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Japan pick Kuching as venue for training stint BorneoPost Online | Borneo , Malaysia, Sarawak Daily News » Sports - New 2 Borneo

Japan pick Kuching as venue for training stint

Posted: 22 Mar 2014 05:10 PM PDT

by Ting Tieng Hee. Posted on March 23, 2014, Sunday

KUCHING: The Sarawak Lawn Tennis Association (SLTA) Tennis Centre has become a top choice for Japan's national Boy's Under-14 team coach Hayato Sakurai to hold a training camp for his players.

Hayato, who arrived here on Monday with his team of four boys and a trainer, has been training the players since then and the camp ended yesterday.

The boys Naoki Tajima, Kazuma Aoki, Kai Kawano and Taisei, are preparing for the World Junior Team Championship Boys Asia-Oceania Final Qualifying scheduled for Apr 21-26 in New Delhi, India.

They are accompanied by their trainer Tamami Kitamura.

"We chose Kuching as our training camp venue because we like the facilities at SLTA Tennis Centre here. The weather here now is good unlike in Japan which is still cold now.

"Our team is enjoying the training camp here and the people in Kuching are very friendly and hospitable," said Hayato who is team coach and captain.

He was here in 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2013 as team coach and captain for Japanese boy's team for the WJTC Asia-Oceania Final Qualifying competition.

Japan has always finished in the top four in recent years, having finished third in 2009, runners-up in 2011 and 2012, and third last year.

Hayato also liked the environment at SLTA Tennis Centre which is surrounded by trees and greenery.

"You can't find this kind of green environment in Tokyo because it is all concrete buildings in the city," he said.

"While here, our boys were able to play and spar together with your junior players which is good for our boys as they get to play with players of other nationality and culture," Hayato added.

"It is a very good exposure and experience for them," he said.

After the Kuching stint, the Japanese team will return to Japan where they will play in a regional U-14 tournament before undergoing another three-day training camp in Tokyo and flying to India in mid-April.

Meanwhile, SLTA president Dato Patrick Liew said Kuching is becoming popular with coaches and players wanting to come here to train, especially when it is winter in their countries.

"As for Hayato's group, we have a mutual arrangement for him to use our facilities free of charge in return for him to help coach our juniors and also let his players practice together with them, which is a win-win situation for both parties," he said.

Liew said SLTA had gained recognition by successfully organising international tennis tournaments.

"Coaches wishing to bring their players for exposure overseas will look to SLTA to provide the necessary assistance and cooperation.

"Other factors are our favourable weather, good location, facilities and cheap food," said Liew.

He said the Japanese Junior Fed Cup team would also be coming to Kuching early to prepare for the Asia-Oceania Final Qualifying tournament that will be held at SLTA Tennis Centre from May 5-11.

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Ariez wins US tennis honours

Posted: 22 Mar 2014 04:58 PM PDT

KUCHING: State Sukma XVII tennis player Ariez Elyaas Deen Heshaam was named the Mid-South Conference (MSC) Men's Tennis Player of the Week in Columbia, Kentucky in the United States recently.

The award was the first of the season for his team (the Patriots) and his tennis career in the US.

Ariez, who is studying in the University of Cumberlands, played a major part in leading his university team's 5-4 victory over Carson-Newman in early March.

In the No. 1 seed singles match, Ariez defeated Juan Sebastian Perez in straight sets 6-4, 6-1.

He then partnered Dan Fraser from Cooma, Australia to defeat the Eagles' pair of Perez and Joao Pedro Oliveria 8-5 in the doubles. Ariez is now 3-1 in both singles and doubles competition this season.

The win over Carson-Newman improved the Patriots' overall record to 2-2 for the year as they continue to receive votes in the NAIA Top 25 poll.

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Principal pays tribute to old boys and coaches

Posted: 22 Mar 2014 04:57 PM PDT

SIBU: The coaches played a vital role in the success of SMK Sacred Heart at the recent 48th Sibu Division Inter-School Track & Field Championship.

The school principal Stephen Tan stressed that the coaches namely Ling Ngie Ming, Ting Kung Jin and Ms Tang Chuo Kiew have been working very hard in training the potential athletes.

"These three coaches go to the extent of personally calling up the students to turn up for their training session and they even pick up these students using their own vehicles so that they do not miss their training session.

"As highly committed coaches, they also make sure that these students turn up in full force for their training even during school holiday period," he added after attending a brief ceremony to hand over cash incentives to all the school athletes who won gold, silver or bronze medals during the championship.

The cash incentive was personally contributed by Joseph Tang, a member of the Parents Teachers Association of SMK Sacred Heart.

SMK Sacred Heart was adjudged as the overall champion of the recent meet and swept all the three categories namely Category A (18 years old), Category B (15 years old) and Category C (14 years old). The principal was also happy to note that their school old boys such as Joseph Tang have never forgotten their school by sharing what they had with the students after they become successful in life.

"We hope that such cash incentive will spur others to do even better and at the same time will encourage more of our students here to actively participate in sports activities," he added.

Joseph, in his brief remarks, said SMK Sacred Heart athletes who had performed excellently during the championship deserved to be recognised for their hard work and all these was acheived due to the hard work of the three coaches.

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Sarawak football fans go the extra mile

Posted: 22 Mar 2014 04:50 PM PDT

by Saiful Bahari. Posted on March 23, 2014, Sunday

THE state football team have been known to have a strong base of supporters across the state.

Since the heydays of Ngap Sayot in the late 1980s, they have filled their home turf – Stadium Negeri in Petra Jaya, Kuching – to the brim for many big matches.

Their battle cry was and remains 'Ngap Sayot', those familiar two words coined by legendary coach Awang Mahyan.

One group of fans who take pride in their loyalty to and passion for the Sarawak team call themselves GB13. It was formed by a group of youths in their 20s in 2011 though their membership today includes some in their 30s and 40s.

They commit themselves to introduce the 'Ultras' supporting culture to Sarawak.

They adapt a culture of vocal support for their team which includes non-stop chants and choreography, display of banners and lighting flares (the last now banned by the Football Association of Malaysia), believed to have originated in Europe.

Among notable Ultras groups in the football world are Torcida Split, UltrAsian and Jak, supporters of Hajduk Split from Croatia, Galatasary from Turkey and Persija Jakarta from Indonesia respectively.

Recently, a group of GB13 members travelled to Kuala Terengganu to support the Crocs in their away match against the T-Team on March 8.

Over 100 members, mainly from Kuching, flew over and were joined by an additional 300 who resided in Peninsular Malaysia.

According to one of the group representatives, Abdul Rahman Haroun, the group have organised such trips since 2011 but on a smaller scale.

"We wanted to prove that one can go the extra mile to support their team. Supporting a team is not just limited to Stadium Negeri but also to the grounds of the opponent teams," he said.

Rahman recalled how it took them months to arrange their trip to Johor Bharu last year for the match against Johor FA.

"Those who were committed to go talked endlessly about flight tickets everyday. Whenever we met up, the issue of cheaper flights to Johor Bharu would arise. Eventually, we gathered 40 fanatical supporters for the trip," he added.

He also described how they had to pay about RM200 for the giant Sarawak flag after the box containing it went over the allowable luggage limit.

"However, we were determined to display the flag in Johor as it is our pride. We felt that it is our duty to the state and the flag is something that every Sarawakian should be proud of," he proudly explained.

The inbox of the group Facebook page was flooded with messages from Sarawakians working in the Peninsular. On match day, over 100 supporters there came to be with us, chanting and singing.

"Well, it's safe to say that GB13 had created relationships among avid football fans of Sarawak and is a medium for Sarawakians based in Peninsular to taste an aura (normally only) experienced back home.

"Some had spent years in the Peninsular and some were even born there. Being with the Sarawakian supporters (from home) enabled them to converse in the local Sarawakian dialect and most were happy and felt that they were in a place where they belonged," Rahman said.

The most recent trip to Kuala Terengganu started on March 7, with members flying from different starting points at different flight times.

They spent a night in Kuala Lumpur before heading to the East Coast city on four chartered buses. The road trip took close to six hours before they arrived at the stadium.

"The response from the locals (Terengganu supporters) was encouraging. They were very welcoming and knew of how fanatical Sarawakian supporters were. They even sang a welcome song for us," Rahman recalled.

Inside the stadium the group leaders gathered all Sarawak supporters to stand together on the terraces. The giant state flag was proudly displayed before the start of the game and the chants began to set the mood.

The fans take pride in being professionals. Winning or losing (Sarawak lost 0-2 that night), they continued cheering for the team and members gave words of encouragement to the players from across the fence. At the end of the match, the entire Sarawak squad came over to give applause to the visiting supporters.

44-year-old Ahmad Rizal Yaman, who works as a human resource manager, noted the difference between supporting the Crocs at home and away.

"The solidarity among the away fans for one is definitely higher. The spirit of camaraderie is also high among the away fans as the risk of intimidation and provocation from the home fans are more obvious and intense compared to home game," said Rizal who was joining the GB13 away trip for the first time.

"Everyone enters and leaves the stadium together. There are no strangers among the away fans. Once you're on the terrace all are among friends and share the same objectives, to turn our voices as one," he added as he observed how the level of support by fans towards local football has been growing.

I.T. executive Mohd Hashimy Suratman, 27, was clear about the value of supporting the team in an away match.

"The players need a higher level of encouragement and by seeing fans travel and come just to see them play gives them the extra morale boost," said the Kuchingite who is based in Kuala Lumpur.

"The last two to three years we have seen a positive change in our local football fans. The attitude has changed. They do not just come to the stadium to watch the match but instead come to support," he added.

He also expressed his wish for the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) to take steps to create a conducive environment for the football supporting culture in Malaysia to grow.

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Wenger proud as 1,000th game tributes pour in

Posted: 22 Mar 2014 04:46 PM PDT

LONDON: Arsene Wenger said on Friday that it was "a privilege and an honour" to reach his 1,000th game as Arsenal manager, while his contemporaries queued up to praise the achievement.

The 64-year-old will become only the fourth manager – after Matt Busby, Dario Gradi and Alex Ferguson– to reach the milestone with one English club when his side visit Chelsea in the Premier League on Saturday.

"It's a privilege and an honour to manage 1,000 games at this club," Wenger told a press conference at the club's London Colney training base north of the capital.

"The club has always supported me. Time will tell if I managed to make this club bigger than it was when I arrived, but I hope so."

In the seventeen and a half years since he arrived from Japanese club Nagoya Grampus Eight in 1996, Wenger has led Arsenal to three Premier League titles and four FA Cups.

Wenger's old sparring partner Ferguson, the former Manchester United manager, professed his "utmost admiration" for the Frenchman.

"I congratulate Arsene in reaching this momentous landmark," Ferguson said in a statement released by the League Managers Association.

"Over the years we enjoyed some fantastic battles and you could say we had survived together and respected each other's efforts to play good football. I always enjoy watching Arsene's sides – Arsenal play the right way."

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho also paid tribute to Wenger, saying: "I admire him and admire Arsenal."

There was a barb, however, about Arsenal's nine-year trophy drought, as the Portuguese added: "Because it is not possible to have 1,000 matches unless the club is also a fantastic club in the way they support their manager, especially in the bad moments, and especially when the bad moments were quite a lot." — AFP

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Crocs eye first victory in Pahang since 2006

Posted: 21 Mar 2014 12:01 PM PDT

KUCHING: A tough encounter awaits Sarawak at Stadium Darul Makmur tonight as they look to register their first win against Pahang since 2006.

The Crocs' impressive 3-1 win over the Malaysia Super League defending champion Lions XII at Stadium Negeri here last Saturday could provide the much needed antidote to end their barren run of eight years in Kuantan.

That night on July 22, the Crocs edged Pahang 1-0 courtesy of a 83rd minute goal by striker Safee Sali, thus booking their place in the quarterfinals of the Malaysia Cup.

Sarawak's last league encounter with Pahang was in the 2007/2008 season where the Crocs emerged 2-1 winners at home. Recent history however, has not been kind to the Bujang Senang squad.

Prior to the 1-1 draw at Stadium Negeri in the semi-finals second leg of the Malaysia Cup last October, Sarawak had lost their last four encounters with Pahang.

The worst experience was the 6-0 mauling at Stadium Darul Makmur in the 2012 Malaysia Cup Group stage on Aug 28.

"We will use a different approach because Pahang possess different game play. They are very dangerous and cunning in their attacks. We hope to secure at least a point from this game," head coach Robert Alberts told the media when contacted on Thursday.

On a positive note, he mentioned the atmosphere in the Sarawak's camp as encouraging as the win against the Lions XII and the arrival of Australian Ryan Griffith have boosted the players' morale.

Following the defeat of the league champion last weekend, Alberts reiterated the need for all players to step up and deliver in front of goals.

Misfiring Iranian import Alireza Abbasfard is no longer with the team while Milorad Janjus and star striker Muamer Salibasic are still nursing injuries.

New signing Griffith is expected to be available against Selangor at home on Mar 25.

Despite a mixed run of form with two wins, two losses and a draw in their last five matches, Pahang should not be taken lightly after their 2-2 draw against Kelantan at the Sultan Mohammed IV Stadium last weekend.

Pahang have won all their home matches thus far, beating Lions XII 1-0 in the season's opener, 3-2 in a highly-charged game against the star-studded JDT and thrashing ATM 4-1.

Argentine Matias Conti leads their scoring chart, having netted four goals in all competitions this season.

Meanwhile, reports have surfaced that former Inter Milan defender Marco Materazzi, 40, was tipped to lead Pahang over the remainder of the season after the Italian was reported to have held a meeting with the Pahang Football Association.

The meeting had raised much speculations after Ronald Smith's contract with Pahang was terminated earlier this month.

Sarawak are currently third while Pahang are sixth in the league standings.

Still reeling over the 4-2 aggregate semi-final defeat in the Malaysia Cup last season, fans are hoping that Robert Alberts and Co could yield a positive result in Kuantan.

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