Monday, February 10, 2014

Love is in the air for Thunderbolts...

TUNKU Mahkota Ismail Sports School (SSTMI) Thunderbolts will renew their love vow with hockey when they play for their fifth consecutive Junior Hockey League title on Valentines Day.
    The School, formerly known as Bandar Penawar Sports School, found the right tonic to success when they tied the knot with sponsors Tenaga Nasional.
     Thunderbolts, unbeaten after five matches by scoring a whopping 30 goals in Division One, are expected to have an easy time against Kuala Lumpur Hockey Club (KLHC) who only have one win to show after four matches.
     “We are fortunate that we have an ally in Tenaga Nasional and that helped us a lot in monetary as well as technical aspects of the game. We are grateful to them and it is a collective effort that has seen the school become strong in the sport,” said coach Wan Roslan Wan Rahman.
    The match against KLHC will be a mere formality to complete the fixtures: “My players knew from the start of the season that we must beat UniKL (Young Guns) to retain our title and they gave their all in the 4-1 win.”
    For UniKL it is back to the drawing board after their humiliating defeat.
    Coach Rodhanizam Radzi had some of the most talented juniors in the country at his disposal but their inability to c convert penalty corners saw their downfall.
  “We lost to a better team and that we have to accept. We will now try to win the runner up spot and focus on the knockout stages but we need the players to start believing in their ability first,” said Rodhanizam.
     The battle for spots into the play-offs from the three Division Two tiers has also turned out to be an interesting affair.
    For, only Nur Insafi from Penang have assured themselves of a place in the six team playoff for the four spots in the quarter-final of the knock out stage.
     The two top teams in each of the Division Two groups will play in a playoff stage to determine which four move into the quarters.
   Olak-PKT are expected to move into the playoff despite going down to their first defeat, 2-1 to MSP Juniors in Kuantan.
    “It was on those days where everything went wrong for us,” said Olak team manager Joseph de Silva.
    “We deserved to lose as we lost our focus and the defeat is a timely wake up call for us.”



DIVISION ONE
                    P  W  D  L  F   A  Pts
TH’BOLTS    5   5   0  0  30   4    15
PJCC             5 4    0   1  11   10  12
UNIKL          4 3    0   1   14   4     9
MHS             6 1    2    3   7   18    5
KLHC            4 1     1   2   6    7     4
ANDERSON  5 0    2   3   4    14    2
SSTMI JNRS 5 0     1    4  3 18     1



DIVISION TWO A
                           P  W  D  L   F    A  Pts
NUR INSAFI        7  7   0   0   23   6    21
BAKAT                5  4   0  1   13   7    12
SYED HASSAN    5  3   1   1   14   5   10
MSSPP-USM        6  2   1  3    12  12    7
MATRI PERLIS    5  1  2   2    6    7    5
STAR                  6  1   1   4   6    21  4
1MAS PENANG   5  0   2   3    4   10    2
PHKS                  5  0   1   4   3    13    1

DIVISION TWO B
                              P    W  D    L   F     A    Pts
PAHANG JRS           7   5   2   0    25     7   17
OLAK-PKT               6  5    0   1    27    6   15
PDG MIDIN              5   4   0   1    27     6   12
FELDA TEMERLOH 5   2    1   2    19     9    7
KLSS JRS                  7  2   0   5     15    23   6
LARUT MATANG     5   1   2   2    13     15    5
1MAS PERAK           5   1   1   3    9      11    4
PERMATANG JRS     6  0   0   6     5    64   0


DIVISION TWO C
                              P    W  D    L   F     A    Pts
POLITEKNIK          4    4    0    0   23    3    12
BJSS                      5    4    0     1   18    7     12
BENTARA LUAR    4    3    0     1   17    6     9
SMKTB                  5    2    1     2   9     14    7
SMKDMT               5    1    1     3    6     15   4
BJSS JRS                5    0    1     4     5    17   1
PHDK                     4    0    1    3     4     20   1

Sunday, February 9, 2014

PJCC do just enough...

PETALING Jaya City Council (PJCC) did just enough to edge Kuala Lumpur Sports School (KLSS) 2-1 to keep their hopes alive of finishing second in Division One of the Junior Hockey League.
    Now, PJCC must beat UniKL Young Guns in their final League match on Feb 15 to realise their dream.
    KLSS drew first blood in the eighth minute when Nur Faiz Rosli scored a field goal, but PJCC equalised seconds from the half-time hooter off a Nor Ikhwab Rahman penalty corner.
    And in the 66th minute, Nazirul Zebidi made sure his team collected full points with another penalty corner attempt.
    PJCC coach Azlan Saufi was a relieved man when the final hooter blew: “We did just enough to beat KLSS, and I think it was due to the two-week break which the boys enjoyed.
    “But I’m happy with their commitment to come back from a goal down and beat KLSS so that we still have a chance of finishing second in the JHL this season.”
    However, Azlan does not think his side desreve the favourites tag when they play UniKL.
    “UniKL were quite unlucky their penalty corner’s did not work against SSTMI Thunderbolts (UniKL lost 4-1). Overall, I think UniKL are a very strong side and any team which takes them lightly will be punished. So I feel the underdogs tag is better for PJCC,” said Azlan.
    RESULTS: Division One -- KLSS 1 Petaling Jaya CC 2.
   Division Two A: 1MAS Penang 1 PHKS 1, Nur Insafi 2 Syed Hassan 0.
   Division Two B: Padang Midin 3 KLSS Juniors 2, MSP Pahang Juniors 2 Olak-PKT 1.
   Division Two C: Datuk Taha 3 BJSS Juniors 1.



DIVISION ONE
                    P  W  D  L  F   A  Pts
TH’BOLTS    5   5   0  0  30 4    15
PJCC             5 4    0   1  11   10  12
UNIKL          4 3    0   1   14  4  9
MHS             6 1    2    3   7 18  5
KLSS            4 1     1   2   6 7 4
ANDERSON  5 0    2   3   4 14  2
SSTMI JNRS 5 0     1    4   3 18  1



DIVISION TWO A
                           P  W  D  L   F    A  Pts
NUR INSAFI        7  7   0   0   23   6    21
BAKAT                5  4   0  1   13   7    12
SYED HASSAN    5  3   1   1   14   5   10
MSSPP-USM        6  2   1  3    12  12    7
MATRI PERLIS    5  1  2   2    6    7    5
STAR                  6  1   1   4   6    21  4
1MAS PENANG   5  0   2   3    4   10    2
PHKS                  5  0   1   4   3    13    1

DIVISION TWO B
                              P    W  D    L   F     A    Pts
PAHANG JRS           7   5   2   0    25     7   17
OLAK-PKT               6  5    0   1    27    6   15
PDG MIDIN              5   4   0   1    27     6   12
FELDA TEMERLOH 5   2    1   2    19     9    7
KLSS JRS                  7  2   0   5     15    23   6
LARUT MATANG     5   1   2   2    13     15    5
1MAS PERAK           5   1   1   3    9      11    4
PERMATANG JRS     6  0   0   6     5    64   0


DIVISION TWO C
                              P    W  D    L   F     A    Pts
POLITEKNIK          4    4    0    0   23    3    12
BJSS                      5    4    0     1   18    7     12
BENTARA LUAR    4    3    0     1   17    6     9
SMKTB                  5    2    1     2   9     14    7
SMKDMT               5    1    1     3    6     15   4
BJSS JRS                5    0    1     4     5    17   1
PHDK                     4    0    1    3     4     20   1

Saturday, February 8, 2014

Fifth consecutive title looms for Thunderbolts

SSTMI Thunderbolts sidestepped UniKL Young Guns 4-1 in Division One of the Junior Hockey League at the Bukit Jalil Stadium to virtually seal their fifth title in a row.
   The defending champions now only have one match against Kuala Lumpur Sports School at their fort in Taman

Daya on Valentines Day to confirm their title.
    Yesterday, Thunderbolts skipper Aminudin Zain scored a brace off penalty corners in the 31st and 40th minutes

to give his side an early boost.
     Aminuddin has scored six goals to date, equalling his team-mate Najmi Farizal's count. Najmi was suspended for

the match against UniKL, for picking up maximum demerit points while playing against Malacca High School on
Friday.
   Yesterday, Aminuddin was also benched for a green, and then limped out in the 52th minute after picking up an

injury while attempting to score another penalty corner goal.
    However, in the 54th minute, Thunderbolts increased their lead when Firdaus Omar's penalty corner attempt was

deflected into goal by Najib Abu Hassan.
    UniKL's Ikwan Ishak pulled one back in the 56th minute, but Ammar Zahari made the final score 4-1 in favour of

Thunderbolts with a simple tap in the 67th minute.
    "It is a nice feeling going for our fifth title, as we only have obe more match to complete the fixtures unbeaten.

And UniKL were supposed to be our strongest hurdle, so I'm very happy that my players scored three penalt corners
and one field goal to kill off their challenge," said Thunderbolts coach Wan Roslan Rahman.
   

RESULTS: Division One -- UniKL Young Guns 1 SSTMI Thunderbolts 4, Malacca High School 1 SSTMI Juniors 0.
   Division Two A: Matri 1 MSSp-USM 1, STAR 3 PHKS1.
   Division Two B: Felda Temerloh 12 Permatang Juniors1.
   Division Two C: BJSS 4 TBSS 1.
   TODAY: Division One -- KLSS v Petaling Jaya CC (5pm, Kuala Lumpur HA).
   Division Two A: 1MAS Penang v PHKS (5pm, USM), Nur Insafi v Syed Hassan (5pm, Sungain Petani).
   Division Two B: Padang Midin v KLSS juniors (5pm, Kuala Terengganu), MSP Pahang Juniors v Olak-PKT (5pm,

Kuantan).
   Division Two C: Datuk Taha v BJSS Juniors (5pm, Seremban II).

DIVISION ONE
                    P  W  D  L  F   A  Pts
TH’BOLTS    5   5   0  0  30 4    15
UNIKL          4 3    0   1   14  4  9
PJCC             4 3    0   1  9   9  9
MHS             6 1    2    3   7 18  5
KLSS            3 1     1   1   5 5 4
ANDERSON  5 0    2   3   4 14  2
SSTMI JNRS 5 0     1    4   3 18  1

DIVISION TWO A
                           P  W  D  L   F    A  Pts
NUR INSAFI        6  6   0   0   21   6    18
BAKAT                5  4   0  1   13   7    12
SYED HASSAN    4  3   1   0   14   3   10
MSSPP-USM        6  2   1  3    12  12    7
MATRI PERLIS    5  1  2   2    6    7    5
STAR                  6  1   1   4   6    21  4
1MAS PENANG   4  0   1   3    3   9    1
PHKS                  4  0   0   4   2    12    0


DIVISION TWO B
                              P    W  D    L   F     A    Pts
OLAK-PKT               5  5    0   0    26    4   15
PAHANG JRS           6   4   2   0    23     6   14
PDG MIDIN              4   3   0   1    24     4    9
FELDA TEMERLOH 5   2    1   2    19     9    7
KLSS JRS                  6  2   0   4     13    20   6
LARUT MATANG     5   1   2   2    13     15    5
1MAS PERAK           5   1   1   3    9      11    4

PERMATANG JRS     6  0   0   6     5    64   0

DIVISION TWO C
                              P    W  D    L   F     A    Pts
POLITEKNIK          4    4    0    0   23    3    12
BJSS                      5    4    0     1   18    7     12
BENTARA LUAR    4    3    0     1   17    6     9
SMKTB                  5    2    1     2   9     14    7
SMKDMT               4    0    1     3    3     14   1
BJSS JRS                4    0    1     3     4    14   1
PHDK                     4    0    1    3     4     20   1

Friday, February 7, 2014

UniKL and Thunderbolts score convincing wins...

UNIKL Young Guns were late bloomers, as they only powered ahead in the second half to beat SSTMI Juniors 6-0 in
Division One of the Junior Hockey League at the Bukit Jalil Stadium yesterday.
    And at the Malacca Stadium, SSTMI Thunderbolts beat Malacca High School 7-2 to set up a mouth watering duel

today.
   UniKL and Thunderbolts square off today in what could be the Division One title showdown.
   "We wasted many penalty corner attempts, but the boys made up with field goals in the second half, and I expect

my strikers to deliver again when we play Thunderbolts tomorrow (today)," said UniKL coach Rodhanizam Radzi.
   Defending champions Thunderbolts, however, we dealt a severe blow as their penalty corner ace Najmi Farizal will

not be able to play against UniKL today as he picked up a yellow card against Malacca High School.
   "Najmi scored a hat-trick against Malacca, but in his gung-ho attempt to win the match for us he picked up his

second yellow card of the tournament and will serve his suspension when we play UniKL.
   "This (UniKL match) could well decide the Division One title, and even though we will be without our main penalty

corner flicker, I still have faith in my players to deliver three points," said Thunderbolts coach Wan Roslan Rahman.
    The Thunderbolts goals were scored by Sufi Ismat (fourth), Nik Aiman Rozemi (12th), M. Saravanan (25th), Najmi

Farizal (38th, 61st, 67th), Najib Hassan (45th).
    The Malacca scorers were Amirul Hakim (21st) and Haniff Razak (49th).
    As for UniKL, their goals were scored by Mohamed Shafirrul Akmal (27th), Zizi Azwan Hassan (30th), Rahimi (45th,

55th, 64th), Hafif Elkan (67th).


RESULTS: Division One -- Malacca High Schhool 2 SSTMI Thunderbolts 7, UniKL Young Guns 6 SSTMI Juniors 0.
    Division Two A: Syed Hassan 4 MSSP-USM 1, STAR 1 Nur Insafi 3.
    Division Two B: KLSS Juniors 6 Larut Matang 2, MSS Pahang 13 Permatang Juniors 1, Padang Midin 4 1MAS

Perak 0.
   Division Two C: SM Tunku Besar 1 BJSS Juniors 1.
    TODAY: Division One -- UniKL Young Guns v SSTMI Thunderbolts (5pm, Bukit Jalil, Pitch II), Malacca High

School v SSTMI Juniors (5pm, Malacca Stadium).
   Division Two A: Matri v MSSp-USM (5pm, Kuala Perlis), STAR v PHKS (5pm, Azlan Shah Stadium).
   Division Two B: Felda Temerloh v Permatang Juniors (5pm, Temerloh).
   Division Two C: SM Tunku Besar v BJSS (5pm, Seremban II).

DIVISION ONE
                    P  W  D  L  F   A  Pts
TH’BOLTS    4   4   0  0  26 3    12
UNIKL          3 3    0   0   13  0  9
PJCC             4 3    0   1  9   9  9
KLSS            3 1     1   1   5 5 4
ANDERSON  5 0    2   3   4 14  2
MHS             5 0    2    3   6 18  2
SSTMI JNRS 4 0     1    3   3 17  1

DIVISION TWO A
                           P  W  D  L   F    A  Pts
NUR INSAFI        6  6   0   0   21   6    18
BAKAT                5  4   0  1   13   7    12
SYED HASSAN    4  3   1   0   14   3   10
MSSPP-USM        5  2   0  3    11  11    6
MATRI PERLIS    4  1  1   2    5    6    4
1MAS PENANG   4  0   1   3    3   9    1
STAR                  5  0   1   4   3    20  1
PHKS                  3  0   0   3   1    9    0


DIVISION TWO B
                              P    W  D    L   F     A    Pts
OLAK-PKT               5  5    0   0    26    4   15
PAHANG JRS           6   4   2   0    23     6   14
PDG MIDIN              4   3   0   1    24     4    9
KLSS JRS                  6  2   0   4     13    20   6
LARUT MATANG     5   1   2   2    13     15    5
1MAS PERAK           5   1   1   3    9      11    4
FELDA TEMERLOH 4   1    1   2    7     8    4
PERMATANG JRS     5  0   0   5     4    52   0


DIVISION TWO C
                              P    W  D    L   F     A    Pts
POLITEKNIK          4    4    0    0   23    3    12
BENTARA LUAR    4    3    0     1   17    6     9
BJSS                      4    3    0     1   14    6     9
SMKTB                  4    2    1     1    8     10    7
SMKDMT               4    0    1     3    3     14   1
PHDK                     4    0    1    3     4     20   1
BJSS JRS                4    0    1     3     4    14   1

Thursday, February 6, 2014

Olak game to save Pandamaran turf..








FORMER double champions Old La Sallians Association of Klang (Olak) have been training on a tattered and fungus infested artificial pitch, but still, they remain unbeaten after five matches in Division Two B of the Junior Hockey League.
    And with two more matches to play, against Pahang Juniors this Sunday and SMK Padang Midin on Feb 15, Olak team manager Joseph de Silva wants to prove a point to help re-turf the Pandamaran Stadium artificial pitch.
   “We had no choice but to train at the Pandamaran Stadium before the JHL started, and are still using it for training purposes even though it is torn and tattered in several spots.
    “And I hope my boys keep up the momentum and win their remaining two matches so that those who have the power to repair the pitch, will notice our progress, and finally help us to re-turf the pitch,” said de Silva.
    In the five matches Olak have played, against teams who have better home facilities, they won 6-0 against Kuala Lumpur HC, 10-1 against Permatang Juniors, 3-1 against Felda Academy Pahang, 5-1 against Larut Matang and Selama and 2-1 against 1Mas Perak.
    The Pandamaran Stadium was declared as unplayable by the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC): “That is why we play our home matches at the Kuala Lumpur HA Stadium. But training is still at Pandamaran, even though the artificial pitch is in deplorable state.
    “We had to utilise the club funds to wash the fungus at the Pandamaran artificial pitch to continue training there, but it has all been worth it as my boys have proven themselves by scoring 26 goals and conceding only four in five matches.”
     Meanwhile, the Division One title is expected to be decided by tomorrow, when title front-runners UniKL Young Guns and SSTMI Thunderbolts come face-to-face.
   But before that, today, UniKL needs to beat SSTMI Juniors while Thunderbolts must beat Malacca High School to set up the finale duel.
    TODAY: Division One -- Malacca High Schhool v SSTMI Thunderbolts (5pm, Malacca Stadium), UniKL Young Guns v  SSTMI Juniors (5pm, Bukit Jalil, Pitch II).
    Division Two A: Syed Hassan v MSSP-USM (5pm, Kuala Perlis), STAR v Nur Insafi (5pm, Azlan Shah Stadium).
    Division Two B: KLSS Juniors v larut Matang (5pm, Kuala Lumpur HA), MSS Pahang v Permatang Juniors (5pm, Kuantan), Padang Midin v 1MAS Perak (5pm, Kuala Terengganu).
   Division Two C: SM Tunku Besar v BJSS Juniors (5pm, Seremban II), Politeknik KPM v SMK Bentara Luar (5pm, Taman Daya).
    TOMORROW: Division One -- UniKL Young Guns v SSTMI Thunderbolts (5pm, Bukit Jalil, Pitch II), Malacca High School v SSTMI Juniors (5pm, Malacca Stadium).
   Division Two A: Matri v MSSp-USM (5pm, Kuala Perlis), STAR v PHKS (5pm, Azlan Shah Stadium).
   Division Two B: Felda Temerloh v Permatang Juniors (5pm, Temerloh).
   Division Two C: SM Tunku Besar v BJSS (5pm, Seremban II).

DIVISION ONE

                    P  W  D  L  F   A  Pts
TH’BOLTS    3   3   0  0  19 1    9
PJCC             4 3    0   1  9   9  9
UNIKL          2 2    0   0   7  0  6
ANDERSON  5 1    2   2   6 12  5
MHS             4 0    2    2   4 11  2
KLSS            3 0     1   2   3 7  1
SSTMI JNRS 3 0     1    2   3 11  1

DIVISION TWO A

                           P  W  D  L   F    A  Pts
NUR INSAFI        5  5   0   0   18   5    15
BAKAT                5  4   0  1   13   7    12
SYED HASSAN    3  2   1   0   10   2    7
MSSPP-USM        4  2   0  2    10  7    6
MATRI PERLIS    4  1  1   2    5    6    4
1MAS PENANG   4  0   1   3    3   9    1
STAR                  4  0   1   3   2    17  1
PHKS                  3  0   0   3   1    9    0

DIVISION TWO B

                              P    W  D    L   F     A    Pts
OLAK-PKT               5  5    0   0    26    4   15
PAHANG JRS           5   3   2   0    10     5   11
PDG MIDIN              3   2   0   1    20     4    6
LARUT MATANG     4   1   2   1    11     9    5
1MAS PERAK           4   1   1   2    9      7    4
FELDA TEMERLOH 4   1    1   2    7     8    4
KLSS JRS                  5  1   0   4     7    18   3
PERMATANG JRS     4  0   0   4     3    38   0

DIVISION TWO C

                              P    W  D    L   F     A    Pts
POLITEKNIK          4    4    0    0   23    3    12
BENTARA LUAR    4    3    0     1   17    6     9
BJSS                      4    3    0     1   14    6     9
SMKTB                  3    2    0     1    7     9     6
SMKDMT               4    0    1     3    3     14   1
PHDK                     4    0    1    3     4     20   1
BJSS JRS                3    0    0     3     3    13   0