Defending
champions Kuala Lumpur have virtually book their place in the semis of the
MHC-MIL0-NSC-MOE National Under 14 after they came from a goal down to defeat
Pahang 4-1.
And
on the adjacent pitch, Negeri Sembilan were dealt a cruel blow when they were
held to a 1-1 draw by Sabah.
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With
the draw, Negri now face an uphill task in trying to make the last four as they
have to defeat Terengganu and await the outcome of matches involving Penang.
Last
year losing finalists Terengganu are out of the running for a place in the
semis after they were held to a 1-1 draw by lowly Kedah.
Penang
did their hopes a world of good by trashing Malacca 7-0 to enhance their
chances in moving into semis from Group B.
KL
have 10 points from four matches and have Kelantan to play on Friday, a match
that could well decide who tops Group A as the east coast side need to defeat
Johor to set up the showdown for group champions.
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Perak
only need one point from their remaining two matches, against Malacca tomorrow
and Penang on Friday to seal their place.
“Although
we are sitting pretty we just cannot afford to take things for granted and have
to play our very best. In age group tournaments nothing is certain and thus we
have to remain cautious,” said Perak team manager Manjit Singh.
“It
is quite open at the moment as three teams, Perak, Penang and Negri are in the
running for a place in the last four. And I expect it to boil down to matches
on Friday to determine the semifinalists.”
+against+Pahang+keeper+Jalaluddin+Mat+Pahang.JPG)
Pahang
opened scoring in the 34th minute through Jamal Abdul Hassan. But
the city side hit back with goals from Wan Haziq Hisyamuddin Ameer Ruzman (47th
minute) and a hattrick by Mohd Fitri Khairul Arrifin ( 59th, 61st
and 70th minutes) to take all three points.
For
hosts Negri, they only have themselves to blame for failing to win all three
points after taking the lead through Mahathir Rathuwan in the 23rd
minute. They created numerous chances but could not add on to their tally.
And
Sabah punished them with an equaliser in the 56th minute through
Mohd Shafiq Zapi to share the spoils.
In
the Kedah and Terengganu, it was Kedah who stunned the east coast side with a
goal in the 51st minute through Mahamad Syafiq Ikmal Md Fauzi.
Terengganu drew level ten minutes later through Wan Muhammad Azlan Wan Rozaimi.
Terengganu
are on five points after four matches and will face Penang and Negri Sembilan
respectively and could play spoilers role as both their opponents are fighting
for the second spot in Group B with Perak almost assured of the top spot.
Fixtures:
Thursday
Group
A
0800H
– Johor v Kelantan
1600H
– Perlis v Selangor
Group
B
0800H
– Kedah v Sabah
1630H
– Perak v Malacca
1800H
– Terengganu v Penang
Group A
Selangor 0 Kelantan 2
Kuala Lumpur 4 Pahang 1
Group B
Kedah 1 Terengganu 1
Sabah 1 Negri Sembilan 1
Malacca 0 Penang 7
GROUP A
P
W D
L F
A PTS
K. Lumpur
4
3 1
0
12 4
10
Kelantan
3
2
1 0
3
0 7
Johor
3
1
1
1 8
4 4
Selangor
3
1
0 2
4 8
3
Pahang
4
0
2
2
2 11 2
Perlis
3
0
1 2
2
4 1
GROUP B
P
W D
L F
A PTS
Perak
4
4 0
0 13
2 12
N. Sembilan
5 3
1
1 14
9
10
Penang
4 3
0
1 20
8
9
Terengganu
4
1
2
1 6
6 5
Malacca
4 1
1
2 5
13 4
Kedah
4
0 1
3
2 11
1
Sabah
5
0 1
4 5
16 1
