throwing objects to fans who were watching outside the stadium...
really sad to see those few idiots tarnished the image of the well-behaved 28k plus fans...
anyway... back to the match...
His Majesty having a look at the mexican waves by the Bruneian fans...
Brunei's second goal...
and his usual back-flip celebration...
and as the Bruneian fans went wild... another commotion break out and this time it happened inside the stadium... not quite sure who started it coz some said Indonesian fans who started throwing projectiles to Brunei fans, while there are also some who said vice-versa...
4 minutes of injury time... and it was a long wait as all of Bruneian fans cant wait to celebrate the win... and as the final whistle blow, the celebration start!
the pitch invasion... nothing bad... :)
So congrats to team Brunei for winning the HBT 2012... I really didn't expect them win the trophy, I actually didn't think they could reach the final... hahaha... but they proved me wrong... hahaha... other than that, kudos to the 28k fans who were well-behaved and being awesome throughout the night... just sad that it only took 10 - 30 idiots to destroy that image...
anyway... here is the clip of the goals again... enjoy... :)
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