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)

Penalty goal puts Bullets in the quarter-finals

7th July 2015

In the final first round group match of the National Inter-Schools Football Competition at Lorong Napiri this afternoon, the junior Bullets laboured to a 1-1 draw against South Zone Champion Bartley Secondary School, thus qualifying for the quarter final group stage for the first time in the school's history.

Bullets starting line-up

The draw also meant that the Bowen Bullets have now gone 13 matches unbeaten this season, at least in normal time. However, the unbeaten run was severely threatened by Bartley Sec this afternoon as the Bullets put up a lethargic and error-strewn performance.

The fashion in which Bartley scored their goal in the 15th minute was typical of the way the match had panned out for the Bullets. A hopeful lob from a Bartley midfielder just inside the Bullets' half spent a long time in the air. And when the ball came down towards the Bullets' goal, goalkeeper Desmond Ong failed to deal with it, allowing the ball to drop behind him, bounce off the underside of the crossbar and into goal.

Bartley continued to bombard the Bullets, playing percentage football by blindly punting the ball forward whenever and wherever they could. Fortunately,it was a strategy that the Bullets saw through and managed to counter after the break. In the 2nd half, Bullets midfielders RSharveen and Mohd Shakir closed down their opponents quickly in the middle of the park,shutting out any opportunity Bartley had of putting the ball into the danger area.

Bullets right-back Tang Guan Yu taking a throw-in as team mate Aizal Murhamdani gets ready to receive

With that defensive assurance, the Bullets' attacking apex of Muhd Zamani, Aizal Murhamdani and Muhd Hisam began to wreak havoc in the Bartley half. In the 40th minute, Muhd Zamani got to the ball in the penalty box just in front of the Bartley leftback who inadvertendly bundled the Bowen skipper to the ground. The referee awarded the spot kick and Zamani converted it to set up an exciting fight to the end for a quarter-final place.

Muhd Hisam had a chance in the dying seconds from the last corner of the match to secure a win but his side-footed effort from close range went just wide. The eventual draw meant that Bowen progress to the next round while Bartley exit from the competition.

Bartley	1 – 1	Bowen
Goals Scored (Bowen only)
Muhd Zamani 40’ (pen)
Substitutions
Muhd Yusri for Tang Guan Yu 30’ Shah Sharizan for Muhd Fareez 30’

      

Bullets notched convincing win to boost hopes of quarter-final place

3rd July 2015

The junior Bullets are on the cusp of achieving yet another record in the National Inter-Schools Football Competition at Bowen field this afternoon when they defeated Kranji Secondary School 4-0 to top the standings in Group B. With one more match to go, the Bullets would need just a draw to claim the schools' first-ever quarter final berth in a football National competition.

Bullets defence clearing their lines

The Bowen boys pressed their opponents high up and limited play to their opponents' half for most of the first half. Bullets captain Muhd Zamani marked his return from a one-match ban with a brace, scoring his first goal in the 25th min when a mis-hit clearance fell onto his path in the penalty box. He slotted the ball home to ease the tension of the home team.

Bullets midfielder Aizal receiving a pass from Jeremy Chin (extreme right)

Four minutes into the 2nd half, Zamani sent a thunderous shot from a free kick outside the penalty area past a hapless Kranji keeper who was left clutching at thin air.

Bullets midfield enforcer Sharveen staying alert

With a more comfortable lead, the Bullets began to play their best football. Muhd Hisham scored his 2nd goal of the competition in as many matches after beating his marker and lobbing the ball over the Kranji keeper.

In the 41st minute, centre-back Muhd Tahalif also got his name in the scoresheet when he was earliest to the ball which cannoned off the crossbar from Zamani's rising freekick outside the penalty box.

Bullets right-back Tang Guanyu bringing the ball out of defence

The Bullets will meet Bartley Sec, the South Zone Champions next Tuesday at Lor Napiri to decide the two teams that will advance to the knockout quarter-final stage.

Bullets starting line-up

Kranji	0 – 4	Bowen
Goals Scored (Bowen only)
Muhd Zamani 25’, 34’ Muhd Hisam 39’ Muhd Tahalif 41’
Substitutions
Jeremy Chin for Muhd Aniq 30’ Azimmie Raihan for Shah Sharizan 50’ Muhd Fareez for Mohd Shakir 56’’