Monday, April 1, 2013

Terengganu find they grey matter..

IT turned out to be a Pakistan weekend in the Premier  Division of the Malaysia Hockey League (MHL), while million- ringgit team Terengganu finally realise their folly after four  matches.
    Sapura, Kuala Lumpur Hockey Club and Maybank all  relied on their imports to deliver the goals, while Terengganu  fell yet again.
   Terengganu had gone on a buying spree before the MHL  started and netted national players Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin,  Fitri Saari, Azlan Misron and Shahrun Nabil while Ismail Abu  and Ameerullah Aziz were also good buys.
   However, after a 4-4 draw against Tenaga, they lost 1-2 to  Maybank, 2-4 to Sapura with their only win being 5-1 against  a struggling Nur Insafi.
   The fault was that Terengganu failed to secure a high- caliber coach to direct their powerful signings.
    Terengganu team manager and secretary of Terengganu  HA Saberi Salleh said that they were in the process of looking  for a consultant to help the team in the coaching aspect.
    “But that does not mean we have lost faith in coach Nik  Rozemi (Nik Mohammad), only we prefer to have someone  advise on tactics as well as provide a fresh impetus to the  team,” said Saberi.
    "We have a good side, no doubt, and although there is a gap  in terms of experience between the youngsters and the more  senior players, that is no excuse.
   “Already there is a big margin between us and the top two  teams in the MHL and we cannot allow it to widen. Therefore  we feel that the presence of an experienced person, who has  knowledge of teams in the MHL, will help us plan our strategy  better.
   “We are learning on how to run a team in the MHL and need  all the help we can get. We have identified a candidate and  are talking to him.”
     And while Terengganu languish at the bottom bracket, the  other teams are enjoying their foreign signings.
    On Sunday, Sapura beat Terengganu with goals from  Pakistan’s Khasif Ali and Muhammad Zubair. KLHC powered  past Nur Insafi 7-0 with Australian Timothy James, and  Pakistanis Umar Bhutta and Muhammad Imran (two goals)  playing a major role.
    As for Maybank, they would have lost to UniKL instead of  winning 4-1, if not for goals from Pakistan’s Shafqat Rasool,  Muhammad Waqas and Muhammad Imran.
   The only team which has six Pakistan players but have yet  to win a match is Nur Insafi.
    RESULT: Division One -- Bukit Jalil SS x Sunday 2030 x.

STANDINGS
PREMIER DIVISION

                   P  W  D  L  F  A   Pts
KLHC          4  3  1  0  19  6    10
Maybank    4  3  0  1  14  9      9
TNB            4  1  3  0  13  11    6
Sapura        4  1  2  1  10  10    5
Tgganu       4  1  1  2  12  11    4
UniKL         4  1  0  3  5  14      3
N Insafi      4  0  1  3  3  15      1

DIVISION ONE
                         P  W  D  L  F  A   Pts
TNB T'bolts     4  3  1  0  14  3  10
UiTM               3  3  0  0  13  4    9
Uniten KPT     4  2  0  2  7     6    6
MBI                 4  1  1  2  11  11   4
Sunday           3  1  0  2  5     9     3
SSTMI            4  0  0  4  4    21    0
BJSS               0  0  0  0  0    0      0