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Photo-Slideshow from the match against BC-5

It begins:
Match day arrives with the sun shining and the field in pristine condition. Flyboys turn out in force and it looks to be the beginning of a good day. Charismatic manager/coach/player/legend Amir (7) missed his first match in months due to family commitments but this doesn’t curb the teams’ enthusiasm.
Pre-kick off whispers abound that BC-5 won’t have enough players for a match. Flyboys continue warming up with growing fear of an impending walkover. Just before kickoff, attendance wasn’t all in vain and BC-5 managed to get 11 players on field.

1st Half Formation:
Goalkeeper: Hj Suhaini (8) exchanged his striking boots to play in goal.
Defence: Nazrul (3) and Zulafiq (29) in the middle. Julian (4) and Hendra (28) were patrolling the right and left back positions respectively.
Midfield: central generals Aziri (25) and Hafizh (39). On the left was Hj Effendy (18) and Sofian (23) on the right.
Striker: Kenny (47) and Zainul were tasked with scoring goals.

Game on:
From the first blow of the whistle Flyboys imposed themselves with silky one touch passes amongst each other. It seems like long gone are the days when balls were just hoofed up the park in hopes one of our predatory strikers would latch onto them and score. Ten minutes into the half, right winger Sofian was forced to hobble off the pitch after an injury sustained to his ankle. Taking his place was Wazien who didn’t get to stretch himself out as he had arrived just shortly before. An early setback but Flyboys were not perturbed.

They dominated the midfield; exchanging cheeky short passes, dribbling past players, and releasing balls for the strikers. Evidently the matchup of Aziri and Hafizh brought out magic in the middle. Hj Effendy made multiple penetrating runs down the left flank but was unlucky not to find himself in a goal scoring position or one where he could release the killer pass. Wazien on the right was feeling the effects of no pregame stretching, experiencing muscle tightness early on but still managed to make his presence known attacking and defending.

Having controlled most of the possession during the first half, the Flyboys back line didn’t find themselves under any form of pressure and both fullbacks made overlapping runs to help out the attack. The rare occasions when the opposing team attacked, the backline was well disciplined to catch the opposing strikers offside. The defenders passed coolly amongst each other and at one point goalie Hj Suhaini joined in on the act and teased the striker by waiting for a loose ball to come tantalizingly close to being intercepted before passing it away.

GOAL! Flyboys 1 – 0 BC-5
25 minutes into the first half, the ball came out from defence to midfielder Hafizh. He turns with the ball and slots the ball coolly between two defenders for striker Kenny to run onto. Kenny sprints onto the ball, shields the defender away and takes a shot from outside the box which sails over the goalie into the back of the net. The goal seems to have just spurred the team on even more, the next few minutes seeing shots from the midfielders from all manner of angles but alas no goals...yet. Striker Zainul, in his debut game found himself in multiple shooting opportunities but was unlucky to find himself not on the scoresheet.

GOAL! Flyboys 1 – 1 BC-5
A few minutes before half time, tragedy strikes! A through ball from BC-5 down the Flyboys left flank leaves Hendra having to chase after the ball with the striker hot on his heels who manages to catch up and nick the ball away. The ball gets all the way into the penalty box and Hj Suhaini and Hendra look to sandwich the striker into giving up possession. By a combination of skill/luck the striker manages to shoot the ball from the by-line which hits either Hj Suhaini or Hendra and gives it vicious side spin albeit very little forward momentum. Centre-back Zulafiq made up the ground and was about to cover the near post but the sidespin fools him and the ball trickles agonizingly slow into the net. The whistle blows and Flyboys trudge back to the changing room (the bench by the side of the field) for the usual inspiring half-time talk.

2nd Half Formation:
Goalkeeper: Hj Suhaini swapped gloves with defender Zulafiq to play up front as striker.
Defence: Azman (14) and Azmi (30) took over in the middle with Zul Amali (26) as right back and Hendra as left back.
Midfield: Hock finds himself on the right flank. Dzulfadli (10) taking over the midfield general role. His partner being persons unknown as this reporter has forgotten. Sofian is back in the foray, taking up his position on the left flank.
Striker: Kenny and Hj Suhaini prowl the upper reaches of the field as strikers.

Game on:
GOAL! Flyboys 1 – 2 BC-5
BC-5 emerge into the second half a rejuvenated team, with a plethora of new players who effectively controlled the midfield and putting the Flyboys defence under pressure. 10 minutes into the half a BC-5 attacker finds himself on the edge of the Flyboys penalty box with a bit of space, he winds up and takes a shot which finds its way into Zulafiqs bottom left hand corner frustratingly close to his diving fingertips.

Bouncing back:
Flyboys are not discouraged and 5 minutes later, Kenny was released through to goal by persons unknown (my memory fails me) from a free kick which sails over the head of the last defender. Kenny controls the ball under pressure by the defender giving chase; confident, Kenny takes a shot from far out and the ball arcs beautifully goal bound. The fans are on their feet, the players are about to cheer, Kenny was probably thinking how he was going to celebrate...until the goalkeeper dashes all expectations by sticking a hand out to push the ball out of play for a corner. At this point right winger Hock comes out to be replaced by Julian and Sofian sustains another injury and is replaced by Nazrul who slotted into the central midfielder position.

GOAL! Flyboys 1 – 3 BC-5
20 minutes. The same BC-5 attacker who scored the second goal finds himself in the exact position he was when he scored earlier and takes the exact same shot. Zulafiq dives to cover the angle successfully, but by a stroke of bad luck the ball hits the bottom of the post bounces into Zulafiqs’ back and into the net. At this point there were murmurs that Amirs’ incessant screaming and ordering from the sidelines is sorely missed.

GOAL! Flyboys 2 – 3 BC-5
Flyboys press for another goal. Julian gives a low through ball to Hj Suhaini who latches on to it and squares it Dzulfadli. The move doesn’t result in a goal. In another attack soon after Wazien who was galloping down the left flank gets put through by Dzulfadli, through on goal he easily slotted it past the opposing goalie. The jubilant Flyboys feel the start of comeback is on the table!

GOAL! Flyboys 2 – 4 BC-5
5 minutes after the amazing teamwork goal from Flyboys, BC-5 attacked down the left flank. The attacker ran all the way into the left side of the penalty box and squared the ball to his striker. Zulafiq was in prime position to latch onto the ball but the ball bounced off his hand into the path of the onrushing striking striker who tapped the ball in.

The comeback:
Trailing 2 goals with the last vestiges of daylight disappearing and call for prayer beckons. Flyboys pressure BC-5 high up the field forcing them into a mistake. Their right full back passes the ball back to the goalie who tries to clear it first time but only succeeding it to kick it straight to Julian. Julian brings the ball down and takes a shot from just outside the penalty box, at this point I admit I was already thinking how to celebrate opening my account on the Flyboys score sheet but the goalie extinguished all my hopes and dreams after he stuck out his leg and the ball went out for a corner.

GOAL! Flyboys 2 – 5 BC-5
Feeling the pressure, the BC-5 defence started to make mistakes; fouling Dzulfadli twice just outside the penalty box as well as mowing down our tank of a midfielder Aziri in a similar position. Both were clearly unimpressed by the malicious tackling. Unfortunately Flyboys were not able to capitalise from the free kicks, coming frustratingly close on all three occasions. However, against the run of play, BC-5 managed to score another goal! A few minutes before full time a BC-5 striker finds himself in a shooting position, he takes a cracker of a shot which goalkeeper Zulafiq valiantly saves. However, the ball bounces forward and a BC-5 striker pounces on the loose ball and fires home.

End of:
Overall Flyboys performed well as a team, as usual not being able to capitalise on scoring chances but it’s not all about scoring goals is it? Who am I kidding, of course it is. However, the team still needlessly loses possession from foul throws. There have reportedly been whispers of introducing a fine on players who commit foul throws. Scary. Next game we shall emerge victorious!

Until we meet again next game. Quoting the not-so famous words of our usual match day reporter:

"Majulah Sukan, Brunei Yakin and Mission Possible!!! Apakan."

Ps: I apologise for inaccuracies with names, positions, exact run of play leading up to goals etc, my memory fails me.

- Authored by No. 4

How To Do A Proper Throw In

Hi guys, I have noticed on how easily we had always lost our poccession of the ball during throw in. It is either due to the fact that we were totally forgot about the rules (we were very tired and didn't care) or due to lack of knowledge about it.

And the rules are...
1. Throw with both hands.
2. Both feet behind the line. ( Stepping on the line is a foul ).
3. Start the throw in with the ball from the back of the head.
4. Release the ball over the head in one continuous movement with both feet still on the ground. ( Do not lift your feet of the ground while doing the throw in i.e. jump )

And to help you with these rules, I've posted the video below to demonstrate it and to share it with all flyboys. Hopefully it'll help to reduce the number of foul throw in our next time. Good luck and "Happy Playing!" Apakan!

Photo-Slideshow from the match against Curriculum Dept

FLYBOYS vs MOE Curriculum Department

Date: Tue 16th June 2009
Time: 0500pm
Venue: RBA Field


1st Half:
GK: Suhaini,
DEF: Nasrul, Hendra, Malik, Julian,
MID: Shukrimin, Aziri(Syazwi B), Hj Effendy, Sofian,
FWD: Amir(Syazwi S), Kenny.

2nd Half:
GK: Zul-Afiq,
DEF: Nasrul, Azman, Julian, Hendra(Ismail),
MID: Mahdini(Kenny), Hafizh, Hock(Wazien), Azrol,
FWD: Suhaini(Syazwi S), Dzulfadli.


TO BE CONTINUED ........

Photo-Slideshow from the match against STPRI Knights

Scoreboard

First Half :
Miles Hambly(Zul-Afiq 25), Nasrul, Hj Effendy, Azmi, Julian, Aziri, Mahdini, Amir(Syazwi 12), Shukrimin, Kenny, Sofian.

Second Half:
Zul-Afiq(Suhaini 67), Nasrul, Azman, Zul-Amali(Shukrimin 68), Riduan, Eng Hock(Ismail 67), Abdul Aziim(Aziri 77), Hafizh, Suhaini(Kenny Lim 76), Dzulfadli, Simon Newn(Khalidkhan 60 & Julian 80).


FULL-TIME REPORT:
As we speak, snot is trickling down my left nostril due to my cold. But i will provide you all with a graphic match report like no other because i know you all wait in anticipation for my world-class plagiarized(pronounced pley-juh-rahyz) writing.

The game started with Flyboys Older team attacking in waves with a delightful Messi-like header from Amir(that would be me, the Angkat Bakul writer) after Sofian's left-footed delivery from the left wing. Unfortunately their keeper saved it and prevented Amir from introducing to the world his brand new goal celebration which he's carefully perfected and orchestrated whenever he takes his shower or when he flies on those long day-return Perth trips.

A few minutes later, Amir substituted himself with Syazwi after a pulling his left hamstring and he also sprained his left ankle. Boo-hoo. Okay back to the game.
Another pass from Mahdini released Sofian through the defence and he sidefooted a volley over the keeper but alas, it hit the crossbar. This was looking to be another one of those days when nothing can go right for Flyboys.
Okay, for those of you who've never met Mahdini, he's an Airbus captain who made his debut yesterday. His nickname is Gus and he enjoys taking long walks on the beach and his favourite ice-cream is Vanilla. So to get a free sector from the Gus-man, all you need to offer him is a nice Pure Vanilla drink from Coffee Bean at the Singapore terminal.

Syazwi had a good chance saved when he turned in the penalty box and unleashed a left-footed shot but the keeper parried it off for a corner. Julian and Shukrimin were combining well in the left side when they did a one-two and Julian ran through to try and score but again his finishing had much to be desired and the weak shot was saved by the goalie.

Against the run of play, STPRI Knights converted one of their few chances of the 1st half and their striker scored in the box and the tame shot went through the usually sticky hands of Miles.

FlyBoys 0 - STPRI Knights 1

But Flyboys knew they could play their way into the game and with the middle of the park controlled by Aziri and Mahdini, they continued to look for a goal and it came when Sofian's shot was saved by the keeper and the rebound was poached by that giant of a striker(literally), none other than Kenny 'The King' Lim.

FlyBoys 1 - STPRI Knights 1

STPRI Knights were't making any headway in the FlyBoys defence with Team Captain Effendy, Nasrul aka The Rock, Azmi and Juliana minding the back line. With 5 minutes to half-time, Who-Killed-Kenny made a powerful run from the midfield and ran past the last man and from an acute angle, he produced a powerful low shot into the back of the net. GOAAAAAAALLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The crowd went wild! Yes, all 14 of them; my boy Iman, the missus, Aainaa, Netty and Persian cat included.

FlyBoys 2 - STPRI Knights 1

The 2nd half introduced the Flyboys Younger team into action. The only player still on the pitch was Nasrul as he needed the exercise.

Again the half started well with Dzul and Suhaini combining well. Suhaini made an excellent run on the left side of midfield stretching the all-girl's school faculty defence. Shaolin soccer specialist, Simon Newn also played a part when he released a sublime pass on to the right side to the popular Eng Hock. The crowd chanted his name but STPRI's left-back forced the ball out for a throw-in.

With Ismail introduced as sub, he made some good runs down the right wing and Dzul also producing his usual predatory skills. Julian who came in late as a sub also tried to score but again, the crossbar prevented FlyBoys from extending the scoreline.

Kenny came in again as a sub to complete his hat-trick and he did get his chance but with only the keeper and defender to beat, he pulled his shot wide. No match-ball today but still well done Kenny! He's proven to us he's not just a hat-rack!

Hafizh(i think i'm spelling his name right this time) and Abdul Aziim were patrolling the midfield and combining well with the other players. Zul-Amali's play was growing in confidence when he made some dribbling moves to fool the STPRI's strikers. Those 17 hills serving him well.

Eventhough he's unfamiliar with the left-back position, Riduan played superbly and ran and ran and ran. Also playing well was Azman who is showing that he can also defend as well as pass.

GK Zul-afiq was doing nothing all day except when he had to leave to pick up his sibling and Suhaini took over the mantle as goalie. To date, we have no fixed goalie. We have Suhaini, Zul-Afiq, Hafizh, Irwanizam, Miles Hambly, Hj Effendy and of course, Yanni who can play in goal.
A truly versatile team!


Well done again FlyBoys and looking forward to playing with you all next week on Tuesday, 16th June 09. That is if i recover from my ankle and muscle injury.

Till then children, remember to brush your teeth, eat your greens, pay your phone bills and know that your Attitude = Altitude! Apakan.

- Amir, your man with the gas-guzzling minivan!

FLYBOYS 50