KUALA Lumpur Hockey Club (KLHC) won both the titles at stake in the Malaysia Hockey League (MHL), while Tenaga Nasional the accolades and praises.
Both side are now joint record holders with 12 MHL titles each, with Tenaga having seven Overall and five League titles, while KLHC four Overall and eight League titles.
Tenaga, an-all local outfit, surprised the pundits as they were the only Premier Division side which forced KLHC to share points in a thrilling 3-3 draw.
And they defeat in the final was also a narrow 2-1, considering KLHC had nine players who had either played at the World Cup or Olympics level.
Sapura, Maybank and Nur Insafi also had six foreign players or more each, but Tenaga still manged a laudable second in Overall and third in the League.
“We see it as our responsibility to the nation. If all the teams start to rely on foreign players, who is going to give budding youth and also the local players a chance in the MHL?
“Even though we might lose a little in the early years, but once our young players become comfortable playing in the MHL, the results will follow suit,” said Tenaga manager Nor Saiful Zaini.
Nor Saiful, a former national skipper, has held onto many MHL titles since the Kilat days.
However, Nor Saiful agreed that if he faced an exodus of players the next season to a rich team, he might have to source for foreign players like KLHC.
“The feeling is like watching ‘Batman Returns” as when six of my players left for Terengganu, I had to scramble around looking for players,” lamented KLHC manager and pillar George Koshy after the final on Sunday.
Soaked in sweat, like his players, relief was painted all over the face of the most successful manager in the MHL.
“When six players left us because of better offers (to Terengganu HC), many had written us off for the season. And frankly speaking, even I was a little apprehensive. And after we won the League title, I did not expect my players to win the Overall title as well because my foreign players hardly had enough time to setle down before the first match,” said George.
George picked his players during the Azlan Shah Cup in Ipoh, and his Pakistan and Australian signing proved that they are a class above the rest of the foreign signings in the MHL.
As for the MHL itself, there was no new exciting talent that was spotted in both the divisions, and teams might have to rely on foreign players for at least another five years before there would be enough local juniors to fill their shoes.
Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin showed up for the TNB Cup final, a first for a sports minister, and the grandstand was fileld to the brim for the first time this season.
In all the previous matches, hardly any Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) officials bothered to watch.
