Aleef's strike wins it for St John's

08/05/2003

ST JOHN'S Institution pipped SMK Vivekananda to the Under-18 Kuala Lumpur
Schools Sports Council hockey title when Aleef Kamarulzaman scored a
sudden-death goal at the KLHA Stadium in Jalan Pantai yesterday.
It was sweet victory for St John's coaches Kamarulzaman Mohamed and
Mohamed Noor Hashim when they finally tasted victory after four years with
the team.
Mohamed Noor, a retiree, and Kamarulzaman, an employee with Maybank,
have been voluntarily coaching the St John's and Convent Bukit Nanas (CBN)
teams because they have `vested interests'.
Kamarulzaman's son scored the winning goal for St John's while Mohamed
Noor's son, Mohamed Firdaus, was a pillar of the team.
And, for a brief moment, it looked like the coaches were in for a double
as CBN's game against SMK Sungai Besi went into sudden-death penalty
strokes. SMK Sungai Besi won 3-2 on penalties after the final ended 1-1.
"We did not have any hockey background when we started four years ago, but
picked up the sport over the years because our sons were interested in
it," said Mohamed Noor.
Both of them do not have coaching certificates, but after four years of
trial-and-error, their boys won gold, while the girls silver.
In the Girls' Under-15 final, Project School SMK Bandar Tasik Selatan
beat SMK Setapak Indah 4-3 and coach R. Vivekanandan feels his girls are
ready for the Under-18 challenge next year.
"All my girls are in Form One this year but they have mastered the
basics and it will be fruitless for them to play in the Under-15 next
year.
"I will be taking a big risk by fielding Form Two girls in the Under-18
competition next year, but that is the only way to expose them," said
Vivekanandan.
Vivekanandan, who is also the coach for the Kuala Lumpur girls in the
Women's Junior Hockey League, started training the Bandar Tasik Selatan
girls a year ago and it has already paid dividends.
Results - Boys' Under-18: St John's Institution 1 SMK Vivekananda 0.
Under-15: SMK Setapak High 4 SM Sains Selangor 0.
Girls' Under-18: SMK Sungai Besi 1 SMK Convent Bukit Nanas 1 - Sungai
Besi win 3-2 on sudden-death penalties.
Under-15: SMK Bandar Tasik Selatan 4 SMK Setapak Indah 3.
(END)