NST Online: Sports

Badminton: Kien Keat-Boon Heong remain best bet

Posted: 18 Sep 2011 05:20 PM PDT

2011/09/19
K.M. Boopathy
boopathy@nst.com.my

Doubles chief coach Tan Kim Her believes Koo Kien Keat (left) and Tan Boon Heong remain Malaysia's best hopes for an Olympic medal in the men's doubles.

AS far as men's doubles chief coach Tan Kim Her is concerned, Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong will still be Malaysia's best bets in the London Olympics even if their form is unconvincing.

This is because doubles Goh V Shem-Lim Khim Wah, who are ranked No 2 in the national team, are still not in the same league as Kien Keat-Boon Heong's, and it is hard for them to qualify for the Olympics unless they started winning the Super Series.

Kim Her feels that Kien Keat-Boon Heong would regain their world conquering form if Kien Keat starts reprising his role as the leader of the men's doubles squad and leads like Lee Chong Wei.

"Next year's Olympics are Kien Keat-Boon Heong's best opportunity to strike gold because this is the prime time of their career. We will try to do everything necessary to ensure they are successful in London," said Kim Her yesterday.

"Both are world class performers and have been around long enough to know what they are capable of. We want to ensure they are provided with a programme that is going to make them feel assured and push hard to regain their form.

"I want to see the Kien Keat of the old who has been the leader of the group and starting becoming an inspiration to Boon Heong and other players.

"As coaches, we have complete faith that Kien Keat and Boon Heong can make a strong comeback."

The national coaches will have a meeting with BAM high performance director Datuk James Selvaraj and manager Kenny Goh to finalise the programmes for the London Olympics.

Pang Cheh Chang has been long touted as the coach to guide Kien Keat-Boon Heong but Kim Her's experience as a much travelled coach and Rosman Razak's expertise in several areas will be utilised by the top pair in their resurgence,

As for V Shem-Khim Wah, Kim Her said they would find it hard to break into the top eight in the Olympic qualifying rankings as they are not consistent enough.

"V Shem-Khim Wah have progressed but they have not become an independent combination. A top class pair will show their pedigree during the crucial stages where a split second decision from them can make a difference between victory and defeat, and this is something V Shem-Khim Wah must master," said Kim Her.

"If a pair still keeps looking at the coaches during matches, they are going to struggle. They must believe their instincts and make decisions fast."

Kien Keat-Boon Heong, who turned 26 and 24 respectively yesterday, are competing in the Japan Open and upon return, they can be assured of a coaching staff waiting to reignite them.

Hockey: YNS leave it late for victory

Posted: 18 Sep 2011 05:18 PM PDT

2011/09/19
Jugjet Singh
jugjet@nst.com.my

Sapura's Izwan Firdaus Ahmad Tajuddin (left) tries to get past an Armed Forces Airod player yesterday. Sapura won 4-0.

YAYASAN Negri Sembilan (YNS) needed a ninth penalty corner to beat Nur Insafi 2-1 in the Premier Division of the TNB-Malaysia Hockey League yesterday.

YNS started off with a stroke of luck in the ninth minute when Nur Insafi Pakistan import Kashif Ali missed a penalty stroke, but Lady Luck deserted them in the 24th minute.

Harris Fadila scored off a field attempt, and that was the most exciting action of the first half.

Nur Insafi and YNS have each registered six foreign players, but there seemed to be a lack of understanding.

The second half was a midfield affair, but YNS started attacking after 15 minutes and won a string of penalty corners, but only got it right in their eighth attempt.

Pakistan import Ihsan Ullah Khan's 59th minute effort pulled his team level, and YNS started to attack more, looking for the winner.

And they got it in the 69th minute off their ninth penalty corner when Ullah struck again.

Meanwhile, Sapura chalked up an unimpressive 4-0 win over a weak Armed Forces Airod.

Sapura fielded four national players but only Azreen Rizal delivered with a hat-trick (eighth, 29th, 66th minutes).

The other goal was scored by Joel Samuel van Huizen in the 69th minute.

"While I am happy with the win and the four goals, we were playing in patches and that is an area we need to work on. In reality this was the first time they played together as a team as many of my players had work commitments," said Sapura coach I. Vikneswaran.

In another Premier Division match, unfancied UiTM scared the daylights out of UniKL when their Qatar import Sherza Ali scored in the 12th minute, but Noor Faeez scored off their fifth penalty corner in the 59th minute to hand UniKL one important point.

UiTM yesterday fielded all their five Qatar imports, Muhammad Rizwan, Sheraz Ali, Tariq Nazir, Sami Ullah and Sohail Mustafa.

RESULTS -- Division One: SSTMI-Thunderbolt 4 Uniten 2, Ipoh City Hall 0 BJSS 6.

Premier League: Armed Forces Airod 0 Sapura 4, Uitm 1 UniKL 1, Nur Insafi Penang 1 Yayasan Negri Sembilan 2.

FIXTURES -- WEDNESDAY: Premier Division -- Sapura v Maybank (6pm, Pitch I), UniKL v Yayasan NS (8pm, Pitch I), Kuala Lumpur HC v UiTM (6pm, Pitch II), Tenaga v Nur Insafi (8pm, Pitch II).

All matches at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil.

DIVISION ONE -- SSTMI-Thunderbolt v UNIMAP (Ministry of Education, 5pm), BJSS v Uniten (Ministry of Education, 8pm).

Kredit: www.nst.com.my

Ahad, 18 September 2011

NST Online: Sports

NST Online: Sports

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