Back to back champions SMK Bukit Nenas had a double from Wan Fakhrul Wan Rusli to thank that gave them a hard fought 2-1 win over Penang’s SMK Mutiara Impian in the Super League of the Ministry of Education Under-17 on the weekend.
In an evenly contested affair that saw three yellow cards being flashed on the home team, SMK Bukit Nenas were more patient as they waited until the tail end of the game before striking home.
Wan Fakhrul made sure of the points for SMK Bukit Nenas in a ten-minute blitz with goals in the 69th and 78th minute.
What made the win even more notable was the fact that SMK Bukit Nenas had to come back from a goal down after Muhammad Mu’az Zainal Abidin had given SMK Mutiara Impian the lead in the 37th minute when he shot in from close range.
“We knew that we had to come at Mutiara Impian. We have yet to pick up a win so far this season, so we had to push hard for the full points. We controlled much of the first half but it was just too bad that we could not score,” said Bukit Nenas coach Zainuddin Mohd Zain.
“So in the second half we changed tactics, where we put in another striker and that gave us the two goals.
“It has been tough this season as the other teams have improved a lot. Our strategy at this time is to just look at qualifying for the quarter-finals. We are not even thinking of defending the crown that we have won for the last two years.”
It was not only SMK Bukit Nenas who continued to struggle where former champions SMK Tunku Anum of Kedah also suffered when they were hammered 2-0 by SMK Seksyen 11 of Selangor.
In a game which saw eight yellow cards and then a red being taken out by the man in black, it was Selangor who emerged victorious off goals from Muhamad Azizul Baharuddin in the 31st minute and Muhammad Hafizzuddin Norinukartapati in the 54th minute.
The win allowed SMK Seksyen 11 to strengthen their position in the top half of the league while for SMK Tunku Anum, it was their second loss in five matches.
The triple winners in 2010, 2011 and 2012 have yet to pick up a point after drawing the rest of their games thus far this season.
In the meantime in the Premier League, SMK Seri Titiwangsa of Kuala Lumpur kept up the chase at the top of the standings with a comprehensive 3-0 beating of SMK Seberang Temerloh of Pahang.
The home side went ahead through Muhamad Alfeeq Zharieq Jasmi in the 45th minute as Nik Akif Shahiran Nik Mat then added the second goal at the hour mark.
An own goal from Muhammad Amin Mohd Kharnain six minutes to the end, then completed the humiliation for Seberang Temerloh.
On the other hand, SMK Putera of Kelantan continued their march to the title this year with a slim 1-0 win over SMK Gunung Rapat of Perak in Kota Baru.
The only goal of the game came from Mohamad Shafirulah Mohd Bukori in the 47th minute.
The MELC and 100PLUS Super Cup are among several youth programmes and competitions supported by 100PLUS, Malaysia’s leading isotonic beverage.
The others include the 100PLUS Malaysian Junior Golf Open and the 100PLUS National Junior Badminton Circuit. 100PLUS is recommended by the National Sports Council.
UNDER-17 RESULTS
SUPER LEAGUE
SMK Sekseyn 11 (SELANGOR) 2
SMK Tunku Anum (KEDAH) 0
SMK Mutiara Impian (PENANG) 1
SMK Bukit Nenas (TERENGGANU) 2
SMK Za’ba (NEGERI SEMBILAN) 3
Gambang Sports School (U16) 1
PREMIER LEAGUE
SMK Putera (KELANTAN) 1
SMK Gunung Rapat (PERAK) 0
SMK Seri Titiwangsa (KUALA LUMPUR) 3
SMK Seberang Temerloh (PAHANG) 0
Gambang Sports School (U15) 0
SMK Seri Kota (MELAKA) 1
