Monday, May 3, 2010

Wait another day...

NATIONAL coach Stephen van Huizen could not make up his mind after watching Malaysia beat Egypt 2-0 in a friendly at the Azlan Shah Stadium in Ipoh yesterday.
So, he will only name the final squad of 18 after testing four players against Australia in another friendly today.
Malaysia, Australia, Pakistan, India, South Korea, China and Egypt will be involved in the seven-team invitational tournament from Thursday.
“Stephen wanted more time to test four players who are recovering from injuries before naming his final squad. So, we will only release the final squad tomorrow (today),” said team manager George Koshy.
Jivan Mohan, Azlan Misron, Shahron Nabil and S. Baljit Singh are the four who will get another chance to prove themselves.
However, based on current form, the players listed below should find their place for the Azlan Shah Cup.
PROBABLE LIST: S. Kumar, Kairulnizam Ibrahim, Razie Rahim, Madzli Ikmar, Amin Rahim, C. Baljit Singh, Ahmad Kazamirul, Azreen Rizal Nasir.
Tajol Rosli, Shahrun Nabil, Marhan Jalil, Nabil Fiqri Nor, Sukri Mutalib, Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin, Faizal Saari, Hafi fihafiz Hanafi, Azlan Misron, Izwan Firdaus.
Team Manager: George Koshy; Chief coach: Stephen van Huizen; Assistant coach: Tai Beng Hai
PAST RECORD; 1983 – Fourth; 1985 – Runner Up; 1987 – Fourth; 1991 – Fifth; 1994 – Fourth; 1995 – Sixth; 1996 – Third; 1998 – Sixth; 1999 – Fifth; 2000 – Fourth; 2001 – Seventh; 2003 – Fifth; 2004 – Sixth; 2005 – Sixth; 2006 – Eight; 2007 – Runner Up; 2008 – Seventh; 2009 – Runner Up.