SS Juniors lose star Nabil

03/04/2003

SPORTS School Juniors lost their trump-card Nabil Fiqri to injury on the
eve of two crucial MHF-Milo-Admiral-NSC Junior Hockey League matches this
weekend which will decide the Division Two champions.
The title comes with a purse of RM10,000, so SS Juniors coach V.
Muraleedharan is naturally anxious and is keeping his fingers crossed that
his ace striker will recover from a sprained ankle in time.
Malacca and SS Juniors have virtually qualified to play in Division One
next year as it is very unlikely that both teams will lose their remaining
three matches and allow SMK Datuk Taha, who have 17 points from eight
matches, to overtake them.
"Nabil is our best striker and it would be a very difficult weekend for
us if he does not recover in time to play against Perlis and Malacca.
"He picked up the ankle injury during a training match and right now, he
is a doubtful starter against Perlis on Saturday and Malacca on Sunday,"
said Muraleedharan.
SS Juniors and Malacca MC shared top spot with 24 points each when the
JHL took a short break for the Azlan Shah Cup in Ipoh. But Malacca MC have
a better goal average, and only need a draw to win the Division Two title.
Nabil, 16, played in the January Four-Nation tournament in Kuala Lumpur
and also the Bangladesh Four-Nation meet which involved India, Bangladesh
and Sri Lanka.
"The Bangladesh tournament, although we ended third and could only beat
Sri Lanka, was an eye opener for the Under-16 SS Juniors and hopefully,
they will use the experience to win both matches this weekend," said
Muraleedharan.
But all is not lost as SS Juniors have Baljit Singh to get the goals if
Nabil is out of action.
Baljit has scored 13 penalty corner goals in eight matches, and is
gaining confidence with every match. He has a powerful hit and a sharp eye
to pick up the slightest gap when taking penalty corners to score.
"Baljit has been doing very well in training and we will be looking to
him for the goals this weekend.
"First, we will have to deal with Perlis at the Tun Razak Stadium
because the northern State has exceeded expectations in the JHL. The three
points will be a big boost when we play Malacca on their turf," said
Muraleedharan.
Perlis have won five matches and are fourth in the standings. Although
they do not have a chance for promotion or play in the quarter-finals,
they could well play the spoiler's role.
(END)