Malaysia outclass Kazakhstan 11-1

THE Malaysian women booked their Second Round ticket when they outclassed Kazakhstan 11-1 in the World League in Kuantan yesterday.
   With two out of four teams in Kuantan moving into the next round,  there was never a doubt that Malaysia would advance.
  And the ladies showed their class by taking a 6-0 lead in the first half itself And the match against Sri Lanka today will be sheer formality for Malaysia to complete the fixtures.
  What is remarkable is that Malaysia has scored 22 goals in two matches.
  “Honestly I never expected this scoreline as Kazakhstan has an experienced side. Perhaps they were tired playing two consecutive matches. Still, I will not take the credit away from my players who played a super game,” said Malaysian coach Nasihin Nubli.
   The Malaysian goals were scored by Nadia Abdul Rahman (third, 16th), Fazilla Slyvester Silin (sixth), Siti Rahmah Othman (15th), Fatin Naimah Zaki (18th), Siti Noor Amarina (22nd), Rabiatul Adawiyah (37th), Norazlin Sumantri (44th, 64th), Nur Hidayah Bokhari (49th) and Raja Norsharina (65th).
  The Kazakhstan goal was scored by Gulnara Imangaliyeva in the 59th minute.
   In another match, Sri Lanka beat Singapore 3-2 to keep their hopes alive of landing a berth into the second round.
  But the Lankans face a daunting task of having to beat Kazakhstan today to advance.
  RESULTS: Singapore 2 Sri Lanka 3, Kazakhstan 1  Malaysia 11.
  TODAY: Singapore v Kazakhstan (4pm), Malaysia v Sri Lanka (6pm).

Sri Lanka beat Singapore 3-2

Singapore fell to a shock 3-2 defeat at the hands of Sri Lanka in the World League First Round at the Kuantan Hockey Stadium.

   It was their second consecutive defeat, having lost badly 11-0 at the hands of hosts Malaysia the previous night.

   They will now have to defeat Kazakhstan in their final match on Sunday to have any hopes of taking one of the two berths into the second round available to teams participating in this tournament.

Malaysia take on Kazakhstan in a later match and a win will give them one of the two spots available while Kazakhstan need to avoid a heavy defeat in the event they lose to Singapore.

The hosts will play Sri Lanka, who also have an outside chance if they can hold or defeat Malaysia when they play on Sunday night.

   Sri Lanka opened the scoring in the 4^th minute through Buddika Yapa Gunarathna and that jolted Singapore into action as they started dictating play.

And Singapore were duly rewarded when Nursabrina Banuh M. Gofar scored the equaliser in the 15^th minute.

   Having held a grip of the match, Singapore took the lead three minutes before the halft-time with Nursabarina nothing her second, her shot on the right sailing past a sea of legs to deceive Sri Lanka custodian Erandi Keerthirathna.

 It took Sri Lanka only a minute upon resumption of play to draw level when Buddika managed to outwith the Singaporean defence and put the ball past Singapore keeper Cookie Tan Koon Khim.

    Then in the 50^th minute came what was the tournament’s own goal as a shot by Sri Lanka’s Muthukuttige Prarthana from the left was left by Cookie but umpire Nur Hafizah Azman adjudged the ball was deflected by a Singaporean stick in the semi circle.

Nur Hafizah consulted fellow umpire Nirmala Dagar from India upon protests from the Singaporean players but the decision stood and Sri Lanka were ahead 3-2.

   Try as they did, Singapore could not find the equaliser.

Pol Amat ends Pablo-us career

Pol Amat, one of the finest strikers the world has ever seen, has announced his retirement from international hockey.

   "The Olympic cycle is over and I think now is the right time to quit,” said Amat, 34. “I do not have enough strength to continue to be involved in the selection. I have had many years in hockey and in the Spanish team, and it is now time to stop combining hockey, work and family. That stage of my life is over”.

    Pablo “Pol” Amat Escude has had a truly sparkling career, making his debut in 1995 at the tender age of 17. Between 1995 and 2012, he represented his country no less that 304 appearances, and participated at five Olympic Games, claiming Silver medals at the Atlanta 1996 and Beijing 2008 Games. Amat also featured in four World Cups, six European Championships as well as nine Champions Trophy tournaments, and was named FIH Player of the Year in 2008, the most prestigious playing award that hockey has to offer.

     There are many reasons why Pol Amat will go down in history as one of hockey’s all time greats. His electric place, breathtaking skills and incomparable goal scoring ability made him one of the world’s most feared attackers for well over a decade, being the focal point of what was considered the most potent strike force in world hockey alongside Santi Freixa and Edi Tubau. He was once described as “the Ronaldinho of hockey” by Maurits Hendriks, the Dutchman who worked closely with Amat during his tenure as Spain’s Head Coach between 2002 and 2008.

     Under the guidance of Hendricks, Amat won his first major international title at the 2004 Champions Trophy in Lahore, and one year later produced a sensational individual performance in the final of the 2005 EuroHockey Nations Championship, netting a late double to rip the title away from The Netherlands in the most dramatic of circumstances.  

Although Amat has decided to step away from international hockey, he will continue to play in Spain’s Division of Honour for Club Egara (Terrassa), the team where he started his career. “I have the strength to win and keep playing”, continued Amat.  “I have been guided by the heart and not the head … I want to enjoy every moment."
    The FIH would like to thank Pol Amat for his contribution to the game and wishes him all the best in the future.

Pol Amat’s International Medal Record

Olympic Games
Silver – Atlanta 1996
Silver – Beijing 2008

World Cup
Silver – Utrecht 1998
Bronze – Monchengladbach 2008

EuroHockey Championships
Gold – Leipzig 2005
Silver – Manchester 2007

Champions Trophy
Gold – Lahore 2004
Silver – Rotterdam 2008
Bronze – Chennai 2005
Bronze – Terrassa 2006

Champions Challenge
Gold – Johannesburg 2003

Scene of the Kate Middleton crime..

 Respectful: Prince William and his wife Kate take their shoes off before entering a mosque in Malaysia.

St James's Palace today confirmed that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge had launched legal action for breach of privacy against the publishers of Closer magazine in France after it published topless pictures of Kate.
It is understood that the Royal couple's aim in launching legal proceedings is to prevent further use of the images and to seek damages. Despite this, at least two U.S. celebrity gossip websites are this evening also showing the topless pictures.
Details of the legal action came as this photograph emerged showing the position where the photographer is believed to have taken the controversial pictures. It is thought to be just over half a mile away from the chateau in Provence where the Royal couple were staying.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk

Dharmaraj: Faizal destroyed us...

KUALA Lumpur Hockey Club (KLHC) coach K. Dharmaraj attributed his team’s 3-4 defeat to Tenaga Nasional in the Premier Division of the Malaysia Hockey league to one player -- Faizal Saari.
   And the irony is that, Dharmaraj had him on his side to win the Junior Asia Cup and qualify for the World Cup in New Delhi next year, but Faizal is now a deadly sniper on the other side of the fence.
    “He has turned into the best player in the country, and is single handedly is keeping Tenaga afloat in the MHL. Without his 12 goals, Tenaga would be struggling in the Premier Division,” said Dharmaraj.
    Tenaga Nasional has only scored a total of 15 goals in five matches, and if not for Faizal’s 12, they would be at the bottom of the standings instead of topping it on 13 points.
    Faizal’s count was two goals in the 2-2 draw against Maybank, and four against Nur Insafi-MBI, and two hat-tricks against UniKl and KLHC.
   He has only failed to score against Sapura, where Tenaga struggled to win 1-0 courtesy of Firhan Ashaari .
   “My players dominated the match with 29 circle penetrations as compared to Tenaga’s nine. We also had 10 penalty corners but could only score three goals while Tenaga only had four penalty corners and scored two goals.
   “I don’t attribute our defeat to strategy, and will use the same tactics when we square off against Tenaga in the return leg. It was more of a bad patch, and I expect my players to bounce back,” said Dharmaraj.
   The return leg of the Premier Division starts today, and KLHC meet Sapura whom then blanked out 5-0 in the first leg.
   “We will press from the start, as I have a fee-flowing side and I will not shackle my strikers just because they were off target in one match,” said Dharmaraj.

DIVISION ONE

              P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts
Johor HA      3  2  0  1  10 9    6
Armed Forces  3  1  2  0  4  2    5
Uniten        3  1  1  1  5  4    4
Thunderbolts  3  1  1  1  3  4    4
BJSS          2  1  0  1  6  5    3
UiTM          2  1  0  1  1  2    3
Politeknik    2  0  0  2  2  5    0

PREMIER DIVISION
                     P  W  D  L  F   A  Pts
TNB               5  4  1  0  15  9  13
KLHC              5  4  0  1  25  6  12
Sapura            5  3  0  2  12  10  9
Maybank           5  2  1  2  13  13  7
Nur Insafi-MBI    5  1  0  4  8   23  3
UniKL             5  0  0  5  7   19  0

    RESULTS: Division One -- BJSS x Politeknik KPT x, UiTM x Thunderbolt x; Armed Forces x Johor HA x.
    TODAY: Premier Division: Nur Inafi-MBI v UniKL (Azlan Shah Stadium, 5pm), KLHC v Sapura (National Stadium, 6pm), Tenaga v Maybank (National Stadium, 8pm).
    Division One:  Uniten  v  BJSS  (National Stadium II, 4pm).