Harimau Muda produced arguably their best display of the 2015 Great Eastern Yeo's S.League season on Sunday to claim a 2-0 triumph over defending champions Warriors FC.
Syahrul Azwari got the Malaysian outfit on their way at the Choa Chu Kang Stadium in the 36th minute, before S. Kumaahran added a second, two minutes after half-time to seal the win for his side.
The result means Warriors' poor run of form continued as they fell to a fourth consecutive defeat in all competition, and are now four points behind leaders Brunei DPMM FC.
However, it initially looked as though they would be getting back to winning ways after starting brightly on Sunday, despite the recent departure of talismanic forward Nicolas Velez, with Miroslav Pejic and Fazrul Nawaz both looking dangerous up front.
But the visitors eventually got into the game after finding their rhythm, and capitalised on a defensive lapse to break the deadlock.
There appeared to be no apparent danger when Warriors captain Daniel Bennett intercepted Adam Nor Azlin's pass but he proceeded to lose possession inside his own box, giving Syahrul the chance to fire it past Shahul Rayyan.
Buoyed by the opener, Harimau Muda began to grow in confidence and duly doubled their advantage in the 47th minute when Adam did brilliantly to spin away from his opponent before unselfishly squaring a pass for Kumaahran to finish into the far corner.
The hosts, did attempt to muster a response and Pejic came close with a ferocious free kick that sailed narrowly wide four minutes later, before a mistake from Young Tigers keeper Ramdhan Hamid went unpunished as his defenders managed to desperately clear their lines after he had flapped at a high ball.
Nonetheless, they were just unable to find a way past the stubborn opposition defence, as the visitors managed to hold out for what coach Razip Ismail agreed was their "best performance of the season".
"The boys were tremendous tonight," said the Malaysian tactician. "I think this is even better than when we beat Albirex Niigata (S) 1-0.
"After three consecutive losses, we needed a response and I told the boys we could get a result if we went all out.
"Tonight, they were really committed and gave it their all, and we won the game."
Meanwhile, Warriors boss Alex Weaver admitted that his side only had themselves to blame for the way they conceded Syahrul's opener.
"I thought the way we allowed them to score, especially the first goal, was a bit sloppy," he said.
"We had enough experience to know that we should probably have given ourselves a few more yards, especially playing against a young side full of running."
Warriors FC: Shahul Rayyan, Daniel Bennett, Syaqir Sulaiman, Marin Vidosevic, Irwan Shah, Thomas Beattie (Emmeric Ong 74'), Karlo Ivancic (Hazim Faiz 78'), Kevin McCann (Hafsyar Farkhan 78'), Hafiz Rahim, Miroslav Pejic, Fazrul Nawaz
Harimau Muda: Ramdhan Hamid, Kenny Pallraj (Ashmawi Yakin 85'), Annas Rahmat, Syawal Nordin, Nazirul Naim, Amirul Hisyam, Irfan Zakaria (Syafwan Syahlan 62'), Syahrul Azwari, Adam Nor Azlin, Syazwan Andik (Shahrul Igwan 46'), S. Kumaahran