DEFENDING champions Malacca got off to a good start in Division One of the 54th Razak Cup when they beat Pahang 3-1 at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil yesterday.
And in another Division One match, newly promoted Police edged Johor 3-2, with a brace from national skipper Razie Rahim who joined Police training on May 8.
The Malacca goals were scored by Nur Asyraf (38th) and Amirullah Zainol (53rd, 60th). Skipper Ismail Abu scored for Pahang in the 59th minute.
As for Police, they were down 0-2 before Baljit Singh Sarjab scored in the 39th minure, and Razie gave them the three points off penalty corner attempts in the 40th and 41st minutes.
The johor goals were scored by Izzwan mohamed in the 23rd and Azammi Adabi in the 33rd minute.
Meanwhile in Division Two Group B, Sabah began their campaign in the TNB Razak Cup with a convincing 5-0 win over Armed Forces.
And in the other men's Division Two matches played yesterday, Selangor thrashed Kedah 8-0 while Penang beat Perlis 7-3 in Group A. In the other Group B match, Kelantan trounced Sarawak 6-2.
In women's Group A, Selangor defeated Sarawak 5-2 and Johor edged Police 2-1 while in Group B, Sabah were 4-1 winners over Negri Sembilan and Armed Forces walked away with a 3-1 victory over Terengganu.
Sabah started the match on a cautious note, but began to assert themselves as the half progressed and raced to a 3-0 lead before the break as their speedy forward line began to dominate the Forces defence.
They went ahead through a Dodi Musa field goal in the 21st minute and were 2-0 up a minute later when Forces keeper Khairul Afendy Kamaruzaman's poor clearance allowed Shello Selverius to pick up the loose ball and smash it into the back of the net.
Captain Maxhans Christi made it 3-0 with a well taken penalty stroke in the 26th minute. Dodi got his brace in the 36th and Shello wrapped the win in the 54th minute.
Sabah coach Hasrul Jidih, who drafted seven players from Sabah's Junior Hockey League squad, was happy with the result and the way his young team performed.
"The boys played well and performed much better than expected because a 5-0 win against a strong opponent like Armed Forces is something to cherish.
"We have a young squad and the target is to make the semi-finals," added Hasrul whose charges will play Sarawak next on Monday.
RESULTS: Division One: Group A: Malacca 3 Pahang 1, Johor 2 Police 3.
Division Two: Group A: Selangor 8 Kedah 0, Perlis 3 Penang 7; Group B: Kelantan 6 Sarawak 2, Armed Forces 0 Sabah 5.
Women: Group A: Sarawak 2 Selangor 5, Police 1 Johor 2; Group B: Negri Sembilan 1 Sabah 4, Armed Forces 3 Terengganu 1.
TODAY: Divison One: Group B: Perak v Negri Sembilan (8pm, Pitch I), Kuala Lumpur v Terengganu (8pm, Pitch II).
Division Two: Group A: Kedah v Penang (6pm, Pitch I), Selangor v Perlis (6pm, Pitch II).
Women: Group C: Malacca v Perak (7.30am, Pitch I), Penang v Kedah (7.30am, Pitch II); Group A: Sarawak v Johor (9.30am, Pitch I), Pahang v Selangor (9.30am, Pitch II); Group B: Negri Sembilan v Terengganu (4pm, Pitch I), Kuala Lumpur v Sabah (4pm, Pitch II).
