KLHC keep clean record

KUALA Lumpur Hockey Club (KLHC) kept a clean record entering into the Second Round when they beat UniKL 4-0 in the Premier Division of the Malaysia Hockey League yesterday.
   KLHC, with maximum 15 points, got their goals off Syamim Yusof (seventh), Razie Rahim (ninth, 50th) and Akhtar Ali (31st).
  In another match, all-local outfit Tenaga Nasional beat Maybank 2-1, even though the Tigers had five foreign imorts in their ranks.
   Maybank took the lead off Hafifi Hafiz in the 43rd minute, but Tenaga replied two minutes later off Azammi Adabi and the winner was provided by veteran MHL player Amin Rahim with a powerful penalty corner drive in the 47th minute.
   Tenaga skipper Madzli Ikmar said their main problem is with converting chances into goals, as their attack-force is a young brigade.
   "We have Shahril (Saabah) upfront and he does most of the damage, but when he is rested, the young forwardline is still not ready to make sure when presented with a chance.
   "Overall, I believe the team has done well (with three wins) and we are looking forward to a better performance in the Second Round starting Sunday (today)," said Madzli.
   RESULTS: UniKL 0 KLHC 4; Tenaga 2 Maybank 1; Sapura 4 Terengganu HT 8.
  SUNDAY: Tenaga v KLHC (6pm, Pitch I); Maybank v Sapura (6pm, Pitch II); THT v UniKL (5pm, 
Terengganu).

STANDINGS

                                      P W D L F A Pts

KLHC                          5 5 0 0  19    5      15
TERENGGANU       5 4 0 1  22    10     12
TENAGA                  5 3 0 2     10    8    9
SAPURA                  4 1 1 3     8     16     4 
MAYBANK             5 0 2 3      8    13   2
UNIKL                     5 0 1 4       2    17   1

Hawgood for senior team?

THE Malaysian hockey team are set to receive an Australian coach, as soon as Neil Hawgood gets a release 

from the Indian HA.

Hawgood, 52, is a former Australian player who played in the 1988 Olympics. He played seven matches, 

scoring five goals, as the Australian team finished fourth.

Hawgood is currently coaching the Indian women’s team but he is expected to sort out his contract and be 

in Malaysia before the World League Round Two in Singapore on Jan 17-25. The Australian’s contract is till 

2016.

In the World League Round Two, top seeds Malaysia will play Bangladesh, Japan, Poland, Singapore, Oman 

and Ukraine. One more team will be the winners of the last Round One tournament which will be played in 

Suva, Fiji on Dec 6-13. The teams involved are Fiji, Samoa, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu.

After Hawgood retired as a player, he had coaching stints in London, Scotland, Queensland, Western 

Australia and now India.

The Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) has been on the hunt for a foreign coach since South African 

Paul Revington left early in the year, and has been playing musical chairs with K. Dharmaraj, Arul Selvaraj 

and now Tai Beng Hai to lead the Singapore charge.

If Malaysia finish in the top three in Singapore, they will play in the semi-finals of the World League, either 

in Argentina or Belgium, for a shot at the 2016 Olympics.

MHC officials declined to comment on the latest development, as president Tengku Abdullah Sultan 

Ahmad Shah has imposed a gag order.