Story by REDintern Farah Alsagoff

Choa Chu Kang Indoor Sports Hall, Thursday, May 14, 2009 - The Meridian Junior College A Division Boys floorball team are back in the final to vie for the Championship trophy after edging out Temasek Junior College 5-0 in the semi-finals.

Last year’s runners-up showed that they meant business when they took the lead early on with a wrist shot from Jared (MJ #18) that went under the TJ keeper's leg.

However, MJC were one player short when #7 Jian Wen was sent off for lying play. During box-play, Victor (MJ #27) intercepted a pass and earned himself an attacking opportunity. However, due to the numerical disadvantage, he could not finish the job and lost possession.

TJ then became more cautious, and took numerous shots against MJ. TJ’s #5 and #77 had their chances but they were off-target. In an attempt to clear the ball, MJ's keeper Azmeer (#1) threw the ball which was targeted into the opponent's half. Jian Wen's penalty soon ended with TJC not maximizing their chances.

MJ's Jared then attempted to wrap the ball in, while TJ’s #66 took a well-executed drag shot from half-court that went off-target.

TJC diligently kept up with their full-court pressure to hustle their opponents, and it led to TJ’s #15 winning the ball and passing to #9, whose drag shot went high.

But MJC made their chances count when MJ’s Azhari (#13) passed the ball to Jared for a shot to bring home yet another goal for MJC. They now led 2-0.

The rest of the period saw similar attempts by both teams, with TJC looking to find a goal to boost their morale.

The second period was more eventful; TJ’s #9 passed the ball to #17 who took a shot that deflected off MJ's keeper Azmeer. He went in for a rebound and his shot was subsequently saved by Azmeer.

TJ has another opportunity when #77 passed to #8 who had an open goal at his mercy due to a lapse in the MJ defence, but he missed the ball and passed up a rare opportunity to score.

MJC stretched their lead further with another stunning display of skills when Jared out-dribbled 2 TJ players on the right and took a shot into the top corner of TJ’s near post.

A bemusing event occurred when MJ’s #35 Shafiq lost his shoe on court and his attempt to put it back on failed, causing him to throw the shoe out of the court entirely. He was then booked for improper attire, giving him ample time to adjust his footwear accordingly.

MJ then scored their fourth goal towards the end of the period when Alif (#5) backhanded the ball into goal after #14 nearly lost possession after bringing up the ball.

TJ’s #10 had a goal-scoring chance when he had a one-on-one with the keeper, but his shot was saved. MJC carried on with their attacking spree, with impeccable passes and shots. They also took the opportunity to switch keepers, with Aldrick coming in for Azmeer.

MJ's Jian Wen, perhaps trying to make up for his earlier sending off, passed to Jared, whose shot was brilliantly saved by TJ's keeper and that brought gasps from the MJ and TJ crowd alike.

Jared then once again displayed his star quality when he faked right to go past the defender and easily tapped the ball into the left of TJ's goal. The score was now 5-0 to MJC.

In a last-ditch attempt to score before the match came to an end, TJ’s #3 took a shot that deflected off MJ's keeper Aldrick. He then won the ball back and passed to #77 who was running in at the blind side. He missed the ball, and the match ended subsequently.

TJC will meet Yishun JC in the 3rd/4th placing match on Tuesday, May 19, at the Choa Chu Kang Sports Hall at 3.30pm after the girls' match. TJC has come a long way within a short span of time, and they can hang their head high and proud for reaching the top 4 after merely 2 years. Kudos to the TJ floorballers!

MJC, on the other hand, are back to fight for the coveted Championship trophy. Instead of facing last year's winners Raffles JC, they will play against the seemingly-invincible Victoria JC in the race to the finishing line.