SSTMI Juniors give seniors a scare

PETALING JAYA: Overall champions Tunku Mahkota Ismail Sports School (SSTMI) received an early jolt but managed to carve out a 3-2 win over their younger teammates SSTMI Juniors 3-2 in their opening MHC Junior Hockey League Division 1 match in Bandar Penawar, Johor.

Iyad Zul Thaqif Zulkifli shocked their seniors when he scored a field goal in the fifth minute before Mughni Mohd Kamal equalised with a 34th-minute penalty corner.

SSTMI Juniors held the lead again when Muhd Safwan Salihe sounded the board in the 43rd minute. But two field goals from Harris Iskandar Osman (50th) and Aiman Safwan Abdullah (51st) saved SSTMI the blushes.

SSTMI team manager M. Kaliswaran praised the spirit shown by the juniors and added that it was a timely wake-up call for his boys.

“SSTMI Juniors played very well and showed a lot of quality. They fought with confidence before we fought back to win,” said Kaliswaran.

“My boys now know that they cannot take things for granted and I hope that they can bounce back and show the kind of performance they are capable of.

“The juniors’ performance augurs well for us as there are several players who can get promoted to the first team next year.”

Meanwhile, defending Division 1 champions Bukit Jalil Sports School (BJSS) also got off to a winning start when they overcame Sabah 2-0 at the National Hockey Stadium.

In other matches, Anderson overcame SMKDBL-PHJ-MSNJ 2-1 in Batu Pahat, Johor while MBPJ Black Widow defeated Kedah Eagle Jr 4-2 at the Kuala Lumpur Hockey Stadium.