Malaysia need psychological edge

05/01/2003

MALAYSIA will be looking for a psychological start against South Korea in
the Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) Under-19 Four-Nation at the Bukit
Jalil Hockey Stadium in Kuala Lumpur today.
The reason is simple - Malaysia will be up against the best junior sides
in Asia, and their future will depend on how they fare in the Four-Nation.
"India, Pakistan and Korea have always done well at the Asian Games
level, and if our juniors emerge tops in the Four-Nation, the
psychological boost will be an added advantage when the present batch of
juniors mature in a few years.
"The same players should be carrying the Malaysian flag for the next 10
years and we need a winning start tomorrow (today) to chart a bright
future," said team manager Poon Fook Loke.
India, Pakistan and Korea will be playing with the same mission in mind,
and they will also be looking to form strong sides for the 2005 Junior
World Cup qualifiers.
In the other explosive match today, India, the 2001 Junior World Cup
champions, will lock horns with Pakistan.
India will parade a new team, as none of their players from the Hobart
Junior World Cup will be eligible to play in 2005.
The only Indian player with international experience in the side is
skipper Prabhot Tirkey, who featured in the 2001 Junior Asia Cup and an
international Under-16 invitational tournament in Ipoh last year.
Pakistan, who failed to score a single goal in the August Four-Nation
meet in Egypt and lost 2-0 to India in the preliminaries, have also
managed to whip up a formidable side looking to avenge the Egypt
humiliation. The Pakistan Juniors have grown in confidence after a
laudable performance in a Triangular series in Lahore and Faisalabad. The
Juniors played the Pakistan national team and the newly-formed Pakistan
Whites.
The Juniors won once against the Whites in an eight-game series and also
gave the Pakistan seniors a fight.
Pakistan have just started their preparation for the 2005 Junior World
Cup qualifiers after failing to qualify for Hobart.
"We have shown them a recording of how the Koreans play and their main
strength is fitness. The Korean juniors are not very skilfull, and maybe
that is where we have the advantage.
The Malaysian Juniors have a well balanced side, and will not overly
depend on penalty corners for goals, because the forwards are skilful
enough to score on the run of play.
Fixtures - Today: Pakistan v India (6pm), Malaysia v South Korea (8pm);
Monday: Malaysia v India (6pm); Malaysia Under-16 v South Korea (8pm);
Tuesday; Malaysia Under-16 v Pakistan (6pm); Wednesday: India v South
Korea (6pm), Malaysia v Pakistan (8pm); Fri-day: Malaysia Under-16 v India
(6pm), Pakistan v Korea (8pm); Saturday: REST DAY; Sunday: Third and
fourth (3pm), Final (5pm).
(END)