Come praise or bury them

07/12/2001

MIRNAWAN Nawawi was yesterday certified fit by National Sports Institute
(NSI) director Ramlan Aziz for the Champions Challenge which begins today
at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil.
Razak Saidin was dropped and Mirnawan re-instated in the calculated risk
taken by the Malaysia Hockey Federation (MHF).
"I conducted more tests on him today (yesterday) and although Mirnawan
has not fully recovered, the tests show that he can play," said Ramlan.
Not only were the MHF prepared to take a risk of aggravating the first
degree tear on Mirnawan's left calf, but the player himself was ready to
face the consequences.
"I really want to play in the Champions Challenge, and since I have been
certified fit, I am willing to take the risk of not being able to play in
the 2002 Kuala Lumpur World Cup in February," said Mirnawan.
But today when the Champions Challenge begins, The Boss should not be
the only one who is wiling to take a big risk.
Malaysia meet Japan at 8pm and what happens during the 70 minutes of
play will chart Malaysia's path in the World Cup. It will be a preview of
how much risk the entire team is willing to take to bring back the glory
days of hockey in Malaysia.
If they want to bury the ghost of 1975, where Malaysia finished fourth
in the World Cup in Kuala Lumpur, the Champions Challenge is the first
step. If not, they should not blame anyone when the 1975 squad is used as
a yardstick for the standard of hockey in Malaysia.
There is no more room for excuses, from the manager Datuk R. Yogeswaran,
coaches Paul Lissek, Steven van Huzen and Yahya Atan and the 18 players
who have been selected for the Challenge.
After being humiliated in the Azlan Shah Cup in August, the Challenge is
seen as an avenue for Malaysia to salvage some pride at the international
scene and since they have been in training for the past three months, they
should have total understanding like a band of brothers.
Lissek has, many times over the week, cautioned that Japan has improved
tremendously and from what he saw in the World Cup Qualifiers in Edinburgh
in June, they cannot be take lightly.
He said the same thing yesterday. But what about Malaysia? If Japan, the
whipping boys 10 years ago, have improved enough to scare the opposition,
have Malaysia not done the same?
The price to watch Malaysia, Japan, Argentina, India, South Africa and
Belgium battle for the Champions Trophy ticket is RM1 for schoolchildren
in uniform, and RM3 and RM5 for the other seats.
It is a small price to pay and watch for yourself how much Malaysia have
improved after a tremendous amount of money and time spent to prepare the
team for the World Cup in February.
Come and see if the team deserves to be in the World Cup on merit or are
merely making the numbers because Malaysia are the hosts.
Hockey in Malaysia needs a lifeline, the public is so hungry for results
that they no longer bother if Malaysia qualify for the World Cup and
Olympics regularly, they want medals and the Commonwealth Games silver is
three years old and has lost most of its glitter.
That is why the Champions Challenge should not be taken lightly, because
how Malaysia perform from today against the likes of Japan and Belgium,
will go a long way to bring back the waning public support in the sport.
The Challenge is an open challenge to not only Mirnawan, who is willing
to sacrifice his hockey future for the country, but to the entire team
from defenders Nor Azlan Bakar, Maninderjit Singh; midfielder S. Kuhan and
our young band of strikers Rodhanizan Radzi and Tajol Rosli.
If you put your heart in every match, the results wil start coming and
there will no longer be a need for excuses.
But if you do badly in the Champions Challenge, don't be disappointed if
the stands of the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil are empty when
Malaysia play in the World Cup but are filled to the brim when India,
Pakistan and Germany take the stage.
jugjet@nstp.com.my
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