Kuala Lumpur beat Sabah for semis...

PERAK boys qualified for the semi-finals from Group A of  the MHC-Milo-NSC Under-14 Hockey  tournament in  Kuala  Terengganu even though they were held to a 1-1 draw by  Penang.
    And the Silver State, who finished second in Group A, will  meet Group B champions Terengganu in the last four today.
    Defending champions Kuala Lumpur also made the cut  when they beat Sabah x-x to top Group A, and will play Group  B runners-up Malacca in the semi-finals.
    “This has been an energy-sapping tournament as my  players had little rest between matches and with the semi- finals tomorrow (today) followed by the finals and bronze  matches the next day, I am only afraid on how fast my players  can recover after holding Penang in a gruelling match,” said  Perak team manager Shahri Mohamed Zain.
    Perak also made the semi-finals last year, but were  knocked out: “I believe we have the players this year to play  in the final and better our record,” said Shahri.
    Perak’s only other blemish in the tournament so far was a  3-1 defeat to Sabah.
     RESULTS: Boys’ Group A -- Perlis 6 Sarawak 1, Perak 1  Penang 1,  Kuala Lumpur 3 Sabah 1.
    Group B: Malacca 3 Pahang 2, Negri 0 Selangor 2.
     Girls’ Group A: Terengganu 0 Kuala Lumpur 4, Malacca 1   Terengganu 0.
   Group B: Kelantan 4 Johor 3, Kedah 1 Penang 2, Selangor  0 Negri 4.
    TODAY: Boys’ semi-finals: Kuala Lumpur v Malacca;  Terengganu v Perak.
     Girls’ semi-finals: Kuala Lumpur v Selangor; Malacca v  Penang.

Sabah boys shock Perak 3-1

DEFENDING champions Kuala Lumpur will face a do-or-die mission to qualify for the semi-finals when they face Sabah in the Boys’ Group A of the MHC-Milo-NSC Under-14 Hockey tournament in  Kuala Terengganu.
    Even though KL beat Sarawak 3-0 yesterday, Sabah opened the Group A standings by beating Perak 3-1.
    For the record, Perak had beaten KL 4-2 earlier in the tournament.
    “As you can see, we lost to Perak, while Sabah beat Perak. So we can’t take our last pool match for granted, and my boys will have to bring out their best to play in the semi-finals and defend out title,” said KL team manager Ali Sulaiman.
     Ali said he was not making excuses, but they lost the Perak match to weather, and a water-logged pitch.
    “We were unlucky that it rained heavily during the match, and when we played, the pitch was water-logged and my players could not move the ball well while the Perak boys looked like they were more comfortable playing on a heavy pitch.
    “Against Sabah, hopefully it does not rain again, and my players also need to make sure they dont miss sitters like in previous matches,” said Ali.
    In the Boys’ Group B, its also still an open affair with hosts Terengganu, Malacca, Johor, Selangor and Pahang still in the hunt for the two knock-out slots.
    RESULTS: Boys’ Group A: Perak 1 Sabah 3, Kuala Lumpur 3 Sarawak 0, Kedah 1 Penang 0.
   Group B: Negri x Kelantan x, Johor 2 Pahang 7, Terengganu 2  Selangor 2.
    Girls’ Group A: Terengganu 0 Malacca 1.
    Group B: Negri 6 Kelantan 0, Johor 0 Penang 6, Kedah 2  Selangor 5.
    TODAY: Boys’ Group A -- Perlis v Sarawak, Perak v Penang, Kuala Lumpur v Sabah.
    Group B: Malacca v Pahang, Negri v Selangor, Johor v Kelantan.
     Girls’ Group A: Terengganu v Kuala Lumpur, Malacca v Sarawak.
   Group B: Kelantan v Johor, Kedah v Penang, Selangor v Negri.

Hope in Under-14...

MALAYSIAN Hockey Confederation (MHC) coaching di rector Tai Beng Hai is impressed with the standard of play in  the ongoing MHC-Milo-NSC Under-14 Hockey tournament in  Kuala Terengganu.
    He sees a number of talent which could be groomed into  better players.
    “In the beginning there was too much of rain and the pitch  was heavy so I could not really see individual talent in the  state sides, but the last two days the pitch condition is much  better and I did spot a number of players who are future  potentials,” said Beng Hai who is in Kuala Terengganu.
    He is also impressed with the way the Pahang boys are  playing in the tournament.
    “MHC president Tengku Abdullah (Sultan Ahmad Shah)  started an academy in Temerloh and Pahang has improved  tremendously in a year.
     “They beat Terengganu (a junior powerhouse) 3-1 in their  first match, and were sound in their structure, but lacked  strength and also the tactical aspect.
    “But I believe this age group tournament has teams which  are better prepared and also more talented. I will select a  pool of players from here to attend selected camps,” said  Beng Hai.
    Yesterday, Perlis shocked Penang 3-0 for their second win  of the tournament in the Boys’ Group A, and now have seven  points and are among the potential semi-finalists from the  group.
     Syukur Abu Bakar was the hat-trick hero as he scored field  goals in the 21st, 41st and 53rd minutes to beat Penang.
   And in the Boys Group B, Malacca edged Selangor 1-0 with  the winner coming from Mohamed Nur Asyraf in the 21st  minute off a penalty corner attempt.
    RESULTS --- Boys’ Group A: Penang 0 Perlis 3, Kuala  Lumpur 1 Kedah 0.
    Group B: Selangor 0 Malacca 1, Kelantan 2 Negri 0.
    Girls’ Group A: Kuala Lumpur 12 Pahang 0.
   TODAY: Boys’ Group A: Perak v Sabah, Kuala Lumpur v  Sarawak, Kedah v Penang.
   Group B: Negri v Kelantan, Johor v Pahang, Terengganu v  Selangor.
    Girls’ Group A: Terengganu v Malacca.
    Group B: Negri v Kelantan, Johor v Penang, Kedah v  Selangor.

Another hockey distinction for Tampin..

 PIC: Joel van Huizen

Pic: Kavin Kartik (right)

TAMPIN lad G. Kavin Kartik, 21, will have the distinction of being only the second Malaysian to play in two Junior World Cups, when coach K. Dharmaraj named his final 18 for the New Delhi tournament from Dec 6-15.
    The first was defender M. Devendran who played in the 1985 Vancouver and 1989 Ipoh Junior World Cups.
    And history ran three-deep in the Van Huizen family when Joel Samuel was also selected to play for the country for the first time.
    Joel’s grandfather Lawrence and father Stephen had also represented the nation in various tournaments, including the Olympics.
    “Kavin will be a valuable asset as he played in the 2009 World Cup, and knows how to handle match pressure in a major junior event.
    “As for Joel, he has never played in any tournament for the country, but he has worked hard during the recent tours and friendlies to warrant a call-up,” said juniors coach K. Dharmaraj.
    The Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) has revised the top-four, to a top-six target for the juniors, which is within their grasp, provided they do not bungle in the group stage.
    Malaysia are in Group D with New Zealand, England and South Africa.
    “I’m taking the target as a challenge for me and my players, however, right now, I am in full planning to win our first match against New Zealand (Dec 6) as a win would almost assure us a place in the quarter-finals, as we would have two more matched against South Africa (Dec 8) and England (Dec 9) to collect at least three points or more for the knock-out stage,” said Dharmaraj.
    For the record, New Zealand finished fourth in the 2009 Junior World Cup in Johor Baru, while Malaysia ended 12th in the 20-team tournament when they were beaten 3-2 by Belgium in the classification match.
    The pillars of the squad would be skipper Fitri Saari, Firhan Ashaari, Faiz Helmi Jali, Izad Hakimi Jamaluddin, Meor Azuan and Rashid Baharom as they have had the experience of playing at the senior level.
    The team will leave for New Delhi on Dec 1 and will play a friendly against Germany on Dec 3 as the final tune-up.
     MALAYSIA -- Hazrul Faiz Ahmad Sobri (goalkeeper), Hafizuddin Othman (goalkeeper), Firhan Ashaari, Fitri Saari (captain), Rashid Baharom, G. Kavin Kartik, Syamim Yusof, Shazril Irwan Nazli, Meor Azuan, Haziq Samsul, Izad Hakimi Jamaluddin,  Azri Hassan, Zulhairi Hashim, Faiz Helmi Jali,  Shahril Saabah, Joel Samuel van Huizen, Nor Aqmal Abdul Ghaffar, Hafiz Zainol.

National Under-14: Malacca boys edge Negri

MALACCA sprang a surprise by beating Negri Sembilan 1-0 on the first day of the National Under-14 Hockey Tournament in Kuala Terengganu yesterday.
    Ranked lower than their opponents who finished third in last year’s competition, Malacca claimed full points in the Group B opening match when Amir Wafiq Aizat converted a penalty corner in the 20th minute.
   Malacca manager R. Manogaran said the result was tremendous considering three of the team’s key players from the Bukit Jalil and Bandar Penawar sport schools only arrived a few hours before the match.
   “They took the bus here from their schools and they were obviously tired from the long journey but that did not stop them from playing their best hockey, especially goalkeeper Luqman (Nurharith Azman) who did well to keep a clean sheet.
   “It was a pretty even game with both sides having ample scoring chances but it was us who found the lucky break from one of the penalty corners and although it is still early days, we are now more confident that our semi-final aim is within reach,” he said.
   Negri Sembilan manager R. Subramaniam said it was unfortunate that his team failed to take advantage of their numerous scoring chances throughout the morning match at Batu Buruk Hockey Stadium.
   “We enjoyed a bigger share of possession, we controlled most of the match but they were the ones who scored.
   “It’s a disappointing result but we can’t let one defeat dictate the whole of the tournament as we are here to at least secure a semi-final berth and that is what we are going do,” he said.
   In the Group A opening match, Kedah beat Sarawak 6-3.
   In the girls category, Terengganu had little trouble against Sarawak when the hosts went on a scoring spree late in the match, winning 6-2 at Gong Badak Hockey Stadium.
      RESULTS: Boys’ -- Group A: Kedah 6 Sarawak 3, Perak 8  Perlis 1, Penang x Sabah x.
    Group B: Negri Sembilan 0 Malacca 1, Terengganu 1  Pahang 3, Selangor x Kelantan x.
    Girls’: Group A: Sarawak 2 Terengganu 6, Malacca 5  Pahang 1.
    Group B: Kelantan 1 Penang 6.
   TODAY: Boys’ -- Group A: Kuala Lumpur v Perlis, Kedah v  Sabah, Perak v Sarawak.
    Group B: Johor v Malacca, Terengganu v Kelantan, Negri  Sembilan v Pahang.
   Girls’: Group A: Kuala Lumpur v Malacca.
    Group B: Selangor v Johor, Kuala Lumpur v Malacca.