Tuesday February 19, 2013

Division Two champions KLSS draw favourites Thunderbolt

KUALA LUMPUR: Luck was certainly not on newly crowned Division Two champions KL Sports School’s (KLSS) side as they were drawn to meet the Division One champions and tournament favourites SSTMI-Thunderbolt in the quarter-finals of the MHC-MILO-NSC Junior Hockey League.

MSS Kelantan, the other team from Division Two, had an easier draw as they will face MBI-Anderson, who finished fourth in Division One.

KLSS won the Division two title on Sunday after beating MSS Kelantan 2-1 in the final.

Division One runners-up Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) have been drawn to meet SSTMI Juniors in what should be an easy match for them.

The other quarter-final match-up will pit Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL) against Malacca High School.

UniKL and MBPJ are the two teams touted as possible contenders to stop Thunderbolt’s domination in the Junior League.

The duo will clash in the semis if they get through the quarter-finals.

The quarter-finals are scheduled to be played on Friday and Sunday while the semi-finals are slated for Feb 27 and March 1. The final will be held on March 3.

Thunderbolt won the double last year while the UniKL were runners-up on both occasions.

UniKL coach K. Embaraj said that it did not matter whom they played as the quarter-finals can be tricky if they do not take it seriously.

“We beat Malacca High School 4-1 in the preliminary round. But at this stage I am sure they will be better prepared. We have to plan this match over two games. So it will not be over until the second match. But we will go all out in both legs. We have to secure a comfortable cushion from the first leg,” he said.

Embaraj is confident his team will go through and he also sees MBPJ following suit.

“So there is a good chance that we will meet in the semis. MBPJ beat us by the odd goal in the league fixture and this will give us a chance to exact revenge. For now we will focused on the Malacca tie first,” he added.

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