KUALA Lumpur Hockey Club (KLHC) yesterday confirmed that they have signed five Pakistan and One Australian player to boost their Malaysia Hockey League chances.
The double champions, who started as Ernst and Young with foreign signings but then went local in 2005, were forced to look beyond our shores after six of their players left for Terengganu.
"Terengganu's offer of at least RM7,000 per month (12-month
contract) was simply too good to resist and I lost six players to
them. And that's why I had to secure foreign help to defend our
titles," said KLHC team manager George Koshy who is also the national manager for the ongoing Azlan Shah Cup.
The five Pakistan players are penalty corner flicker and skipper Mohammed Imran, Wassem Ahmad, Fareed Ahmad, Akhtar Ali and Umar Bhutta. The Australian is Tim Deavon.
The MHL starts on March 22, and the early indications are that Tenaga Nasional and Terengganu are the early favourites.
"I believe Tenaga Nasional are the best side this season, as not
only have they retained all their players, but also included good
midfielders in Marhan Jalil and Ramadhan Rosli.
"TNB are also an all-round side with a good goalkeeper in S. Kumar and I so, KLHC might just be fighting for the second spot this year," said George.
The other teams in the Premier Division of the MHL are Maybank, Sapura, Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL) and Nur Insafi.
And the seven teams in Division One are Tunku Mahkota Ismail Sports School (SSTMI), Bukit Jalil Sports School (BJSS), Uniten-KPT, UiTM, Sunday 2030, Ipoh City Council (MBI) and TNB-Thunderbolt.
