KUALA LUMPUR DPMM and Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT) will write an unprecedented chapter in FA Cup history on Friday at the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium, meeting in the competition's semi-final for the first time.
DPMM are Brunei FA Cup winners in 2004 and 2022 but they never reached the semi-finals until this campaign in the Malaysian FA Cup.
JDT enter the tie as five-time FA Cup champions (2016, 2022, 2023, 2024-2025, and 2025-2026), standing alone in Malaysian football history as the only club to lift the trophy four consecutive seasons - an era of knockout dominance crowned last December with a 5–0 demolition of Sabah in Bukit Jalil.
Since DPMM's return to the Super League, JDT have asserted complete authority, including a 3–0 win in their most recent meeting that has anchored the Southern Tigers' four-year domestic unbeaten streak.
For DPMM head coach Jamie McAllister, overcoming that psychological barrier in a two-legged knockout contest requires treating the home leg not as an all-or-nothing gamble, but as an exercise in structural discipline and game management.
"Top team. I mean, they're unbeaten in the last four years in the league," McAllister said.
"It's the first leg of the semi-final, we're at home, so hopefully there'll be a big crowd. We've just got to tighten up on a few little things defensively, especially against the top team in the league.
"If we do that, have that clean sheet mentality, and try and stay in the tie until the second leg, and see what happens."
However, JDT head coach Xisco Munoz has approached the trip across the South China Sea with total wariness, refusing to allow historical pedigree to lead to complacency.
JDT's tactical machine, which has plundered 28 goals without reply in the league this season, will need to remain balanced in transition against a DPMM side eager to sit deep, invite pressure, and counter vertically.
"We know it is a difficult team again. Always when we play away, they are a team that has balance," Munoz said.
"Sometimes when they play against us, they come in and stay in a low block, and they are stronger in this situation.
"It's not easy like this, and after, they have a good transition. We need to try to put the focus and give the best.
"We will try to have some rotation for the next game, but we need to try to choose the best one because it's difficult to take one step forward.
"These are the values of JDT. We don't need only 11 players, we need 20 players. Those who come in need to give more than those who played before."
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