LionsXII and Kelantan FA unanimously agreed that Singapore goalkeeper Izwan Mahbud was head and shoulders above the rest in Saturday's night Malaysia FA Cup final in Kuala Lumpur.
The Singapore outfit beat the highly fancied Red Warriors 3-1 at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium after a late brace from substitute forward Sahil Suhaimi.
Winger Faris Ramli had put LionsXII ahead in the seventh minute before Wan Zack Haikal levelled the game in the 63rd minute for Kelantan only for Sahil to step up with two goals in 10 minutes to cap an historic night for Fandi Ahmad's young side.
While Faris and Sahil received many of the plaudits, it was vice-captain Izwan who made a series of crucial saves throughout the game to claim the man of the match award.
LionsXII coach Fandi lauded praise on his star custodian whose international career was effectively launched at the same Bukit Jalil venue four years ago when he helped Singapore advance in a World Cup qualifying play-off against Malaysia.
"We promised to bring back the Cup and we did it," Fandi said. "What is great about this team is that we don't have stars. We play as a team and it was another solid performance by our defenders, especially our goalkeeper Izwan who had another fantastic game for us."
Kelantan could have gone into the break two or three goals ahead, only to be foiled on numerous occasions by Izwan's cat-like reflexes. He sometimes used his legs to stop import forwards Erwin Carrillo and Gilmar Da Silva from scoring.
Veteran Kelantan defender Jonathan McKain felt that his team dominated the game but could not capitalise on their superiority, largely due to the Singapore keeper's outstanding performance between the sticks.
"It's disappointing. Credit to LionsXII because they defended well," McKain told ESPN FC.
"We created lots of chances but we just couldn't get it in. They did really well at the back and it just wasn't meant to be.
"He (Izwan) is a really good goalkeeper and he did very well tonight. Their team have three to four players who stood out and the keeper was one of them. Good goalkeepers win you trophies and tonight on the pitch, we had one (in Khairul Fahmi Che Mat) and they had Izwan who was in outstanding form. Congratulations to the LionsXII for the victory."
One player who can attest to the stopper's brilliance is LionsXII utility Zulfahmi Arifin, who has been converted from a midfielder into a makeshift centre-back for past few months. He's forged a strong partnership with Madhu Mohana, with Izwan backing them up in goal.
"It's good to have a goalkeeper that you can count on to cover you," Zulfahmi said. "Madhu and I were under a lot of pressure with (Erwin) Carrillo and Gilmar (Da Silva) constantly challenging us. The whole defence including Hafiz Sujad and Nazrul Nazari kept it compact but we knew there was someone behind us to count on as well.
"Izwan always shows up, no matter what game he plays in. It was a massive team effort but Izwan was different class tonight. He pulled out save after save so he deserves the man-of-the-match trophy."
As for the man himself, Izwan refused to dwell on his superb performance. Instead, he praised the people who have stuck by him and the squad over the last four years.
He said: "There is no 'I' in LionsXII. Coach is right because we play as a team. I don't play the game alone. During a game, I just tell myself to stop any ball that comes my way but in this match, you can see how my teammates were also just as focused. Without Nazrul's interceptions in the first half, we would have gone into the break level."
The 24-year-old quickly turned his attention to the 6,000 Singaporean supporters who made the five hour journey up north to have their presence felt amongst the 90,000-strong crowd.
He declared: "We have the best fans in the world. From the young ones to the older uncles and aunties who made this tiring trip up to the stadium just to give us a presence at Bukit Jalil, we didn't want to disappoint them."
And in a sign of how he has matured to lead by example -- both on and off the field as vice-captain -- Izwan praised the forgotten heroes of LionsXII.
"I also want to thank the backroom staff from our physiotherapist Fizah [Nurhafizah Sujad], coach [Lee] Bee Seng and the rest like 'Abang' Omar. Day in, day out, they do their jobs quietly in the background and nobody remembers them when we win. So I take this opportunity to say a huge 'thank you' to all of them, along with the thousands of fans who have stuck through thick and thin with this team."