MUHAMMADIYAH.OR.ID, BALIKPAPAN—Indonesia won men’s football gold at the 2023 SEA Games after 32 years.
At Olympic Stadium in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on Tuesday (16/5), Indonesia defeated Thailand 5-2 in the final.
After a meeting discussing the development of Universiti Muhammadiyah Malaysia (UMAM), attended by the Chair of the Muhammadiyah Council for Education, Research and Development, the UMAM Rector, and other Muhammadiyah university rectors, the President of Muhammadiyah Haedar Nashir congratulated the national team for the success in clinching a gold medal.
“Congratulations to the Indonesian team on their remarkable victory. I would also like to extend my congratulations to the Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) and all Indonesians who are jubilantly celebrating tonight,” he expressed following the match.
Haedar commended the teams for their unwavering determination for 120 minutes.
An Indonesian, Ramadhan Sananta, netted two goals in the first half of normal time before Thailand’s Anan Yodsangwal made it 2-1 in the 64th. Yotsakorn Burapha’s last-second goal made it 2-2 before extra time was added, giving Thailand some hope.
In the additional time, Indonesia’s Irfan Jauhari scored right after the restart, making it 3-2, and Fajar Fathur Rachman scored the fourth. Then, Beckham Putra added a fifth for Indonesia with the last meaningful kick of the gold medal match.
“They did amazing endeavor, and the coach Indra Sjafri has trained the team in religiosity and discipline,” said Haedar.
Haedar expected that the victory would lead the team to compete and win in other championships such as the AFF Championship or the AFC Asian Cup. Due to the victory, Indonesia has currently achieved 87 gold medals at the 2023 SEA Games.
For information, some of the Indonesian football players are Muhammadiyah cadres of Muhammadiyah universities.
