The Malaysian hockey team has successfully booked their quarter final slot of the 2015 Hockey World League semi finals as they managed to beat Ireland in the KHC Dragon Stadium, Antwerp, Belgium yesterday.
Izwan Firdaus Ahmad Tajuddin had inspired the nation to a 4-2 win his contribution of two goals. The other goals were scored by captain Muhammad Razie Abdul Raim and Mohamad Sukri Abdul Mutalib. The national squad is currently topping off Group B with six points.
During the match, Malaysia had to wait till the 13th minute to score their first goal through Izwan Firdaus in a penalty shot, but Ireland equalized the score a minute later, courtesy of Peter Caruth.
Malaysia broke the tie to 2-1 in the 16th minute through Razie’s corner penalty but a goal from Ireland’s Shane O’Donoghue closed the gap once again after three minutes.
In the 39th minute, Sukri added a goal to make it 3-2 and Izwan Firdaus took the squad to their 4-2 victory in the 55th minute.
The squad has yet to play against Belgium and Britain but they can look ahead to the next two matches with massive confidence as it is confirmed that they are through to the quarter finals.
“The players stuck to the game plan and were not afraid to attack when they had the chance,” said head coach Tai Beng Hai as quoted from Utusan.
“It was a team performance, we were in control of the match, despite letting them come back twice,” he added.
“But we won’t stop here. We want to get a good result in our next two matches.”
“The quarter-final is some way to go, so let’s not worry about it, but at least this win will see us avoid meeting Australia in the last eight.”
Photo credits: IBNlive
Other posts by Michelle Liew
