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MALAYSIAN football could finally be staring at a likely successor to their
evergreen defender-cum-striker extraordinaire Zainal Abidin Hassan in
Negri Sembilan's Zami Mohamed Noor.
The 26-year-old Kelantanese is certainly plying the road once travelled
by his great predecessor if his predatory exploits with the Deer in the
Malaysia Cup are anything to go by.
Zami has struck the net seven times in four matches after being moved
from defender to striker by coach M. Karathu.
And his clinical double for Negri in their 3-1 conquest over KL at the
Paroi Stadium on Saturday night, which sent them into the semifinals for
the first time since 1948, is a testament of his classy marksmanship.
It's the start of something smashing that graced the career of Zainal in
1983 when the Afro-haired rightback was starring for Pahang.
Pahang's English coach then, Frank Lord, pushed Zainal forward as a
striker because of his good build and skill to take on players.
The switch reaped handsome dividends as Zainal finished second highest
scorer in the League in 1993 with 13 goals. The following year he grabbed
the Golden Boot with 14 goals.
In 1986, Zainal registered his best strikerate of 20 goals to emerge
tops in the scoring charts and took two more Golden Boot awards in 1989
and 1992.
Zami actually started as a striker for the Kelantan President's Cup team
in 1992 before making the cut to the senior side in 1993 where Karathu was
coach. His poaching talents earned him a national call-up by then national
coach Claude Le Roy of France.
A year later, Zami had been utilised more as a defender, where he made
the position very much his own for four years under Karathu again at
Negri.
Now, it's 1993 once more as Zami has proven to be Karathu's solution to
Negri's season-long goalscoring woes.
The freedom to roam in search of goals has helped Zami discover another
facet of his multi soccer talents.
"I'm thoroughly enjoying the freedom I get from playing as a striker.
I've been marking players for the last four years, be it at the State or
international levels.
"So it's a welcome change," said Zami, who will be making his second
Malaysia Cup semifinal appearance since 1993 where he featured for
Kelantan in their defeat to Kedah.
"To me, it seems easier playing as a striker with acres of space in
front of me. My background as a striker when I first started has given me
that instinct to eye a scoring opportunity.
"Of course, I still defend when the need arises but getting the goals is
now my obsession."
As a place in the Malaysia Cup final beckons for Negri, Zami will hold
the fort upfront with passion again in their semifinal challenge.
Should he keep up his goalscoring prowess, a treasured place in newly-
appointed national coach Abdul Rahman Ibrahim's cast may even be his for
the taking.
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