In a parched and uneven surface at the Woodgrove Secondary School pitch this afternoon, the Bowen B Div boys pulled off a morale-boosting 4-1 win over their host in the 2nd round of the NZ Football Competition.
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| Bullets Zamani asking for the ball from Josiah Phua (left) |
The victory did not come easily as the Bowen Bullets had to fight tooth and nail for most of the match before Woodgrove gave up the fight. Both teams employed a cautious approach for the first 10 minutes as they tested the waters. Bowen took some time to get used to the bumpy turf while Woodgrove were overly tentative in their attacks.
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| Bullets midfielder Brandon Tan closely watched by his opponents |
Fortunately for the Bullets, Woodgrove also had issues to resolve in defence. 21 minutes into the first half, Bullets striker Aizal gathered the ball in the Woodgrove half and slipped in a through ball to midfielder Muhd Hisam who was cutting in from the right. With just the goalkeeper to beat, Hisam did brilliantly to slot the ball into the goalmouth to draw first blood.
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| Bullets congratulating Zamani (No.8) for scoring the 4th goal |
5 minutes later, the Woodgrove defence was caught square again when it let a long goal kick from centre-back Harith Aniq to sail over them. Aizal was alert to get to the end of the kick and lobbed the ball delicately over the Woodgrove keeper for Bowen's 2nd goal.
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| Bullets H.Aniq (No. 3) heading the ball away from a corner kick |
In the 2nd half, Woodgrove reshuffled their attacking personnel and it proved successful in reducing their 2-goal deficit in the 47th minute. A swift Woodgrove cross from the left was delightfully headed past Bowen keeper Desmond Ong into goal as Bowen was left stunned.
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| Bullets right-back Ithar Nur Iqmal bringing the ball up the field |
Unable to recover quickly, the Bullets allowed Woodgrove another good chance in the 54th minute. Bullets midfielder R Sharveen lost possession of the ball in the centre of the park and it was put through to Woodgrove main striker who failed to compose himself when face to face with keeper Desmond, desperately toe-poking his attempt wide when it looked easier to score.
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| Bullets Sharveen (blue) bustling in midfield |
The miss seemed to be the turning point of the game as Bowen recovered to take control in midfield. They scored the crucial third goal in the 67th minute when Hisam's good run from the right to the bye-line created chaos in the Woodgrove defence. As Woodgrove hesitated to clear their lines, Aizal sneaked in to win the ball and netted his 2nd goal of the match.
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| Bullets skipper Benny Tan executing a dangerous high kick |
If the third goal knocked the stuffing out of Woodgrove, the fourth goal in the 71st minute completely deflated them. This time, it was substitute Ithar Nur Irfan who worked his way into the Woodgrove penalty box from the left. After getting past two defenders, Nur Irfan's cut-back was intercepted by a defender. However, the resulting clearance was weak and fell to the feet of Bullets Muhd Zamani who created space for himself before unleashing an unstoppable shot from the edge of the box for a 4-1 scoreline.
In the other 2nd round Group B match, Woodlands Secondary School defeated Marsiling Secondary 4-0.
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| Bullets starting line-up |
Bowen Starting Line-Up
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Jersey No.
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ONG JIAN HAO DESMOND off 57’
|
1
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MOHD SHAKIR B SIRAJUDEN
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2
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HARITH ANIQ B
AZMAN
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3
|
BENNY TAN TENG SOON
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4
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ITHAR NUR IQMAL B ABDUL WAHAB
off 53’
|
13
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AIZAL MURHAMDANI B AHMAD goal 26’, 67’
|
9
|
R SHARVEEN RAM
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11
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JOSIAH PHUA YONG QI
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6
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MUHD ZAMANI B MD ZAMRI goal
71’
|
8
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BRENDAN TAN LEON KEAT off
69’
|
15
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MUHAMMAD HISAM
B ROZIMAN goal 21’ off 78’
|
12
|
Substitutes
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Jersey No.
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KEITH
WONG JIA FENG in
57’
|
20
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MUHD TAHALIF B ABDULLAL J in 78’
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5
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TANG GUAN YU
|
19
|
ONG JUN YONG
TERENCE
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16
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ITHAR NUR IRFAN B ABDUL WAHAB in 69’
|
17
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MARCUS WONG JIAN YUAN in
53’
|
14
|
MUHAMMAD IRFAN B MAZLAN
|
10
|
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