Story by Yogaraj Panditurai/Red Sports. Photos by REDintern Benedict Yeo

Muhammad Danial (Hong Kah #19) defending against the SJI attack. (Photo 1 © Benedict Yeo/Red Sports)

Jalan Besar Stadium, Wednesday, April 12, 2017 — Football powerhouse Hong Kah Secondary School secured their spot in the National B Division School Premier League 2 Football final after beating St. Joseph’s Institution (SJI) 2-1 in the semi-final.

Both Hong Kah goals came via free kick situations. Five minutes into the match, Muhammad Fauwaz (HK #15) launched a dangerous dead ball from the midway line into the penalty box and Danial Bahari (HK #19) connected to make it 1-0.

Hilmi Hasman (HK #9) then doubled their lead in the 53rd minute through a long-range free kick before SJI pulled one back 10 minutes from time through Marcellinus Jerricho (SJI #10).

Hong Kah could have enjoyed a larger margin of victory and seen the game out in a comfortable fashion if not for their poor finishing and lack of positional awareness. They saw two goals ruled out for offside, with Fauwaz (HK #15) missing an open goal much to his chagrin. Countless other opportunities followed but the boys in black were missing their killer instinct.

After the match, Hong Kah’s captain Anaqi Ismit admitted that his side was wasteful in front of goal.

“We just didn’t have the luck today. We had a lot of opportunities but we simply didn’t finish them. We’ve to be more precise and learn how to convert every chance we get, which I’m confident the boys will work on during training,” he said.

“The match was a difficult one today but we put the pressure on ourselves to perform and were determined to be in the final. We kept pressing SJI, keeping possession well and reacted to their runs quickly. I hope we can keep that up and perform again in the final.”

SJI struggled to threaten the Hong Kah defence throughout the match. Hong Kah’s custodian Edo Ari Prandana (HK #1) enjoyed a quiet first half and was only called into action in the 47th minute when Julian Tay (SJI #19) found space to register SJI’s first shot on target.

With two goals, the 2016 National B Division finalists were in the driver’s seat but Marcellinus Jerricho’s (SJI #10) sweetly struck half-volley after a goal-mouth scramble managed to throw Hong Kah off.

As they searched for a third goal to seal the win, Hong Kah lost focus on a few occasions and their passes became erratic, paving the way for SJI to exploit the gaps in their defence.

Deep into injury time, Joshua Tan (SJI #4) was through on goal and only had the goalkeeper to beat but Eko (HK #1) put his body on the line to make a vital block to ensure the match ended 2-1.

SJI teacher-in-charge Syaifudin Ismail said, “Our boys fought very hard but it was a tough loss today, considering we conceded from set pieces. We lacked that bite upfront and the decision-making in the final third was missing.

“We only woke up after we scored a lucky goal and there was a sense of urgency then but the equaliser wasn’t meant to be. Congratulations to Hong Kah and all the best to them.”

Hong Kah will face Queensway Secondary, who beat Spectra Secondary 2-1 in the other semi-final, in the final next Tuesday at Yishun Stadium while SJI will take on Spectra in the third and fourth placing match on the same day at Yishun.

Score
Hong Kah vs SJI
Halftime: 1-0
Fulltime: 2-1

Scorers
Hong Kah
Danial Bahari (#19) — 1 goal
Hilmi Hasman (#9) — 1 goal

SJI
Marcellinus Jerricho (#10) — 1 goal

Hong Kah Roster
Edo Ari Prandana (#1), Lutfil Hadi B Asrikin (#2), Muhammad Nur Fatahilla B Idros (#3), Muhammad Irfan B Arnuardi (#4), Muhammad Syabil B Hisham (#5), Muhamad Faiz B Wira (#6), Muhammad Aizat B Anuwar (#7), Muhammad Rafi B Roslee (#8), Muhammad Hilmi B Hasman (#9), Muhamad Anaqi B Ismit (#11), Muhammad Nazirul B Rosli (#12), Abdul Shafiqi B Abdul Rais (#13), Muhammad Danial Zulhilmi B M F (#14), Muhammad Fauwaz B Mohamad H (#15), Muhammad Raihan B Abdul Manao (#16), Nur Hady Matynn B Nur Hisham (#17), Nor Khairiyanto B Muhamad R (#18), Muhammad Danial B M Bahari (#19), Muhamad Syazrly B Osman (#20), Muhammad Haikal B Mohamed H (#21)

SJI Roster
Kendrick Lim (#1), Bryan Chin (#2), Kiranraj Ramasamy (#3), Joshua Tan (#4), Razin Muzakkir (#5), Muhammad El’fee (#7), Jubilant Chew (#8), Elijah Ang (#9), Marcellinus Jerricho (#10), Kyle Goh (#11), Jeyakumar Rohit (#12), Jerren Tay (#13), Naeemur Rahman (#14), Benitius Soegiono (#15), Christopher Ong (#16), Aloysius Lam (#17), Julian Tay (#19), Darren Leong (#21), Choo Yi Xiang (#22), Lee Ze Rey (#23)

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