LEAGUE champions Ernst & Young struggled before col lecting three points in their 2-1 win against Sapura in Division One of the Malaysia Hockey League yesterday.
Ernst & Young, who hammered Nur Insafi 10-0 in their MHL curtain raiser on Friday, failed to live up to ex pectations, especially in the first 20 minutes of the second half.
Baljit Singh gave Ernst & Young, who are virtually the national team, some breathing space when he converted a 35th minute penalty corner.
But after the hooter, the seasoned players in Sapura dominated, and snatched an equaliser in the 55th minute off their South Korean import Kim Jung Chul.
Ernst & Young were under tremendous pressure after that, but Kelvinder Singh snatched the winner with a 63rd minute deflection.
In another Division One match, TNB Cup champions Tenaga Nasional edged Nur Insafi 3-1.
Tenaga got their goals off Fazreen Ekhsan ( 12th), Tajol Rosli (34th) and Amin Rahim (65th). Mamunur Rahman (32nd) and Prem Kumar (69th), both India imports, scored for Nur Insafi.
Ernst & Young team manager George Koshy was a relieved man: “It was a close game because the heavy rain made the pitch heavy, and it did not suit my players who are fast with the ball.
“But then, the three points took us closer to defending our League title, so no complaints,” said George.
Former international K. Embaraj, said his team played in patches.
“I was a good and entertaining hockey match, with the firsthalf dominated by E&Y but we came back strongly after the breather. I believe we will get better as the League progresses,” said Embaraj.
RESULTS -- Division One: Tenaga Nasional 3 Nur Insafi 2, National Juniors 2 Maybank 3, Ernst & Young 2 Sapura 1.
Division Two: Bandar Panawar SS 5 UNIMAP 0, Dolphins 1 Bukit Jalil SS 1, JLJD 2 Alam Shah School 3, Border Forces Club 1 Royal Malay Regiment 4.
STANDINGS
DIVISION ONE
P W D L F A Pts
Ernst & Young 2 2 0 0 12 1 6
Tenaga 2 2 0 0 6 3 6
Maybank 2 1 0 1 4 4 3
Sapura 2 1 0 1 2 4 3
National Juniors 2 0 0 2 3 6 0
Nur Insafi 2 0 0 2 2 13 0
DIVISION TWO
P W D L F A Pts
Bandar Penawar 2 2 0 0 10 3 6
Alam Shah 2 2 0 0 9 4 6
Malay Regiment 2 1 0 1 4 4 3
Bukit Jalil 2 1 1 0 4 1 3
Dolphins 2 0 2 0 4 4 2
UiTM 1 0 1 0 3 3 1
JLJD 2 0 0 2 5 8 0
Border Forces 2 0 0 2 3 10 0
UNIMAP 1 0 0 1 0 5 0