iupm captain - universiti putra malaysiapsasir.upm.edu.my/4498/1/0704.pdfgroup. and the pint-sized...

iUPM captain "hopes for a win "Good record means there is hope for a final spot Taking a shot: Syazwani urges her team mates to pull their weight to strengthen their line-up. By NG WEI LOON [email protected] -"''I . HE l!niversiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) women's futsal team captain Syazwani Shahudin is urg- ing her team mates, comprising employees of the university, to pull together in th~ir bid to edge their counterparts from other public institutions of higher learning at a meet scheduled at the Universiti Malaysia Terengganu from June 3 to 13. The 22-year-old Syazwani said they needed to improve on their individual playing abilities to strengthen the line- up and develop a balanced team. "Initially, we faced an uphill task to convince our colleagues to join the team for our debut in the inter-university tournament hosted at our campus last year. "We' have achieved respectable results in two recent tournaments and we are committed to doing well. Although we have been playing together for less than a year, we are gelling well to establish good team- WDrk.But, we cannot only rely on one or,two key players to put up a strong fight against the better sides," she ~;Jid. Early this month, UPM settled for the third spot at a meet with a total of 12 teams from other government agencies and semi-government bodies in the fray in Langkawi. UPM team manager Saheh Said said they were satisfied with the overall performance as they only went down 2-3 to the eventual champions Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) in the group. And the pint-sized Syazwani slotted the winning goal for a narrow 1-0 victory over a more fancied National Sports Council (NSC)to advance to the semi-finals. However, their campaign came to an end when Employees Provident Fund (EPF)denied them with a similar 1-0 margin. Considering that UPM were the losing semi-finalists at their previous two competitions, they are eyeing to book their place in the final at the upcoming assignment. Saheh admitted they were wary of the threat coming from the formidable Universiti Malaysia Perlis (Unimap) as the northern side would be start41g off as the favourites with the services of several national players in the squad. Currently, UPMhave 10 players aged between 20 and 24 going through the paces two times a day as a build up to the tournament. "Each session goes on for two hours. For the young squad, it will be a learning curve for them to polish up on their passing, shooting and dribbling techniques. "We want them to be in top shape for the physical challenges on the pitch. "It has been a joy to build a team from scratch and see them progress. We are hoping to field the team for other open tournaments in the future," added Saheh.

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Page 1: iUPM captain - Universiti Putra Malaysiapsasir.upm.edu.my/4498/1/0704.pdfgroup. And the pint-sized Syazwani slotted the winning goal for a narrow 1-0 vic tory over a more fancied National

iUPM captain"hopes for a win"Good record means there is hope for a final spot

Taking a shot: Syazwani urges her team mates to pull their weight tostrengthen their line-up.

By NG WEI [email protected]

-"''I . HE l!niversiti Putra Malaysia(UPM)women's futsal team captain Syazwani Shahudin is urg

ing her team mates, comprisingemployees of the university, to pulltogether in th~ir bid to edge theircounterparts from other public institutions of higher learning at a meetscheduled at the Universiti MalaysiaTerengganu from June 3 to 13.

The 22-year-old Syazwani said theyneeded to improve on their individualplaying abilities to strengthen the lineup and develop a balanced team.

"Initially, we faced an uphill task toconvince our colleagues to join theteam for our debut in the inter-university tournament hosted at our campuslast year.

"We' have achieved respectableresults in two recent tournaments andwe are committed to doing well.Although we have been playingtogether for less than a year, we aregelling well to establish good teamWDrk.But, we cannot only rely on oneor,two key players to put up a strongfight against the better sides," she~;Jid.

Early this month, UPM settled forthe third spot at a meet with a total of12 teams from other governmentagencies and semi-government bodiesin the fray in Langkawi.

UPM team manager Saheh Said saidthey were satisfied with the overallperformance as they only went down2-3 to the eventual champions BankSimpanan Nasional (BSN) in thegroup.

And the pint-sized Syazwani slottedthe winning goal for a narrow 1-0 victory over a more fancied NationalSports Council (NSC)to advance to thesemi-finals.

However, their campaign came toan end when Employees ProvidentFund (EPF)denied them with a similar1-0 margin.

Considering that UPM were the losing semi-finalists at their previous twocompetitions, they are eyeing to booktheir place in the final at the upcoming assignment.

Saheh admitted they were wary ofthe threat coming from the formidableUniversiti Malaysia Perlis (Unimap) asthe northern side would be start41g offas the favourites with the services ofseveral national players in the squad.

Currently, UPMhave 10players agedbetween 20 and 24 going through thepaces two times a day as a build up to

the tournament."Each session goes on for two hours.

For the young squad, it will be a learning curve for them to polish up ontheir passing, shooting and dribblingtechniques.

"We want them to be in top shapefor the physical challenges on thepitch.

"It has been a joy to build a teamfrom scratch and see them progress.We are hoping to field the team forother open tournaments in the future,"added Saheh.