This season, a club built on the spirit of its supporters will compete in Liga Super, with Kelantan Red Warrior (KRW) completing the 12-team lineup.

Their presence is seen as a strategy by the league organiser, the Malaysian Football League (MFL), to ensure Kelantan has a representative in Liga Super following the absence of Kelantan The Real Warriors (KTRW).

With KRW built by supporters and carrying the nostalgia of the formidable 2012 treble-winning squad, their arrival is expected to enhance the reputation of Liga Super for the 2026/2027 season.

On paper, it looks like a good strategy, with KRW accompanied by a feel-good factor ahead of the start of the season. However, football is played on the pitch, not on paper.

KRW’s fortunes as newcomers to Liga Super were tested by a major challenge when they were drawn against the three best teams from last season’s Liga Super in succession, starting with Selangor, Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) and Kuching City.

Playing at home against the Red Giants, KRW suffered a 1-4 defeat before their match against JDT at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Iskandar Puteri ended in a heavy 0-9 loss.

KRW’s deep wounds continued when they were thrashed 0-5 by Kuching City, with the match played at Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium in Paroi instead of Sultan Muhammad V Stadium in Kota Bharu, as was the case in their match against Selangor.

After conceding 18 goals and scoring just once, it raises a question for KRW — is Liga Super simply too difficult for them?

We can look at this from two perspectives: KRW’s merit as a club and a fixture schedule that has clearly not favoured the Kelantan side.

From the perspective of merit, KRW were not the best team to be promoted from the Liga A1 Semi-Pro based on their achievement last season, when they finished fourth.

That position should have gone to Kedah after JDT II and Selangor II, the two highest-placed clubs, were unable to play in the same league as their senior teams.

The spot should have gone to Lang Merah, but they chose to remain in the Liga A1. As a result, the place was given to KRW, who finished fourth, allowing them to join the big boys of Liga Super.

For a club that is still new, making the leap from the Liga A1 to Liga Super is undoubtedly a huge step for KRW. With a considerable gap generally separating the two leagues, it was always going to be difficult for KRW to move up and compete immediately.

Fortunately for KRW, they are led by Irfan Bakti, an experienced coach who knows the ins and outs of Liga Super. Imagine if a less experienced manager were in charge of KRW; they might have continued to drift and the supporters’ confidence could have fallen even faster.

The second perspective concerns the fixture schedule, which has clearly not favoured KRW after they were destined to face the three top Liga Super clubs from last season at the start of the campaign.

From MFL’s perspective, perhaps the formula of pairing Liga Super top clubs with KRW and their passionate supporters early in the season could generate high stadium attendances. In other words, ride the hype while it is still hot.

However, Selangor, JDT and Kuching were clearly too strong for them. At a time when we expected a David versus Goliath encounter, we were instead presented with routine victories for all three clubs.

Following those three heavy defeats, KRW supporters were jolted by the harsh reality of Liga Super. Some have also distanced themselves from the team and stopped turning up at the stadium. However, this is not the end for KRW.

Those three difficult matches will be followed by games against Kuala Lumpur City, Penang and Star City. From there, these could be more suitable fixtures for KRW to begin collecting points and win back the support of their fans.

Life in Liga Super is clearly challenging for KRW, both financially and in terms of the level of competition they face against the other 11 clubs. The three early defeats have left a deep wound, but they are not the end.

There is still a long way to go in the league. Irfan still has time to fix what needs fixing and strengthen the existing squad so that they are no longer so easily exposed by their opponents.

The writer believes that most KRW supporters still have modest expectations of the club because of how young it is. Nevertheless, they will inevitably share the natural desire to see their beloved team record victories.

KRW may still be a long way from their first Liga Super victory, but they will eventually reach that destination. What matters is that they remain steadfast and continue working hard to adapt quickly to life in Liga Super.

Liga Super may be too difficult for KRW right now, but if they can turn things around, we may have the chance to witness the revival of The Red Warriors who were once feared by their opponents.