No fairy tale ending for Bullets in 3-2 lost

3rd August 2015

The junior Bullets' brave journey in the National Inter-Schools C Div Boys Football Competition came to an end last Thursday at the Coral Secondary School field after being handed a 3-2 defeat by their hosts.

Quarter-Final Round: Final Standings
	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	PTS
Coral Sec	3	2	1	0	10	4	6	7
Jurongville Sec	3	2	1	0	5	2	3	7
Bowen Sec	3	1	0	2	5	6	-1	3
Spectra Sec	3	0	0	3	2	10	-8	0

With the winner of this match confirmed of a semi-final spot, the Bullets went all out at the start. Bullets striker Muhd Hisam gave the visitors a surprise early lead in the 3rd minute when his tame grounder took a slight deflection off his marker and trickled into the goalmouth, helped on by the Coral goalkeeper.

Bullets starting 11, getting ready for a group photo

The Bullets continued to take initiative, playing high up the field as the Coralites were taken aback by the ferocity of the Bullets' attack. Midfielder Aizal almost extended the Bullets' lead when his right-footed shot from outside the box cannoned off the Coral crossbar.

Coral manufactured a rare chance in the 15th minute when their diminutive striker was put through on goal. However, Bullets keeper Desmond Ong produced a stupendous save, diving to his right to palm away a certain goal for a corner.



Bullets head coach (in white) giving a final pep talk before the match



Not to be outdone, Aizal was busy being a menace again in the 22nd minute. This time, he created space on the right to unleash a left-footed curler which was also palmed away by the Coral keeper.

That was the last meaningful attempt by the Bullets in the first half as the Coralites began to take control of the match. Seconds away from the half-time whistle, the Bowen defence sat too deep after a corner was cleared, allowing Coral to find their striker uncontested in the penalty box and with the goalmouth at his mercy, he side-footed the ball into an empty net for the equaliser.



Bullets defence in an aerial duel





There was more drama to come in the 2nd half. Coral took the lead using their long throw-ins to full advantage. One of the throws in the 34th minute found its target and the connecting header flew into the Bullets' goalmouth.

The Bullets fell further behind in the 50th minute when they conceded from another set-piece situation. A corner was headed into the Bowen goalmouth even before the Bullets realised what had happened.



Bullets defending a free kick



With 2 goals down, the Bullets might have given up but they continued to press on with more urgency and intensity. They were rewarded in the 56th minute when Bullets skipper Muhd Zamani curled home a free-kick from an acute angle to make it 3-2.

But it was too little too late. When the final whistle blew, there was an air of acceptance by the Bullets who knew they were beaten by the better team on the day. Coral progressed to the semi-finals, together with Jurongville Sec, Sengkang Sec and Victoria Sec while the Bullets will be satisfied with a season of records, one of them being a National top 6 placing, the highest position a boys football team from Bowen has ever achieved.

Bowen Starting Line-Up	Jersey No.
ONG JIAN HAO DESMOND	1
TANG GUAN YU	4
MOHD SHAKIR B SIRAJUDEN	6
MUHD TAHALIF B ABDULLAL J	5
SHAH SHARIZAN B JUMASLAN	24
R SHARVEEN RAM	7
MUHD ZAMANI B MD ZAMRI	8
AIZAL MURHAMDANI B AHMAD	20
ITHAR NUR IRFAN B ABDUKL WAHA	11
MUHD FAREEZ BIN JAMALUDDIN	15
MUHAMMAD HISAM B ROZIMAN	21
Substitutes	Jersey No.
MOHAMAD IRFAN B MOHAMAD I	13
AZIMMIE RAIHAN B AZIZ	12
MUHD ANIQ AKMAL B HASSAN	2
NOOR RIFAT	17
ELHAN AKMAL B SAHRIL	18
MUHD SHAFIQ SHAZWANDY	3
JEREMY CHIN YU JUN	9

Coral	3 – 2	Bowen
Goals Scored (Bowen only)
Muhd Hisam 3’ Muhd Zamani 56’
Substitutions
Nil
Yellow cards
Nil



Bullet Aizal scores brace to keep semi-final hopes alive

28th July 2015

Bowen Bullets gave themselves a lifeline in the National Inter-School C Div Boys Football Competition this afternoon at their home ground when they overcame a resilient Spectra Secondary team 3-2.

Match captain R Sharveen preparing themselves mentally for the game

Attacking midfielder Aizal Murhamdani scored his first competitive goals of the year and striker Muhd Zamani added another to knock Spectra Sec out of the competition. 

Bullets keeper Desmond Ong getting down to make a save

Spectra struggled at the start of the game to gain a foothold, while the Bullets were passing the ball better and asking the early questions. It was the left side that the Bullets exploited the most, with Muhd Fareez, Aizal and Zamani combining well to created several decent chances. And it was a shot from the left by Zamani in the 7th min that the Bullets managed to open accounts. The shot flew past the Spectra goalkeeper but rebounded off the right goal post, presenting Aizal who arrived in the penalty box to tap in the first goal.

Bullets striker Muhd Zamani delivering a free-kick above the Spectra wall

2 minutes later, another Zamani bullet sailed just above the crossbar, to the relief of the Spectra players who struggled to create chances as they were kept busy trying to win meaningful possession.

The Bullets added a second goal in the 29th min through a well-worked free kick by Muhd Tahalif. As the Spectra back four positioned high up the field, Tahalif lifted the ball behind the defenders for Zamani to run in and put the ball across the keeper into an empty net.

Bullets left-back Shah Sharizan (No.24) looking for Muhd Fareez with a throw-in

With a comfortable two-goal margin at the break, the Bullets took their foot off the gas pedal and allowed Spectra to stage a comeback. In the 37th min, a Spectra free kick was floated beyond the Bullets defenders and a Spectra player left unmarked on the left nodded the ball into goal to reduce the deficit.

Match captain R Sharveen (no.7) applying pressure on his opponent

Spectra's fighting spirit brought them their equaliser in the 41st min as they left 3 defenders behind and pushed everyone else further up the field. A shot from just outside the penalty box was spilled by Bullets goalkeeper Desmond Ong and a Spectra striker had the simple task of knocking the loose ball into goal.

The Spectra equaliser woke the Bullets up and the need to gain 3 points propelled them to push forward again. 6 minutes from time, Bullet Aizal capped an impressive performance by creating space for himself in the penalty box and delivering a stiff grounder into the gaping Spectra goalmouth for the winning goal.

Bullets Mohd Shakir attempting to gain possession of the ball.

It was a deserving victory for the Bullets but credit should be given to Spectra for staging a bold comeback. With the other group match between Jurongville Sec and Coral Sec ending in a 2-2 draw, the Bullets will have to play above themselves to beat a fancied Coral outfit on Thursday to gain a semi-final place. 

Spectra	2 – 3	Bowen
Goals Scored (Bowen only)
Aizal Murhamdani 7', 54' Muhd Zamani 29'
Substitutions
Muhd Hisam for Ithar Nur Irfan 40' Azimmie for Harith Aniq 55'
Yellow cards
Nil

Bowen Starting Line-Up	Jersey No.
ONG JIAN HAO DESMOND	1
TANG GUAN YU	4
HARITH ANIQ B AZMAN	10
MUHD TAHALIF B ABDULLAL J	5
SHAH SHARIZAN B JUMASLAN	24
MOHD SHAKIR B SIRAJUDEN	6
R SHARVEEN RAM	7
MUHD ZAMANI B MD ZAMRI	8
AIZAL MURHAMDANI B AHMAD	20
ITHAR NUR IRFAN B ABDUKL WAHA	11
MUHD FAREEZ BIN JAMALUDDIN	15
Substitutes	Jersey No.
MOHAMAD IRFAN B MOHAMAD I	13
AZIMMIE RAIHAN B AZIZ	12
MUHAMMAD HISAM B ROZIMAN	21
MUHD ANIQ AKMAL B HASSAN	2
MUHAMMAD YUSRI B SELAMAT	16
NOOR RIFAT	17
ELHAN AKMAL B SAHRIL	18
MUHD SHAFIQ SHAZWANDY	3
JEREMY CHIN YU JUN	9

Bowen Bullets edged out by Jurongville in Nationals

23 July 2015

A single goal was all it took to inflict on the Bowen C Boys Football team their first defeat in 14 matches. Bowen's conqueror were the West Zone Champions, Jurongville Secondary who showed impressive spirit in the first quarter-final match against the Bowen Bullets this afternoon at the Lor Napiri ground.

The Bullets taking a pre-match pledge cum cheer

Both teams were more than ready for the encounter after a 1-week break from the Inter-Schools competition. Jurongville looked the more adventurous side, at least in the first 10 minutes of the match, as they capitalised on the dribbling skills of their left winger to send in crosses. They also hit the crossbar in the 9th minute from outside the penalty box and caused chaos in the Bowen defence on several occasions.

Bullets starting line-up

When the Bullets finally settled down, they took over the initiative, creating a hatful of decent scoring chances. In their best 10-minute spell of the match, the Bullets saw 2 attempts go narrowly wide. In the first one on 13 minutes, the Bullets started a move deep from defence, moving the ball swiftly from left-winger Muhd Fareez to Aizal who then put through Muhd Zamani in the penalty box. Unfortunately, the finishing by the Bullets striker was off the mark, slipping past the Jurongville goalkeeper and out of play for a goal kick.

Bullets Zamani unleashing a free-kick

The second miss saw Aizal putting his foot through the ball off an intelligent relay pass from the penalty box. Again, the ball flew just inches away from the right post.

Against the run of play in the 26th min, Jurongville somehow managed to squeeze a low cross from the left into the Bullets penalty box and an unmarked Jurongville player in the penalty box was on hand to tap the ball into an empty net.

Bullets midfielder Aizal dribbling past an opponent.

The Bullets went into the break 0-1 down and straight after the break in the 32nd minute, another mishap occurred when left-back Muhd Yusri was adjudged to be the last defender when he pulled down a Jurongville striker who was through on goal. Referee showed Yusri a straight red for denying a goalscoring opportunity. From the ensuing freekick on the edge of the penalty box, Bullets keeper Desmond Ong did well to parry the ball over for a corner kick.

Bullets rearguard organising themselves for another Jurongville corner

Try as they might, the Bullets ran out of ideas after the sending-off and failed to create any worthwhile openings after that, thanks to quick closing down by the Jurongville players. An Aizal-freekick that hit the crossbar was the closest the Bullets came to an equaliser.

The Bullets' frustration grew when Aizal and H.Anig were both shown yellow cards on separate occasions (39th min and 58th min) for dissent -- Aizal for throwing the ball at his marker and Aniq for arguing with the referee.

Bullets Alif and Irfan getting reading to deal with a high ball.

The Bullets's defeat was hard to swallow but Jurongville's discipline and calm were well-worth their 3 points.

Jurongville	1 – 0	Bowen
Goals Scored (Bowen only)
nil
Substitutions
nil
Yellow and Red cards
Muhd Yusri 32’ (red) Aizal Murhamdani 39’ (yellow) Harith Aniq 58’ (yellow)