Marlon who? Why the Super League single-season scoring record now belongs to Ghaddar
Seng Foo Lee
November 1, 2017 14:09 MYT
November 1, 2017 14:09 MYT
As you all know, Mohammed Ghaddar was in an impressive goal-scoring form in the 2017 Malaysian Super League season. The Lebanese forward scored 23 league goals, 18 with Kelantan and five with Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT), helping himself to a league medal at the same time after the latter's fourth consecutive league title triumph. However, he should, by all rights, have another achievement under his belt: the most goals in a single MSL season.
Many sites and news outlets reported that Ghaddar merely equalled Marlon Alex James' all-time record of 23 set in the 2007/08 season when he scored a controversial goal against Perak. But what if the former Kedah hitman did not have that many goals that season?
If you go to Wikipedia, Malaysia Football Dimos, or any Malaysian football sites, most of them claim the Vincentian had 23 goals nine years ago, which is factually incorrect based on past news reports.
MARLON ALEX JAMES' LEAGUE GOALS IN THE 2007/08 SEASON
Nov 18, 2007: No goal vs Perlis (Kedah drew 0-0)
Jan 1, 2008: No goal vs DPMM (Kedah lost 2-0)
Jan 26, 2008: No goal vs Sarawak (Utusan)
Feb 16, 2008: #11 vs Penang (The Star)
Feb 26, 2008: #14, #15 vs Johor FC (The Star)
Apr 19, 2008: No goal vs PDRM (Kosmo)
May 3, 2008: No goal vs Perlis (Kedah lost 1-0)
Based on the goal tally, James did not score 23 league goals that season. What he did achieve was scoring at least 21 goals, with the only contentious one being the 6-2 win over Selangor (highlighted bold above).
I have Marlon on 21 goals in the Super League for 07/08. A brace in 6 matches + 9 other games
— Devinder Singh (@devinder00) September 30, 2017
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Utusan and RTM reported that he scored a hat-trick, which would give him 22 goals, but The Star and a Lowyat post suggested he scored a brace, with Cornelius Bernard Huggins grabbing the other goal. Upon closer inspection, the latter might be the correct one.
If you watch the YouTube highlights, when Kedah's second goal was scored, James (#9) could be seen at the far post and did not touch the ball, while Huggins (#8), who wheeled away celebrating the goal, might have been the one who applied the finishing touch.
Regardless, it means James had either 21 or 22, not 23. This means Ghaddar should be the outright record holder and the most prolific goal-scorer in a single Super League season.