Sapura lead title chase...

Pic: Sapura's Joel Samul Van Huizen (left) challenges Tenaga's Nik Aiman Nik Rozemi for the ball during their TNBMHL 2016 Premier League match Friday. Sapura won 2-1.


SAPURA Hockey Club barely lead the Premier Division standings at midway, and coach Yahya Omar knows they can't afford to make any blunders in the remaining five matches.
  Kuala Lumpur Hockey Club (KLHC) are biting the heels of Sapura, and it looks like double champions Terengganu Hockey Team (THT) have only an outside chance of defending their League title.
  "It has been too long (11 years) since we last won any titles in the Malaysia Hockey League (MHL) and being at the top after five matces will not mean a thing is we fumble in the second round," said Yahya.
  Yahya said its all in the hands of his players now.
  "We have a very good team which is capable of winning any match that comes their way, but in the end, all the coaching and training will come to nothing if the players themselves do not have a strong desire to become champions," said Yahya.
  Ironically, Sapura start the second round against Tenaga again today.
  "All the teams will be pressuring us now that we are top of the standings, so I am glad my boys held on, on Friday. This win is very important for us, especially as Sunday's return leg is also against Tenaga because it raises our confidence," added Yahya who praised Tenaga's fighting spirit.
  The other two matches today will also see the same fixtures as Friday, with KLHC playing Maybank and THT against UniKL to kick-start the second round.
  In Division One, SSTMI and TNB Thunderbolts lead the charge into the quarter-finals with 12 points each after six matches. And in the women's MHL, SSTMI and Blue Warriors lead the semi-finals cast with 12 and 10 points after five matches.
  TODAY: Premier Division -- Kuala Lumpur HC v Maybank (KLHA, 6pm), UniKL v Terengganu (KLHA, 8pm), Sapura v Tenaga (Tun Razak, 6pm).
  ALAGENDRA CUP Semi-finals: Sept 6: Tenaga Nasional v Terengganu HT (KLHA,6pm), SSTMI v Sapura (SSTMI, 6pm).


PREMIER DIVISION

            P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts

SAPURA      5  4  0  1  11 7  12
KLHC        5  3  2  0  14 7  11
THT         5  2  1  2  13 10 7
MAYBANK     5  2  0  3  9  15 6
UNIKL       5  1  1  3  4  9  4
TENAGA      5  0  2  3  10 13 2

Sapura edge Tenaga to stay tops...

SAPURA Hockey Club edged Tenaga Nasional 2-1 to keep their grip in the Premier Division of the Malaysia Hockey League at the KLHA Stadium Friday.
  After 11 years missing out on silverware, Sapura end the first round at the top of the standings and are also in the running to play in the final of the Tan Sri P. Alagendra Cup.
  "Tenaga really made it difficult for us today (yesterday) and we barely collected the full points. But this is what we need, a big test on our defenders, before we start our second round journey," said coach Yahya Omar.
  Sapura meet SSTMI in the Alagendra Cup semi-finals on Tuesday, and it should be a walk in the park to make the final.
  The other semi-finals between Tenaga Nasional and Terengganu Hockey Team is expected to be a cracker.
  The Sapura goals were scored by Dangerous Lee (12th) and Azrul bin Hasbullah (19th) while Tenaga got theirs off Arif Sabron
in the 42nd minute.
  In another Premier Division match yesterday, Terengganu Hockey Team (THT) made the half-way mark of the MHL with a 3-1 win over Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL) at the Batu Buruk Stadium.
  THT were leading 3-0 until the 56th minute when UniKL scored the consolation off Rafizul Ezry.
  The THT goals were scored by Nicolas Enrique (20th), Jang Jong Hyun (22nd) and Kim Junghoo (52nd).
  All three THT's goals were by foreign imports, while the last season's top scorer Faizal Shaari, with 17 goals, has yet to score a after five matches.
  "It was a much better game that the previous four, but still, my forwards keep missing sitters and this can't go on in the second leg if we want to finish among the top-three teams," said Sarjit.
  RESULTS -- Premier Division: Terengganu HT 3 UniKL 1, Tenaga Nasional 1 Sapura HC 2, Maybank 1 Kuala Lumpur HC 4.
  ALAGANDRA CUP Semi-finals: Sept 6: Tenaga Nasional v Terengganu HT (KLHA,6pm), SSTMI v Sapura (SSTMI, 6pm).


PREMIER DIVISION

            P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts

SAPURA      5  4  0  1  11 7  12
KLHC        5  3  2  0  14 7  11
THT         5  2  1  2  13 10 7
MAYBANK     5  2  0  3  9  15 6
UNIKL       5  1  1  3  4  9  4
TENAGA      5  0  2  3  10 13 2

Arul and his men wary of THT den..

DOUBLE champions Terengganu Hockey Team (THT) will be out to make amends when they meet Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL) in the half-way mark of the Premier Division Friday.
  THT have had a bad run in the Malaysia Hockey League as after four matches, they only have four points to show. 
  UniKL also have four points.
  "We need to have a good result going into the return-leg, as my players failed to score off the numerous chances they received in the last four matches.
  "Our sharpness in the League, in penalty corners and field attempts, has been blunt thus far and I believe we will have a better run tomorrow (today)," said THT coach Sarjit Singh.
  UniKL coach Arul Selvaraj likened it as 'going into the lions den'.
  "Playing at Batu Buruk (THT's home) is an intimidating task for any team and its like walking into the lion's den as they are a class above us.
  "We will have to play smart and not open ourselves at the back as they have players who can punish on counter," said Arul.
  UniKL have suffered two successive defeats in the past week, losing 2-1 to Maybank in the League and 2-3 to Tenaga Nasional in the Tan Sri P. Alagendra Cup.
  The semi-finals draw for the Alagendra Cup was held yesterday, and THT will square off against Tenaga while Sapura will play SSTMI.
  "We need to focus on the UniKL match first and then only the Alagendra Cup on Tuesday. However, Tenaga are no pushovers and I expect another tiring time in the Cup against them," said Sarjit.
  In the League THT were held 4-4 by Tenaga.
  Sapura are expected to walk into the Alagendra Cup final as they play a Division One outfit.
  FRIDAY -- Premier Division: Terengganu HT v UniKL (Batu Buruk, 5.30pm), Tenaga Nasional v Sapura HC (KLHA, 6pm), Maybank v Kuala Lumpur HC (Malacca, 8pm).
  ALAGANDRA CUP Semi-finals: Sept 6: Tenaga Nasional v Terengganu HT (KLHA,6pm), SSTMI v Sapura (SSTMI, 6pm).


PREMIER DIVISION

            P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts

SAPURA      4  3  0  1  9  6  9
KLHC        4  2  2  0  10 6  8
MAYBANK     4  2  0  2  8  11 6
THT         4  1  1  2  10 9  4
UNIKL       4  1  1  2  3  6  4
TENAGA      4  0  2  2  9  11 2

Alagendra Cup: THT survive KLHC charge

TERENGGANU Hockey Team (THT) edged Kuala Lumpur Hockey Club 3-2 in the quarter-finals of the Tan Sri P. Alagendra Cup at the Batu Buruk Stadium in Terengganu Tuesday.
    In the other quarters, Tenaga Nasional beat UniKL 3-2, SSTMI beat Politeknik 3-0 in shootout after the game ended 1-1 and Sapura hammered ATM Airod 7-0.
    Another open draw would be held on Thursday to pair the semi-finalists.
   "We did not do anything different from our previous matches, only that we took the chances much better this time. The game was very close and could have gone either way, as the winner was scored late in the match," said THT coach Sarjit Singh whose side has had a bad run in the League so far.
   THT took a 2-0 lead by the 39th minute before KLHC clawed back to level the score. The THT winner was scored by Jang Jung Hyun in the 56th minute off a penalty corner attempt.
   As for UniKL, their gallant run was stopped short by a fighting Tenaga.
   Failure to defend well cost UniKL a place in the semifinals as they twice came back from a goal down but defensive frailties cost them the match.
  And coach Arul Selvaraj was not at all happy with their performance.
"We were poor in defence and missed the presence of Baljit Singh who was injured," said Arul.
"And it was our failure to take chances that put paid our hopes of progressing.
"Overall it was a good performance by the younger players in both teams that showed composure and maturity.
"Though we lost but overall Malaysian hockey won as the match was highly entertaining and the youngsters showed that they can play good Hockey."
In the first round match Tenaga Nasional defeated Uitm- KPT 11-0 while UniKL edged Maybank 1-0.
  

Sapura above water after 11 years...

PIC: KLHC's Haziq Samsul (left) challenges TNB's Amir Farid (centre) for the ball during their TNBMHL 2016 Premier League match at the Kuala Lumpur Hockey Stadium Sunday. KLHC 2-2 TNB.

SAPURA last won the League title in 2005, the year they also won the double by lifting the Overall crown, and 11 years later their head is finally above water in the Premier Division of the Malaysia Hockey League.
  Coach Yahya Omar and his men have nine points after four matches, and top the standings by a single point over Kuala Lumpur Hockey Club (KLHC).
  However, double champions Terengganu Hockey Team (THT) have hit a dry patch, as first they lost the Charity Shield (2-1 to KLHC) and are now languishing in the middle of the table with only four points after four matches.
  Yahya believes it all up to his players, as they have the fitness and skills, only the hunger for titles need to be challenged.
  "If we play like we did against THT (won 2-0) where my players showed their hunger for victory, I believe we will finally lay our hands on a title this season.
  "As for the League, we still have Tenaga Nasional to play before ending the first round. And then, we have five more matches to play with determination to realise our League dream," said Yahya.
  Today, Sapura will play Division One outfit ATM Airod in the Tan Sri P. Alagendra Cup quarter-finals.
  ATM Airod have played six matches, with only one win to show and are at the bottom of the standings.
  "We should get past the quarter-finals, but the last-four is where we meet true challengers for the Alagendra Cup," said Yahya.
  The Alagendra Cup's top match of the day will be between THT and KLHC at the Batu Buruk Stadium.
  "We are in bad shape in the League because we missed too many penalty corner and field chances. The League title now looks like a toss between KLHC and Sapura, but the Alegandra Cup is stil within our reach and my players know what to do tomorrow (today)," said THT coach Sarjit Singh.
  KLHC coach Harun Rashid said: "Our end game in the third quarter needs to be tightened as we lost many points during that period. The Alagendra Cup quarters will be tough, but not impossible."
  TUESDAY: ALAGENDRA CUP -- Quarter-finals: Terengganu Hockey Team v Kuala Lumpur Hockey Club (Batu Buruk, 5.30pm); Politeknik Malaysia v SSTMI (Taman Daya, 5pm); Sapura Hockey Club v ATM Airod (KLHA, 8pm); Universiti Kuala Lumpur v Tenaga Nasional Berhad (KLHA Stadium, 6pm).

PREMIER DIVISION

            P  W  D  L  F  A  Pts

SAPURA      4  3  0  1  9  6  9
KLHC        4  2  2  0  10 6  8
MAYBANK     4  2  0  2  8  11 6
THT         4  1  1  2  10 9  4
UNIKL       4  1  1  2  3  6  4
TENAGA      4  0  2  2  9  11 2