PKR Svay Rieng FC coach Matt McConkey believes the Cambodian Premier League outfit are closing the gap on the leading teams in Southeast Asia after seeing his side record a 2-0 win over Singapore’s Lion City Sailors FC in the ASEAN Club Championship Shopee Cup™.

Brazilian forward Patrick netted both goals in the Group B encounter as Svay Rieng picked up their second win in four matches in the competition having also drawn with Johor Darul Ta’zim FC and losing to Nam Dinh FC in the earlier rounds.

“We’re not quite at the level yet where we can dominate a group, but I don’t think anyone can deny that we’ve been competitive in every single game,” said McConkey, who worked as Pep Muñoz’s assistant before replacing the Spaniard in the summer.

“It also shows the growing strength of Cambodian football. I’ve been there four years now, and every year the improvement has been significant.

“Playing competitive games week in, week out really helps when you come into international competitions like this.”

The performance of Patrick who was named as the Shopee Star of the Match was key to Svay Rieng’s win, the Brazilian scoring in the 51st and 64th minutes to secure the points but McConkey was quick to also give credit to his entire team for their overall performance.

“He had a good game and stayed focused for the full 90 minutes,” McConkey said of the 27-year-old. “Sometimes things come off for him, sometimes they don’t — tonight, they did, and he got his two goals.

“He deserves it. He works hard every week and has been a good player for us. But he would also be the first to say that it was a team effort. Connor delivered two excellent balls across the box, Patrick made two big runs, and the players behind him — especially the back line — were very solid.

“It’s our first clean sheet in quite a long time, too long to be honest, so there are a lot of positives to take from tonight.”

Lion City Sailors coach Aleksandar Ranković was left frustrated after losing a close contest.

“It was an equal game until the opening goal,” he said. “It could have gone both ways. We missed two opportunities in front of goal — I don’t want to say big chances — and then the next chance, they scored. So I knew it was going to be that kind of game.

“In the end, I can’t say anything negative about my players. They gave their best. They are also a little bit burned out from the last couple of weeks. This tournament was never easy for us, but we knew that when we started.”

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