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
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P
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W
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D
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L
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F
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A
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GD
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PTS
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Coral Sec
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3
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2
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1
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0
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10
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4
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6
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7
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Jurongville Sec
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3
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2
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1
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0
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5
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2
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3
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7
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Bowen Sec
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3
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1
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0
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2
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5
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6
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-1
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3
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Spectra Sec
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3
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0
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0
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3
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2
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10
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-8
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0
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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.
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| 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.
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| 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.
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| 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.
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| 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
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Jersey No.
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ONG JIAN HAO DESMOND
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1
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TANG GUAN YU
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4
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MOHD SHAKIR B SIRAJUDEN
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6
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MUHD TAHALIF B ABDULLAL J
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5
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SHAH SHARIZAN B JUMASLAN
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24
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R SHARVEEN RAM
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7
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MUHD ZAMANI B MD ZAMRI
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8
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AIZAL MURHAMDANI B AHMAD
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20
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ITHAR NUR IRFAN B ABDUKL WAHA
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11
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MUHD FAREEZ BIN JAMALUDDIN
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15
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MUHAMMAD HISAM
B ROZIMAN
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21
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Substitutes
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Jersey No.
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MOHAMAD IRFAN B
MOHAMAD I
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13
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AZIMMIE RAIHAN B AZIZ
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12
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MUHD ANIQ AKMAL B HASSAN
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2
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NOOR RIFAT
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17
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ELHAN AKMAL B SAHRIL
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18
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MUHD SHAFIQ
SHAZWANDY
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3
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JEREMY CHIN YU
JUN
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9
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Coral
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3
– 2
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Bowen
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Goals
Scored (Bowen only)
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Muhd Hisam 3’
Muhd Zamani 56’
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Substitutions
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Nil
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Yellow cards
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Nil
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