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Kuala Lumpur (2 March, 2017): Royal Malaysian Police and Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF Rajawali) provided the only sparks in the first-leg quarterfinals of the TNBMHL 2017 President Cup today.
The Cops scored an emphatic 7-3 victory over Johor at the Tun Razak Stadium – a result that places them in a comfortable position going into Saturday’s return leg encounter while RMAF Rajawali triumphed 2-1 over Majlis Bandaraya Petaling Jaya, placed fourth in the Division One League, at the MBPJ stadium.
Nur Insafi, who won the Division One title following seven straight wins, held Politeknik Malaysia-KPT to a 1-1 draw after going down to an early goal in Sungai Petani while Bukit Jalil Sports School (BJSS) drew 1-1 against Universiti Putra Malaysia-KPT (UPM) at the Kuala Lumpur Hockey Stadium.
Baljit Singh netted a hat-trick for Police via penalty corners whilst Mohamed Razali Mohd Zulkipli, Muhammad Rahimi Iskandar, Megat Azfariq Megat Tarmizi and Azreen Rizal scored a piece. Muhammad Adib Azmi Abd Shukor, Muhammad Syazwan Shah and Muhammad Kamarulzaman Kamaruddin were Johor scorers.
RMAF Rajawali, who finished seventh position in the eight-team Division One League, celebrated goals by Mohd Zulfadli Rosley (11th minute) and Aidil Zafri Mohd Zahir (26th minute) while Falah Hassan Shahrom replied for MBPJ.
Muhammad Johari Sani fired Politeknik Malaysia ahead in the 29th minute via open play and Pakistani Muhammad Ateeq equalised for Nur Insafi 10 minutes later through a penalty corner. However, the match was called off in the 49th minute due to heavy rain.
In Kuala Lumpur, BJSS took nine minutes to lead through Faiz Razin Zariq but the euphoria did not last long as UPM defender and drag-flick specialist Azmi Deraman equalised in the 21st minute of a penalty corner.
“It was a good game and we created several chances including three penalty corners but we were let down by poor finishing,” said BJSS coach Lokman Yahya. “In the return match (Saturday) we have to take our chances early and go for a win instead of draw.”
“A straight win will take us into the semi-finals. If the match ends in a draw it is a very tricky situation for both teams in the penalty shootout. It is important we take our chances well and win,” he added.
In the women’s league, Terengganu Ladies Hockey Team (TLHT) – led by 10 national players – lead the standings with 22 points followed by Blue Warriors (18 points), PKS-Uniten-KPT (16), Tunku Mahkota Ismail Sports School (8), Kulim (4) and Johor Bahru District HA at the bottom (1).
TLHT continued its winning ways with a 4-0 victory over Blue Warriors (Police) with goals from Nur Aisyah Hashim (4th minute), Nuraini Abdul Rashid (12th), Norazlin Sumantri (45th) and Wan Norfaiezah Mohd Saiuti (59th minute).
The Women’s League concludes on Saturday (4 March) with three matches on the fixtures followed by the two-leg semi-finals respectively on March 8 and 10. The final is on March 12.
Results – President Cup Quarterfinals 1st Leg:
Nur Insafi 1 Politeknik Malaysia-KPT 1;
Bukit Jalil Sports School 1 Universiti Putra Malaysia-KPT 1;
MBPJ 1 RMAF Rajawali 2; Royal Malaysian Police 7 Johor 3.
Women League – PKS-Uniten-KPT 1 SSTMI 1;
Johor Bahru District HA 0 Kulim 1;
Terengganu Ladies Hockey Team 4 Blue Warriors 0.
Saturday (4 March) Division One Quarterfinals 2nd Leg: Politeknik Malaysia-KPT v Nur Insafi (Taman Daya, Johor Bahru, 5pm);
Bukit Jalil Sports School v Universiti Putra Malaysia-KPT (KPM Stadium);
Johor v Royal Malaysian Police (Batu Pahat, 5pm);
RMAF Rajawali v MBPJ (5pm).
