Lissek: Crowd pressure bad for us

10/02/2002

THE Malaysian team has been named and it is no secret that they will be
facing a torrid time trying to finish in a single digit number in the 2002
Kuala Lumpur World Cup.
But for now, it is time for them to bathe in the glory of just being
selected for the World Cup as some of the players will be accompanying the
trophy on a road show to promote the event. And autograph signing will be
part of the programme.
The team will take a Chinese New Year break from Feb 9 to 14 and when
they return they will prepare for the World Cup with five friendly
matches.
Malaysia were scheduled to play Cuba on Feb 15 but this is impossible as
the Cubans, according to the Malaysian Hockey Federation, are only due in
Kuala Lumpur on Feb 19, the day the national squad are slated to play a
friendly against Spain.
But it is no big dent in their preparation as they should have already
been fully prepared and there is no reason for them to cram last minute
preparations like students on the eve of a big examination.
Naturally, the thought of playing in the World Cup, and in front of home
fans, is their biggest fear right now.
Coach Paul Lissek was a little worried about crowd pressure after naming
the squad on Friday.
"It might work against them because as everybody saw in the Six-Nation
and the Champions Challenge, they tend to play to the whims of the crowd
after taking a lead.
"My method of playing might be a little boring but it can bring results
if the players do not get too excited and start attacking after being
urged on by the crowd," said Paul Lissek.
And the amazing part about the Malaysian players is that they tend to
get nervous when in the lead and some players go down to making schoolboy
mistakes which eventually allows the opponents to get back into the match.
This trend was quite evident in the Six-Nation against Holland, New
Zealand and Australia. The Malaysians threw away all three matches as they
started playing to please the crowd.
But for now, they are on a holiday and hockey should be their least
worry as they go back to their hometowns and enjoy themselves with their
families.
After the autograph signing and short holiday, it is back to reality and
the match against Australia on Feb 24 will chart their World Cup future.
Keep a date with the World Cup Trophy: Today (9.0am) Concorde Hotel,
Kuala Lumpur; 2pm - Mega Mall, Kuala Lumpur.
Monday (9.0am) Kolej Negri, Seremban; 2pm - Terminal 1, Seremban.
Feb 12 (9.0am) Kajang High School; Feb 13 (9.0am) Concorde, Shah Alam;
Feb 14 (9.0am) Dewan Bandaraya Ipoh; Feb 15 (9.0am) Sultan Azlan Shah
Hockey Stadium, Ipoh; Feb 16 (9.0am) KLCC; Feb 17 (9.0am) Kuala
Terengganu; Feb 19 (2pm) Muzium Negara, Kuala Lumpur; Feb 20 (9.0am)
Mahkota Parade, Malacca.
jugjet@nstp.com.my
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