SSTMI could land title while on vacation..

DOUBLE champions Tengku Mahkota Ismail Sports School (SSTMI) are sitting pretty at the top of Division One after three wins, and could land the NSC-Milo-MHC Junior Hockey League league title while on a three-week vacation.
   The Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) competitions committee gave SSTMI a three-week holiday after playing three consecutive matches in the first week of the season, and now, their nearest rivals could hand them the title this weekend.
    Petaling Jaya City Council (PJCC) who also have nine points, play two matches against Andersons and then Universiti Sains Malaysia, while third-placed UniKL, on six points, play USM and then Andersons.
     And if PJCC and UniKL drop points, it will be music to the ears of table toppers SSTMI as the league title would be theirs while on vacation.
     UniKL shed three points when they succumbed to a final minute goal against PJCC at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil last week. And that defeat was a bitter blow to their title hopes.
    “Over the week the mood has been rather sombre at training as the players came to terms that they let slip the points due to poor finishing and in their eagerness to score which left a gap that PJCC exploited," said UniKL team manager Faiz Isa.
   “Simply put we just cannot afford to drop even one point even though we have tough matches this weekend. Both USM and Andersons have players that have had the experience of playing in the MHL over the years.
    “Hence there is no question of taking things for granted as I am well aware that UniKL are the team that all aspire to beat and we must be wary of this fact. The PJCC defeat was a timely wake up call, and I urge the players to respond with a polished display over the weekend,” said Faiz.
     PJCC coach Azlan Saufi Hafifi also knows the score: “We finally beat UniKL for the first time since they made their JHL debut and it was exhilarating for my players. However, we can’t afford to even lost once in our remaining four matches to lift the title.”
     While the battle for the Division One title boils down to three teams, it is a hot battle for the top two spots in each of the two pools in Division Two.
    In Group A, Kelantan are at the top with 15 points, and trailing them on nine points are 1Mas Penang who have nine points after three matches, the same as Kedah Juniors, who have played six matches.
    Group B has some six teams still within a chance to finish amongst the top two. Kuala Lumpur Sports School are unbeaten with 15 points from five matches and in second spot are Olak-PKT who have 12 points.
     However Datuk Taha and Tunas Muda Pahang (10 points each) as well as Tunku Besar Secondary School and Kuala Langat, who have nine points each, are within striking distance.

DIVISION ONE

                    P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts
SSTMI        3  3  0  0  16  0   9
PJCC         3  3  0  0  5   2   9
UniKL        3  2  0  1  12  4   6
Anderson     2  1  1  0  5   3   4
Malacca HS   3  1  1  1  6   14  4
SSTMI Jnrs   4  1  0  3  5    15 3
USM-MSSSPP   1  0  0  1  0    2  0
BJSS         5  0  0 5  3   12  0

GROUP A
                   P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts
Kelantan    5  5  0  0  19  5  15
1Mas Penang    3  3  0  0  12  1  9
Kedah HA Jnrs  6  2  3  1  9  6   9
STAR Ipoh      4  2  1  1  4  7   7
Perlis         3  1  1  1  9  7   4
Anderson Jnrs  3  1  1  1  6  6   4
Matri          3  0  1  2  2  7   1
SERATAS        5  0  1  4  1  10   1
Nur Insafi     4  0  0  4  1  14  0

GROUP B

                       P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts
KLSS               5  5  0  0  20  6  15
OLAK             6  4  0  2  14  5  12
Datuk Taha     6  3  1  2  17  5  10
TM Pahang      6  3  1  2  16  11  10
TBSS              5  3  0  2  12  8   9
K Langat        6  3  0  3  7  26  9
Poli KPT         3  2  0  1  9  3   6
BJSS Jnrs      4  1  0  3  3  16  3
SMKPM          5  0  0  5  9  18  0
Johor HA       4  0  0  4  6  15  0

   TODAY: Division One -- Petaling Jaya CC v Andersons (National Stadium I, 7pm), UniKL v USM (National Stadium II, 7pm).
   Division Two: Group A -- Matri v Nur Insafi (Alor Star, 5pm), Anderson Juniors v 1Mas Penang (Azlan Shah, 5pm).
    Group B: Olak PKT v Bukit Jalil SS Juniors (National Stadium I, 5pm), Kuala Lumpur SS v Kuala Langat (National Stadium II, 5pm), Johor HA v Tunku Besar Secondary School (Taman Daya, 5pm).
    TOMORROW: Division One -- Tengku Mahkota Ismail SS Juniors v Malacca High School (Taman Daya, 5pm), UniKL v Andersons (National Stadium I, 5pm), Petaling Jaya CC v USM (National Stadium II, 5pm).
    Division Two: Group A -- Nur Insafi v Kedah HA Juniors (Sungai Petani, 5pm), SERATAS v Anderson Juniors (Azlan Shah,5pm), STAR v 1Mas Penang (Azlan Shah, 7pm), Perlis v Matri (Alor Star, 5pm).
   Group B: Bukit Jalil SS Juniors v Kuala Langat (Ministry of Education, 5pm), Politeknik KPT v Tunku Besar Secondary School (Taman Daya, 5pm).