Greener grass on the other side of Confucian fence

29/09/1999

A FLURRY of activities greet you as you walk down the corridors of Sekolah
Menengah Jenis Kebangsaan Confucian.
It was noon and the sun was blazing hot, but already cadets were busy
stomping and forming a line for inspection.
Scouts and Girl Guides in uniforms hopped about happily preparing for
the day while other club activities were also in full swing.
The sad part is that sport is almost non-existent, at least as far as
facilities are concerned.
Volleyball was the pride of the school six years ago but the
construction of a private school where the courts used to be stifled
interest.
The students at Confucian have never had a playing field and their only
pride is the basketball court - or rather half a court.
Sports secretary Y.M. Soo, beaming with pride, pointed out that although
they only have half a court for basketball, it has something no other
school in the country has - a fibre-glass panel.
"We are poor as far as sports facilities are concerned so we make the
best out of what we have," said Soo.
Basketball, volleyball, table-tennis and badminton have a large
following while field sports like cricket, soccer and hockey are played on
the students' own initiative.
"The students love to play soccer but we don't have a field. So they
find their own means. Sometimes, we request for friendlies with other
schools so that we can play at their ground."
The longing for a green is so evident in Soo's eyes.
The Confucian boys have become the whipping boys but it has never
deterred them from playing soccer.
Even to indulge in badminton is a luxury.
"We have an understanding with those who want to play badminton that
they book and pay for the halls and we reimburse them," said Soo.
In 1907, when the school was opened it was surrounded by greenery and
lots of space for expansion, but today it stands forlorn on a hillock amid
choking traffic fumes, with Pudu Raya behind and bustling Petaling Street
somewhat by the side.
"As recent as six years ago mention volleyball and Confucian and it sent
shivers down the spine of our opponents. But no longer. Now we have to
work our way from the bottom.
"We have placed the revival of volleyball top most on our list for this
year and hopefully, with the help of the Old Boys, we will have a good
team soon," said Soo.
The Malaysia Amateur Basketball Association (MABA) building and stadium
is a stone's throw from the school.
Maba send their project players to study at Confucian but since they
have their own training programmes in the evenings, they have no time to
play school-level basketball.
The Methodist Boys School (MBS) share the same wall with Confucian.
So when the end-of-school bell rang, some of the Confucian students,
waiting for transport to return home, could only take a peek and look with
envy at the lucky MBS boys who were busy playing a game of soccer on their
lush green pitch.
For the students of SM Confucian, the grass is definitely greener on the
other side of the fence.
(END)

NSC project bearing fruit

21/10/1997

THE National Sports Council's (NSC) Bakat Khas Olahraga programme
introduced to the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Secondary School in Kajang four
years ago appears to be bearing fruit.
The programme was mooted to expose potential athletes to modern training
techniques and three former students recently did the school proud by
competing for the country in the just-ended Jakarta Sea Games.
"Pole vaulters Tajuddin Abdullah and Teh Wang Chang, as well as long and
triple jumper Chai Song Yip did not fare well at the Games but, at only
18, they have age on their side. They may realise their potential in
future," said SAAS Student Affairs vice-principal Fatimah Yusoff.
Under the programme, the NSC have equipped SAAS with a state-of-the-art
gymnasium, two multi-purpose tennis courts and a 130m synthetatic track
for the use of the students.
"The facilities were initially constructed for the benefit of NSC
athletes, but other SAAS students are making full use of the facilities,"
said Fatimah.
The reason being NSC athletes usually train at the Mayban or the
Petronas Sports Complexes in the evenings, leaving the facilities at SAAS
for the benefit of other students.
SAAS was chosen by NSC for the programme because they have a residential
college which can house up to 200 students. Located in the outskirts of
Kuala Lumpur, the school is surrounded by numerous training facilities
like the sport complexes in Bangi and Bandar Tun Razak.
NSC students numbering about 50 in the SAAS, are allowed to compete on
the school's sports day but if they rewrite any records, it would not
recognised as it would be unfair to the other students, according to
Fatimah.
"The students are also not allowed to compete at District level but when
their respective States need their services for the Malaysia Games or the
Malaysian Schools Sports Council meets, they return to them."
Even before 1994, there was a steady improvement in school athletics at
SAAS: "We have always been good at sports, most of the District records
are held by SAAS students."
1997 NSC Sponsored Students - Boys': Koh Chan Seng (high and long jump),
Hafeez Hazreek (4x100m, 100m, 200m), Mohamed Izuan (100m, 4x100m), R.
Sundralingam (1,500m, 800m), Malik Tobias (triple jump), Mohamed Nazmizan
(4x100m, 200m, 100m), Yeap Lai Hin (pole vault), S. Mathew (400m, 800m),
Mohamed Faizul (shot putt), Mohamed Ridwan (high jump, pole vault),
Zulkifli Remli (decathlon, haptathlon, 110m hurdles), Norizham Nordin
(javelin), Noridham Nordin (110m hurdles), Mohamed Kamal (100m), Pok Chee
Sing (long jump, triple jump), Khairul Amri (high jump), Armee Abu Bakar
(high jump), Chia Yuen Shing (triple jump, 4x100m, 110m hurdles).
Girls': Dian Raffiee (100m hurdles, 100m), Musfuzah Abdullah (4x100m,
400m, 200m), Nik Nor Azura (100m, 200m), Norlida Ismail (1,500m, 3,000m),
Lue Siau Beng (shot putt), Rosmariza Mohamed (high jump), Irene Hasliza
(100m, 200m, 400m), Nik Suhaila Mahmood (pole vault, 4x100m).
Norhaya Akmal (triple jump), Siti Mariam Tobias (javelin, shot putt),
Zurina Hashim (high jump), Eik Nyuk Mui (high jump), Jamrah Othman (100m),
Jasmaniah Osman (pole vault, 400m), Nurbasma Khalid (pole vault, 200m).
(END)