The Young Tigress, Perak and Penang achieved positive results with victories on Day 1 of the 9th TNB Tun Abdul Razak Cup at the Taman Daya Hockey Stadium in Johor Bahru today.
Coached by Lailin Abu Hassan, Young Tigress defeated Malacca 3-1 in a Group B match while in Group A Penang edged host Johor 1-0, and Perak came back from a goal down to triumph 2-1 win over Pahang.
Nur Shamine Azureen and Zati Alyani Muhamad Zubir established a 2-0 lead for the Tigress via a penalty corner conversion and a field goal in the 25th and 30th minutes respectively. Siti Nur Irdina then extended the lead to 3-0 through a penalty corner in the 42nd minute.
Malacca reduced the deficit to 1-3 in the 59th minute through Nur Shafika Mohd Sharuddin’s field goal.
Reflecting on the game, Young Tigress team manager, Dato’ Mohd Saiyuti Abd Samat, who is also President of Perak Hockey Association and Vice President of the Malaysian Hockey Confederation, said he is disappointed with the performance of the team despite the win, as they could have played a much better game.
“I am unhappy with their performance. Goals are not important. They should have played better. To me, their performance is not up to the mark as a national team. This is their first game and I hope they will settle down early against Kuala Lumpur tomorrow (Oct 3).
“We must play as a national team and the result must also reflect as one of a national team. They should have scored more goals. They must create more penalty corners, and the passing of the ball is still poor. I hope these shortcomings are corrected and the team shows it’s lethal power in this tournament,” said Dato’ Sayuti.
Former national player Iren Husin, who is a guest player for Pahang, scored a field goal in the 29th minute to push the east coast side 1-0 ahead. The goal triggered a strong counter-attack comeback from Perak.
Perak restored parity through Dian Nursyakira Najwa’s field goal in the 42nd minute, and extended the advantage to 2-1 in similar fashion two minutes later.
A field goal in the 33rd minute by Nurfitrah Nadhia Shamsudin saw Penang hold on to the lead until the end of regulation time to make an impressive start to their campaign.
In another Group B match, the Armed Forces (ATM) clawed back from a 1-2 deficit to hold Kuala Lumpur to a 2-2 draw.
Nur Zafirah Aziz kept KL ahead with a 37th minute field goal but ATM equalized through Noor Zubaidah Naszemi’s field goal in the 39th minute. KL continued the search for a goal and were rewarded by Flovenia Silverius, the younger sister of national player Shello, who ensured KL stayed in the race. She converted a penalty corner strike in the 50th minute to put KL 2-1 ahead.
ATM, however, shattered KL’s hopes when they were awarded a penalty stroke in the 55th minute. Juliani Mohamad Din cleverly placed the ball into the net to force the match into a 2-2 draw.