Game for another rampage in China shop

By Ajitpal Singh

MALAYSIA have rarely beaten China at their own backyard but the national hockey players hope to ride on their near perfect form so far when they face the host in a crucial Group A match at the Aoti Stadium today.
A draw would be enough to secure one of the two semi-final spots but national coach Stephen van Huizen wants his boys to play for a win as a victory could secure them top spot in Group A.
Malaysia have beaten China twice in previous three meetings, recorded in last year’s World Cup Qualifiers in New Zealand and this year’s Azlan Shah Cup.
But in their last meeting, China won 2-0 in a Four-Nation tournament in Dalian in July.
“We will try our best to enter the semi-finals. I anticipate a tough match but my boys, after victories over Singapore and Oman and a draw with South Korea, are in a confident mood to get a good result,” said van Huizen yesterday.
“We cannot be wasteful as we need to kill-off China early as possible tomorrow (today). I am confident my boys will prevail.
If Malaysia wins a medal in Guangzhou, Stephen will be the first Malaysian coach to guide the national team to it in 20 years.
Australian-born coach Terry Walsh guided the team to a bronze medal in the 1990 Beijing edition and 12 years later, German-born Paul Lissek also led the team to another bronze in Busan.
Striker Azlan Misron, who is currently Malaysia’s top scorer with five goals, is also on a mission to pile up goals against China.
“China have often looked strong at home. We cannot take them lightly. As for me, my personal goal is to score as many goals against them and also create chances for my team-mates,” said the 27-year-old.
Meanwhile, China coach Zhuang Xiaodong said the Malaysian team have been very impressive with their strong defense and attack in the Asian Games.
“We watched them hold Korea to a 2-2 draw on Thursday and I have to admit that they are impressive. But we have studied their game comprehensively.
“I’ve told my men to play without pressure. We definitely need to up our performance to get the required result,” he added.
Malaysia and Korea have collected seven points each after three matches but the former lead the group with goal difference while China are third with six.
However, Korea are expected to top the group as they have an easy match against Singapore today.