Wijaya Football Club (Malay: Kelab Bola Sepak Wijaya; abbrev: WFC) is a professional football club from Brunei that competes in the Brunei Super League.[1] They are a founding member of both the B-League in 2002,[2] as well as the Super League in 2012.[3] They were also the inaugural winners of the Brunei FA Cup in 2002.[4]
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| Full name | Wijaya Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | WFC | ||
| Founded | 1989 | ||
| Ground | Various | ||
| Chairman | Hassan Yussof | ||
| Head coach | Erni Abdul Hakim | ||
| League | Brunei Super League | ||
| 2023 | BSL, 9th of 16 | ||
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History
editEarly years
editIn 1975, the club began as a bunch of under-14s competing at the Ong Sum Ping Field under the name Pekerma FC. The senior side Youngster FC, the club that served as an example and source of encouragement for the teenagers as they grew up, occupied the space the majority of the time. They would work out together, and five years after Youngster FC ceased to exist, Pekerma finally changed their name to the OSP Rangers as they took part in competitions.[1]
Local successes
editWijaya FC didn't get started until they registered for the Brunei-Muara District League in 1989. They made an impression in their first season, finishing second in Division II, which led to their promotion to the top division, where they competed from 1990 until 2001. They entered the B-League in 2002 as one of the top teams in the country and nurtured players that would become Bruneian household names like Wardun Yussof, Ratano Tuah and Norsillmy Taha. In the 2002 Brunei FA Cup final, Wijaya defeated MS ABDB 1–0 to claim their first trophy.[5] Indeed, it was the latter who scored the winning goal in the final. The next year, they won the Super Cup by the same margin against the same opponents.[5]
After going undefeated in the second round, Wijaya added another trophy to his collection by winning the 2003 Brunei Premier League championship. In their final game, they defeated Indera SC 1–0 thanks to a goal from Norsillmy Taha, finishing two points ahead of DPMM FC. Twenty teams in all, divided into two groups, competed in the event, with Wijaya finishing second in Group B. In the second round, the top 10 teams went on.[6] As the final fixtures were not played at the same time, Wijaya needed to rely on the result between DPMM FC and MS ABDB to keep their lead at the table, and it was the Armymen who performed a huge upset by beating the royally-owned club and hand Wijaya the title.[7]
Present day
edit
For the 2007–2008 season, they reached the FA Cup final once more, but this time, the armymen came out on top 1–0.[8] In 2016, Wijaya competed in the Super League again and finished in third place.[9] In their most recent performance during the 2018–19 season, they finished third once more after collecting 37 points from 18 games.[10] The club was in 6th place in the 2020 Super League when it was unexpectedly postponed and eventually cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the country, ending the tournament with only two matches completed.[11][12] Wijaya came in third in Group C during the group stage of the 2022 FA Cup and failed to qualify for the knockout stage.[13]
Current squad
edit- As of 30 August 2024
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Honours
edit- Shell Helix B-League: 2003[6]
- Brunei FA Cup: 2002[14]
- Brunei Super Cup: 2003[5]
References
edit- ^ a b "Wijaya FC". Football Association of Brunei Darussalam. Archived from the original on 13 September 2022. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
- ^ "TINGKATKAN MUTU BOLA SEPAK NEGARA". Pelita Brunei. 10 July 2002. Archived from the original on 18 September 2002. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
- ^ "TEN TEAMS TO BATTLE FOR BRUNEI SUPER LEAGUE IN DECEMBER". ASEAN Football Federation. 5 June 2012. Archived from the original on 14 February 2017. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
- ^ "WIJAYA F.C. juara Proton Piala F.A." Pelita Brunei. 6 November 2002. Archived from the original on 18 February 2005. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
- ^ a b c "Wijaya FC Writes Brunei's Sports History". Borneo Bulletin. 14 August 2004. Archived from the original on 26 December 2004. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
- ^ a b "Brunei 2003". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 2022-09-05. Retrieved 2022-12-10.
- ^ "Wijaya FC grabs championship at National Football". Borneo Bulletin. 8 October 2003. Archived from the original on 2004-01-24. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
- ^ "Brunei 2007/08". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 2022-08-30. Retrieved 2022-12-11.
- ^ "Brunei 2016". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 2022-08-09. Retrieved 2022-12-11.
- ^ "Brunei 2018/19". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 2022-12-10. Retrieved 2022-12-11.
- ^ "NFABD calls of Brunei Super League due to COVID-19 » Borneo Bulletin Online". NFABD calls of Brunei Super League due to COVID-19. 2020-03-14. Archived from the original on 2022-12-10. Retrieved 2022-12-10.
- ^ "FA Cup to kick off on August 6". Borneo Bulletin. 8 June 2022. Archived from the original on 24 June 2022. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
- ^ "Brunei 2022". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 2022-12-11. Retrieved 2022-12-11.
- ^ "Brunei 2002". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 2022-09-05. Retrieved 2022-12-10.