Lissek disappointed

19/04/2002

NATIONAL chief coach Paul Lissek received Maninderjit Singh's quit letter
yesterday and, for a few minutes, was lost for words.
He was clearly angry as well as disappointed because when the defender
first told him of his intention to quit the game after the Kuala Lumpur
World Cup last month, Lissek convinced him to change his mind and thought
that the matter was settled.
And more are expected to follow Maninderjit's footsteps soon.
Right after the World Cup, rumours were aplenty of a handful of players
wanting to call it a day as they can't see eye-to-eye with certain
officials.
Some of the players also complained that their training schedule was too
hectic and the gameplan of defending more than attacking was killing their
style.
"I fail to understand the rationale behind his decision to quit the
sport when he can still contribute so much to the team in the Asian Games
in Busan. Now I will have to look for another defender to replace him and
it is going to be tough in such a short period," said Lissek.
Maninderjit played a crucial role defending the Malaysian goalmouth
during the World Cup and even scored a goal off a penalty corner, and just
when he was becoming a valuable asset to the team, he threw in the towel.
It was also learnt that four other players are also contemplating
quitting the national team and will not attend the April 22 training camp.
"Right now I have only received Maninderjit's letter, I am still in the
dark about the other players who want to quit the team," said Lissek.
World Cup skipper Mirnawan Nawawi, defender Nor Azlan Bakar, goalkeeper
Nasihin Nubli and forward S. Shanker are said to be the other World Cup
players who want to call it a day because they want to concentrate on
their work and studies.
And if they do, Malaysia's hope of winning a medal in the Asian Games
will be flushed down the drain because it will be impossible to groom
capable replacements in such a short period.
But in the long run, the five players might be doing Malaysian hockey a
big favour.
In their absence, young players will get a chance to strut their stuff
and in the strikeforce, names like Tajol Rosli and Rodhanizam Radzi come
to mind.
But in defence, right now, there are no capable replacements for
Maninderjit and Nor Azlan Bakar. Chua Boon Huat, playing in the German
League right now, is the likely candidate to fill one of the vacuum while
K. Gobinathan might find himself thrust into the limelight at the backline
more often.
Maninderjit and the other four players could not be contacted for
comments.
jugjet@nstp.com.my
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