Malacca women’s team continued their winning ways in the last three matches following a 4-0 victory over Kuala Lumpur today in the TNB Tun Abdul Razak Cup 2024 at the Johor Hockey Stadium, Taman Daya, Johor Bahru.
The win saw Malacca gain nine points from four matches on the penultimate day of the preliminary round and sit second in the Group B table standings – four points behind Young Tigress who top the chart on 13 points with an unblemished record of four wins and a 1-1 draw against Terengganu.
Nur Shafika Mohd Shahruddin kept Malacca ahead with a field goal in the 29th minute. Umi Nur Absarina (36th), Norshafiqha Ishak (38th) and Nur Fikriyah Aqilah then extended KL’s misery with more goals.
Malacca will face off third-placed Terengganu in the last Pool B match tomorrow. In earlier matches, Malacca lost 1-3 to Young Tigers in the opening match, and defeated ATM 3-2 and Negeri Sembilan 1-0 respectively.
Meanwhile, Young Tigers concluded their Pool B fixtures today with a 3-0 win against the Malaysian Armed Forces (ATM) and qualified for Friday’s (Oct 11) semifinals.
After a nerve-wrecking first half that saw both teams lose a couple of scoring opportunities, the Young Tigers turned the screws in the third and fourth quarters. They went 1-0 ahead through Nur Shamine Azureen in the 31st minute.
Zati Alyani Athirah extended the lead to 2-0 in the 49th minute and Nur Farhana sealed the third goal in the 53rd minute. All three goals were scored in open play.
Young Tigress coach Lailin Abu Hassan, said: “They started playing better in the fourth quarter. It took sometime before the team could settle down. ATM gave a good match. They are one of the better teams in the tournament.”
“Our penalty corner conversion rates are low and we need to improve on this during training once we are back in KL. We have identified several shortcomings here and will work on them,” he added.
Meanwhile, Malacca head coach Muhammad Azim Zainuldin said he was proud of the way his players played against KL.
“We are not setting any targets for the team against Terengganu. It will only put unnecessary pressure on the players. I want them to stay calm, composed and enjoy the game. Like all other teams, we will be happy to qualify for the semi-finals also,” he said.
