# 2012 Malaysia Premier League

The 2012 Liga Premier (English: 2012 Premier League), also known as the Astro Liga Premier for sponsorship reasons, is the ninth season of the Liga Premier, the second-tier professional football league in Malaysia.
The season was held from 11 January and concluded on 23 July 2012.
The Liga Premier champions for 2012 season was ATM. The champions and runners-up were both promoted to 2013 Liga Super.

## Teams

A total of twelve teams will contest the league, including eight sides from the 2011 Liga Premier season, two newly promoted teams from 2011 Liga FAM and two relegated teams from the 2011 Liga Super season.
Pahang and Perlis were relegated from 2011 Liga Super after finishing the season in the bottom two places of the league table.
2011 Liga FAM champions Betaria and runner-up MB Johor Bahru secured direct promotion to this season Liga Premier.
* ATM
* Betaria$^1$
* Harimau Muda B$^3$
* Johor
* MB Johor Bahru$^1$
* MP Muar
* Pahang$^2$
* Perlis$^2$
* PDRM
* Pos Malaysia
* Sime Darby
* USM
$^1$Promoted from 2011 Liga FAM $^2$Relegated from 2011 Liga Super $^3$Harimau Muda, the national team feeder project team was replaced fully with Harimau Muda B for this season

### Team summaries
#### Stadia

| Team | Based Location | Current Stadium Location | Stadium | Stadium capacity |
| ATM | Petaling Jaya, Selangor | Petaling Jaya, Selangor | Petaling Jaya Stadium | 25,000 |
| Betaria | Tampin, Negeri Sembilan | Malacca, Malacca$^1$ | Mini Tampin Stadium | 1,000$^+$ |
| Harimau Muda B | Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur | Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur | National Stadium, Bukit Jalil | 100,000 |
| Johor$^4$ | Johor Bahru, Johor | Johor Bahru, Johor | Tan Sri Dato Hj Hassan Yunos Stadium | 30,000 |
| MB Johor Bahru$^4$ | Johor Bahru, Johor | Johor Bahru, Johor | Tan Sri Dato Hj Hassan Yunos Stadium | 30,000 |
| MP Muar | Muar, Johor | Muar, Johor | Sultan Ibrahim Stadium | 4,000 |
| Pahang | Kuantan, Pahang | Temerloh, Pahang$^2$ | Temerloh Mini Stadium | 35,000 |
| Perlis | Kangar, Perlis | Kangar, Perlis | Utama Stadium | 20,000 |
| PDRM | Selayang, Selangor | Paroi, Negeri Sembilan$^3$ | Majlis Perbandaran Selayang Stadium | 25,000 |
| Pos Malaysia | Selayang, Selangor | Selayang, Selangor | Majlis Perbandaran Selayang Stadium | 25,000 |
| Sime Darby | Selayang, Selangor | Selayang, Selangor | Majlis Perbandaran Selayang Stadium | 25,000 |
| USM | George Town, Penang | George Town, Penang | USM Athletics Stadium | 800$^+$ |
Note:
* $^+$ estimated capacity
* $^1$ Betaria currently using Hang Tuah Stadium in Malacca, Malacca
* $^2$ Pahang currently using Temerloh Mini Stadium in Temerloh, Pahang
* $^3$ PDRM currently using Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium in Paroi, Negeri Sembilan
* $^4$ Both Johor and MB Johor Bahru used Pasir Gudang Corporation Stadium in Pasir Gudang and Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Muar respectively from January until the end of March 2012.

#### Personnel and kits

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players and Managers may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| Team | Manager | Coach | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
| ATM | B. Sathianathan | B. Sathianathan | Hairuddin Omar | Umbro | ATM |
| Betaria | S. Sivashanmugam | Azuan Zain | | Kappa | |
| Harimau Muda B | Datuk Astaman Abdul Aziz | Ismail Ibrahim | Muhammad Akram Mahinan | Nike | |
| Johor | Fandi Ahmad | K. Sukumaran | Nazrulerwan Makmor | Lotto | Kulim (M) Berhad |
| MB Johor Bahru | Wan Azmi Wan Ahmad | Mohamed Khairudin Abdul Rahman | Dalibor Dragic | | |
| MP Muar | Mohd Nazrun Mahmud | Abdul Nasir Yusof | | Kronos | Interpacific |
| Pahang | Che Nasir Salleh | Dollah Salleh | Jalaluddin Jaafar | Lotto | Pahang |
| Perlis | Azahar Ahmad | Robert Scully | | Kubba | kubbaonline.com |
| PDRM | Zulkifli Mohamad | R. Nallathamby | Mohd Afif Amiruddin | Line7 | Al Jabbar |
| Pos Malaysia | Shaari Shazali | G. Torairaju | Azmeer Yusof | Joma | Pos Malaysia |
| Sime Darby | Tengku Datuk Seri Ahmad Shah | Ismail Zakaria | Mohd Nor Ismail | Kappa | Sime Darby |
| USM | Mohd Azizuddin Mohd Shariff | S. Veloo | Shariman Che Omar | Joma | |
Nike has produced a new match ball, named the T90 Tracer, which will be electric blue, black and white and also a high-visibility version in yellow. Additionally, Lotto will provide officials with new kits in black, yellow, and red for the season.

### Coaching changes

| Club | Outgoing Head Coach | Date of vacancy | Manner of departure | Incoming Head Coach | Date of appointment |
| Perlis | Abdullah Hassan | 31 May 2012 | Resigned | Robert Scully | 5 June 2012 |

## League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
| 1 | ATM (C, P) | 22 | 17 | 3 | 2 | 73 | 20 | +53 | 54 | Promotion to 2013 Liga Super |
| 2 | Pahang (O, P) | 22 | 14 | 4 | 4 | 60 | 29 | +31 | 46 | Promotion to 2013 Liga Super/Liga Premier Play-off round |
| 3 | Sime Darby | 22 | 14 | 3 | 5 | 54 | 19 | +35 | 45 | |
| 4 | Johor | 22 | 12 | 5 | 5 | 47 | 23 | +24 | 41 | |
| 5 | PDRM | 22 | 11 | 5 | 6 | 50 | 38 | +12 | 38 | |
| 6 | USM | 22 | 11 | 3 | 8 | 41 | 35 | +6 | 36 | |
| 7 | Pos Malaysia (O) | 22 | 8 | 6 | 8 | 32 | 31 | +1 | 30 | 2013 Liga Premier/Liga FAM Play-off round |
| 8 | Harimau Muda B | 22 | 7 | 3 | 12 | 33 | 37 | −4 | 24 | |
| 9 | MP Muar | 22 | 6 | 3 | 13 | 36 | 67 | −31 | 21 | 2013 Liga Premier/Liga FAM Play-off round |
| 10 | Betaria (O) | 22 | 6 | 2 | 14 | 23 | 59 | −36 | 20 | 2013 Liga Premier/Liga FAM Play-off round |
| 11 | Perlis (R) | 22 | 4 | 3 | 15 | 38 | 68 | −30 | 15 | Relegation to 2013 Liga FAM |
| 12 | MB Johor Bahru (R) | 22 | 1 | 2 | 19 | 18 | 79 | −61 | 5 | Relegation to 2013 Liga FAM |
* ↑ Harimau Muda B will not be relegated, thus if they finish anywhere within relegation zone, the 7th place team will be demoted to 2013 Liga Premier/Liga FAM Play-off round. They also cannot be promoted to 2013 Liga Super.

## Results

Fixtures and Results of the 2012 Liga Premier season.

### Week 4

* The Sime Darby - ATM match was originally set to be played on the Friday 20th but was postponed due to heavy rain when ATM were leading 2:0. The game was replayed the next day which Sime Darby went on to win 2:1

### Week 12

Note:
* The venue for the match between Harimau Muda B and Perlis was changed from National Stadium, Bukit Jalil to UiTM Stadium, Shah Alam, Selangor

### Week 22
## Results table

| Home \ Away | ATM | BET | HMB | JHR | MBJB | MUAR | PHG | PDRM | PER | POS | SDA | USM |
| ATM | | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 7–1 | 8–1 | 3–2 | 2–2 | 7–0 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 4–0 |
| BET | 0–7 | | 3–2 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 1–2 | 0–4 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 0–4 | 0–4 | 1–6 |
| Harimau Muda B | 0–1 | 3–0 | | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 0–4 | 1–4 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 0–3 | 2–1 |
| JHR | 1–4 | 3–0 | 3–1 | | 5–0 | 4–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 4–0 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 4–0 |
| MBJB | 0–5 | 2–3 | 0–6 | 0–2 | | 0–2 | 0–5 | 2–5 | 1–6 | 0–3 | 0–3 | 1–1 |
| MUAR | 2–2 | 1–2 | 1–5 | 2–3 | 5–2 | | 1–5 | 0–3 | 7–2 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 3–2 |
| PHG | 3–3 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 5–1 | | 2–3 | 7–2 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 |
| PDRM | 0–2 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 3–5 | 4–1 | 4–2 | | 4–2 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 |
| Perlis | 0–4 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 3–3 | 4–0 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 3–5 | | 1–2 | 1–2 | 1–2 |
| POS | 0–2 | 2–3 | 2–1 | 0–3 | 3–2 | 4–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 3–3 | | 0–4 | 0–0 |
| Sime Darby | 2–1 | 5–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 6–0 | 2–3 | 3–0 | 5–1 | 1–1 | | 4–1 |
| USM | 1–2 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 4–2 | 0–1 | 4–2 | 4–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 | |

## Play-offs
### Liga Super/Liga Premier

The play-off matches to determine promotion and relegation will be held at Hang Tuah Stadium and Hang Jebat Stadium, Malacca from 17 July to 19 July 2012, as next season Liga Super will be reduced to 12 teams from 14 teams this season. Team that finished 11th in the Liga Super, Sarawak will meet second placed team in Liga Premier, Pahang while team that finished 12th in the Liga Super, Kedah will meet team that finished 13th in the Liga Super, Sabah. The winner of both semi-final match will meet in the final to determine who will stay in the 2013 Liga Super. The winner will stay in the Liga Super; the other 3 teams will be relegated to 2013 Liga Premier.

#### Final
### Liga Premier/FAM League

The play-off matches to determine promotion and relegation was held at Hang Tuah Stadium and Hang Jebat Stadium, Malacca on 17 July 2012. Team that finished 7th in the Liga Premier, Pos Malaysia met second placed team in FAM League, Shahzan Muda, while team that finished 9th in the Liga Premier, MP Muar met team that finished 10th in the Liga Premier, Betaria. The winner of both matches stay in the Liga Premier; the losing teams will be relegated to 2013 Liga FAM.
Pos Malaysia and MP Muar won their respective matches and thus stay in Liga Premier next season. Losing teams are Shahzan Muda and Betaria; both will play in FAM League next season. Later, as a result of MP Muar decision to pull out of the league, another play-off match was arranged between Betaria and UiTM, the 3rd place club in the FAM League. Betaria won the match and retained their place in the Liga Premier.

#### Match 3
## Season statistics
### Top scorers

| Rank | Scorer | Club | Goal |
| 1 | Khairul Izuan Abdullah | PDRM | 23 |
| 2 | Marlon Alex James | ATM | 21 |
| 3 | Patrick Wleh | Sime Darby | 13 |
| 4 | Hairuddin Omar | ATM | 12 |
| 5 | Mohd Alafi Mahmud | MUAR | 9 |
| 5 | Mohd Azamuddin Md Akil | PHG | 9 |
| 5 | Lamin Conteh | Perlis | 9 |
| 8 | S. Veenod | USM | 8 |
| 9 | Edrisar Kaye | USM | 7 |
| 9 | Muriel Orlando | JHR | 7 |
| 11 | Mohd Zamri Hassan | Sime Darby | 6 |
| 12 | Azmi Sarmin | MBJB | 5 |
| 12 | Kordell Devone Samuel | PDRM | 5 |
| 12 | G. Puaneswaran | POS | 5 |
| 15 | Bruno Martelotto | ATM | 4 |
| 15 | Fauzi Abd Kadar | BET | 4 |
| 15 | Norhamizaref Hamid | Harimau Muda B | 4 |
| 15 | Fauzzi Kassim | JHR | 4 |
| 15 | Khairul Anwar Shaharudin | MUAR | 4 |
| 15 | Fauzi Roslan | PHG | 4 |
| 15 | Mohd Hazuan Mohd Daud | PHG | 4 |
| 15 | Eduard Sakhnevich | PHG | 4 |
| 15 | Mohd Hanifuddin Abdul Rahman | POS | 4 |
| 15 | Henry Lewis | Perlis | 4 |
| 25 | Christie Jayaseelan | ATM | 3 |
| 25 | Mohd Zaquan Adha | ATM | 3 |
| 25 | Mohd Saufi Ibrahim | BET | 3 |
| 25 | Michael Chukwubunna | BET | 3 |
| 25 | Muhd Hadin Azman | Harimau Muda B | 3 |
| 25 | Mohd Hamzani Omar | JHR | 3 |
| 25 | Mohd Ezaidy Khadar | MUAR | 3 |
| 25 | Abdul Malik Arif | PHG | 3 |
| 25 | R.Gopinathan | PHG | 3 |
| 25 | Maycon Carvalho Inez | PHG | 3 |
| 25 | Fauzi Abd Majid | PDRM | 3 |
| 25 | Mohd Rizal Mohd Ghazali | Perlis | 3 |
| 25 | Fakhrul Aiman | POS | 3 |
| 25 | Mohd Hafizi Amiruddin | POS | 3 |
| 25 | Irme Mat | Sime Darby | 3 |
| 25 | Razali Umar Kandasamy | Sime Darby | 3 |
| 25 | Sengbah Kennedy | Sime Darby | 3 |
| 25 | Afzan Zainal Abidin | USM | 3 |
| 25 | Khairul Anwar Idris | USM | 3 |
| 25 | Jerome Katende | USM | 3 |

### Clean sheets

* Most clean sheets: 4
** ATM
* Fewest clean sheets: 0
** MB Johor Bahru
** Perlis
** Harimau Muda B
** MP Muar

## Foreign players

| Club | Visa 1 | Visa 2 |
| ATM | Bruno Martelotto | Marlon Alex James |
| Betaria | Ijezie Michael Chukwubunna | Junior John Bamidale Emmanuel |
| Harimau Muda B$^*$ | None | None |
| Johor | André Francisco Williams Rocha da Silva | Muriel Orlando |
| MB Johor Bahru | Fokim Fon Fondo | Dalibor Dragic |
| MP Muar | Evans Chisulo | Hillary Echesa |
| Pahang | Boris Kochkin | Maycon Carvalho Inez |
| Perlis | Lamin Conteh | Mahmadu Alphajor Bah |
| PDRM | Samuel Kordell | |
| Pos Malaysia | | |
| Sime Darby | Patrick Ronaldinho Wleh | Leandro Teofilo Santos Pinto |
| USM | Edrisar Kaye | Katende Joram |
Note:
* $^*$ Harimau Muda B will not be permitted any foreign player as the team represents the Malaysia national under-19 football team