Malaysia reach Sultan of Johor Cup final
Malaysia bounce back to edge Pakistan for place in final
JOHOR BARU: Malaysia put on a fighting display, coming back from a goal down to edge Pakistan 4-2 to seal a place in the final of the Sultan of Johor Cup at the Taman Daya Stadium last night.
It was Malaysia’s fourth straight win and they will wrap the fixtures against India tomorrow. The match will be a warm-up match for both teams as they will be contesting the final on Sunday.
India booked their place in the final after whipping South Korea 6-1 earlier in the day. It was India’s fourth win, putting them on top of the sixteam standings with a better goal difference than Malaysia.
Malaysia coach K. Dharmaraj was elated to see his team in the final with a game to spare.
“I am really happy with my players’ performance. Pakistan fielded a number of national players but we managed to fight back for a win.
“All the hard work in training is paying off. But there are a few things that I still need to work on. I must also make sure the players continue to play well in the tournament,” said Dharmaraj, whose team finished last in last year’s tournament.
Cheered by 3,000 fans, Malaysia made a jittery start in the first half but they picked up the tempo after the breather.
Pakistan, who needed a win over Malaysia to stay in the hunt for a place in the final, drew first blood in the 26th minute through Muhammad Dilber. But their joy was short-lived as Malaysia equalised two minutes later when Mohd Zulhairi Hashim converted Malaysia’s third penalty corner.
Four minutes into the second-half, Mohd Shahril Saabah gave Malaysia the lead with his sixth goal of the tournament.
But Pakistan fought back to make it 2-2 when Muhammad Tousiq scored a penalty stroke in the 48th minute. The stroke was awarded when skipper Mohd Fitri Saari used his body to stop the ball on the line.
Fitri, however, made amends in the 52nd minute. He made it 3-2 when he powered home a penalty corner.
Malaysia continued to surge forward and were rewarded in the 64th minute when Mohd Syamim Yusof scored from close range.
For India, they were merciless against South Korea. Rohidas Amit (7th), Satbir Singh (10th), Talwinder Singh (31st), Tirkey Amon Mirash (56th), Ramandeep Singh (62nd) and Yousuf Affan (65th) delivered the goals.
You Seung-ju scored the consolation goal for the Koreans in the 34th minute.
Said India coach Gregg Clark: “We are getting better in every match. Although we have qualified for the final, we look forward for another good match against Malaysia tomorrow.”
Meanwhile, Argentina registered their first win when they defeated England 3-0 in the first match of the day.
Carlos Isidoro Ibarra gave Argentina the lead off a penalty corner in the 35th minute. They increased the lead in the 46th minute from a well-taken field goal through Federico Martin Ruiz. Federico Fernandez made sure of all three points by scoring in the 60th minute.