For more than a decade, Ong Kim Swee was synonymous with Harimau Malaya -- the Malaysia national team.
From leading the Under-23s to a gold medal at the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in 2011, taking charge of the senior side between 2015 to 2017, and even in his final role with the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) as technical director, Ong has done it all at the international level.
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Despite his storied coaching career, the 51-year-old will remarkably coach a club side in the Malaysia Super League for the first time on Friday when Sabah -- whom he took over in September last year with the league campaign already concluded -- open their campaign at home to newly-promoted Negeri Sembilan.
(His previous experience in the MSL came in his time in charge of the now-defunct Harimau Muda, who were effectively the national Under-23 team competing in domestic competition, while he also had a stint in the second tier with Malacca -- now Melaka United -- in his first coaching job.)
Given his longstanding association with FAM, Ong caused a stir when he decided to leave after 12 years although it was a challenge he found impossible to ignore.
"Time will tell (if this is the right move). If I had stayed with FAM, I would have been in a secure job without pressure, just maintaining whatever the road map was," Ong told ESPN.
"But coming to Sabah is a big challenge that I wanted for myself. From U-23 level to even the senior team, I experienced everything in the international arena. I told myself that now was the time to prove myself in club competition -- that's my aim.
"I know it's not going to be easy as we know the league has very strong teams, especially JDT (Johor Darul Ta'zim), Terengganu, Selangor and Kedah (Darul Aman) -- all have proven records. What we are looking at is for Sabah to be very consistent and not to be struggling in the bottom three ever year.
"We may be an average team (compared to the rest) but with the commitment of the players, I believe we can achieve our target of a top-five finish this season."
Although Sabah are far from one of the MSL's traditional powerhouses, Ong has drawn on bonds formed with old charges to assemble an impressive roster in the offseason. Malaysia stalwarts Baddrol Bakhtiar and Khairul Fahmi -- with the Baddrol forgoing the stature of being a one-club man by leaving boyhood team Kedah after 15 seasons -- reunited with their former coach.
For every player like Baddrol or Fahmi who first worked under Ong as a promising talent before going on to deliver on their potential, there are also those who -- whether it be due to form or injury -- have not quite lived up to initial expectations.
Former Harimau Muda starlets Irfan Fazail and Gary Robbat will be looking to revive their careers. Likewise, N. Thanabalan -- who failed to kick on after becoming the joint-top scorer at the 2015 SEA Games under Ong -- is another player looking to fulfil on his promise.
As much as he is invested in nurturing unpolished gems from all his years in age-group coaching, Ong is also relishing the prospect of giving these former protégés of his a new lease of life.
"I've told them the same thing: 'This is your chance of a lifetime'. It's a second chance to prove -- not to themselves but to the fans -- that they're still good enough," recounted Ong, who was part of the only Sabah side to ever win the MSL (then known as the M-League) in 1996.
"I'm taking a big risk but the challenge is not only for me, but for the players to get their careers back where they should be. I will give the opportunity to them but, if they don't take it or if they take things for granted, there are other players (in line)."
Given his previous roles at FAM which revolved around development, it should come as no surprise that the Malacca native has been involved in improving Sabah's youth setup.
Ong, known for his calm demeanour and pragmatic outlook, was unsurprisingly stoic on whether he might ultimately reap the rewards.
"Of course, achieving success is very important but I'm not here just for that. We have to look at the bigger picture," added Ong.
"When I leave Sabah, I want to look at Sabah having all the top facilities and structure in youth development as you would expect from a professional club, but there is a long way to go and it will take some time. So, of course, we have our short-term targets."
In the immediate future, that means a top-five finish in the MSL this season. This is certainly an achievable goal given what Ong has already brought to the club that has been absent in decades: genuine star quality.
Yet, if Ong does enjoy even half the longevity and success he had with the Malaysia national team at Likas Stadium, he could just find himself synonymous with Sabah as well.