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Sunday, April 15, 2012

MATCHWEEK 13 (14/4/2012)



Joker Prodigy vs Gracebandy! Co (5-7)
The match preview predicted a very exciting match week, and it did not disappoint! The first game, between Joker Prodigy and Gracebandy! Co began with a bench penalty for each side with the call of incorrect equipment. Gracebandy penalized player, Joo Minn took just 22 seconds to score when he entered the rink, to open up the scoring. Khairul of Joker responded to level up the score, but from then on, the first period was Gracebandy’s for the taking. Philip bagged two and Kendrick another while Anis of Joker was benched for an incorrect hit.
            Khairul decided to take matters into his hands with three goals in the span of three minutes to equalize with Gracebandy. Sheeda managed to pull Gracebandy ahead before the end of the second period. In the third period, Joo Minn and Kevin extended Gracebandy’s slim lead while Megat looked to get a Joker comeback with a solo goal. But more than goals, the third period was filled with bench penalties; two for each side. And when Mervin received two minutes for incorrect pushing at the last five minutes of the game, Joker failed to capitalize and the result was as such.

Man of the Match
Joker Prodigy- Khairul: Clearly Joker’s best goalscorer of the day; provided Joker with a good chance of recovery.
Gracebandy! Co- Joo Minn: A constant threat during the game and didn’t let two bench penalties hamper him from leading his leading to victory!

Gang Bintang vs KLIUC Hornets (6-6)
            Certainly the game of the week, Gang Bintang was looking for a win to stay hot on Subang Rascal’s heels, while KLIUC Hornets was looking for an upset to climb the league table. What was to come was an anything but dismal draw!
            After a goalless five minutes, ‘ace-up-the-sleeve’ Juha pulled Hornets ahead. But Gang Bintang responded immediately with a clinical goal by Anwar after being fed by Jethro (who was looking to increase his assist tally!). Later in the period, Ainur was benched for lying play, but Hornets responded in the wrong way by Faizul getting booked five seconds later for incorrect equipment. Azmill had a great first period by making a string of spectacular saves to deny Bintang a lead.
            Taqi pulled Hornets ahead, but Bintang new-girl Aisyah would have none of it as she soon replied with a goal of her own, to level the score. Taqi scored a minute after that, not wanting to keep his head down. Khalid was soon benched for protesting (what else!) but when he re-emerged, he assisted Rizal who got a brace to put Bintang ahead for the first time in the game. Muiz managed to level the game late in the period, and from then on, Bintang had to play catch-up.
            The 23’s on both sides bagged two a piece with Iffat scoring twice while Hafidz pulled Bintang back every time. In the end, the game ended as a stalemate, and Gang Bintang were left wondering if they could’ve won the game if their first-choice custodian, Ilyaaz was in the goal-crease instead of the stand-in Bob.

Man of the Match
Gang Bintang- Bob: Did enough to earn his team at least a point, and constantly proves that he can be a respectable goalie.
KLIUC Hornets- Azmill: Kept Bintang at bay throughout the whole game and a fantastic show during the first period truly showed why he is touted to be the next national keeper.

GMI Blackwings vs Subang Rascals (3-18)
            This game was to see a lot of goals, and it was expected that Subang Rascals would walk away with an easy victory, but GMI Blackwings certainly didn’t sit down and let Rascals walk over them. Having said that, the first two periods belonged to Rascals, with seven goals on each period and absolutely no goals conceded. Apek was literally untested.
            Snake and Kamal scored a hat trick during the first two periods while Dennis bagged five and Harri netted a brace. Many would argue, however, that Rascals should’ve scored so much more to truly reflect their possession and the amount of opportunities they possessed.
            The third period was when things started stirring up. The Blackwing coaches truly did well in encouraging the team and they opened up their scoring within 7 seconds of the start. Harri, Kamal, Dennis and skipper Sjaiful got a goal in to extend their lead and dampen Blackwings’ spirit, but Arif of Blackwings managed to pull back two consolation goals late in the period. Blackwings truly got their game started too late and had no chance of retaining any points for this game as Rascals continued their goal glut.

Man of the Match
GMI Blackwings: Azizi: The goalkeeper showed in the third period that he has the determination to do anything, despite conceding in abundance in the first two periods.
Subang Rascals: Dennis: The centre dictated most of the game from top to bottom and managed to bag an astounding six goals.

GMI White Knights vs KLIUC Griffins (7-9)
            Certainly a contender for game of the week, GMI White Knights was looking to retain the 4th spot ahead of arch rivals KLIUC Griffins. However, the Griffins had another idea in mind, and almost immediately took the lead via Aqil. After almost half  a period, White Knight scored a brace in 20 seconds. Griffins replied with two goals of their own in 10 seconds! But White Knights managed to equalize before the end of the period.
            Griffins began the second period with flare, scoring 4 in a row with Muhammad and Humaidi involved in two goals each. Things got even worse for White Knights when the referees (Jethro and Snake) gave Shahir a 5-minute bench penalty for dangerous play. However, the skipper Aizuddin led his temporarily handicapped team to maintain no concession and even scored two in the process. Iwan of Griffins pulled on back for the away team before the second interval.
            White Knights hit the ground running in the third period with Amarul and Shahir inching the home team closer to Griffins score. But Iwan, as he did in the second period, had the final say when it came to goals, to extend Griffins lead with 14 minutes to go. In the last 10 minutes, though, Amir and Hanan received delayed bench penalties for too many players on the rink and repeated offences respectively. Unfortunately, White Knights again showed that they could perform better under pressure instead of at ease-scoring when they where a player down but not when they had an extra player on two separate occasions-even when they brought in an outfield player in exchange for their goalie in the last minute. It certainly was a valiant effort by White Knights, but proved to be ‘too little, too late’ as Griffins managed to hold onto their lead.

Man of the Match
GMI White Knights- Bard: Showed impressive tenacity to constantly press and chase down every ball, intelligently reading the play to find weakness. Reminded me of Zahir during his first season that impressed Dennis to recruit him to Subang Rascals.
KLIUC Griffins- Iwan: Lead a very strong offensive line that saw the winners score vital goals to claim the win.



Bangi Rusty Blade vs Salibandy! Co
            As predicted, Salibandy! Co managed to inch out a victory in a tightly contested match, despite Bangi Rusty Blade still feeling the pinch after the transfer window. Salibandy trying to catch up with the clear-cut leaders and hoping for them to slip up. They will be looking for a win against Subang Rascals, which is no easy task.

WEEKEND OVERVIEW
The top three teams retain their spots despite a minor hiccup by reigning champions Gang Bintang. KLIUC Griffins managed to usurp GMI White Knights for the fourth spot; clearly fighting hard to grab that 4th stop and a contention spot for the Super Cup. Despite falling down the pecking order of the standings, KLIUC Hornets are clearly not going to dwell on the past as they are still fighting for a much higher spot. Gracebandy! Co’s win leapfrogged them one spot up and they will be looking for a comfortable mid-table position to not repent for some of their bad performances before. Subang Rascals are on course to achieving the 300-goal target made by fellow Rascal Arizal. They have scored 221 goals in 12 games-averaging out at 18 goals a game-and are looking to capsize at least 5 out of the next 6 games to confirm their maiden title.

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