Damansara Kim Puts Up Spirited Fight

On 26 June 2008, a futsal tournament was organized by Gerakan Belia 4B Petaling Jaya Utara at FootyFutsal in Taman Megah. Syah, Khidir, Nasley, Zoel, Syaz, Chin Fah and Hilman participated in the tournament as a team to represent the cawangan. The team, aptly named Dam Kim, was managed by Faroze Nadar.

Dam Kim was drawn in Group B, along with 4 other teams, Belasahan, Awe Kawe, Silver Wings and Crazy Futsal. In their opening match, the team beat Awe Kawe with a convincing 3-0 victory; a brace from Khidir and a stunning goal from Chin Fah with a shot that hit the underside of the bar before going in.

In the second match, Dam Kim had to work hard against a tough Belasahan team. The Dam Kim goal was assaulted several times during the match, but resolute defending from the team and an impressive display by goalkeeper Zoel kept Belasahan at bay. Dam Kim’s patience was rewarded in the second half when the Belasahan keeper kicked the ball straight at Syaz, who then stroked the ball neatly into the net to give Dam Kim a precious goal and ultimately, the victory.

With two wins in two, the morale was high within Dam Kim going into their next game against Silver Wings. Having seen the team play prior to the match, the team knew that it would not be an easy game. Yet, knowing full well that they would qualify to the semi-finals should they notch just another win, Dam Kim went into the match determined to win.

Silver Wings proved to be a very difficult opponent for the team. However, against the run of play, Dam Kim scored; Nasley hit a shot that the appeared to have gone into the goal before the keeper palmed it away. Yet the referee called the goal and he was immediately surrounded by Silver Wings players who disputed his decision. But the referee was adamant and the goal was given. However, Dam Kim’s joy was short-lived as a few minutes later, Silver Wings equalized and they notched another goal in the last few minutes of the second half for a deserved victory.

As it stood at that time, Silver Wings had already qualified for the semi-finals. There was still another semi-final berth up for grabs, and the last game between Dam Kim and Crazy Futsal was to be the decider. Both teams had two victories each and both lost against Silver Wings. It was a must-win game if either team wanted to progress to the semis.

Both sets of players were already in the pitch when the organizers broke the news to them: there would be no semi-finals. Thus the top team in both groups would play in the final game, and since Silver Wings had already notched full points in their first 3 games, they would end up as the top team regardless of the results. The match between Dam Kim and Crazy Futsal, which at the onset was supposed to be an important one, was rendered redundant due to time constraints.

But despite their obvious disappointment, both teams agreed to play nonetheless. The result was a 2-1 victory to Crazy Futsal, both teams knew that the complexion of the game would be different if not for the change in format.

Even though they did not make it to the final, Dam Kim can still hold their heads up high. It ended in terrible disappointment for the team, but they gave it their all and put up a spirited fight in the tournament. Yet they could not help but wonder what could have been if time constraints had not forced the organizers to do away with the semi-final matches.