Serdang (9 December, 2016): Johor Tigris blew their chance to move level on points with ATM Guardians after falling to Kedah Eagles in the ninth round of the Ekspres Perdana Sepak Takraw League (STL) 2016 at the Serdang Jaya Municipal Council Stadium, today.
The Eagles desperately looking to move out of the relegation zone posed a serious threat right from the start as they walk away with a 2-1 victory after a tight encounter.
For the second time this season, Eagles had defeated the Tigris after repeating a similar score line in the reversed fixture, mid-October.
Tigris came into the match with everything to play for as they look to capitalize on Guardians defeat to Penang Black Panthers yesterday. Muhammad Ibrahim, Tigris coach lined up his best men in the likes of Haidzir Rashid (tekong), Lutfil Azmi (feeder) and Norhafizi Razak (striker) as they began strongly early in the first set before losing their feet to allow the Northerners to steal a 21-15 victory.
However, Eagles trio Asrah Adenan (tekong), Zuleffendi Sumari (feeder) and Shahrol Nizam Romli (striker) took their feet of the pedal as they allowed Tigris to lead early in the second stage before only attempting a come-back later on but it was all too late as Tigris walked away with a 21-15 win.
Both teams began strongly in the rubber set as they play catch-up with each other before Eagles determination and mental strength proved to be the difference as they walked away with a 21-14 victory to ensure they keep alive their hopes of avoiding relegation.
As it stands currently, Tigris chances of gaining an entry into the semi-finals just got a little bit more complicated as it will require them to win their last match against league-leaders, Panthers in straight sets while also hoping Guardians lose their match 2-0 against the Eagles.
In the second match of the day, already confirmed relegated Melaka Titans took on the Kelantan Warriors with hopes of salvaging what is left of their season.
The Titans put up a performance worthy of registering only their third win of the season as they defeated the Warriors 2-1. The East Coast team coming into the match would have hoped that they could gain some crucial points as they watched the Eagles climbed out of the relegation zone after their victory earlier against Tigris.
However, Warriors trio Khairul Hisham Yusoff (tekong), Aidil Aiman Azwawi (feeder) and Naim Izani Noor (striker) failed to finish of the match after storming to a 21-15 win in the first set.
This allowed the Titans trio Sahidan Ali (tekong), Zarlizan Zakaria (feeder) and Azwan Yahya (striker) to stage a come-back as they took home the second set 21-15 before going on to win the rubber set, 21-14.
For Warriors, they will now have to put this game behind them as they focus on their match tomorrow against Terengganu Turtles in which the outcome of the game could decide their fate in the STL.
Anything less than a win and a victory for the Eagles will definitely send the Warriors packing home together with bottom-placed Titans into the STL Division 1.
RESULTS:
Friday (9 December 2016):
Ekspres Perdana Sepak Takraw League (STL):
Kedah Eagles bt Johor Tigris 2-1 (21-15, 15-21, 21-14)
Melaka Titans bt Kelantan Warriors 2-1 (15-21, 21-15, 21-14)
FIXTURES:
Ekspres Perdana Sepak Takraw League (STL):
Saturday (10 December 2016): ATM Guardians v Kedah Eagles (4pm), Terengganu Turtles v Kelantan Warriors (5.30pm).
Sunday (11 December 2016): Melaka Titans v Kuala Lumpur Thunder (4pm), Johor Tigris v Penang Black Panthers (5.30pm).
* Serdang Jaya Municipal Council Stadium, Selangor
