Muhammad Hanif Farhan bin Azman (born 2 November 2000) is a Bruneian footballer who plays professionally for DPMM FC of the Singapore Premier League as a midfielder.[1]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Muhammad Hanif Farhan bin Azman | ||
| Date of birth | (2000-11-02) 2 November 2000 (age 21) | ||
| Place of birth | Brunei | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
Current team | DPMM FC | ||
| Number | 4 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2017–2018 | Tabuan Muda | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2017–2018 | Tabuan Muda 'A' | (6) | |
| 2018–2019 | Kasuka FC | (2) | |
| 2019 | DPMM FC II | (1) | |
| 2020– | DPMM FC | 6 | (3) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2017–2018 | Brunei U19 | 11 | (0) |
| 2019– | Brunei U23 | 8 | (0) |
| 2020– | Brunei | 0 | (0) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 30 July 2021 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 16 October 2020 | |||
Hanif started his football development with Tabuan Muda, the youth team assembled by the National Football Association of Brunei Darussalam (NFABD) for international tournaments.[2] He was placed in the 'A' team that played in the 2017–18 Brunei Super League, finishing sixth in the league with a personal record of six goals from left midfield.[3]
Hanif signed for Kasuka FC in the first half of the 2018–19 season, along with fellow Young Wasp compatriots Hanif Aiman Adanan, Adi Shukry Salleh and Alinur Rashimy Jufri.[4] He scored his first goal for Kasuka on his debut in an 11–0 demolition of Setia Perdana FC on 28 October 2018.[5] He added to his tally two months later in a 1–1 draw with MS PDB.[6]
When DPMM FC held tryouts for a secondary team to play in the domestic league, Hanif grasped the opportunity and as a result was signed for the 2019 Brunei Premier League.[7][8] He scored the winning goal against Rainbow FC on 19 February to propel DPMM towards the championship at the expense of Tabuan Muda.[9] They were crowned as Brunei Premier League champions on 26 February after a 1–1 draw with said rivals.[10] In the Brunei FA Cup however, they were unceremoniously dumped at the round of 16 by Kota Ranger FC, despite Hanif getting in the scoresheet.[11]
At the start of 2020, head coach Adrian Pennock invited Hanif for trials with the first team and was largely impressed by what he saw.[12] A month later, Hanif signed a contract to play for the main squad to compete in the 2020 Singapore Premier League, while converted into a central midfield role for his tenacity.[13] He debuted on the starting eleven in DPMM FC's first match of the season at home to Tampines Rovers on 6 March, emerging victorious with a 2–0 score.[14] It would be the only match DPMM would play for their 2020 season before withdrawing from the competition due to traveling issues exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
On 4 July 2021, Hanif scored his first senior DPMM goal in a 15–0 victory over Rimba Star FC.[15]
Hanif travelled with Tabuan Muda for the September 2017 AFF U-18 Youth Championship tournament held in Myanmar.[16] The Young Wasps made a good start by beating the Philippines 3–2,[17] but would lose heavily in subsequent matches against Vietnam, Myanmar and Indonesia.[18] A month later the same squad embarked for South Korea for the 2018 AFC U-19 Championship qualification matches, placed with Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia and Timor-Leste.[19] Brunei at that time only managed one point after a 2–2 draw with Timor-Leste.[20]
In June 2018, Hanif was in the Tabuan Muda squad for the 2018 AFF U-19 Youth Championship, hosted by Indonesia.[21] The team eventually placed last in their group. Hanif was the provider of the only Brunei goal in the tournament in their last game, scored by Rahimin Abdul Ghani in a 7–1 loss to Myanmar.[22]
Hanif's next excursion with the Young Wasps was to Vietnam for the 2020 AFC U-23 Championship qualification in late March 2019. He was a substitute in their opening match against the hosts which finished 6–0.[23] He made the starting eleven for the other two matches against Thailand and Indonesia that also ended in defeats.[24] Towards the end of the same year, he was selected for the 30th SEA Games football tournament in the Philippines.[25] He played four games overall in a pretty forgettable tournament for Brunei, being sent off for two bookable offences against Singapore in the last group match.[26]
In October 2020, he was selected for the Brunei national football team for the first time.[27]
DPMM
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