Friday, October 10, 2008

Tunku Majid all for change

MALAYSIAN Hockey Federation (MHF) deputy president Tunku Majid Sultan Iskandar has no qualms about Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah becoming the next president of the Federation.
Tunku Majid and present president Tan Sri (rtd) Admiral Anwar Mohd Nor had come to an agreement that the person which gets the highest number of nominations will become the next president, but the entry of another Royal candidate has changed the scenario.
The MHF elections will be held on Nov 1, with nominations closing on Oct 25.
“I will go with what the states want, if they want me to carry on, I will continue my work in the MHF. And I have no problems working with Tengku Abdullah, if he decides to come into the Federation.
“Tengku Abdullah has done a good job as deputy president of the FAM (Football Association of Malaysia), and I am sure if he comes into hockey, it will be to the sports gain,” said Tunku Majid.
When Tengku Abdullah was asked in Kuantan on Sept 24, his reply was that he wanted to know more about MHF before making a decision.
“Other than an individual contacting me, I have not spoken to anyone about going for the post of MHF president. However, if there are some who feel that I can be considered for the post, I suggest they meet me,” Tengku Abdullah had said then.
And taking the cue from there, 10 to 15 present council members are expected to meet him on Oct 18, when he is highly likely to seek election for the president’s post.
“This is not a political or a paid post, so whoever that wants to come in as No 1, No 2, No 3 and so on must be prepared to clock in the hours.
“It will be useless if they come in just for one term and then say their goodbye. Interested candidates must have a long- term interest and work to achieve the targets,” said Tunku Majid.
MHF secretary Sgt Hashim Yusoff said even though nom inations opened on Oct 3, he has yet to receive any paperwork from the states.
“It looks like all the states are waiting for more information from their desired candidates before committing themselves. I expect the nominations to start coming in after Oct 18,” said Hashim.

Two Bangladeshis and seven Indians

NUR-INSAFI Penang will field seven India, and two Bangladesh players in Division One of the Malaysia Hockey League (MHL) which starts on Oct 17.
And Sapura will be parading two South Koreans in Kim Jung Chul and Song Seung Tae.
The two Bangladeshis, a first for the MHL, are Rasel Mahmud and Mamunur Rahman Chayan while the seven from India are goalkeeper Sanjay Kukreti, Kul Bhusan Vashist, Ramesh Kumar, Deepak Kumar, Ajay Kumar,
Mubeen Ur Rehman and Prem Kumar.
Prem Kumar and Deepak Kumar helped them to the Division Two title last season and are back again.
“The rules are clear on foreign players, Nur-Insafi Penang can field all nine players, and only two locals when playing. It should not be a problem,” said Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) secretary Sgt Hashim Yusoff.
The Penang team has initially refused promotion from Division Two to Division One, as they felt they were not strong enough, but with nine foreign players, their opening en counter against League champions Ernst and Young will shed some light on their true strength.
The MHL will have six teams in Division One, and none teams in Division Two this year.
Tenaga Nasional are the TNB Cup holders.