NS back in the League

Yayasan Negeri Sembilan will be making a comeback in the upcoming MHL beginning Dec 17th. The team who used to be force to be reckon with in the mid-90's being double champions twice will be targeting a top 4 finish in the Premier League which boast the likes KLHC (defending league champions), TNB (defending overall champions), Maybank, and Sapura. And they will doing this by fielding a group of players who represented the state in the Razak Cup and Sukma . I guess it's good exposure for the team without the service of any national players but let's hope they've not set the bar too high.

Goals Galore !

Lots of goals were scored over the weekend and plenty of action took place on the football field. Racking up the goals were Man. Utd and Barca who humiliated their opponents hands down. (although Jose M will refute that). Man Utd was back to its best thanks to Berbatov, who is only a handful in history to score 5 in a match in the EPL. Perhaps the return of Rooney had something to do with it? I've always admired Berba as a player - technically he's a genius and he's a very smart player. Lazy it seems at times but that's how he plays the game - effortlessly & gracefully. And the Venky's must have thought if they bought the right team. 

5 goals hero

Despite the highly anticipated El Clásico,  it once again proved to be one-sided. With Jose in charge, I expected to see more steel  and resilience in the Madrid side. Thought they would give Barca a hard time and with the tactical genius of Jose, he would suffocate the Barca midfield. Guess I was wrong and in the words of Mourinho , "Barca is the finished article and Madrid is still a long way off that".

Portugese muted by the dazzling Barca

Back to the EPL, West Gram finally got their much awaited win. For now , it looks like the job is his. Another "big" game, Spurs Vs Liverpool brought a lot of excitement to the neutrals. Missed chances, missed penalty, injuries and an own goal! Plus Carragher may be out for as long as 3 months. What has uncle Roy gotta do to catch a break? Everything seem to be going against him at the moment. If he's lucky to stay until January, he may just be given the luxury to bring in some reinforcements.

On to the next BIG one

There will be no breaks for the Malaysian Squash team after their excellent performance at the Asian Games. The Malaysian team is competing at the Women World Team Championship in Palmerston North , New Zealand which started on November 29th. An opening win over Hong Kong followed by a win over Canada puts the Malaysian girls in the right path moving forward. Good Luck girls and do us proud ! Thank you Squash Stars for the lovely photo. =)

Our girls

"Zhai Jian" Guangzhou..."Annyeonghaseyo Incheon" !

As the 16th Asian Games come to a close, China once again set the bar very high for hosting world class sporting events. After the Beijing Olympics games, Guangzhou will prove to be tough act to follow for Icheon. Just like how London is beginning to realise how tough is it to compete with the extravagance of the Beijing Games.

For Malaysia, achieving the target of 9 gold medals is an excellent achievement considering that at one stage it looked impossible. In fact, we could even surpass the targeted number if not for some shortcomings Reflecting on the Malaysian contingent performance at the games, there's plenty of high points worth mentioning and also some not so high points.

Special praise should be given to those who contributed medals especially gold. Kicking off the gold trail is wushu queen Chai Fong Ying who followed up with her gold medal feat at the Doha games. Cyclist Azizul Hasni Awang won the gold in cycling keirin hands down and deservingly so, after being disqualified controversially at the Commonwealth Games. It was also Malaysia first gold in cycling in 40 years! Squash contributed three golds through our darling Nicol, pleasant surprise Azlan and the gutsy ladies team. R.Puvaneswaran & Ku Jin Keat said goodbye to the karate sport by contributing a gold each. Not very often the guys from the bowling team eclipsed the ladies but this time Alex Liew + Adrian Ang (men's double) and one personally from Alex ; contributed 2 golds in bowling.

You've made us proud

Despite losing to Pakistan in the men hockey finals, the Malaysian hockey team won over many critics by reaching their first ever final. Losing to Pakistan and missing out on a ticket to the 2012 Olympics is disappointing and one could say the team did not show up when it matters most (and possibility a bad hair day) but the determination and passion displayed by the team is something to be proud of for all Malaysians. The spirit of 1Malaysia was clearly displayed for all to see especially after the final whistle blew in the win over India. Seeing the coaches, officials and players from all races hug and brace each other is a win for all Malaysians.

Bright future

I should also mention the diving team and the women beach volleyball team who defied the odds to contribute us medals. In diving, we have some really talented divers which may just put us on the podium in the Olympics.

Now on to the not so high points. Losing to Thailand in the badminton team event is worrying and almost unthinkable. It's not so much the fact that Lee Chong Wei lost in the first singles (due to illness) but the lack of fight from the "backup" players. Sure they may be young and inexperience but surely not to the extent of losing to the Thais? The fact that the coaches put them in the team because they have faith in them proved that they have the potential.

And then there is Sepak Takraw. Not only did they bring back veterans who looked out of sorts but also they have the audacity of predicting a gold medal, failing which the president boldly (and arrogantly) said he will quit (at press time, he's still in office) . Don't get me wrong, it's ok to predict a gold but predicting and giving false hope to everyone because of naivety clearly showed that you're not aware of your team and your rivals. Watching the game; at times, I'd thought the Malaysians were more interested to entertain themselves by dancing around everytime they won a point. Although it's part of the game, but perhaps a little bit of humility knowing you're not the strongest team around?

I'm going to end this with football. This is a tough one to call. Many will argue that without the 3 red cards awarded by the referee during the match against China, it could turn out quite differently. Honestly , I don't think we will beat China even with 11 men on the field. The boys played well and showed great fight in earlier games despite the injuries to key players before the games but Malaysian football is a tricky one to call. You'll never know which team will turn up and considering the amount of money being poured into the sports, many will expect more. Not in terms of winning all major tournaments but a sense of direction and pride in Malaysian football.

Now on to Incheon, South Korea. Hopefully we'll see more gold medals and new faces stepping up =)

The race to the end of the rainbow...my 2 cents.

1/4 of the EPL is over and the race at the top is as tight as ever. One of the tightest I've seen in recent years. The usual suspects are there with the exception of Liverpool. Spurs on the other hand is proving to be a force to be reckon with ; in England and Europe. All the years of hard work by Harry Redknapp is finally bearing its fruits. Not to mention his astuteness in the transfer market. Van der Vaart in my opinion is thus far the buy of the season. Vdv and Gareth Bale has been a revelation to the Spurs team who look increasingly dangerous as the season progresses. This surely doesn't augur well for Liverpool who will visit the white hart lane this weekend.

Despite the comfortable win over West Ham who look awful, this Liverpool team spells inconsistency. A win over Chelsea followed by two disappointing results against Wigan & Stoke has many Liverpool fans dreading the weekend. No one knows which Liverpool team is going to show up. Perhaps the most worrying factor is the fact that the team is not playing as a team. Lack of passion, determination and guts have proved costly in recent games. Many still cannot identify the type of football Roy wants the team to play and the jury is still out on some of his buys. Having said that, Meireles looked good in the centre of midfield in the absence of Gerrard. I've always thought he's a good player, technically. Hopefully he's able to make a strong claim for the centre mid position in the next few games. 

The usual suspects

Chelsea looked like its wheels has come off in the last couple of weeks. The sacking of Wilkins and the rumoured resignation of Ancellotti (and then denied) is definitely taking its toll on the team. The loss to Birmingham and the unconvincing win over MSK Zilina in the Champ League spells trouble. But surely this won't last when their influential players come back from injury. 

Arsenal on the other hand, still lacked maturity and experience on the field despite the manager denying the fact and the need for a proper goalie. Until Wenger realises the shortcomings in his team and stops being a soar loser ; Arsenal will continue to live in this make believe world that they're a strong contender for the EPL title or for the matter Champions League. 

The midweek win over Rangers and the winning goal scored by Rooney is a very positive sign for Man.Utd who thus far remains unbeaten in the EPL despite placing behind Chelsea. In my opinion, this team is not as strong as it used to be. Over reliant on senior players and some buys who don't look good enough to wear the united shirt has thus far managed to keep Man.Utd in the hunt. Having said that, this team will need strengthening in the January window to really have a go at the big titles.

And Man City will just continue to buy buy buy.....

Pondering about their futures

AFC Annual Awards 2010

We were invited to attend the prestigious AFC Annual Awards 2010 which was held at the Sunway Resort Hotel & Spa on 24/11/2010. This event saw many big sporting names and officials from the region and also around the globe. The biggest name of the night was none other than our own prime minister - Y.A.B Dato' Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak who was also the recipient of the AFC Diamond Award.

The event was hosted by Andrew Leci & the beautiful Paula Malai Ali. AFC president Mohamed Bin Hammam kick off the event by welcoming everyone with his opening speech. According to him, Asian football has come a very long way and he thanked everyone who contributed to the sports. Entertainment for the night was plentiful and exciting with acts from Thailand and China showcasing their culture. Chines Taipei singer and lyricist David Tao serenaded the crowd with his ballads.

The highlight of the night was the announcement of the of the AFC Women's Player of the Year Award & the AFC Player of the awards which went Aussies, Kathryn Ann Gill and Sasa Ognenovski. For full list of winners, checkout the AFC homepage at http://www.the-afc.com/en/afc-awards-2010

Thank you AFC for your hospitality. The future is Asia !

Inspirational Win !

For the 1st time in Malaysian hockey history, we have reached the finals of the Asian Games 2010. Beating India in extra time (final score 4-3), one of the favourites for the gold after holding another hockey giant Korea in the group match, is a feat worthy of any celebration. Watching the team worked so hard for each other and being rewarded at the end is indeed priceless. Results matters in any competitions but what's more encouraging and touching is the commitment and gutsy performance produced by every players on the team (something which is missing in Malaysians sports at times). Of course not forgetting the coaches & officials who supported behind the scenes. They are the rock of the team.

Tonight the team worked like a well-oil machine running with the fuel of passion. Keep it up. Pakistan awaits.

An interview with Malaysia #1 Darling - Nicol David

Malaysians for Sports managed to catch up with the squash queen and Malaysian hero, Datuk Nicol David in between her hectic schedule to find out what she’s been up. A truly inspiring and humble champion ! =)

The fastest way to the courts!

Celebrating Malaysian Heroes 

by JY

JY :  How did you start off in squash?

ND : My sisters, Lianne and Cheryl started playing first at our first public squash centre that was build by my father's friend in Penang then I joined them a year later at 5 years old.

JY :What / Who was your inspiration/motivation?

ND: It was more the enjoyment of the game that captured my interest and I saw that I was doing well too that got me motivated to keep getting better. 

JY: You've excelled with flying colours in squash as well as academically. With all the hectic training and tournaments, how did you manage to balance between racket and books? =)

ND: My parents were very supportive of me without putting any pressure on my studies and squash. When I had a squash tournament, I would give more emphasis on my squash; I also had good teachers and friends to fill me in with school work...and then when there are exams, I would take time off from squash and focus on my studies. Squash has been the best thing with my focus while I was studying. 

JY:If you were not a squash player, what will you be doing? =)

ND: I'll probably be another sports person maybe involved in another racket sport. 

JY :You travel very often for tournaments and being away from family and close friends , how do you deal with it? Who's your closest confidante in the squash circuit? =)

ND: It's the hardest thing to deal with but that's the only way to be the best you can be by staying away from your comfort zone. Sometimes I get completely into training mode and tournaments that it just keeps me going right through but the moment I realize that I'm about to head back home that's when I started thinking of home. Amsterdam has become my second home and there's a nice group of squash players here that train and travel together during tournaments. 

JY :What do you miss most about Malaysia when you're away? 

ND: My family and friends of course but being Malaysian, I do miss the food. 

JY :You have taken squash to a whole new level for Malaysians, how do you see the squash scene presently in the nation? 

ND: The squash scene has grown a lot since I was fortunate enough to get great support for squash during the time when the 1998 Commonwealth Games preparations came up in Kuala Lumpur. In Penang, my sisters and I were the only girls with a handful of guys playing in the juniors and now there's a waiting list from 250 kids wanting to join in. 

JY :What's your aspiration for squash or sports in Malaysia ?

ND :Malaysia could be the centre of squash someday where all squash nations around the world can come to Malaysia for squash expertise. Hopefully this will also transfer to other sports in Malaysia if one sport like squash can kick off. 

JY :Squash is obviously a big part of your life. When you're not playing squash, what are the things that you like to do to unwind?

ND: I do like to walk around town or the park on an off day or spend some time just doodling for fun. Also being in Amsterdam, I like to check out some festivals or concerts when they're on too. 

JY :You've been No. 1 for more than 50 mths. How does it feel to be on top of the world? 

ND :It's a great feeling being there but I know I have to do more always because it's never your place to keep. Everyone is gunning for that spot and I have to stay on top of things every time by working extra hard to improve myself in every way possible. 

JY :Thanks for your time Nicol. Good Luck in your upcoming tournaments !

ND : Thanks !!


**Photos thanks to Squash Stars

Nicol beats Udai Singh in Battle of the Sexes Part 2. She's super duper excited here because she was looking forward to this rematch after losing to him in the previous year.

Malaysians for Sports Activated !

Hello All! Welcome to this blog started with an intent to bring Malaysians together through sports. This is a platform whereby sports fans discuss about sports - the good and the not so encouraging. We love Malaysian Sports but we keep it REAL. Majulah sukan untuk negara !