Lets get the basics right first

TOP of the world, with sound development plans. FIH Pic/ Stanislas Brochier.

AFTER two days of action in the Melbourne Champions Trophy, hosts Australia have shown to the world what systematic development, and playing in the Dutch League can achieve.
The Aussies blasted South Korea 4-0 and then went on a 7- 2 rampage against the Netherlands. England Germany and Spain are next on their warpath, and if they enter the final unbeaten, Australia will be difficult to stop in the New Delhi World Cup as well.
The top six teams of the world are involved in the Cham pions Trophy, and these are the teams which Champions Challenge I cast Argentina, New Zealand, Pakistan and hosts India need to beat if they want to play in the semi-finals of the New Delhi World Cup in February.
And where does that leave 16th ranked Malaysia? We are fourth in the Champions Challenge II, which show-casts Japan, France, Austria, Chile, Russia, Poland and Ireland.
Development is on an ad-hoc basis, and the schools have forsaken sports for studies, while State HA’s are angry that whatever talent they produce, is shanghaied to the Bandar Penawar and Bukit Jalil Sports Schools.
And it looks like studying in the two Sports Schools is going to be a yardstick for hockey players to don national colours in the near future. The trend is already there, as the majority of our national under-18 players are from BJSS.
Malaysia played a series of matches with the Australians before the New Zealand World Cup Qualifier, and even won 1- 0 once only to be blasted in the other matches.
Australia were, then, not with their best, as six of their top players were in action in the Dutch League. And the amazing part is that just after five weeks of playing together, the senior, juniors and the six from the Dutch League are clicking so well in the Champions Trophy.
This is a result of playing the same style from school, clubs, age-group teams, right up to the national seniors.
Australia were also the semi-finals in the Junior World Cup, and this goes to show that they will be among the top four for years to come.
The same can’t be said about Malaysia, who have had an Australian coach in Terry Walsh, and Germans Volker Knapp and Paul Lissek but instead of moving up, and now in the Champions Challenge II group.
The Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) will announce their foreign coach, if they secure one, on December 13, and lets hope he can work with the rojak system in this country as next year, the Azlan Shah Cup, Commonwealth Games, Asian Games and the Asian Champions Trophy awaits the poor chap.

Ismail Abu for KL Hockey Club

ISMAIL Abu being chased by Bangladesh players in the Asia Cup in Kuantan. He will turn out for KL Hockey Club in the MHL Premier Division.

THE Malaysian Hockey League (MHL) Premier Division starts on Dec 4, but until yesterday, three teams have yet to submit the name of their coaches.
Debutants KL Hockey Club, Maybank and Tenaga Nasional submitted their team lists to the Malaysian Hockey Fed eration (MHF) minus the coaches names.
The Premier League will start with a Charity Shield between Sapura and Tenaga Nasional at the Tun Razak Stadium which will be telecast live.
Double champions Ernst and Young withdrew this season, but it looks like a re-branding exercise as all their players are now with the KL Hockey Club outfit.
Even Ismail Abu, who was dropped from the World Cup Qualifier for playing truant, is listed with KLHC.
The some of the former and national players with KLHC are S. Baljit Singh, Chua Boon Huat, Shahrun Nabil, Harvinder singh, Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin, Azlan Misron, Kelvinder Singh and Megat Azrafiq.
Nur Insafi of Penang have roped in 16 foreign players and eight locals to strengthen their challenge.
Twelve are from India, five from Pakistan and one from Egypt.
Imran Warsi, a former Pakistan junior international and budding penalty corner flicker is also with Nur Insafi. The Egyptian, a first in the MHL, is Karim Sherif.
Brothers Jiva and Jiwan Mohan are listed with Sapura, as well as former skipper S. Kuhan. However, Sapura will still be relying on former internationals, and it will be interesting to see how they stack up against KLHC and Nur Insafi.
Tenaga Nasional also have a healthy dose of national players with S. Kumar, seven-time voted best goalkeeper in international tournaments, between the posts.
Madzli Ikmar, C. Baljit Singh, Sallehin Ghani, S. Selvaraju and Amin Rahim will be the pillars in Tenaga Nasional.
And interestingly, budding striker Fazial Shaari, 18, will be making his debut with Tenaga Nasional after a good show in the Junior World Cup as well as the New Zealand World Cup Qualifier.
The cast is ready, and await the naming of the three coaches before the show gets on its way.

Perak get off to great start

DEFENDING champions Perak got off to a rousing start in the National Under-14 hockey tournament when they ham mered hosts Pahang 5-1 at the Kuantan Stadium yesterday.
However, silver medallists Kuala Lumpur went down to a shock 2-0 defeat to Negri Sembilan.
The Negri win was initiated by Fakrul Razi with a field goal in the 23rd minute, while Mohamed Izwan made sure with a 42nd minute field goal.
RESULTS: Group A: Perak 5 Pahang 1, Penang 4 Kelantan 1; Group B: Kuala Lumpur 0 Negri Sembilan 2, Selangor 1 Malacca 1.
TODAY: Group A: Perlis v Kelantan, Perak v Penang; Group B: Terengganu v Malacca, Kuala Lumpur v Selangor.
TOMORROW: Group A: Pahang v Penang, Perlis v Perak; Group B: Negri Sembilan v Selangor, Terengganu v Kuala Lumpur.

Australia make Dutch look like schoolboys

FIH Pic / Stanislas Brochier

Match review: Korea 5–3 Germany (29 Nov 2009) > Korea beat Germany 5-3 for their first victory at Melbourne 2009. > This is the first time Korea beat Germany in Champions Trophy competition. Germany had recorded seven wins and one draw in their previous eight CT encounters with Korea. > Today’s five goals mark the third highest score for Korea in a Champions Trophy match. Their record is six goals in a match in 1998 against Spain (6-3) and in 2007 against The Netherlands (6-2). > At Rotterdam 2008, Germany also went down 5-3 in their match against The Netherlands. > Jan-Marco Montag lifted his Melbourne 2009 total to three goals by converting two penalty corners.

Match review: The Netherlands 2–7 Australia (29 November 2009) > Australia beat The Netherlands 7-2 to hand the Dutch their biggest defeat in Champions Trophy history. > The biggest CT defeat for Holland before today came in their 7-3 defeat against Australia in 1980 and was emulated in 2007 when they lost 6-2 to Korea. > Australia’s biggest CT win is a 9-1 victory over France in 1992. > Australia are the only team to have collected two wins from two matches at Melbourne 2009. > Australia are now unbeaten in their last six Champions Trophy encounters with the Dutch recording four wins and two draws. > Grant Schubert (AUS) became the first player since Britain’s Russell Garcia in 1994 to score a hat-trick before half time in a Champions Trophy match.

Match review: England 3–3 Spain (29 Nov 2009)
> England and Spain drew 3-3 to leave both teams winless after two match days at Melbourne 2009.

> England won their first point in a Champions Trophy match against Spain today, having suffered two defeats in their two previous encounters with Spain in 1981 and 1999.

> Xavier Ribas (ESP) and James Tindall (ENG) netted two goals each today, to lift their total number of goals at Melbourne 2009 to three each. They join Grant Schubert (AUS), Jan-Marco Montag (GER) and Taeke Taekema (NED) as top goal scorers after two match days at Melbourne 2009.

Perak-Pahang u-14 opener

NATIONAL Under-14 hockey defending champions Perak will square off against hosts Pahang at the Kuantan Stadium today.
Last year, Perak were crowned as champions when they beat Kuala Lumpur 5-3 in the final.
The National Under-14 made its debut in 2005, when it replaced the Under-15 tournament.
GROUP A: Perak, Penang, Kelantan, Pahang, Perlis; Group B: Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Malacca, Negri Sembilan, Terengganu.
TODAY: Group A: Perak v Pahang, Penang v Kelantan; Group B: Kuala Lumpur v Negri Sembilan, Selangor v Malacca.
TOMORROW: Group A: Perlis v Kelantan, Perak v Penang; Group B: Terengganu v Malacca, Kuala Lumpur v Selangor.

For country or club?

THE Malaysian Hockey Federation’s (MHF) stand to bar national coaches from handling Malaysia Hockey League (MHL) clubs took their coaching committee as well as the affected coaches by surprise, and a meeting will be held next week to iron out some technicalities.
Coaching committee chairman Dr Balbir Singh said he had used a precedent which allowed national coaches to be actively involved in the MHL, but the National Sports Council is now against it.
“Under the previous chairman (Datuk R. Yogeswaran) is was a practice to allow coaches under the NSC payroll to also be hired by clubs for the MHL, but since the NSC and also the MHF council is against it for this season, I will call for a meeting next week to sort out some matters which arose from the decision,” said Dr Balbir.
The national coaches in question are Tai Beng Hai, who used to coach Maybank, K. Dharmaraj (Ernst & Young) and Nor Saiful Zaini, Nor Azlan Bakar, K. Rajan and Lailin Abu Hassan who are all Tenaga employees and also TNB club coaches.
“I believe there is going to be a problem with the TNB team as all their employee-cum-coaches will not be able to coach their own club. This is among the problems which the committee will discuss next week. However, we will abide by the decision taken by the MHF council,” said Dr Balbir.
The MHF took the stand on Saturday, when they held their Annual General Meeting in Kuantan. The council wanted their coaches to watch the matches from the sideline and scout for talent instead.
The stand has its pros-and-cons, and some of the coaches felt that their welfare should be taken care off, before such decisions are taken.
“Take for example a coach who is earning RM750 per month for being an assistant at the age-group level. It is unfair not to allow him to coach a club and earn extra money as well as experience in the MHL,” said a coach who did not want to be identified.
“There are also coaches who have not been paid for months, and I believe arranging for their long over-due pay- cheque should be a priority, followed by monthly pay, if the MHF want us to become scouts instead of coaches.
“All the said coaches live in Kuala Lumpur, and it is difficult to support a family with the allowance we receive from the NSC, if we are not allowed to coach clubs to earn extra income,” said another coach.
The MHL Premier Division starts on Dec 4 with a Charity Shield match between Sapura and TNB at the Tun Razak Stadium.
The other teams in the League are UniKL, KL Hockey Club, Nur Insafi and Maybank. The MHF have yet to release the team lists, as many teams have been made coach-less.

MHF still keen on foreign coach

THE Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) will make a concrete stand on a foreign coach when its management committee meets on Dec 13.
At yesterday's annual general meeting in Kuantan, it was decided that a foreign coach, if possible, be hired as Malaysia have four major tournaments next year.
"We have a few foreign coaches in mind and a decision will be made when the management committee meets. The national team will be playing in the AHF Champions Trophy, the Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and Azlan Shah Cup next year and we need to prepare early," said MHF vice-president Datuk Dr S.S. Cheema.
Tai Beng Hai has been interim coach for the past one year, while the MHF looked for a suitable candidate.
On another matter, the MHF council decided to reverse the coaching committee's decision to allow national coaches at the various age groups to coach Malaysia Hockey League Premier Division teams.
"The coaching committee (chaired by Dr Balbir Singh) had suggested that national coaches be allowed to coach club teams, but the council decided otherwise.
"We felt that it would be better for the national coaches to remain on the sidelines and conduct talent-scouting rather than be directly involved in the MHL," said Cheema.
MHF president Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah also decided there be a random dope-testing conducted during the MHL.

Taekema record guides Dutch to victory

Results Centre
Saturday 28 November
13:05 GER : ENG 3:2 (1:1)
15:05 AUS : KOR 4:0 (2:0)
17:05 ESP : NED 2:3 (0:2)
The Netherlands narrowly escaped with all 3 points after avoiding a fiery second half comeback from Spain. The Dutch emerged as 3-2 winners in a game that burst into life in the second half following a Dutch dominated first period. This game will be remembered as the game that Taeke TAEKEMA overtook Sohail ABBAS on the Champions Trophy all time goal scorers list.

The first half was controlled by the Dutch, both in terms of possession and also on the scoreboard. In the 14th minute Taeke TAEKEMA gave his side the lead and also claimed his position at the top of the mantle of all time goal scorers in the Champions Trophy with 41 goals. Two minutes later it was captain Teun DE NOOIJER who extended the Dutch lead, sliding in to guide a classy reverse stick strike from Roderick WEUSTOF into the net.

The first goal of the second half followed a similar trend to that of the first half, with TAEKEMA collecting his 42nd Champions Trophy goal from another Penalty Corner. The game looked almost dead as Holland took the 3-0 ascendancy over Olympic silver medalists Spain. It was then that the Spanish sparked into life and began to play the way that everyone knows they can. In the 58th minute Spain captain Pol AMAT scored a spectacular reverse stick effort to make the score 3-1. Xavier RIBAS reduced the deficit further just minutes later with a firm drag flick just inside the post, ensuring that the last nine minutes of the game would be tense for both sides. However, it was the Dutch who held on for a deserved victory and will be looking forward to taking on host nation Australia tomorrow.

Champions Trophy fixtures

#	Time	Teams	:		Score
Saturday 28 November
01	13:05	Germany	:	England	-:- (-:-)
02	15:05	Australia	:	Korea	-:- (-:-)
03	17:05	Spain	:	Netherlands	-:- (-:-)
Sunday 29 November
04	13:05	Korea	:	Germany	-:- (-:-)
05	15:05	Netherlands	:	Australia	-:- (-:-)
06	17:05	England	:	Spain	-:- (-:-)
Monday 30 November
Rest Day
Tuesday 01 December
07	15:05	Spain	:	Germany	-:- (-:-)
08	17:05	Netherlands	:	Korea	-:- (-:-)
09	19:05	Australia	:	England	-:- (-:-)
Wednesday 02 December
Rest	Day
Thursday 03 December
10	15:05	Korea	:	Spain	-:- (-:-)
11	17:05	England	:	Netherlands	-:- (-:-)
12	19:05	Germany	:	Australia	-:- (-:-)
Friday 04 December
Rest Day
Saturday 05 December
13	11:05	England	:	Korea	-:- (-:-)
14	13:05	Australia	:	Spain	-:- (-:-)
15	15:05	Netherlands	:	Germany	-:- (-:-)
Sunday 06 December
16	10:05	5th Place	v	6th Place	-:- (-:-)
17	12:35	3rd Place	v	4th Place	-:- (-:-)
18	15:05	1st Place	v	2nd Place	-:- (-:-)

Mas women in Australia Qualifier group

After nine teams already qualified automatically for the BDO FIH World Cup women 2010, 18 formations still have a chance to qualify through one of the three World Cup Qualifiers.

The International Hockey Federation (FIH) announced the pools and locations for these tournaments.

AtaHolding World Cup Qualifier women, San Diego CA, USA, Friday 26 March- Saturday 3 April 2010
USA, Korea, Belgium, Canada, France, Mexico

BDO World Cup Qualifier women, Kazan, Russia, Saturday 17-Sunday 25 April 2010
Japan, Azerbaijan, Italy, Russia, Belarus, Wales

BDO World Cup Qualifier women, Santiago, Chile, Saturday 24 April-Sunday 2 May 2010
Australia, Ireland, Chile, Malaysia, Scotland, Trinidad & Tobago

The qualification system for the BDO FIH World Cup women 2010 is similar to the one used for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and the Hero Honda FIH World Cup men 2010. Nine teams are directly qualified through the Continental Championships, while the remaining three vacancies will be filled from three separate qualification tournaments.

The format for the three World Cup Qualifiers is as it was for the Olympic Qualifiers: a six teams’ single round robin competition with a final to decide which team will qualify.

The following teams are directly qualified for the BDO FIH World Cup women, to be played in Rosario, Argentina from 30 August-12 September 2010:

• Argentina (Host and Champion of the 3rd Women’s Pan American Cup)
• South Africa (Champion of the Africa Cup of Nations, 2009)
• New Zealand (Champion of the 6th Women’s Oceania Cup)
• Netherlands (Champion of the 9th Women’s EuroHockey Nations Championship)
• Germany (Silver medalist of the 9th Women’s EuroHockey Nations Championship)
• England (Bronze medalist of the 9th Women’s EuroHockey Nations Championship)
• Spain (Fourth ranked team of the 9th Women’s EuroHockey Nations Championship)
• China (Champion of the 7th Women’s Asia Cup)
• India (Silver medalist of the 7th Women’s Asia Cup)

Former greats back in action

Comeback kings: (from left) Technical advisor Datuk R. Yogeswaran with Mirnawan, Logan Raj and Ow Soon Kooi (team manager)

By Jonathan Fernandez
FORMER internationals Mirnawan Nawawi and Logan Raj will return to the competitive game when they play for Kepong Baru in the Kuala Lumpur Hockey League. Mirnawan, 38, stepped down from the international scene in 2002 after having acquired 327 caps.
He last played in the Malaysian Hockey League (MHL) for Telekom Malaysia in 2005. Logan quit the national team after the Korat Sea Games in 2007. The 28-year-old played for Sapura in the MHL until last year before announcing his retirement from competitive hockey.
Logan’s younger brother, Mano, has also been recruited. And that’s not all. Also returning to “active duty” is former national captain and Olympian Ow Soon Kooi as team manager. Kepong Baru have also roped in former national coach and manager, Datuk R. Yogeswaran as technical adviser.
“Kepong Baru are a young side and that’s why we decided to join them — to help realise their potential. Logan and I want to put back what the game had given us,” said Mirnawan, also known as “The Boss”.
There is also an “import” in the team — Chris Kelly who used to play in the Perth League. Kelly, 38, also represented Western Australia in age-group tournaments.
The main sponsor for Kepong Baru, nicknamed Kay Bees, is Olympic Sports Hotel while the others are Mist Club and AstroTurf. The Kuala Lumpur Div 1 starts next week and it promises to be more fiery than before. Although several teams have withdrawn, the mainstays have confirmed participation.
At least five teams are title contenders from among the 11 teams. The frontrunners this year are the usual campaigners — MISC (defending champions), Sentul (last year’s losing finalists), Sunday 2030, New Straits Times and Bukit Jalil Sports School.
The other teams in the fray are MSSKL, KL Irrigation, Old Collegian, TPCA and UPM Staff. Sentul will play the opening Div One match against the young MSSKL side next Tuesday. Div One is expected to be completed by end January. The top two teams will play in the final.
THE TEAMS: Sentul, MSSKSSKL, Sunday 2030, MISC, Bukit Jalil, NSTP, KL Irrigation, Kepong Baru, Old Collegian, TPCA, UPM Staff.

Malay Mail

MHF and AHF are Internet illiterate

THE Malaysian (MHF) and Asian Hockey Federations (AHF) are professionals in launching programmes, with pomp-and-pageantry, after which, they don’t give two hoots about maintenance.
There are too many projects, blueprints and whatnots that were launched by AHF and MHF over the years with no follow-ups to chronicle in this column, so the topic will be confined to websites.
The MHF website www.malaysiahockey.com.my was launched in the run-up to the Johor-Singapore Junior World Cup in June, but has been in a slumber state since.
There is no update at all, not even on the Junior World Cup, and it died after reporting that Malaysia beat England 1-0 in the first match.
Accountability, it seems, is missing from the MHF dic tionary as they waste money in creating a website which they never had any intention of updating.
It is a pity, as all they needed to do was pick up stories from the Malaysian media and paste it, even that seems to be a tedious chore for those who were paid to register the domain.
Now, news on Malaysian hockey is placed on individual blogs in the country and around the world, while the MHF don’t even bother to inform the public on the dozens of tournaments and friendly matches that the national players at different age groups have competed in this year.
There is not even an effort to promote the Malaysia Hockey League (MHL) which will begin on December 4, even though plans are afoot to telecast some of the matches live on television.
And it looks like the MHF need to pay royalty to the AHF for stealing their ‘launch and forget’ blockbuster script.
The AHF launched its www.ahfhockey.com during the Azlan Shah Cup in April and one would have thought that it would at least last for the duration of the tournament.
AHF president Sultan Azlan Shah made the announce ment, and launched the website during the tournament, but it never even lived to see the final results or stories posted.
The Asian body has hosted the Asia Cup in Kuantan, the Women’s Asia Cup in Thailand and the Under-18 Asia Cup in Myanmar since, but if one is looking for results for these tournaments, forget the AHF website, as it has been silent since its launch.
The Myanmar boys qualifier for the Youth Olympics in Singapore next year was a nightmare for journalists looking for results, as the AHF officials kept the scores a big secret close to their chests, and even the Myanmar Hockey Fed eration joined in as an unholy trinity as their website never bothered to offer information on the tournament, except to mention that thy will be hosting the tournament and that the stadium is ready.
The Internet provides a means for the Malaysian and Asian Hockey Federations to reach the masses. And there are millions of schoolchildren in this region to tap, introduce and interest in the sport, like it is being professionally done in Europe.
Hockey training programmes and tactical videos are avail able online there, but in Asia, we have yet to even reach the reporting stage on the information highway, and are still stuck firmly on the launch-pad.

Pakistan champions

Under-18 Asia Cup in Myanmar.
FINAL: Malaysia 3 Pakistan 4.
THIRD-FOURTH: Korea 4 Japan 2.

MALAYSIA lost 4-3 to Pakistan in the Under-18 Asia Cup final in Yangon, Myanmar yesterday.
It was the second silver medal for Malaysia in consecutive Sundays, after the senior side lost 2-1 to New Zealand in the World Cup Qualifier in Invercargill.
In the bronze playoff, South Korea beat Japan 4-2.
Malaysia also lost by a similar margin to Pakistan in the Group A match.
However, the boys deserve credit as they beat the bigwigs in Asia, India 3-2 and South Korea 3-2, on their route to the final.
Coach K. Dharmaraj blamed himself for the defeat: “We had a total of 11 penalty corners and only scord two goals, while Pakistan had two penalty corners only and scored one.
“I tried out the direct flick, in all the penalty corners, and failed. I should have opted for set-pieces, but did not. That is why I blame myself for the defeat,” said Dharmaraj.
Malaysia took the lead with a 10th minute strike from Sabri Mohamed but in a five minute blitz, Pakistan not only won the equaliser but took a 3-1 lead going into the breather.
And just after re-start, Pakistan scored their fourth.
“Sabri scored his second and Firhan (Ashari) made it 3-4, but time was not with us to clinch the equaliser.
“The goalkeeper (Hazrul Faiz) took us into the final as he was in terrific form, but in the final, Pakistan only had four clear shots at goal, and all went in.
“It was my goalkeepers off day, and we missed a chance to play in the Youth Olympics in Singapore next year,” said Dharmaraj.

Selangor crowned indoor champs

SELANGOR were crowned as the inaugural champions of the National Sports Council Director General’s Under-16 Indoor Hockey Tournament when they beat Perak 2-0 yes terday.
The third place went to Pahang, who beat Penang 1-0.
The two-day tournament at the NSC indoor pitch saw a total of 15 teams battling for the trophy.
RESULTS: Group A -- Johor 0 Penang 5, Kuala Lumpur 0 Malacca 1, Perak 2 Sarawak 2, Kedah 1 Kelantan 1, Negri 2 Selangor 1, Pahang 2 Police 2, Terengganu 2 Perlis 1, Johor 0 Malacca 3, Penang 1 Sarawak 4,
Group B: Kedah 4 Negri 2, Kelantan 0 Terengganu 1, Pahang 2 Selangor 0, Perlis 0 Police 0, Kedah 3 Pahang 2, Kelantan 0 Negri 2, Perlis 1 Selangor 2, Police 1 Terengganu 1.
Semi-finals: Penang 1 Selangor 4, Pahang 2 Perak 3.
Final: Selangor 2 Perak 0; Third-Fourth: Penang 0 Pahang 1.

Pakistan can be beaten

MALAYSIA are expected to face a tough time against Pakistan in the final of the Under-18 Asia Cup in Myanmar, but coach K. Dharmaraj is ready with a few tricks to claim the gold medal.
Dharmaraj said his players are eager to bury the 4-3 defeat to Pakistan in a Group A match: “Pakistan players are taller and more matured than the Malaysian boys, and for the first time, I am seeing a robust approach from them.
“But the defeat in the group match cannot be taken as a yardstick, as I rested many key players, including my goal keeper then,” said Dharmaraj.
And with Faizal Shaari, who scored three goals in the World Cup Qualifier in Invercargill, spearheading the attack, it is expected to be an explosive final.
“Fizal arrived in time to play Pakistan and scored three goals in our 4-3 defeat. But then, he did not have his shoes and hockey stick which just arrived last night (Saturday).
“With his gear back, and all my players fired-up for a re- match with Pakistan, I expect the boys to claim the ticket to the Youth Olympics in Singapore next year,” said Dhar maraj.
Malaysia, according to Dharmaraj, were shell-shocked when Pakistan players played a robust game and had every man behind the ball in the earlier encounter.
“This is a new look Pakistan, and looked more like a European side. However, I have analysed the match, and there are a few loopholes which can lead to goals,” said Dharmaraj.
In the route to the final, Malaysia beat India 3-2 and then South Korea 3-2 in the semi-finals.
Indian Hockey Federation, for the first time, had conducted wrist tests on all their players to determine their age before selecting them for the Asia Cup.

Sarawak the Indoor surprise

THE First National Under-16 Indoor hockey tournament saw a surprise package in Sarawak upstaging established hokey playing states at the National Sports Council indoor pitch.
Sarawak held Kuala Lumpur 0-0, beat Johor 3-0, beat Sabah 3-0, and their only set-back is a 2-0 defeat to Malacca.
The tournament, which offers the NSC Director General’s Challenge Trophy, saw the participation of all states and will continue with the pool matches today, before the semi- finalists are decided.
And Sarawak will be up against Perak, and Penang and look good for a semis slot.
RESULTS: Group A -- Kuala Lumpur 0 Sarawak 0, Malacca 0 Sabah 1, Penang 2 Perak 1, Johor 0 Sarawak 3, Kuala Lumpur 1 Sabah 0, Malacca 0 Perak 1, Johor 0 Sabah 0, Kuala Lumpur 1 Perak 3, Malacca 0 Penang 5, Johor 1 Perak 4, Kuala Lumpur 0 Penang 2, Sabah 0 Sarawak 3, Johor 0 Kuala Lumpur 3, Malacca 2 Sarawak 0, Penang 1 Sabah 0.
Group B: Kedah 2 Terengganu 2, Kelantan 0 Selangor 2, Negri Sembilan 2 Plice 1, Pahang 2 Perlis 0, Kedah 0 Selangor 2, Kelantan 1 Police 1, Negri 3 Perlis 0, Pahang 3 Terengganu 2, Kedah 0 Police 0, Kelantan 2 Perlis 1, Negri 1 Pahang 2, Selangor 2 Terengganu 0, Kedah 0 Perlis 0, Kelantan 0 Pahang 3, Negri 3 Terengganu 2, Police 1 Selangor 3, Kedah 4 Negri 2, Kelantan 0 Terengganu 1.

The rot started at schools

By Harban Singh
(Hockey enthusiast)

I watched the hockey World Cup hockey qualifier game between New Zealand and Malaysia held in New Zealand live over TV on Sunday, Nov 15 and I thought we played our hearts out and it was definitely one of our better games of late.
Congratulations to coach Tai Beng Hai and his boys. However, it was not good enough for Malaysia as we lost to the most consistently unbeaten side 2-1 . namely New Zealand .
What intrigues me is the inefficiency of Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) in hiring a foreign coach. Tai Beng Hai was only supposed to be an interim coach. Why couldn ' t we hire a foreign coach in time? It could have made all the difference!
Even if his salary demands were high, had we qualified, it would have brought gross returns to our economy, branding and more tourists inflows. In these days of ' outsourcing ' , did not the Malaysian Hockey Federation think of hiring a ' headhunter ' to help in this specialised job of recruiting a world class hockey coach?
Recruitment headhunters are efficient and reliable. The opportunity is lost now and this when we have to prepare for the Olympics and the World Cup in advance. We also need the Malaysian Hockey Federation officials to have strategic intent and common sense on the need to develop hockey to a new level.
There must be political will and a paradigm shift. We cannot apply yesterday's solutions to tomorrow's problems. We need to look ahead. I have been following some of the national-age group competitions involving the youths and I must say the standards are pathetic.
MHF should address this problem in the bud and make it a national issue so that there is political will for the schools to have the incentives to develop this world-ranking sports for Malaysia .
The decline of our hockey ' s standards should be brought to Parliament where it can receive the attention it deserves. This happened in India and Pakistan .
I am afraid if MHF continues to operates the way it has been done, we will soon follow the negative path of the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM). FIH ' s international hockey rankings as of Sept 1, places Malaysia at 16th place.
How come we are behind nations like Canada , China , South Africa and Belgium when our infrastructure in terms of stadium facilities and support by the government are either the same or ahead of them?
The problem lies in developmental measures and the mechanisms. This infrastructural weaknesses have not been tackled for decades. We are not producing enough good players continuously which results in our national team lacking consistency as the same players know that even if they don ' t train hard, they will still don national colors.
We need competitiveness. Wake up, MHF! By the next World Cup, I am certain we will be relegated further behind the US , France and Ireland if no serious action is taken now. Forget about qualifying and look at the developmental measures immediately.
It is at the schools where the future Sarjit Singhs, Poon Fook Lokes, Khairuddin Zainals and Mahendrans lie. Spot them young, nurture them and ensure the processes are in place in the system to produce quality players.
Collaborate in partnership with the Education Ministry and emulate the ' best management hockey practices ' of Korea and Japan . From the statistics of missing the last two World Cup tournaments and several Olympics, it appears MHF is bankrupt of ideas and needs far-reaching focus and ambition.
Even the respective state hockey associations have followed into and continued in this rut where even the state league championships are non-existent in certain states. Let's face reality and check the rot. Please don't let Malaysians give up on hockey as they totally have on soccer.

Malaysia-Pakistan final

THE Under-18 players injected some hope in the Malaysian hockey scene when they beat South Korea 3-2 in the semi- finals of the Asia Cup in Myanmar yesterday.
The boys will now square off against Pakistan who beat Japan 4-0 in the other semis.
Malaysia have only lost one match in the tournament, 4-3 to Pakistan in a Group A match, but look good to win a gold medal tomorrow.
The national players took the match to Korea, and were rewarded when Firhan Ashari scored a field goal in the 15th minute and the score held until the half-time.
And after the breather, the Koreans leveled the score with a penalty stroke awarded in the 41st minute to draw level.
Sabri Mohamed, the younger brother of former national player Tajol Rosli, then delivered with a 50th minute penalty corner goal only to see the Koreans equalise again with 40 seconds remaining on the clock.
However, Sabri was in his element in the extra-time and scored a sudden death goal to take Malaysia into the final.
“My boys never gave up and I am happy with their fighting spirit. The 2-2 equaliser came after some confusion on the remaining time, as the clock had stopped a good five minutes before regulation time and my players were in the dark.
“But then, they showed their potential against a physically better team and are now looking forward to the re-match against Pakistan,” said coach K. Dharmaraj.
The champions of the tournament will play in the Youth Olympics in Singapore in August.

First Under-16 Indoor tournament

NOTE: Better late than never.

THE National Sports Council will organise the first Under- 16 Indoor Hockey this weekend with 15 teams battling for the Director General’s Trophy.
Although it is an Under-16 tournament, the rules stipulate that each team must comprise of two Under-14, two Under- 15 and four Under-16 players.
And to make it competitive, each state can only select two national under-16 trainees.
Every State, including Sabah and Sarawak as well as Police have fielded a team for the inaugural tournament.
GROUP A: Johor, Kuala Lumpur, Malacca, Penang, Perak, Sabah, Sarawak.
GROUP B: Kedah, Kelantan, Negri Sembilan, Pahang, Perlis, Police, Selangor, Terengganu.

Malaysia in Under-18 semis

MALAYSIA will play South Korea in the Semi-finals of the Under-18 Asia Cup tomorrow (20/11/09) while Pakistan meet Japan.
The champion will play in the Youth Olympics in Singapore in August.
Due to lack of information on the tournament regular updates were made impossible. The Asian Hockey Federation and Myanmar Hockey Federation websites are dead.

We just failed to act

Comment By JUGJET SINGH

Pic: Malaysian goalkeeper S. Kumar did not fail to be named as the Best Goalkeeper for the seventh time in Invercargill.

MALAYSIA failed yet again to qualify for a major hockey tournament, but the Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) is not going to fail in writing reports and making recommendations on what to do next.
And then, like always, there will be a failure to act on the reports and recommendations, making it a futile exercise.
The recent fall started after Malaysia ended 12th in the 2001 Junior World Cup in Tasmania, and many volumes were written with even a hockey blueprint coming into the picture but nothing came out of it.
The hockey loving public knows, but the MHF refuse to acknowledge, that the talent pool is fast drying up, and as a result, we did not have depth on the bench for coach Tai Beng Hai to select for Invercargill.
Twelve players from the 2005 Junior World Cup squad became regulars with the seniors, but only three were drafted from the recent Johor Baru Junior World Cup.
And in Invercargill, the 2005 batch held on well as Kelvinder Singh, Razie Rahim, S. Selvaraju, Jivan Mohan, Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin, Shukri Mutalib, C. Baljit Singh, Fiqri Nabil and Khairulnizam Ibrahim played well and were the pillars in their departments.
(Only goalkeeper Khairulnizam did not get a chance to play as S. Kumar was in top flight).
But from the 2009 batch only Faizal Saari, Marhan Jalil and Ahmad Kazamirul were good enough to play alongside the seniors. Faizal scored three goals to justify his selection, while the other two warmed the bench.
So only one player, Faizal, who scored eight goals in the Junior World Cup, can be relied from the new crop. It is simple mathematics, which even the MHF should be able to understand.
Many are expected to bay for blood, and form a posse to remove coaches, players, officials, and the blame game might even hit the nutritionist right up to the cook who was in New Zealand.
They will fail to realise that the failure to qualify for New Delhi is a shared responsibility, because the MHF council members are the bigwigs in their states, and the rot started from their end.
The initial plan was to hire Beng Hai as an interim coach while the MHF look for a foreign coach to handle the reign. And when no foreigner with a credible reputation wanted anything to do with the erratic Malaysian players, Beng Hai was stuck with it.
The coach, a former international from Taiping, was in charge for the Azlan Shah Cup, the Asia Cup, the Champions Challenge II and the World Cup Qualifier.
A silver in Azlan Shah, fourth in Asia Cup, fourth in Champions Challenge II and second in the Qualifier is what Beng Hai achieved with the material that he had.
Lets face it, even with a foreigner, the results would not have changed much with the present batch of players.
The MHF will review Beng Hai’s performance for the year and they might even hire a foreign coach to prepare Malaysia for the 2012 Olympics qualifier.
But hiring a foreigner will not be easy, as nobody wants to coach a bunch of losers. So, stick to the other option that was discussed in January -- bring in top coaches on an ad-hoc basis to sharpen the strikers, the defenders, and the goal keepers.
Keep the local as chief coach, and seriously start grooming the 2013 Project squad by sending them to play in Europe leagues.
The next assignments are the 2010 Commonwealth and Asian Games.
Built on the failure, and stop writing reports, as nothing is going to come out of them but more failures like what happened after the 2004 Olympic Qualifiers in Madrid, the 2006 World Cup Qualifiers in China and the 2008 Olympic Qualifiers in Japan -- to name a few..

A full time failure

Comment By Vijesh Rai
(NST Sports Editor)

WHAT next for Malaysian hockey?
Yesterday's defeat to New Zealand, no matter how we choose to see it, means Malaysia now have the sad record of having missed two consecutive World Cups and Olympics, which drives home hard the fact that we can no longer claim to be a world power.
This has been the case for some time now but, having played at the highest level several times, we always hoped that the players would be able to turn it around and regain lost pride in Invercargill, New Zealand.
But we knew, even when Tai Beng Hai's men beat China to qualify for the World Cup Qualifier final, that defeat was the most likely outcome for Malaysia against New Zealand and the team didn't disappoint.
Sure, the players fought hard and were mere minutes away from lining up alongside the cream of hockey in the New Delhi World Cup next February but, as much as the hardcore supporters choose to see the positives, it is the end result that matters which means the team failed.
Hockey isn't a sport which Malaysia has just taken up for it is part of the big three alongside badminton and football and the support it enjoys -- financial and otherwise -- is on par with the other two.
Millions are spent yearly on hockey and all the sport has to show in 2009 is the failure of the seniors to win a World Cup berth and a poor performance by the Juniors in their own World Cup.
Help, it would seem then, isn't going to be forthcoming from this year's Junior World Cup squad, something which the Malaysian Hockey Federation seems resigned to given the hope it has placed on the 2013 Project squad.
But this approach, and Malaysia's recent history has proven this several times over, is not going to get hockey, nor any other sport, out of the rut it is in.
Depending on just one group of players is never going to be enough no matter what MHF does, even if the squad is in full time training.
MHF president Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah should be fully aware of this with his FA of Malaysia experience, where millions were spent on project teams with nothing much gained.
Only a handful, if there are even that, still take this approach for so competitive is sport today that it doesn't make sense for a national team to train full time and play only in friendly matches and invitational tournaments.
It is in domestic leagues, which are of high quality, where players hone their skills and fight for national team selection. There is no room for complacency, which sadly is the case for most Malaysian sports no thanks to this belief that once an athlete is in a national programme, it is extremely difficult to drop him or her.
This may have worked for Malaysia when the country first went big in sports after winning the bid to host the 1998 Kuala Lumpur Commonwealth Games but that was 13 years ago and most, if not all, from that batch of athletes have departed the scene.
The full time training approach should have also ended with that batch of athletes but it didn't and hockey is a classic example of how the system has gone wrong.
Malaysia won silver in the 1998 Commonwealth Games, qualified for the 2000 Sydney Olympics and hosted the 2002 World Cup but since then, it has been downhill -- we missed the 2004 and 2008 Olympics and the 2010 World Cup is now alongside the edition we failed to qualify for in 2006.
The next big target will be the London Olympics Qualifier but MHF doesn't take action now and improve its structure, widen the selection base and have quality leagues across the board, we can be sure that what happened in Invercargill yesterday will happen again with the only difference being the venue.