The national under-21 netball team will not be featuring in the semi-finals of the 8th Asian Youth Netball Championships after losing 50-19 against defending champions Malaysia in Group A yesterday.

This was also because Hong Kong defeated Japan 38-19 in the other matchup.

In what was their third consecutive victory, Malaysia led from start to finish at the Indoor Stadium of the Hassanal Bolkiah National Sports Complex in Berakas.

Malaysia got off to a quick start for a 4-0 run before the hosts got themselves on the scoresheet after three minutes.

Brunei were having trouble moving the ball around with good pressure defence by their opponents.

Malaysia had the height and size advantage and it was most evident with Nor Shafiqin Mustapa living in the goal circle.

She was bullying Brunei goalkeeper Siti Nursaihah Mohd Najmi to score almost at will to help Malaysia to a 12-4 lead heading into the second quarter.

The second quarter was the same affair with Malaysia scoring the first four points before Brunei got on the scoreboard in the 12th minute.

Malaysia were running their plays to perfection in order to open up passing lanes to get the ball into the goal circle.

The defending champions were also excellent on the counter attack as they extended their advantage to 25-10 at halftime.

It was one-way traffic after the break with Malaysia picking up the intensity at the defensive end.

Norashikin Kamalzaman took over at the goal scorer position for Malaysia and was just as effective with her height.

Brunei did get their first basket in the opening minute of the stanza but failed to score for almost nine minutes.

To add to the hosts woes, centre Siti Nurul Nazihah Hj Hasan was stretchered off after picking up an injury after five minutes in.

Malaysia were in cruise control limited their opponents to only three points in the 15-minute frame to open an unassailable lead at 39-13 going into the final period.

To showcase their dominance, Malaysia had 72 attempts on goal and shot just under 70 per cent.

On the other hand, Brunei had 39 attempts but converted just under 50 per cent of their shots.

Choo Kon Lee, the head coach of Malaysia, had mixed feelings about the encounter.

"It was a good win but I'm not very happy with our opponents as they were quite rough. Being aggressive is different but then again with the challenges there is bound to be contact," said Choo in an interview with The Brunei Times after the triumph.

"The scoreline was something we expected but we could have scored more," she added.

Asked about their next game against Hong Kong, Choo replied: "We are confident that we can beat them. We have played against each other before and there should be no problems."

Over in Group B, Sri Lanka thrashed Nepal 133-10 for their third straight win.

Singapore also notched their third consecutive victory after beating Maldives 85-8.

The competition continues today with Maldives against Thailand in Group B at 11am. The second game is the battle for supremacy in the same group between Sri Lanka and Singapore at 2.30pm.

Japan will take on India in Group A at 4.30pm while the top of the table clash of the same group will see Malaysia and Hong Kong go head-to-head at 7.30pm.

Courtesy from Brunei Times