KUALA LUMPUR: Perak player Tommy Mawat Bada has urged football fans not to resort to racial abuse following his scuffle with Johor Darul Ta'zim's (JDT) Arif Aiman Hanapi in a Super League match at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium on Sunday.
Tommy's attempt to block Arif's run in the 84th minute resulted in both players going after each other, and Arif landing a punch on Tommy's face.
Referee Razlan Joffri Ali flashed yellow cards to both players, and footage of the incident has gone viral on social media.
This has led to some irked JDT fans attacking Tommy on his Instagram page.
However, Sarawakian Tommy was upset with some fans for their racial slurs, and he said he is open to criticisms as long as they don't attack his family and ethnicity.
"Everyone has the freedom to speak up. You're free to express anger, give feedback, or even criticise—no problem.
"We're all just human beings, sharing the same Earth," posted the 29-year-old former national Under-23 player on Instagram.
"However, even if you're upset, avoid mentioning anything about family or ethnicity (Dayak). Yes, I was born a Dayak, it's in my blood, and I'm still proud of it to this day.
"So, brothers and sisters, please don't bring up racial issues, you may regret it later. Don't use 'Dayak' as a way to label or provoke me. Think about it... what if other Dayakians see and read your comments? Are you prepared to handle their reactions?"
The FA of Malaysia had said that it would investigate the incident and warned of further action against Arif and Tommy.
JDT owner Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim had said that both players should be red carded in the match which ended with a 5-0 win for the Southern Tigers.