Watch out for Terengganu lads in the near future
TERENGGANU bowed out of the semifinals of the Milo-National Under-18
soccer tournament but as a young team, they are the ones to watch in
future.
In the preliminaries, Terengganu slammed seven goals past Johor, five
against Pahang and five against Kelantan. In the semifinals they lost to
Kuala Lumpur 2-1 but not without putting up a gallant fight.
"It is most unfortunate that both our midfielders were injured against
Kuala Lumpur, with the engine room running at half pace, we had to resort
to defending," said coach Nor Zaidi Mohamed.
Midfielders Ahmad Rizal and Sahmudin Mohamed were the backbone of
Terengganu, and forward Alfizan Aziz was delightful to watch.
Alfizan scored in all the matches and the 17-year-old is not afraid of
taking chances.
In fact, most of his goals were off half-chances which he volleyed in.
"Alfizan has a bright future because he is not only skillful but also a
disciplined player," said Zaidi.
Alfizan started playing soccer since he was 10-years-old and has never
failed to score in all the matches he has played to date, an impressive
record by any standard.
"The most memorable goal for me was when I scored the winner for my
school Sekolah Menengah Tengku Bariah and we went on to lift the South
District title," said the Pelajar Cemerlang Recipient.
Terengganu, who only trained one month for the tournament, played as a
team and their one-two passes were sharp and precise.
"This is a young team and there is much work to do, but I am confident
that when the Malaysia Games begin next year, Terengganu will be prepared
to claim the title," said Zaidi.
Meanwhile, Selangor and Kuala Lumpur will battle for the Under-18 title
at the Police depot ground tomorrow and if Selangor win the title, they
will make a clean sweep of all the soccer titles that were available this
year.
In the semifinals, both Selangor and Kuala Lumpur had to wait for golden
goals to qualify for the final.
Selangor played one of their worst games since the tournament while
Kuala Lumpur players were pinned in their own half by Perak. The final is
expected to be a tame affair with both sides taking the cautious approach.
(END)
soccer tournament but as a young team, they are the ones to watch in
future.
In the preliminaries, Terengganu slammed seven goals past Johor, five
against Pahang and five against Kelantan. In the semifinals they lost to
Kuala Lumpur 2-1 but not without putting up a gallant fight.
"It is most unfortunate that both our midfielders were injured against
Kuala Lumpur, with the engine room running at half pace, we had to resort
to defending," said coach Nor Zaidi Mohamed.
Midfielders Ahmad Rizal and Sahmudin Mohamed were the backbone of
Terengganu, and forward Alfizan Aziz was delightful to watch.
Alfizan scored in all the matches and the 17-year-old is not afraid of
taking chances.
In fact, most of his goals were off half-chances which he volleyed in.
"Alfizan has a bright future because he is not only skillful but also a
disciplined player," said Zaidi.
Alfizan started playing soccer since he was 10-years-old and has never
failed to score in all the matches he has played to date, an impressive
record by any standard.
"The most memorable goal for me was when I scored the winner for my
school Sekolah Menengah Tengku Bariah and we went on to lift the South
District title," said the Pelajar Cemerlang Recipient.
Terengganu, who only trained one month for the tournament, played as a
team and their one-two passes were sharp and precise.
"This is a young team and there is much work to do, but I am confident
that when the Malaysia Games begin next year, Terengganu will be prepared
to claim the title," said Zaidi.
Meanwhile, Selangor and Kuala Lumpur will battle for the Under-18 title
at the Police depot ground tomorrow and if Selangor win the title, they
will make a clean sweep of all the soccer titles that were available this
year.
In the semifinals, both Selangor and Kuala Lumpur had to wait for golden
goals to qualify for the final.
Selangor played one of their worst games since the tournament while
Kuala Lumpur players were pinned in their own half by Perak. The final is
expected to be a tame affair with both sides taking the cautious approach.
(END)
