54th Razak Cup: Police the team to beat..

MALACCA will be out to defend their Division One Razak Cup title starting this weekend, but first, they have to shoot down favourites Police.
  Police, who won the Division Two title last season, won not only promotion but also gained national skipper Razie Rahim and midfielder Nabil Fiqri.
  Both of the joined Police training on May 8, but have received release letters to play in the Razak Cup.
  Police will also have former national players Baljit Singh Sarjab, who scored 17 goals last season, Kelvinder Singh, Jivan Mohan and Megat Azrafiq.
  "With the inclusion of the country's No 1 drag flicker Razie, I believe we have a good chance of finishing top-four in Division One," said former national player Gurmit Singh who will be coaching Police.
  Police are in Group A with defending champions Malacca, Johor and Pahang. In Group B are Kuala Lumpur, Perak, Terengganu and Negri Sembilan.
  ‘Malacca Hurricanes’, as they are better known, won the Razak Cup in 2005, repeated the feat in 2009 and defeated Perak 1-0 in the 2015 final for only their third title. They open their Division One campaign against Pahang Saturday which also sees Johor playing Police.
  Malacca skipper B. Namasivayam said: “Our early target is to qualify for the semi-finals. There are no easy matches as every team is geared up strongly for the Razak Cup.”
  “The Police team is also in our group and we are certainly expecting tough matches ahead," said Namasivayam.
  In the men's Division Two Group A are Penang, Selangor, Kedah, Perlis and in Group B are Armed Forces, Kelantan, Sarawak and Sabah.
  The prize money for Division One is RM10,000 for the champion, RM7,000 for runner-up and RM5,000 for finishing third. Division Two winner gets RM5,000, runners-up RM3,000 and third-placed team RM2,000.
  The women's Razak Cup will make its debut, 53 years after the men's tournament was incepted in 1963.
  A total of 12 state teams alongside Police and Armed Forces will compete in the inaugural women's league, bringing the total number of teams to 14 divided into three groups. Only Kelantan and Perlis have opted out.
  Pahang, Sarawak, Police, Johor and Selangor are in Group A. Kuala Lumpur, Negri Sembilan, Armed Forces, Terengganu and Sabah are Group B while Malacca, Perak, Penang and Kedah are in Group C.
  The women’s champions will receive RM5,000, runners-up RM3,000 and RM2,000 for finishing third.

AHF confirm Kuantan, ranking points for ACT

THE Asian Hockey Federation (AHF), in a meeting in Dubai yesterday, confirmed Malaysia as the hosts for the Fourth Edition of the Asian Champions Trophy.
  The tournament will be held in Kuantan on Oct 20-30, and will award International Hockey Federation (FIH) ranking points for the first time.
  Malaysia will be up against defending champions India, Pakistan, Japan, South Korea, China, and Bangladesh. The top-three teams will receive ranking points.
  For the record, Malaysia finished fourth in all three earlier editions.
  The AHF meeting was chaired by president Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, and it was also decided that countries which do not compete in the Asian Games, Asia Cup and Asian Champions Trophy will not be allowed to play in the relevant qualifiers for the World Cup and Olympics.
  The Asian Games and Asia Cup will remain as a qualifier for the World Cup and Olympics.
  The women's Asian Champions Trophy will be held in Singapore on Oct 29-Nov 6, and coach K. Dharmaraj's ladies will compete against India, South Korea, China and Japan.
  October if set t be a 'hockey fest' as the Sultan of Johor Cup will be held a day after the Asian Champions Trophy in Johor Baru.
  The junior invitational, on Oct 31-Nov 6, will showcase teams which has qualified for the New Delhi Junior World Cup. Malaysia, the only odd one out who did not qualify, will be up against Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Pakistan and England.
  All the three Malaysian teams competing in these tournaments will be playing in the Australian National League in September/October.