It was the second match on the trot, and against weaker and
younger opposition, that KLHC dropped points after a 1-1 match against Universiti
Kuala Lumpur (UniKL) on Friday.
But nothing should be taken away from TNB, as their gallant
second half display showed that they have the motivation and drive to battle it
out with the best in the league.
In other Premier League matches played, Sapura beat Terengganu
Hockey Team 2-0 and Maybank came back from a goal down to beat UniKL 2-1 at
KLHA.
The win sees Sapura go top of the league with nine points, KLHC
are second with eight points, Maybank are third on six, THT and UniKL have four
points each while TNB are bottom with 2 points.
KLHC went ahead through a well taken field goal from Spanish
striker Pedro Lopez-Alonso in the fifth minute. The Kuala Lumpur side was
running the show in the first half with Pakistan’s Mohd Umar Bhutta and Nabil
Fiqri Mohd Noor proving a handful for the TNB midfield and defenders.
TNB's first real chance of the match came in the 21st minute
when Arif Sabron broke free in the box, but KLHC goalkeeper Muhd Shafie was
quick off his mark to clear the danger.
KLHC then went 2-0 up when South Korean flicker Hyunwoo Nam
expertly placed his shot in the top left corner in the 39th minute, his second
goal in as many matches.
Muhd Shafie came to KLHC's rescue again, when he left his line
early to challenge TNB's Mohd Hafizhuddin Zaidi and cleared the danger.
TNB finally got the goal they deserve in the 53rd minute when
Syed Mohd Syafiq Syed Cholan blasted home his penalty corner to the top right
of the goal.
Minutes later, TNB had a chance to level the match after some
excellent dribbling from Nik Mohd Aiman on the right, but his pass across the
goal mouth was cleared by the defence with Muhd Shafie well beaten.
TNB got the goal they deserved for an inspired second half
fightback when Muhd Firdaus Omar deflected his shot in from a powerful shot
into the box in the final minute of play.
Coach Muhd Amin Rahim was more than pleased with his team's
performance, especially as since it follows another strong showing in the 4-4
draw against THT on Friday.
"I am very happy with our performance. Against THT we
played very well as well, and that is what is important for us. They are a
superior side to us and giving them a run for their money is the most important
thing. A win is a bonus, and a draw is like a win for us," said Mohamad Amin.
For KLHC, the result will give coach Muhd Harun Al-Rahid Samri a
lot more to ponder as his team failed yet again to take advantage against their
rivals, despite taking the lead.
"There is just not enough time to recover between matches
as they are very close. We travel to Terengganu tonight and play THT in the Tan
Sri Alagendra Cup on Tuesday. After that, I will have time to address this issue.
"Hopefully, when I highlight this problem to the players,
they will recognise and understand it. To
me, as long as we give the opponents room to play and not close them down, we
are giving them room to get back into the match," added Muhd Harun.
At the Tun Razak Hockey Stadium, Sapura stunned defending
champions THT with penalty corner goals from Firhan Ashari in 23rd minute
and Oscar William Wookey in the 30th minute.
In the late match at Jalan Pantai, UniKL went ahead in the fifth
minute through Australian striker Adrian Coster's field goal but Maybank hit
back through import flicker Juan Valeriano in the 15th and 41st minute.
Meanwhile, the race for the Division One title moves into top
gear with three teams in a neck-to-neck race as the league enters into the
final lap of the first round today.
Tunku Mahkota Ismail Sports School (SSTMI) defeated ATM Airod
6-2 on home turf to take over the top spot from TNB Thunderbolt in the
standings with 12 points after Thunderbolt were held to a 4-4 draw by Nur
Insafi in Sungai Petani, Kedah.
Thunderbolts
catapulted
to the top of the TNBMHL 2016 Division One challenge on Friday by brushing off Ipoh Municipal
Council (MBI) 4-1 but failed to continue the momentum today against Nur Insafi
and the one point earned puts them second behind SSTMI.
Politeknik Malaysia also played to a 1-1 draw against Universiti
Teknologi MARA (UiTM-KPT) at the Tun Razak Stadium and amassed 11 points to go
third in the chart. At the Sultan Azlan Shah Stadium, Bukit Jalil Sports School
(BJSS) thrashed Municipal Council (MBI) 7-3 for their first ever win in the
league in six matches. BJSS led 4-3 by the third quarter.
ATM Airod opened scoring in the seventh minute against SSTMI
through Mohd Szuhairi Kamal before SSTMI struck back with goals from Kamaruddin
Kodir Beraheng (15th and 54th) and Azhad Akmal (26th
and 28th) while Mohamad Hanis Saad (35th) and Zulhamizan
Awang Abas (53rd) scored one apiece. ATM’s second goal came from
Mohamad Nain Mohamad Joher in the 36th minute off a field goal.
TNB Thunderbolt led 4-3 by the fourth quarter until Pakistani
Kashif Ali scored a hat-trick to equalize for Nur Insafi in the 52 minute from
a penalty corner to share the spoils. He had earlier scored penalty corner
goals in the 32nd and 37th minutes while Nur Rahull
Hriskesa added one (29th minute), his fourth goal in the league.
Muhamad Idris Samad scored a brace for Thunderbolt (28th
and 35th minutes) with Hazzim Amin Hafidz (17th) and Faiq
Razin Zariq (50th) contributing to towards Thunderbolt’s goals.
Three Division 1 teams - Politeknik Malaysia, SSTMI and ATM
Airod will go into action on Tuesday in the quarterfinals of the TNBMHL
Knockout tournament for Tan Sri P. Alagendra Cup.
Politeknik Malaysia faces SSTMI at the Taman Daya Hockey Stadium
in Johor Baru and ATM Airod entertains Premier League outfit Sapura Hockey Club
at the Kuala Lumpur HA Stadium in Jalan Pantai.
Results -
Premier League: KLHC 2 TNB 2; Sapura 2 THT 2; UniKL 1 Maybank 2.
Division One:
Nur
Insafi 4 TNB Thunderbolt 4; ATM Airod 2 SSTMI 6; UiTM-PKT 1 Politeknik Malaysia
1; MPI 3 BJSS 7.
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