Brunei claim first-ever win against Sri Lanka

Action from the match between Sri Lanka and Brunei (Photo courtesy INFOFOTO)

By Susil Premalal

Sri Lanka suffered a 0-1 defeat at the hands of Brunei in their FIFA World Cup two-match friendly series opening match played at the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium in Brunei on Saturday.

The second match of the friendly series between Sri Lanka and Brunei will take place tomorrow (11) at the same venue.

This was the first time that Sri Lanka had lost to Brunei in an international football encounter.

Earlier, Sri Lanka had defeated Brunei 1-0 in the AFC Challenge Cup encounter in 2006 and triumphed 5-1 in their international friendly played in 2009.

According to the latest FIFA World Rankings, Brunei is in the 194th position, while Sri Lanka is in the 204th position.

After a scoreless first half, Skipper Ali Rahman netted the match-winning goal for Brunei in the 61st minute of the game.