Nanyang Polytechnic beat ITE 4-2 in feisty encounter in men's POL-ITE floorball

By REDintern Kenneth Tan. Photos by Vanessa Lim/ Red Sports.

Republic Polytechnic, Monday, November 2, 2009 - Emotions ran high as Nanyang Polytechnic made it four wins out of four in the men's Polytechnic-Institute of Technical Education (POL-ITE) Floorball Championship with their 4-2 win over the Institute of Technical Education (ITE).

The first goal of the match came 6:07min into the first period when ITE'S Mohd Rashid (ITE #30) ran down the left flank and crossed the ball for teammate Muruoon Nair (#20) who struck it into the top right corner from just outside the penalty area, making it 1-0 to ITE.

NYP piled on the pressure in search of the equaliser and were rewarded two minutes later when Muhammad Haikal (#8 ) could not get his shot away under pressure from the ITE players and Muhd Akid Bin Azhar (#18) reacted the quickest to slam the ball into the top left corner of the goal. The stick of ITE's Mohd Rashid stick broke in the melee.

NYP were the more dominant side towards the end of the first period, forcing the ITE goalie to parry the ball on two occasions. The first from Muhd Akid's shot after Johnson Sivalingam’s pass from the right, and the second from Sivalingam's shot from just inside the ITE half.

With the score tied at 1-1, NYP attacked right from the start of the second period and produced a flurry of shots, with Johnson Sivalingam (#16) producing two shots from just inside the ITE half that were well-saved by the NP goalkeeper, and Muhd Faridzwan (#5) with a drag shot from the left that went just over.

ITE also had their moments as they tested the NYP goalie with a couple of shots as Mohd Rashid's run and shot from the right flank brought a diving save and Shariff Abdul Rahman (#31)'s snapshot from half court was parried wide.

A second period that looks like ending with no goals suddenly exploded in the final two minutes. NYP took a 2-1 lead on 28:19min when Tan Yiru (#12) crossed from the left and Herman Bin Mansor (#26) tapped the ball in between his legs and past the ITE goalkeeper.

However ITE equalised with just 23 seconds left in the second period. Captain Enrico Eliph (#24) launched a quick counter attack and passed the ball to the right flank for Shariff Abdul Rahman who pulled it back for Enrico who belted it from just inside the NYP half to make the score 2-all, bringing raucous celebrations from the bench.

Tempers flared between both teams soon after the restart when ITE'S Mohd Rashid was knocked out of the boundaries by NYP's captain Jenmark Binay Sorreda (#10). The former retaliated with a push on the latter and both players squared up to each other soo nafter. Eventually both players received 5-minute penalties, causing both teams to play with just five players on the court temporarily.

Jenmark Binay Sorreda was then subjected to a chorus of boos from the ITE supporters whenever he got possession of the ball after that incident.

The third period restarted with the game finely in the balance. NYP retook the lead after five minutes when Tan YIru produced a superb drag shot from the centre of quarter court, which made the score 3-2 to NYP.

ITE nearly got an instant reply as Enrico Eliph made a looping through pass down the left flank for Shariff Abdul Rahman who took on the volley but unfortunately the ball hit the inner frame of the goal and went out of bounds.

As the game was coming to a close with three minutes to go , NYP appeared the stronger side as they launched attack after attack. Two shots from Jenmark Binay Sorreda's from quarter court came close and Sabri Bin Yuhari’s (#5) snapshot from half court was well saved by the ITE goalie.

Their efforts paid off on 43:16min when Johnson Sivalingam’s slapshot from a free hit went past a poorly constructed ITE wall and goalkeeper, increasing NYP's lead to 4-2. The entire NYP bench roared at the prospect of an imminent victory.

The final minute saw another clash between ITE's Anas Bin Abd Malek (#28) and NYP's Muhammad Sabri (#5) and both players had to be pulled away by the referee. Enrico Eliph tried a last attempt on goal after some great control from a long pass but was crowded out by the NYP defence.

Massive celebrations by NYP came after the final whistle, with the players knowing a win against Republic Polytechnic on Wednesday will clinch them the men's floorball POL-ITE title.

Score Breakdown
NYP vs ITE
1st period: 1-1
2nd period: 2-2
3rd period: 4-2

Scorers
6:04 Muruoon Nair (ITE #20)
8:15 Muhd Akid Bin Azhar (NYP #18)
28:19 Herman Bin Mansor (NYP #26)
29:37 Enrico Eliph (ITE #24)
34:48 Tan Yiru (NYP #12)
43:16 Sivalingam Johnson (NYP #16)