Smark bankers

14/08/2003

BANK Simpanan Nasional are among the richer clubs in the Malaysia Hockey
League but they too have shied away from wanting to make the National
Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil their home ground over the years.
The reason, according to BSN coach C. Paramalingam, there is no point in
forking out exorbitant fees when there are cheaper alternatives.
"We are among the teams which can afford to play at the National Hockey
Stadium, but why pay more when the Tun Razak Stadium is three times
cheaper?" questioned Paramalingam.
The Tun Razak Stadium, under the jurisdiction of the National Sports
Council, charges RM60 per match, while it costs RM180 at the National
Hockey Stadium if the floodlights are not used.
"It is very sad to see the National Stadium turn into a white elephant
because none of the clubs or schools can afford to use its pitches.
"It also does not make economic sense because by placing too high a
price, nobody is going to use the stadium and in the long run, the
artificial turf is going to crack under the heat and then what? We will
need to spend millions to returf it if we secure another international
tournament," said Paramalingam.
Bookings at the Kuala Lumpur HA Stadium, the Tun Razak Stadium and the
Pandaraman Hockey Stadium in Klang, all within a 30km radius of each
other, are very heavy and matches or development programmes are always
being run at the three venues.
But at the National Stadium, only the national hockey team has the
luxury of training on it.
"The Pandamaran Stadium is heavily booked by clubs and schools because
the Klang Municipal Council does not charge the Selangor HA for
development programmes while a nominal fee is imposed on schools.
"Why can't the Stadium Board practice the same? I am sure that even with
nominal booking fees, if the pitch is heavily booked, the Stadium Board
will make more money than what they are getting now because the volume
will be much higher," said Paramalingam.
The veteran coach is also sad that the Bukit Jalil Stadium is only
`national' in name, unlike other national stadiums all over the world and
this is a shame.
"Take the Karachi and Perth Commonwealth national stadiums as examples.
The two venues are fully booked and hockey is played from morning till
night.
"The Bukit Jalil Stadium is always empty, save for the national players
who train there.
"It is a crying shame and the Olympic Council of Malaysia should come
out with a proposal to save the hockey stadium from turning into a white
elephant," said Paramalingam.
(END)