Skipper Ahmad To Miss BJSS’ Semi-final Match Against UniKL

KUALA LUMPUR: Five-time double champions Bukit Jalil Sports School (BJSS) will not have their skipper Ahmad Ashraf Alias for the Milo Cup semi-final first-leg against Uni­versiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL) at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil tomorrow.

Defender Ahmad has to serve a one-match suspension after collecting his second yellow card in the quarter-final second-leg against Malacca High School at the Kuala Lumpur Hockey Stadium on Sunday.

The 17-year-old Ahmad was flashed the card by umpire Jaswant Singh for deliberately stopping the ball with his foot in the 47th minute.

Ahmad said he regretted his silly action, which will see him miss the important match against a strong UniKL side who finished runners-up in Division One.

“We lost to UniKL (3-2) in the league and my absence will further weaken our defence,” said Ahmad.

“It will also affect our penalty corner battery as I am the main stopper of the team. As captain of the team, I should have set a good example to my team-mates. I apologise to them for getting the card,” said Ahmad, who has been playing for BJSS Juniors since 2006.

BJSS, who finished third in Division One, qualified for the semi-finals when they trounced Malacca High School 9-2 on aggregate in the quarter-finals.

UniKL, who bagged the overall title in 2010, also reached the semis by a 9-2 aggregate against MSSPP-USM.


 Ahmad, a Form Five student, was promoted to the BJSS senior team this season. He is now hoping his team-mates can still put up a good show in a absence.

“Although I won’t be playing, I will be cheering for my team-mates on Wednesday,” said Ahmad.

BJSS team manager Jusvinder Pal Singh (pic) said they have other reliable players to replace Ahmad.

“We expect it to be closely fought match. We need to win the first-leg to put the pressure on them for the return,” said Jusvinder Pal.

Division One champions Tunku Mahkota Ismail Sports School (SSTMI)-Thunderbolt will face MBI-Anderson, who finished fourth in Division One, in the other semi-final first-leg match tomorrow.