Coach Ulisses Morais defended his selection of Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT) fringe players after a surprise 3-2 defeat to Selangor in their Malaysia Cup on Tuesday night.
The Southern Tigers had done well at Selayang Stadium to come back from two goals down to level at 2-2 through Ahmad Hazwan Bakri and Darren Lok.
But the visitors conceded an added-time penalty, which was converted by former JDT striker Amri Yahyah for the Selangor win to go top of Group D.
"It is our job to give opportunity to every player to show their potential because they are all JDT players. But that is not an excuse because the real mistakes were in the first half," Morais said via the Southern Tigers' Facebook page.
"I admit we made a few mistakes in the first half, and that was the reason we conceded two goals. In the second half, we had five chances to score to score, but we did not take them," said Morais via the Southern Tigers Facebook page.
The setback gives Morais cause for reflection about whether to continue putting his faith in JDT's fringe players or to field his best 11 in the Malaysia Cup.
The Portuguese manager started with an all local line up, with the exception of Brazilian defender Marcos Antonio.
Defeat leaves JDT in second place on four points in Group D, with unbeaten Terengganu a point behind, following their goalless draw against Sarawak.
Morais carries the expectation of doing well in the only competition that has eluded the Southern Tigers since the TMJ revolution in 2012.
With an 11-point lead in the Malaysia Super League, Morais knows a fourth consecutive league title is almost in the bag.
There is little time for JDT to mull on the defeat, as they prepare to face T-Team in the MSL on Saturday. If results go their way, they could seal another league triumph when they return to Selayang Stadium on Aug. 5.
For Selangor, the win was another testament to their romance with the Malaysia Cup.
Despite missing key players like Rufino Segovia and Syahmi Safari, P. Maniam's side have now picked up seven points in three games to top the group.
After making two consecutive Malaysia Cup finals, the 33-time champions are out to stamp their mark on this competition again.