The Kedah FA (Malay: Persatuan Bola Sepak Kedah) are a Malaysian professional football association team based in Kedah, Malaysia also enters a team in Malaysian football competitions to represent the state of Kedah. The team are also known by the nicknames Hijau-Kuning (The Green-Yellows) and Kenari (The Canaries).
Kedah FA play in the Malaysia Super League, and they are the second most successful team in the history of Malaysian football after they have won a record of double treble titles in 2006-07 and 2007–08 seasons.
The club was founded in 1924 by Tunku Yaacob Ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah[2] as a president, though they only had limited success until the appointment of the late Dato' Paduka Ahmad Basri Akil as manager in 1985. Under Ahmad Basri Akil, Kedah FA qualified for six Malaysia Cup final matches in a seven-year period between 1987 to 1993; and won two Malaysia Cup titles, one league title and one FA Cup title. The club experienced a lean period in the 1980s and 1990s, but enjoyed a revival in the new millennium by winning the treble in 2007 and 2008.
Kedah FA has won the Malaysian league championship three times (1993, 2007 & 2008), the Malaysia Cup four times (1990, 1993, 2007 & 2008) and the Malaysia FA Cup three times (1996, 2007 & 2008).
Colours
Kedah FA's traditional colours are red and black, but currently the home kit has been in the colours of green and yellow since 1988. This idea was suggested by Dato' Shukri Hashim after Kedah FA Deputy President, Ahmad Basri Akil asked for a different set of colours for the home kit. However, Ahmad Basri changed Shukri's idea to 'green and yellow' which fits the Kedah state's nickname Jelapang Padi (the paddy granary) and the colour of ripe paddy better. Nowadays, the green and yellow colours are not only used by the Kedah football team but are also used by other Kedahan teams of other sports.
The Kedah FA kit is currently manufactured by Lotto sportswear. Their previous kit manufacturers were Line 7, Lotto and Puma. Kedah FA's first team sponsor was Japanese electronics manufacturer Sharp, from 1989 to 2000. Following that, the club was sponsored by Modenas a Malaysian national motorcycle company. Their current shirt sponsor is Kedah State Development Corporation (Perbadanan Kemajuan Negeri Kedah or PKNK) which had been the main team sponsor of Kedah FA since 2005.
Crest
The ideas of the current Kedah FA crest also came from the former Deputy President of Kedah FA Ahmad Basri Akil after he announced the then-new Kedah FA official colours of green and yellow in 1988. Green dominates the background; the side of the crest shows 11 joint bordered lines which signify the 11 districts of the Kedah state. At the centre of the crest is a ball and Allamanda flowers; as the flower is green and yellow in colour, which are suitable with the new Kedah FA colours and the team motto, "Biar Jasa Jadi Kenangan" (Our Deeds Shall be Remembered) is written in yellow.
Stadium
The Kedah FA has only ever had one home ground, Darulaman Stadium, where they have played since it was built in 1967. The stadium is located near Jalan Stadium and Lebuhraya Darul Aman in Alor Setar, Kedah. It is also the main training ground for the squad.
Club culture
Supporters
The song "Biar Jasa Jadi Kenangan", once again idealised and written by Ahmad Basri Akil and famously recorded by a Malaysian musician Freddie Fernandez, is the anthem of the club, and has been sung by the crowd since September 9, 1987 after Kedah FA reached their first Malaysia Cup semi-final match since 1940. This famous song is sung by the fanatic fans of the Canaries to boost their beloved players' morale. Kedah FA also have a large and generally loyal fanbase, with virtually all tickets for home matches being sold out in 2006/07 and 2007/08. Kedah FA has one of the best league attendances among teams in Malaysia. The 35,000-capacity Darul Aman Stadium is often filled with sell-out crowds whenever a home match is played.
Rival teams
The main rivals of Kedah FA are Perak FA, Selangor FA and Kelantan FA. They are also rivals with Perlis FA, with the league matches between the two teams described as the derby of the northern states.
History
The Treble (2006-07)
The 2006-07 season for Kedah FA was the most successful era in Malaysian league football history as they became the only Malaysian team to win The Treble - winning the Super League Malaysia, FA Cup Malaysia and Malaysia Cup in the same season. The Kedah squad of that year was a relatively young squad, but still did well in all three of the major competitions over the season. They went through a 21-match unbeaten streak in all competitions from 27 December 2006 which was ended on 18 April 2007 by Perak FA at the Perak Stadium in Ipoh, Perak when Perak FA won the match 1-0.
The date of 4 August 2007 was a glorious moment for Kedah FA and their fanatic fans, when they beat DPMM FC, a football club based in Brunei 1-0 (scored by K. Soley) and were crowned the title for the first time since 1993 and for the second time in the club's major league history.
On 30 June 2007, Kedah FA won the Malaysia FA Cup for the second time in the club history after beating Perlis FA 4-2 in a penalty shoot-out (both teams were tied at 0-0 after extra time) at Pulau Pinang State Stadium, Batu Kawan.
In the final match of the 2006/07 season, on September 8, 2007 Kedah FA won the Malaysia Cup final 3-0 against Perak FA with two goals by Marlon Alex James and one goal from Mohd Khyril Muhymeen.
The Double Treble (2007-08)
Kedah FA made another history when they sealed their second consecutive treble with a 3-2, come-from-behind win over Selangor FA in the Malaysia Cup final at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium, Kuala Lumpur on 23 August 2008.
Super League Malaysia Golden Boot winner Marlon Alex James equalised in the 32nd minute before Chilean midfielder Nelson San Martin put them ahead a minute later. Rookie Mohd Fadly Baharum also scored for the FA Cup Malaysia title sealed the Kedah FA revival with the third in the 38th minute.
Kedah FA, who have already retained the FA Cup Malaysia and Super League Malaysia titles, thus, confirmed their status as the new powerhouse of Malaysian football.
A couple months before the Malaysia Cup, Kedah FA won the FA Cup Malaysia after beating Selangor FA 3-2 at Shah Alam Stadium, Selangor. All three goals were scored by Mohd Fadly Baharum (2nd), Mohd Khyril Muhymeen Zambri (33rd) and Muhammad Shafiq Jamal (50th).
Before, Kedah FA won Super League Malaysia title for the 2nd times and made Kedah FA team in their own class.
