Story by REDintern Darren Ho. Photos by Jerald Ang/Red Sports.
Muhammad Shahrulnizam Bin Mazlan (#8) of Hong Kah attempts a cross while under pressure from his Jurongville opponent. (Photo 1 © Jerald Ang/Red Sports)
Clementi Stadium, Monday, March 21, 2016 – A first-half goal from Muhammad Shahrulnizam Bin Mazlan (#8) proved to be the decider as Hong Kah Secondary held on to emerge 1-0 victors over Jurongville Secondary in the final of the West Zone B Division Football Championship.
Jurongville could have levelled the match in stoppage time when they won a penalty. However, their goalkeeper, Muhd Rifqi Bin Kamarruzaman (#1), strode up, hesitated and nervously pinged the ball off the right frame of the goalpost, leaving the fans of Hong Kah ballistic with ecstasy, while the Jurongville fans were in disbelief.
Hong Kah opened the scoring just after 20 minutes, when a sumptuous throw-in from Muhammad Nazirul B Mohamad H (#6), picked up Muhammad Shahrulnizam Bin Mazlan (#8) at the near post.
Shahrulnizam then made full use of his first serious incursion into the opponent’s defence and rifled the ball past the keeper to open the scoring.
Having dominated most of their chances and possession in the opening stages, Hong Kah should have widened the lead before half-time.
Free-kick taker Reeza Rezky Ramadhani B Y (#10), who went for the keeper’s top right corner, could only watch as his venomous shot was matched by a heroic save from the diving goalkeeper, Rifqi, who had to be on his toes throughout the match.
The ball took a rebound off the post, but a clearance from the Jurongville defence meant that Hong Kah could only marginally lead at the break.
Despite trailing, Jurongville looked more promising in the second-half. The team was more persistent in pressing forward on the counter attack and defiant against conceding a second.
The introduction of five new Jurongville players also gave an injection of adrenaline to fire the team up front while their defence remained rock solid.
Hong Kah continued to test their defence and nearly succeeded in the 63rd minute when a lung-bursting run from Shahrulnizam (#8) ended with a cross towards goal. It was only an audacious dive tackle by defender Nuraiman Faid B Ahmad (#12) that kept the ball out of goal.
In the end, a 1-0 win was enough for Hong Kah and the stadium was filled with songs of passion and pride from their supporters as their team finished the zonal championship as unbeaten champions.
Jurongville may have been disappointed not to win the final after coming off the back of nine successive victories, but their defensive stats can be something to cheer about. The team has managed to keep nine clean sheets in 10 matches, the best defensive record in the zone.
Despite the loss, Jurongville qualify for the National Championship along with Hong Kah. Regent and Choa Chu Kang Secondary also qualify for Nationals as part of the top four.
Score by Half
Hong Kah vs Jurongville
1st Half: 1-0
2nd Half: 0-0
Full-time: 1-0
Scorers
Hong Kah
Muhammad Shahrulnizam Bin Mazlan (#8) – 1 goal (20th min)
Hong Kah Roster
Muhammad Hifzhil Iman B B (#1), Muhammad Indra Moraga B M I (#2), Mohamad Nabil Iman B Mohamad I (#3), Mohamad Syawak B Mohamad Rafae (#4), Muhammad Nazirul B Rosli (#5), Muhammad Nazirul B Mohamad H (#6), Hidayatul Firdaus B Johan (#7), Muhammad Shahrulnizam Bin Mazlan (#8), Ryhan Euan Griffin Stewart (#9), Reeza Rezky Ramadhani B Y (#10), Muhammad Hilmi B Hasman (#11), Muhammad Nurdanial B Mohamed S (#12), Nor Khairiyanto B Muhamad R (#13), Muhammad Rozany B Mohd Yazid (#14), Muhammad Danial Akmal B Mazlin (#15), Muhammad Al-Fian B Muhammad N (#16), Mohammad Nizam B Abdul Razak (#17), Muhamad Anaqi B Ismit (#18), Muhammad Danial B M Bahari (#19), Nur Hady Matynn B Nur Hisham (#20)
Jurongville Roster
Muhd Rifqi Bin Kamarruzaman (#1), Ryan Adam Bin Mohd Hanafia (#2), Syuqri Bin Mohd Murat (#3), Amirul Hamizan B Rohaizad (#4), Muhammad Fahmy Hakeem B A J (#5), Muhammad Noor Haqeem B E S (#6), Yuvaraj S/O Sivakumar (#7), Muhamad Ilyas Bin Hairi (#8), Amirul Haqim Bin Khairulman (#9), Zikry Amani B Mohamad Zaini (#10), Muhd Taufiq Bin Ismail (#11), Nuraiman Faid B Ahmad (#12), Muhd Izz Hakim B Norshisham (#13), Muhd Shafiqal Zamani B Hasnizam (#14), Muhammad Fairuz B Azman (#15), Muhammad Rusyaidi Bin Mustapa (#16), Nashrul Iman (#17), Muhd Raihan Bin Kamarruzaman (#18), Mohd ‘Ifat Bin Mohd Sha’aban (#19), Donavan Chua Jun Wei (#20).
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