Aussies off to a good start

21/01/2003

NEW South Wales AIS from Australia started their National Under-21
campaign on a winning note when they beat Pahang 2-1 at the National
Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil yesterday.
NSW AIS, who joined the Malaysian inter-state tournament to get their
players cracking in preparation for the 2005 Junior World Cup, scored
early in the match when Eli Matheson struck a field goal in the 12th
minute.
Pahang held them well after that but in the 23rd minute, they allowed
Alex Hardman too much of room and he scored a field goal.
Pahang fought back in the second half but missed plenty of sitters and
only managed to narrow the gap in the 60th minute off an Ismail Abu
penalty corner when they Ausies got a bit hot under their collar.
The only incident of the match was when Mohamed Suffian was flashed the
yellow card for rough play.
"We trained two weeks in Australia for this tournament and I am happy
with the win. The only problem we faced was the heat which slowed us down
as the clock ticked by. Otherwise, it was a great exposure for the boys to
play in a Malaysian tournament today (yesterday)," said NSW AIS coach
Larry McIntosh.
Pahang coach Izwan Suhardi was happy with the way his charges played,
but rued on the numerous missed chances.
"It was a very tough opening match and we were a little unlucky that we
faced NSW first. Otherwise, I am happy with the players commitment but not
their finishing which must be worked on further," said Izwan.
Malaysian Hockey Federation secretary S. Satgunam said that the New
South Wales team might become a permanent fixture in the Under-21
tournament.
"It all depends on the NWS team, but the initial feedback we got is that
they are very interested to play in Malaysia next year too. If they make
this tournament as part of their calendar, the state teams will be the
winners because they will get international exposure at a domestic
tournament," said Satgunam.
Meanwhile, defending champions Kuala Lumpur got off to a shaky start as
struggled to play as a team but still managed to beat Johor 4-1.
Kuala Lumpur, which is actually the national juniors in disguise, were
expected to steamroll the Johor side but faced a blank wall until the 12th
minute when Kuala Lumpur 2002 World Cup player Azlan Misron scored a field
goal.
Another World Cup player, Tajol Rosli, who went on study leave for two
years from the National side and played for the first time since the
Malaysia Games in Sabah, was as swift as ever and helped prize open the
tight Johor defence with accurate passes.
And in the 34th minute, KL got their second off Tajol. The second half
was a one-sided affair, but the KL boys could not get the finishing touch
because they hardly trained as a team before the tournament.
In the 38th minute, Jivan Mohan scored off a penalty stroke when Johor
goalkeeper Saiful Amrie brought down Redza Maadon who was poised to score.
Tajol scored KL's fourth goal in the 45th minute and Johor netted their
consolation in the 64th minute off a Amir Hamzah penalty stroke.
KL look set to defend their title and after the early matches, it looks
like the only two teams that can stop them from lifting the title is NSW
AIS and Pahang.
In the other match, Singapore beat Armed Forces 2-0 with some determined
play. The Singapore team, playing in Group A, got their act together in
the 32nd minute when Ishak Ismail scored a penalty corner goal.
And in the second half, they kept the Armed Forces boys at bay and
scored the winner in the 51st minute off a Herman Mansor field goal.
Singapore next meet Perak today at 8am, and are expected to receive a
stiff challenge from the Silver State.
AT A GLANCE
SINGAPORE 2 ARMED FORCES 0
Ishak Ismail (32nd)
Herman Mansor (51st)
NEGRI SEMBILAN 3 PENANG 1
Faharul Nazrey (47th) Ahmad Hasbi (61st)
G. Vijayan 50th (58th)
PERLIS 1 SELANGOR 0
Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin (68th)
MALACCA 3 KELANTAN 0
Nor Ikram Sulaiman (5th)
Nor Hamezi Sulaiman (7th)
Ahmad Anuar (37th)
NSW AIS 2 PAHANG 1
Eli MAtheson (12th) Ismail Abu (60th)
Alex Hardman (23rd)
SINGAPORE 2 ARMED FORCES 0
Ishak Ismail (32nd)
Herman Mansor (51st)
KUALA LUMPUR 4 JOHOR 1
Azlan Misron (12th) Amir Hamzah (64th)
Tajol Rosli (34th, 45th)
Jivan Mohan (38th)
(END)