Political Spotlight to Mask Mediocrity?

                         (Photo courtesy of Sports247.com)

While we were so busy with Malaysia's pathetic performance against Bangladesh, I cannot help but notice this photo of Bunyamin Umar with his Palestine support gear - t-shirt and scarf.

Of course all of us are entitled to our political leanings but if someone brought it up, would FIFA fine us for bringing other elements into sports? I am not sure but I am wondering will FAM get into trouble with AFC for this, first and then later, FIFA to act?

If its ok, then I guess in future, we can use players to display their support for many issues for example, help the flood victims in places with flood problems, against whale hunting, no to shark fining, no to racism in certain countries afflicted by racists attack?

Not being the spoil sport but remembered long time ago FIFA was against displaying political and  sponsors (which are not in the official list of FIFA sponsors) logo on jerseys...However, this happened just before the match.

Maybe I will email AFC and FIFA for some clarity and...hopefully I may get an answer as I am a nobody

Past Achievement Means Nothing

                            (Pix courtesy of ESPNSTAR.com)

I guess by now national coach K. Rajagobal will realise when you are winning, everything looks nice, everyone wants to be your friend and everyone wants to be in your good books.

Two losses in prepatory friendly matches for AFF Cup and suddenly, his world is like slowly falling apart with FAM supremo Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah (TM) breathing down his neck with comments on squad tinkering.

In Malaysia, it shows just what success does to you when the whole of Malaysia wanting a piece of you, remember the national squad was even honoured at the annual Year End bash in the capital last year? (I was wondering what is the relevance between a song and dance concert and inviting the national team for an award at the same event?)

However on the other end of the spectrum, failure means you will get chastisized by the fans and officials and if it gets even worse, you will be treated like a leper. By now, Rajagobal would have laid out his plans for the upcoming AFF Cup defence starting November 25 and to be fair to the man, let us not judge him on friendly matches results.

He must and will be judged on AFF Cup results, failure to retain the title means the responsibility is his and his only. Show him the door if you may but when you look a the calibre of coaches we have in stock locally, there is nothing much to choose from expect the usual veteran suspects doing their rounds, coaching around Malaysia teams year in, year out.

While I guess TM means well, let Rajagobal does the job he is entrusted and if we fail, at least he knows it is his own doing only and no one else.

BEN10 is Over Priced

Recently, I went to the BEN 10 LIVE TIME MACHINE show at 2.00pm, Saturday, 10 November and was expecting a large, 'humungousaur' crowd but when the show started, about 10-15 minutes later then scheduled, huge swathes of seats were still empty.

It got me thinking, normal middle class Malaysians can't and won't afford tickets which are expensive. The cost per ticket, be it adult or child are as follows:

VIP- RM328

Premium - RM268

Reserve A - (Level 3) RM168

Reserve B - (Level 3) RM98

Minimum 2 pax must attend - parent and child so minimum, you are looking at, at least RM200 per family. I am not sure about other shows but the show I attended was empty until the organisers gave us an option of occupying the back row of the VIP seats.

However, if I paid that much, I'll scream murder as for RM328 and if you are seated at the back zone, your poor child won't be able to have a good view as the seats are all of the same level. I seriously wonder who was in charge of seating...

And outside the hall, there was more money to milk with all the merchandise, toys and snacks with BEN 10 branding.

Hopefully in future, the organisers will bring the down the prices so that more people can enjoy the show, especially BEN 10 hard core kids...Anyway, I suspect the next time they come down, my son would have grown out of this and move on to other cartoon characters.

Guiza's Indian Summer in Johor

                     (Photo courtesy of soccernet.espn.go)

It seems Malaysia football is in the news again with former Spanish international Daniel Guiza joining Johor and proclaiming "To be honest I don’t know much about Malaysian football. But I watched videos of the local matches on the Internet before coming down here and what I observed was Malaysians appear very passionate about their football.

He further added, that the reason he wants to leave his current club, Getafe CF in La Liga, was because he and the manager had differing views and also that money was not the case since he had offers from top Spanish and European clubs.

“I want to help Johor become not only the top team in Malaysia but in Asia as well,” he said adding that the local weather would not be a problem for him.

The quotes were taken from The Star and read here.

Hmm, how many times have we heard this statement from a foreign player and how many have lasted this long here by virtue of our standard of football?

Seriously, will he make a difference and how long will he light up Johor and Malaysian football? Somehow as a fan, I suspect money played a role and I am sure rather than fight it out in other European leagues, he probably have a nice retirement package here.

Bu hey, I could be wrong! 

40th Penang PESTA International Bowling Championship 2012

Persatuan Tenpin Bowling Pulau Pinang would be hosting the premier International Bowling Championship scheduled from 8-16 December 2012 at the Premium Lanes, Sunshine Square, Bayan Baru, Penang.

After successfully staging this Championship in 2011, which attracted more than 350 bowlers (both local and overseas) participation, the organisers anticipates a larger pool of leading bowlers from the Asian countries to participate in this year’s event.

For more information, please call Persatuan Tenpin Bowling Pulau Pinang 012-4851775.

The glory days of Inter Bank Athletics Meet

The days when Inter-Bank meets were glamorous. Now, the National Bank Sports Council is run by incompetent officials who fail to move with the times. Their excuse, blame the management for not hiring athletes but their council consist of non sporting banks members and staff who are not even CEO level which xplains why change cannot be affected. Only thing they do is talk co#@

Five AmBank Group Faldo Series Malaysia Championship 2012 winners qualifies for Grand Finals in China

Favourites and national trainees Nur Durriyah Damian and Chan Tuck Soon continued their impressive form to clinch the AmBank Group Faldo Series Malaysia Championship 2012 title and qualified for the Faldo Series Asia Grand Finals which will be held in Mission Hills, China in March next year.

Joining them for the Grand Finals in China next year are Muhammad Wafiyuddin from Kelab Golf Rekreasi Universiti Utara Malaysia (KGRUUM), Hiew Alvin from Palm Resort Johor and Kellie Kan of the Malaysian Golf Association (MGA).

In the Girls U-21 category, defending champion Durriyah made it her second AmBank Group Faldo Series Malaysia Championship 2012 title in a row with an even par score of 72 to finish two strokes ahead Hillferah Tan of KGRUUM with a total score of 222 at The Royal Selangor Golf Club (RSGC). She said she was pleased with her score and delighted to win her second consecutive title.

Tuck Soon on the other hand had his worst game in today’s final round when he shot a 76 after identical scores of 72 in the first two rounds but still managed to win by seven strokes with an overall score of 220. Second place was Ahmad Zahir of KGRUUM who shot a three-day total of 227 to move ahead of teammate Muhammad Ridhwan whose slide continued after leading on day one, second place on day two and finishing in third place today with an overall score of 229.

KGRUUM’s domination in the Boys U-21 category continued with all their players finishing in top three positions. Muhammad Wafiyuddin who has been leading since day one, shot a decent final round of 75 to finish seven strokes ahead of second placed teammate Amirul Aizat. Over in the Girls U-16 category, MGA’s Kellie Kan clinched the title with a three-day total of 230, followed by Chong Yong of Kluang Country Club on 233 and teammate Ashley Lau finishing in third place with 238.

The prizes were given away by Syed Anuar Syed Ali, Senior General Manager, Group Corporate Communications and Marketing, AmBank Group and Admiral Tan Sri Dato’ Sri Mohd Anwar Hj Mohd Nor (Rtd), MGA President.

This is the second year AmBank Group is sponsoring the Faldo Series Malaysia Championship after the first, last year.

The past winners of the Faldo Series tournament include World number 1s Rory McIlroy and Yani Tseng of Chinese Taipei. It was launched in 1996 by Sir Nick Faldo with 35 tournaments taking place in 25 countries worldwide with over 5,000 golfers participating each year.

As the title sponsor for the Faldo Series Malaysia Championship 2012, AmBank Group is further strengthening its commitment to developing junior golf and the Group is also currently the main sponsor for the SportExcel Junior Golf Championship Grand Finals for the last eight years.

Results:
Final Round Scores

Boys

U-21:

218 Muhammad Wafiyuddin (KGRUUM) 74-69-75; 225 Amirul Aizat (KGRUUM) 74-72-79; 234 Muhammad Al-Azim (KGRUUM) 80-78-76;

U-18:

220 Chan Tuck Soon (MGA) 72-72-76; 227 Ahmad Zahir (KGRUUM) 76-77-74; 229 Muhammad Ridhwan (KGRUUM) 71-79-79;

U-16:
229 Hiew Alvin (Palm Resort Johor) 81-76-72; 230 Mohd Asyraf Rosli (Monterez Golf & Country Club) 79-76-75; 231 Aaerishna Shastry (Johor Golf Country Club) 80-75-76;
Girls
U-18:

222 Nur Durriyah Damian (MGA) 77-73-72; 224 Hillferah Tan (KGRUUM) 72-82-70; 227 Isza Fariza (Staffield) 75-75-77;

U-16:
230 Kelie Kan (MGA) 81-75-74; 233 Chong Yong (Kluang Country Club) 82-78-73; 238 Ashley Lau (MGA) 79-81-78

Favourites move into contention in AmBank Group Faldo Series Malaysia Championship 2012

Normal order was restored in the AmBank Group Faldo Series Malaysia Championship 2012 as the the favourites in both the Boys and Girls U-18 categories moved up the leaderboard in today’s second round which was played at The Royal Selangor Golf Club (RSGC).

Defending champion Nur Durriyah Damian from the Malaysian Golf Association (MGA) surged into contention with a much improved performance to shoot a 73 for a two-day total of 150 and is tied in first place with Isza Fariza from Staffield. Genevieve Ling is in third place with 154.
In the Boys U-18 category, national trainee Chan Tuck Soon maintained his consistent form with another round of 72 to score an even par of 144 while yesterday’s leader Muhammad Ridhwan from Kelab Golf Rekreasi Universiti Utara (KGRUUM), game faltered today to score a 79 and is now five shots behind Tuck Soon.
Another national trainee, Ervin Chang maintained his grip in the U-16 Boys category with a total of 151 over two rounds, four strokes ahead of Aaerishna Shastry of Johor Golf Country Club.
Kelab Golf Rekreasi Universiti Utara (KGRUUM) are in prime position to clinch the Boys U-21 title with the top three positions occupied by its players - current leader Muhammad Wafiyuddin on 143, followed by Amirul Aizat on three strokes behind and Muhammad Al-Azim on 158.
With only five tickets available for the Grand Finals which is scheduled to be held in Mission Hills, China in March, 2013 from five categories, the competition will be keen amongst the 67 local golfers on display from the ages of 12-21 years old.
The past winners of the Faldo Series tournament include World number 1s Rory McIlroy and Yani Tseng of Chinese Taipei. It was launched in 1996 by Sir Nick Faldo with 35 tournaments taking place in 25 countries worldwide with over 5,000 golfers participating each year.
As the title sponsor for the Faldo Series Malaysia Championship 2012, AmBank Group is further strengthening its commitment to developing junior golf and the Group is also currently the main sponsor for the SportExcel Junior Golf Championship Grand Finals for the last eight years.
Results:
Second Round Scores
Boys
U-21:
143 Muhammad Wafiyuddin (KGRUUM) 74-69; 146 Amirul Aizat (KGRUUM) 74-72; 158 Muhammad Al-Azim (KGRUUM) 80-78;
U-18:
144 Chan Tuck Soon (MGA) 72-72; 150 Muhammad Ridhwan (KGRUUM) 71-79; 153 Ahmad Zahir (KGRUUM) 76-77;
U-16:
151 Ervin Chang (MGA) 74-77; 155 Aaerishna Shastry (Johor Golf Country Club) 80-75; 155 Mohd Asyraf Rosli (Monterez Golf & Country Club) 79-76
Girls
U-18:
150 Nur Durriyah Damian (MGA) 77-73; 150 Isza Fariza (Staffield) 75-75; 154 Genevieve Ling (Kelab Rekreasi Tentera Udara) 77-77;
U-16:
156 Kelie Kan (MGA) 81-75; 158 Siti Zulaikha (Kelab Rekreasi Tentera Udara) 78-80; 160 Chong Yong (Kluang Country Club) 82-78

Adam Shaw of Canada wins inaugural RSGC AmBank Junior Amateur Open Golf Championship 2012

Adam Shaw of Canada clinched the inaugural Boys U-18 RSGC AmBank Junior Amateur Open Golf Championship 2012 by a massive 17 strokes, scoring a three-day total of 213, finishing three under par on March 15.

Playing at The Royal Selangor Golf Club (RSGC), Shaw who is half Malaysian from his mother’s side, also carded the day’s lowest score of 68 in today’s penultimate round.

Malaysian Mohammed Izad who was trailing in third place yesterday, was tied with a total score of 230 with Nick Ang but finished higher on countback. The tournament was played on a strokeplay format.

“I am pleased to win the RSGC AmBank Junior Amateur Open Golf Championship 2012 and it has certainly boosted my confidence. The win may look easy but I had to work hard for it,” said Shaw who resides in Canada but holidays frequently in Malaysia.

National junior Ervin Chang kept the Malaysian flag flying by winning the Boys U-15 title with a total score of 227. Amir Nazrin who was lying in fourth place yesterday, made a late surge today but it was not enough to finish the day with a total of 234, seven shots adrift, to finish second. Danial Durisic played his worst round today, scoring an 82 and lost out his second position to finish third.

The Girls category saw Philippines dominate the top two positions in both the U-18 and U-15 category. In the U-18 category, Dottie Ardina carded a final round of 72 for a three-day total of 214 to emerge as champion, finishing two-under par. Team-mate Sarah Ababa finished in second place with a total of 221 while Malaysia’s Genevieve Ling claiming third place with 230.

Philippines’ Princess Superal led from day one to finish as the Girls U-15 champion with a total score 221, followed by team-mate Daniella Uy 225. Malaysia’s Siti Zulaikha Shaari completed the podium finish with a total score of 233.

Results: (Malaysians unless stated)
Final Round Scores
Boys U-18:
213: Adam Shaw (Canada) 70,75,68; 230: Mohammed Izzad 75,81,74; 230: Nick Ang 74,78,78
Boys U-15:
227: Ervin Chang 74,77,76; 234: Amir Nazrin 79,77,78; 236: Danial Durisic 79,75,82
Girls U-18:
214: Dottie Ardina (Philippines) 71,71,72; 221: Sarah Ababa (Philippines) 76,72,73; 230: Genevieve Ling 77,75,78
Girls U-15:
221: Princess Superal (Philippines) 74,74,73; 225: Daniella Uy (Philippines) 76,74,75; 233: Siti Zulaikha Shaari 77,78,78

Canadian Shaw maintains lead in Day Two of RSGC AmBank Junior Amateur Open Golf Championship 2012

Adam Shaw of Canada continued his domination of the inaugural RSGC AmBank Junior Amateur Open Golf Championship 2012 Boys U-18 category with seven strokes clear of his nearest rival, Nick Ang of Malaysia heading into the final straight tomorrow at the Royal Selangor Golf Club in Kuala Lumpur.

Played on a strokeplay format, Shaw scored 70 gross on day one and 75 gross on day two, 14 March for a total score of 145, ahead of Ang, who shot rounds of 74 and 78 gross on day one and two respectively, for a total score of 152.

In the Boys U-15 category, national junior Ervin Chang maintained his lead with a total score of 151 in the second round after hitting a 77 today. Yesterday, he scored better with a 74. His main rival, Danial Durisic played better today to card a 75 but his two-day total of 154 puts him three strokes behind Ervin.

The Girls category in the second round is an all Philippines show with the top two placings in both the U-18 and U-15 category still dominated by them. Yesterday’s leader Dottie Ardina carded a 71 today for a two-day total of 142 in the U-18 category. Team-mate Sarah Ababa shot a total round of 148 to stay six strokes behind Ardina.

Princess Superal consistent game in U-15 category continued today as she shot a 74, similar to yesterday’s score, to finish off the day with a total score of 148. Team-mate Daniella Uy is just two strokes behind with a total score 150 after carding scores of 76 and 74 on day one and two respectively.

AmBank Group is the title sponsor and a total of five national juniors are in the fray among the cast of 91 junior golfers who have confirmed their participation in four categories consisting of Boys and Girls U-18 and U-15, respectively. Foreign countries who are also participating in this tournament are Hong Kong, Philippines and Canada. The tournament ends on Thursday.

Other than this tournament, AmBank Group was previously the title sponsor for the Faldo Series Malaysia Championship 2011 and is also currently the main sponsor for the SportExcel Junior Golf Championship Grand Finals which has been held for the last eight years.

Results: (Malaysians unless stated)
Second Round Scores
Boys U-18:
145: Adam Shaw (Canada) 70,75; 152: Nick Ang 74,78; 156: Muhammad Syazani 81,75
Boys U-15:
151: Ervin Chang 74,77; 154: Danial Durisic 79,75, 155: Park Chang Uk 82,73
Girls U-18:
142: Dottie Ardina (Philippines) 71,71; 148: Sarah Ababa (Philippines)76,72; 152: Genevieve Ling 77,75
Girls U-15:
148: Princess Superal (Philippines) 74-74; 150: Daniella Uy (Philippines) 76-74; 155: Siti Zulaikha Shaari 77,78

Foreign Golfers Dominate Opening Day of RSGC AmBank Junior Amateur Open Golf Championship 2012

The foreign legion at the inaugural RSGC AmBank Junior Amateur Open Golf Championship 2012 made their presence felt with a commanding opening day performance at the Royal Selangor Golf Club (RSGC) on 13 March.

In the Boys U-18 category, Adam Shaw of Canada is in the lead after finishing with a total score of 70 gross, four ahead of second placed Nick Ang from Malaysia. In the Girls category, Philippines’ Dottie Ardina (71) holds a five shot lead over team-mate Sarah Ababa (76).

Over in the Boys U-15 category, national junior Ervin Chang carded a 74 to take a five shot lead over fellow Malaysian Danial Durisic while in the Girls category, Princess Superal of the Philippines takes a slender two-shot lead over country women Daniella Uy. Princess scored 74, with Daniella two strokes behind on 76.
AmBank Group is the title sponsor and a total of five national juniors are in the fray among the cast of 91 junior golfers who have confirmed their participation in four categories consisting of Boys and Girls U-18 and U-15, respectively. Foreign countries who are also participating in this tournament are Hong Kong, Philippines and Canada. The tournament ends on Thursday.

Other than this tournament, AmBank Group was previously the title sponsor for the Faldo Series Malaysia Championship 2011 and is also currently the main sponsor for the SportExcel Junior Golf Championship Grand Finals which has been held for the last eight years.

Results: (Malaysians unless stated)

First Round Scores
Boys U-18:
70: Adam Shaw (Canada); 74: Nick Ang; 75: Mohammed Izzad
Boys U-15:
74: Ervin Chang; 79: Danial Durisic, Amir Nazrin Jailani
Girls U-18:
71: Dottie Ardina (Philippines); 76: Sarah Ababa (Philippines); 77: Genevieve Ling
Girls U-15:
74: Princess Superal (Philippines); 76: Daniella Uy (Philippines); 77: Siti Zulaikha Shaari

Olympics Aye, Thomas Cup, Bye-Bye

A high powered High Performance Team (HPT) has been formed and by the looks of it, their three-men team is formed to only look out for the Olympics gold medal if today's report in the media is to be digested.

The HPT has in away, downgraded Thomas Cup targets to a secondary level and put Olympic glory at the pedestal. Ok, this is all fine but why waste time in the first place to interview and look for people when Datuk James Selvaraj alluded to his part time job in BAM as not having enough powers and recognition from BAM to make huge decisions which are impactful on the national governing body of badminton? This decision could have been made by the coaching committee earlier by checking with the coaches on the quality of players at their disposal.

Now you hire another two more people and by the looks of it, short-term glory (if we achieve Olympic gold) but then what happens to the second echelon of shuttlers? If it has been stated today that Thomas Cup takes a back seat, then maybe Hafiz Hashim shouldn't have been given a last-minute call-up even if he is better than most players after Lee Chong Wei but now is the time to groom and throw all the young players into the deep end so that we have a strong team for the next Thomas Cup.

Of course, people's lips will say why Zulfadli Zulkifli is not in to gain exposure when Victor Axelsen from Denmark whom he beat in the World Junior Final, has already made it to his senior squad. Putting Hafiz and everyone else in the second and third singles slot is not going to make a huge impact in the Thomas Cup as we slowly see how our badminton slowly head lower and lower intot he abyss.

Badminton is going the same way like women's squash, after Nicol David who is there? After Lee Chong Wei, who?

BAM should have saved everyone the torment and just kept Datuk James, no need to waste time and distract who else to join the HPT and kept on with training and coming up with achieveable objectives rather than flip flopping with major tournament shuttling by, in a jiffy.

Question is if we don't win gold, will the HPT be disbanded?

Tough one for Malaysia in Thomas Cup

For the first time, Malaysia looks damn shaky in their Thomas Cup Preliminary Asian Zone qualifier (other teams are South Korea and Korea Republic) and if Lee Chong Wei can play all five ties, then I guess we look a very good bet to make the finals.

Whom to blame, I have no idea as Lee Chong Wei looks the only sure bet for a point while Koo Kien Keat and Tan Boon Heong's game have plummeted to depths unseen of...I mean remember Razif-Jalani Sidek and later Cheah Soon Kit-Soo Beng Kiang's game were not fantastic but they were steady pairs for points in team events.

That two fellas, hmmm, played so well initially under Rexy Mainaky's guidance but now, hancur! Ask for anything and BAM bends backwards and now, to repay their kindness and generosity by becoming an unsteady first pair.

One thing I am wondering why isn't World Junior Champion, Zulfadli Zulkifli in the team? So far, haven't seen any justification from BAM. When you compare our rather sub-standard second and third singles like Liew Darren and Arif Abdul Latif, the risk is the same - all can't be relied on for point. So, why don't just expose him, in fact he can be like a Theo Walcott for World Cup by just being in the team but not playing.

Why do I smell rivalry between BAM and KLRC? Is it cause it's either you are with us (BAM) or against us policy? Then problematic next time when there is no healthy rivalry if you do better than BAM and they will freeze your participation if your players do better than BAM? Emm... i hope its not like that next time