SOJC: YOUNG TIGERS BEAT NEW ZEALAND 5-3 TO FINISH IN FIFTH SPOT

JOHOR BAHRU, Oct 18 (Bernama) -- The national junior hockey squad ended their campaign in fifth place after defeating New Zealand 5-3 in the 2025 Sultan of Johor Cup (SOJC) International Hockey Tournament at the Johor Hockey Stadium, here today.

The tournament, which featured six countries and began on Oct 11, saw the Young Tigers record three losses, one win, and one draw throughout their five matches.

In the classification match for fifth and sixth places, the national junior team once again displayed an excellent performance by breaking the deadlock early in the first quarter with two goals: one from a penalty corner by Muhammad Harris Iskandar Osman in the second minute and a field goal by Muhammad Haziq Zunnurain Mohd Azhary in the 10th minute.

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The excellent performance continued in the second quarter as the Young Tigers managed to contain The Black Sticks from scoring any goals.

However, entering the third quarter, Mike Delaney's charges finally managed to close the gap with a field goal by Bradley Rothwell in the 32nd minute.

Following a pushing incident by New Zealand player Jakarta Klebert against Muhammad Haziq, Malaysia was awarded a penalty stroke, which was successfully converted by Muhammad Danish Aiman Khairul Anwar in the 44th minute.

Without waiting long, as soon as the final quarter began, the national junior squad continued to display an excellent performance by adding a fourth goal through a penalty corner taken by Azimuddin Shakir Kamaruddin in the 47th minute.

Nine minutes later, The Black Sticks once again troubled the Young Tigers squad by narrowing the gap after successfully scoring their second goal through a field goal by Jordan Whittleston in the 56th minute.

Four minutes later, New Zealand continued their fierce attack by adding pressure on the national junior squad with a penalty stroke goal by Dean Clarkson in the 60th minute.

However, Nor Saiful's charges made excellent use of the remaining time when Muhammad Danish Irfan Muhammad Saufi scored the nation's fifth goal seconds later, thus ensuring the Young Tigers squad finished the tournament in fifth place.

Meanwhile, Head Coach Nor Saiful said in a press conference that the consistent performance throughout the tournament highlighted the improvement in the national junior squad's performance, especially after defeating New Zealand twice in a row, which is a positive sign ahead of the Junior World Cup in India next month, although there are still some weaknesses that need to be addressed.

“I feel our preparation so far is good, although there are still weaknesses, especially in winning matches against strong teams like Australia, Great Britain, and India... we are not far behind them, just not enough to win yet,” he said after the fifth and sixth place decider here, today.

Commenting on the match against New Zealand, he said the national squad played more calmly without pressure and capitalised on the opponent's weakness in not being able to maintain the tempo of the game due to the hot weather.

He said the team's strategy this time was more structured with the use of both wings and active defensive support aiding the attack, which allowed many opportunities to be created.

"We managed to defeat New Zealand twice, and that is a positive result. We scored five goals, but also missed at least five more chances. If the attack was sharper, perhaps we could have scored more goals," he said.

He also informed that the national squad will hold several warm-up matches against Ireland and a few other teams as final preparation before departing for India.

Currently, 25 players are listed in the training squad, with 18 players used in the SOJC and the remaining seven still with the team.

"It doesn't mean that only these 18 people will go to the World Cup. We will re-evaluate all 25 players and select the best 20 players—18 registered and two more will be with the team as reserves," he said.

-- BERNAMA