Malaysia beat Japan to set date with India..

MALAYSIA lived dangerously, but came back from two-goals down to beat Japan 4-2
for a spot in the semi-finals of the Asia Cup hockey tournament in Ipoh yesterday.
   And their highly likely opponents are India, who play Bangladesh today, as a win is
almost assured for the two-time Asia Cup gold medallists.
   "The fighting spirit was excellent against Japan, but we can't afford to play like this
in the semi-finals. We must not give away easy goals if we want to win the Asia Cup
for the first time," summed up Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) president
Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah.
   As for Malaysian coach Paul Revington: "We stayed focussed, and calm, and that is
what won us the match. In the semi-finals, we have a plan to beat India as the target
set for my team is to win the first title."
   Japan score off their first shot at goal, when Malaysia bungled the five-yard rule and
gave away a penalty corner in the fifth minute itself.
   Toshiro Tachibana's drag flick was deflected into goal, and the Japanese became
bolder in their attacks.
   It did not take long for Japan to score their second goal, in the eighth minute, and
this time it was off a field attempt by Kei Kawakami.
    The Malaysian team probably forgot, that they only needed a draw in this match to
advance to the semi-finals, and played sloppy hockey which allowed Japan to
dominate opening play.
   Razie Rahim reminded his team-mates on the statistics as in the 13th minute he
scored Malaysia's first goal off the first penalty corner attempt.
   And Firhan Ashaari's reverse stick drive in the 28th minute gave Malaysia the
equaliser and breathing space to march into the dressing room with dignity.
   The second hald did not start rosy, as four minutes into play, Shukri Mutalib was
benched with a yellow card for stopping a high ball -- as the new International Hockey
Federation (FIH) rule was not used in the Asia Cup.
    Goalkeeper Kumar brings off stunning saves to keep Malaysia in the semis, but
Japan were more dangerous in the second half.
   And in the 60th minute off their seventh penalty corner, Faizal Saari sent the 2,000-
odd crowd into Sevent Heaven when he finally gave Malaaysia the lead with a sizzling
grounder attempt.
   And with seven minutes on the clock, Japan now needed to score two goals to take
Malaysia out of the semi-finals.
   Perak-born Azlan Misron took off the pressure when his diving shot in the 64th
minute gave Malaysia a comfortable 4-2 win.
   

STANDINGS
    Group A:
                      P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts
  PAKISTAN   3   3    0   0  24  1  9
  MALAYSIA   3   2    0   1  15  8  6 
  JAPAN         3   1    0   2  7  12   3
  TAIWAN       3   0    0   3  3  28  0
   Group B
                    P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts
     
 INDIA           2   2    0   0  10  0  6
 S KOREA    2   1    0   1  9    2   3
 OMAN          2   1    0   1  4  10  3
 B'DESH       2   0    0   2  2  13  0
 
   RESULTS -- Pakistan 13 Taiwan 0, Malaysia 4 Japan 2.
  Wednesday: South Korea v Oman (6pm), India v Bangladesh (8pm). 

India 2 Korea 0

STANDINGS
    Group A:
                      P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts
  PAKISTAN   2   2    0   0  11  1  6
  MALAYSIA   2   1    0   1  11  6  3 
  JAPAN         2   1    0   1  5  8    3
  TAIWAN       2   0    0   2  3  15  0
   Group B
                    P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts
     
 INDIA           2   2    0   0  10  0  6
 S KOREA    2   1    0   1  9  2  3
 OMAN          2   1    0   1  4  10  3
 B'DESH       2   0    0   2  2  13  0
 
   RESULTS -- Bangladesh 2 Oman 4, India 2 South Korea 0.
    Aug 27: Pakistan v Taiwan (6pm), Malaysia v Japan (8pm).

Kumar holds the key to Asia Cup semis..

GOALKEEPER S. Kumar holds the key to open the Asia Cup semi-finals door at the
Azlan Shah Stadium in Ipoh today.
   But going by form, Kumar might just shut the door on Malaysia and open it wide for
Japan, instead.
   Voted as the best goalkeeper in Asia in 2011, Kumar and his main defenders Razie
Rahim and Baljit Singh have been guilty of letting in 5 goals in two matches in Ipoh,
and a whopping 18 goals in six matches in the World Legue Semi-finals in Johor Baru.
   "Yes five goals in two matches do look a bit too many, but I'm still focussed on the
task at hand, which is to win the Asia Cup gold medal.
    "And I will give my best against Japan tomorrow (today) to achieve that target," said
Kumar.
    Taiwan scored off their first shot at goal aginst Kumar, while Pakistan's shots were
not that dangerous, but the ball still slipped past the defenders and Kumar.
   "We did not impress against Japan (1-1) in the World League, and had to win the
shoot-out.
   "But I have a feeling that my team-mates are ready to beat Japan and play in the
semi-finals," said Kumar.
    Another player who has had a bad run in Johor Baru as well as Ipoh is striker
Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin who started his career as a promising player in the 2005
Junior World Cup in Rotterdam.
   But he has been overtaken by much younger strikers in the last tow tournaments.
   "I played the feeder's role when playing Taiwan, and against Pakistan, the marking
was too tight as at times five players surrounded me when I got the ball.
   "And many times when I ran with the ball, there was not enough Malaysian support
in the semi-circle to turn the attack into goal. Yes, it has been a disappointing
tournament for me, and I hope to deliver against Japan and make it memorable," said
Tengku.
   Pakistan are assured of the top spot in Group A as they play whipping side Taiwan
today, and Malaysia need to beat or hold Japan to a draw to secure the second semi-
finals slot.

Pakistan 4 Malaysia 1

MALAYSIA played in patches, while Pakistan were brilliant when chances came their
way, to win the crucial Asia Cup match 4-1 at the Azlan Shah Stadium in Ipoh
yesterday.
   With the win, Pakistan are virtually assured of the top spot in Group A, as they next
play Taiwan, while Malaysia must beat Japan to play in the semi-finals.
   "We did discuss about the possiblity of the last match (against Japan) might just
turn out to be the decider and now we have to plan to beat them to play in the semi-
finals," said Malaysian coach Paul Revington.
   Seasoned striker Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin summed up the Pakistan defeat: "We did
not have enough strikers in the semi-cirlce to score goals, as Pakistan defended in
numbers and relied on counters.
   "Against Japan, we need to open up the match upfront, and the strikers must avoid
tight marking," said Tengku Ahmad.
    Malaysia played controlled hockey, but the formation broke 15 minutes into the
match after Firhan Ashaari, and then Baljit Singh were flashed the green card within
minutes of each other.
  And while they were both warming the bench, nine-man Malaysia were placed under
tremendous pressure and Pakistan won their first penalty corner in the 16th minute.
  But poor trapping saw them bungle the chance, and Malaysia started attacking again
after both the benched players were called in back.
  Pakistan got their second break in the 20th minute, when goalkeeper S. Kumar was
the only man to beat, but Muhammad Dilber slammed the ball wide instead of trying to
dribble the goalkeeper.
     Malaysia did not disappoint their fans when they won their first penalty corner in
the 25th minute, and Razie Rahim's low drive floated past a sea of legs to sound the
board for the lead.
   The match turned turned into a highly entertaining duel, as Pakistan went looking for
the equaliser before the break, and Zubair Mohammed nailed it in the 33rd minute off a
field attempt.
   Malaysia tried to re-gain the lead after the breather, but Pakistan defended stoutly,
with at least five players for every Malaysian on the ball.
   And in the 45th minute, off their rare second half counter, Zubair got the last touch to
score his second goal and give his team the lead.
      Pakistan sealed the match in the 60th minute, when Fitri Shaari deflected in an
own goal, and then a deflection off S. Kumar's pads gave them another own goal for a
comfortable 4-1 win.
  In Group B, defending champions South Korea played their first game, but were on
fire to hammer Bangladesh 9-0, after taking a 4-0 lead in the first half.
  Today, South Korea play India, to decide who tops the group.
STANDINGS
    Group A:
                      P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts
  PAKISTAN   2   2    0   0  11  1  6
  MALAYSIA   2   1    0   1  11  6  3 
  JAPAN         2   1    0   1  5  8    3
  TAIWAN       2   0    0   2  3  15  0

   Group B
                    P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts
     
 INDIA           1   1    0   0  8  0  3
 S KOREA    1   1    0   0  9  0  3
 B'DESH       1   0    0   1  0  9  0
 OMAN          1   0    0   1  0  8  0
   RESULTS -- South Korea 9 Bangladesh 0, Japan 5 Taiwan 1, Pakistan 4 Malaysia 1.
   FIXTURES: Aug 26: Bangladesh v Oman (6pm), India v South Korea (8pm).
    Aug 27: Pakistan v Taiwan (6pm), Malaysia v Japan (8pm).

ends/

Malaysia 10 Taiwan 2

MALAYSIA hit 50th ranked Taiwan 10-2 in their opening Asia Cup encounter at the
Azlan Shah Stadium in Ipoh yesterday.
   The win was expected, but not the two easy goals which they let in, and now Paul
Revington's men must prove their worth against Pakistan today to cement their
intention of making waves in the Asian region.
    Malaysian players, as well as coaching staff, wore a blue jersey with number 3, and
the name Chua printed at the back during the 30 minutes warm-up before the Taiwan
match.
   This was in appreciation to the 337 capped Chua Boon Huat, a Malaysian record, 
who died in a car accident recently, and a one-minute silence was held in his memory.
   But the start of the match was not rosy, as Taiwan's No 3 Liu Ching Kun drove a
sizzler off their first attack in the fourth minute to beat goalkeeper S. Kumar for their
first recent international goal against Malaysia.
   For the record, Malaysia hammered Taiwan 17-0 in the  Intercontinental Cup in Ipoh
in 1988, and 9-0 in the 2006 Doha Asian Games.
    But there was never a doubt that Malaysia would win the match, and Faizal Saari
started the goal-count with a low penalty corner flick in the 10th minute and then
scored the second in the 12th.
   The other goals were scored by Firhan Ashaari (18th, 19th, 67th),  Marhan Jalil
(32nd), Izwan Firdaus (40th), Nabil Fiqri (45th), Fitri Saari (62nd).
   Faizal started the rout, and then nailed the 10th goal in the 69th minute.
    The second Taiwan goal was scored by Hsien-Yi Tseng in the 46th minute.
    Pakistan's seasoned player Shakeel Abbasi, who played for Maybank in the
Malaysia Hockey League, feels that very little separates Malaysia and his side.
  "It will be a tough game as this is our third meeting in one month (4-4 draw and
Malaysian win 3-1), and all the players know each other very well. I believe the match
outcome will be decided by flashes or brilliance by an individual from either side.
  "However, my team played very well against Japan today, and I hope to carry forward
the momentum 24 hours from now," said Shakeel.
   
  Meanwhile, India and Pakistan signalled their intention of claiming the Asia Cup gold
when they too went on a whipping spree.
  India demolished Oman 8-0 in Group B, while Pakistan hit Japan 7-0 in Group A.
  The India goals were scored by Mandeep Singh (fourth, 40th, 44th), Ramandeep Singh
(17th), V. Raghunath (28th), Rupinder Pal Singh (34th), Malak Singh (47th) and S.
Uthappa (69th).
  And the Pakistan goals were hammered in by Muhammad Waqas (12th, 20th), Haseem
Khan (22nd), Muhammad Tausiq (25th, 35th), Muhammad Imran (33rd, 70th).
STANDINGS
    Group A:
                      P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts
  MALAYSIA   1   1    0   0  10  2  3 
  PAKISTAN   1   1    0   0  7  0  3
  JAPAN         1   0    0   1  0  7  0
  TAIWAN       1   0    0   1  2  10  0

   Group B
                    P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts
     
 INDIA           1   1    0   0  8  0  3
 S KOREA    0   0    0   0  0  0  0
 B'DESH       0   0    0   0  0  0  0
 OMAN          1   0    0   1  0  8  0

   RESULTS -- India 8 Oman 0, Pakistan 7 Japan 0, Malaysia 10 Taiwan 2.
   FIXTURES -- Sunday: South Korea v Bangladesh (4pm), Japan v Taiwan (6pm),
Pakistan v Malaysia (8pm).