Today is
the 40th anniversary of MCKK Basketball 1981 team’s success in getting The
Piala Hamdan Tahir back to Kolek in 1981.
It was one my sweetest moment and parting gift to Kolek. After going through the injury riddled 1980,
which severely affected our plan keeping the Piala in KK.
I have
spent the latter half of 1980 rehabbing my cracked patella, which severely
affected my movement. I remembered
having to put the smelly Chinese herb for more than 3 months. The only good
thing about the injury was it gave me time to study for my SPM,
Alhamdulillah. The worst part was to
spend every evening looking through my window at the court, watching the
juniors going thru practices.
We; Kushai,
Kaio and me, came back in 1981, trying to regain the Piala back and have our revenge. The 3 of us, joined occasionally by some of
our batchmates Uniqorn 7680, practiced in the morning, evening and night, 7 days
a week. We, the lower sixers, could
spend our mornings practicing till the morning recess after which we were
required to be in class. In the evening
we joined the team with the regular training and at night we played with the KK
boys at the Polo Ground court. It was
tiring but we had fun. We were so
determined not to let 1980 happened again.
The 1981
team was good and experienced. The team consisted of 3 of us plus five Form 5 boys (Bachtiar,
Arwah Hadi, Yusri, Yazid and Azri) and four Form 4 boys (Arwah Che Sapi, Lan Sukaimy,
Anis and Jusni).
The RMC
weekend game was the first test, against SBP team. We cruised past the RMC and
the 2nd team had a good exposure and practice against our formidable
opponent. We won 94 – 57.
In the tournament
proper, Pesta Perdana 1981, we were grouped together in Group C with SMS Tun
Syed Sheikh Shahabuddin (STSSS), SM Sultan Abdul Halim (SMSAH) and SMS Johor
(SMSJ) in the early round.
11 April
The first game
was against STSSS in the morning. They had a good team, comprises of several
Chinese players. It was a good test for us. The 1st team (Kaio,
Arwah Hadi, Bachtiar, Kushai and me) were tested early with STSSS speed,
however as the game progressed, we settled down and managed to slow them down. We
built a big lead by the half. The 2nd team managed to maintain the
lead against the tired and slowed down STSSS to win 98 – 66.
12 April
The second
game was against an inexperienced SMSAH in the morning. The 1st team
played only for 5 mins and the 2nd team took over and finished the
game. We won big, 87 – 15, the biggest winning margin in tournament.
13 April
The third
game was against an upcoming team SMSJ in the morning. The 1st team
played for only a half and built a comfortable lead. As usual, the 2nd team took over
and increased the lead. We won 68 – 34.
With the
win, we topped the group C and advanced to the 2nd round and grouped
together with STAR, RMC (Defending Champion) and SMS Selangor (the Finalist in
1980).
14 April
The first
game in the 2nd round was against STAR in the morning. It rained before the game and continued
drizzling during the game. We could not
play our normal fast game and could not take advantage of our superior stamina.
The game was played with a slowed pace, trying to handle the slippery court and
ball. STAR was good, but they were
affected by the rain too. With a better defense, we managed to win with a score
of 44 – 41. Thanks to the support from the debating teams. It was our lowest
scoring and winning margin of the tournament.
The second
game was the highlight of the 2nd round, against the defending
champion RMC in the evening. Alhamdulillah,
after the wet morning game against STAR, the clouds cleared up and the sun
dried out the court in the evening. We
were able to use our speed and better stamina against RMC. As per first round games, the first team
built up a comfortable lead. However,
the second team struggled to maintain the comfortable lead against RMC. We won 64 – 47. First goal, achieved.
15 April
The third
game in 2nd round, in the morning, was against SMS Selangor (1980
finalist). It was a disappointment for me. The coach rested Kushai, Kaio and me
for the game. The team took care of SMSS and had the revenge for us by winning
64 – 40. Thank you, team.
16 April
With the
win, we topped the group. Our semifinal
opponent was the home team, SMS Kedah. They were well prepared and had taller
players than us. It was our first real challenge. Despite the challenge in size, we managed to
control our defensive board by blocking out the taller opponents. With the
defensive rebounds, we managed to do our favorite fast breaks for easy
baskets. The second team took over in
the last 10 minutes of the game. We won
70 – 54. We were in the final. The second goal, achieved.
17 April
The final
was against RMC. Our 3rd game in the year against them. We won the first 2 comfortably (94 – 57 and
64 – 47). The first team played superbly
and managed to build an extremely comfortable lead by the half. As usual, the
second team took over in the second half. We won 79 – 54. The final goal, achieved. The biggest winning
margin in the final, then. Another feather in the cap.
It was a
sweet and successful tournament for me, despite not achieving all my targets for the
tournament. We managed to give the
juniors more exposure and playing time, which helped them to win the next two, 1982 & 1983 tournaments. I would like to thank
everybody involved, mainly my batch Uniqorn 76-80, especially the practice
partners and my teammates. Innalillah
and Al Fatihah to my departed team mates: semoga mereka tenang di sana.
|
First round
|
|
Score
|
2nd Round
|
|
Score
|
|
SMS Pulau Pinang
|
W
|
98 – 66
|
STAR
|
W
|
44 – 41
|
|
SMSA Halim
|
W
|
87 – 15
|
RMC
|
W
|
64 – 47
|
|
SMS Johor
|
W
|
68 – 34
|
SMS Selangor
|
W
|
64 – 40
|
|
Semi Final
|
|
|
Final
|
|
|
|
SMS Kedah
|
W
|
70 – 54
|
RMC
|
W
|
79 - 54
|
The Team
|
1.
Kushairi Abd. Manaf
|
2.
Ihsan Ismail
|
|
3.
Kamarul Asri Ibrahim
|
4.
Abdul Hadi Yahyaluddin (Ay)
|
|
5.
Bakhtiar Effendi Zainal Abidin
|
6.
Ahmad Yusri Yussof
|
|
7.
Mohd. Yazid Jamian
|
8.
Mohd Azri Ali
|
|
9.
Lan Sukaimy Yusof
|
10.
Che Sapi @ Anuar Ahmad (Ay)
|
|
11.
Mohd Anis Harun
|
12.
Jusni Yussof
|
