FIH calls off Four-Nation in India

New Delhi - Confusion reigns supreme as to what led to the cancellation of the four-nation tournament in the capital but it now appears that the International Hockey Federation denied a go-ahead for the event because it had apprehensions about the preparedness of the National Stadium.
In his e-mail to Hockey India officials in which he explained why the world body did not give permission for the event, FIH Umpires Development Manager Richard Wilson said they had concerns about the venue.
"At the moment we are reluctant to grant approval, since it is not clear to us whether there will be a pitch ready to play the tournament on and whether the other associated facilities (such as pitch watering, goals/nets, changing rooms and other infrastructure) will be in place in time," Wilson said. At the same time, FIH was also apprehensive of the availability of top teams for the event.
"We also have concerns as to whether the teams you indicate that you will invite to play will be available at this late stage in their preparations for the World Cup," Wilson said.
Hockey India president AK Mattoo yesterday did not give any reasons for the cancellation of the tourney which was expected to be a Test event before the hockey World Cup and merely said that they were trying to pencil in a bilateral Test series against France.
Players demand dues, threaten to leave camp
The Indian hockey players have threatened to pull out of the ongoing national training camp in Pune if they are not paid their match fee for the recently concluded Champions Challenge I tournament in Argentina.

The Tribune

Sunday 'Scoop with Poon Fook Loke'

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2010!

1975 World Cup player Datuk Poon Fook Loke will take you through 50 years of foreign coaches in Malaysia and what we have achieved, in the New Sunday Times. Don't miss it.
1954: Gian Singh.
1966: V. Naidu.
1970: Ghafoor Khan.
1990: Terry Walsh.
1997: Volker Knapp.
1998: Paul Lissek.

ALSO: NEW DELHI: In what promises to be a rollicking start to next year's Hero Honda FIH Hockey World Cup , hosts India will take on arch-rivals Pakistan on the opening day of the mega-event to be held from February 28 to March 13.
According to event itinerary released by the International Hockey Federation on Tuesday, India will play Pakistan in the third Pool B match of the opening day, while Spain will take on South Africa in the tournament opener followed by the encounter between England and Australia.
India will next play Australia on March 2, and then take on Spain on March 4, followed by encounter against England on March 6 and finally round off their Pool stage with the game against South Africa on March 8.
Meanwhile, Olympic and World champion Germany will commence their defence on the second day on March 1 against Korea in Pool A. The day will also see New Zealand taking on Canada and the Netherlands facing Argentina.
The semi-finals of the tournament are scheduled for March 11, while the final will be played on March 13.
2010 FIH World Cup schedule:

Pool A: Argentina, Canada, Germany, Korea, Netherlands, New Zealand.
Pool B: Australia, England, India, Pakistan, South Africa, Spain.

Sunday February 28, 2010: 16:35 B South Africa vs Spain, 18:35 B Australia vs England, 20:35 B India vs Pakistan.
Monday March 1, 2010: 16:35 A New Zealand vs Canada, 18:35 A Germany vs Korea, 20:35 A Netherlands vs Argentina.
Tuesday March 2, 2010: 16:35 B South Africa vs England, 18:35 B Pakistan vs Spain, 20:35 B India vs Australia.
Wednesday March 3, 2010: 16:35 A Canada vs Germany, 18:35 A Argentina vs Korea, 20:35 A New Zealand vs Netherlands.
Thursday March 4, 2010: 16:35 B South Africa vs Australia, 18:35 B England vs Pakistan, 20:35 B India vs Spain.
Friday March 5, 2010: 16:35 A Korea vs New Zealand, 18:35 A Netherlands vs Canada, 20:35 A Germany vs Argentina.
Saturday March 6, 2010: 16:35 B Australia vs Spain, 18:35 B South Africa vs Pakistan, 20:35 B India vs England.
Sunday March 7, 2010: 16:35 A Korea vs Canada, 18:35 A New Zealand vs Argentina, 20:35 A Germany vs Netherlands.
Monday March 8, 2010: 16:35 B Spain vs England, 18:35 B Australia vs Pakistan, 20:35 B India vs South Africa.
Tuesday March 9, 2010: 16:35 A Germany vs New Zealand, 18:35 A Netherlands vs Korea, 20:35 A Canada vs Argentina.
Wednesday March 10, 2010: Rest Day. Thursday March 11, 2010: 15:35 Clas.11-12 6th Pool A vs 6th Pool B, 18:05 Semi-final 1st Pool A vs 2nd Pool B, 20:35 Semi-final 1st Pool B vs 2nd Pool A.
Friday March 12, 2010: 15:35 Clas. 9-10 5th Pool A vs 5th Pool B, 18:05 Clas. 7-8 4th Pool A vs 4th Pool B, 20:35 Clas. 5-6 3rd Pool A vs 3rd Pool B.
Saturday March 13, 2010: 15:35 Bronze medal match, 18:05 Final.

The Times of India

Maybank want it all

THE New Year will start with an explosive weekend in Penang, as Malaysia Hockey League (MHL) Premier Division leaders Maybank and Kuala Lumpur Hockey Club (KLHC) lock horns at the Universiti Sains Malaysia grounds.
Maybank top the standings only on goal difference, and second placed KLHC have the players to take over the reigns.
However, KLHC coach I. Vivekanandan is not in the mood to celebrate just yet.
“Maybank have showed consistency in their three matches they played, and being the leaders, I am sure they will not cave in easily.
“We will have to be careful not to give them too much of space, as they have speedy forwards,” said Vivekanandan.
KLHC basically have the same players who won the double for Ernst & Young last season, and even then then had difficulty when facing Maybank.
“It will be a difficult weekend for us as after we play Maybank, Nur Insafi is next. Lets not forget the fact that last year E&Y, with the same players I have now, beat Nur Insafi 10-0 but in the return leg in Penang, we had to come back from behind twice, to beat them 3-2.
“That is why I see this weekend as a crucial mid-way battle and the winner is likely to place his hands on the title,” said Vivekanandan.
While KLHC are cautious and will only travel to Penang today morning, Maybank are already at the Island, waiting for their opponents.
“We are ready to face KLHC and continue our run in the MHL. It will be a cracking weekend, but I expect my boys to keep the top spot.
“The match against KLHC will be energy sapping, and then there is not enough rest before we face Sapura the next day. But I am confident my players will not disappoint,” said Velappan.
SATURDAY: Sapura v UniKL-Ibil (4.30pm), KL Hockey Club v Maybank (6.30pm), TNB v Nur Insafi (8.30pm).
SUNDAY: TNB v UniKL-Ibil (4.30pm), Maybank v Sa pura (6.30pm), Nur Insafi v KL Hockey Club (8.30pm).
All matches will be held at the Universiti Sains Malaysia grounds.


STANDINGS

P W D L F A Pts
MAYBANK 3 3 0 0 9 2 9
KLHC 3 3 0 0 10 4 9
SAPURA 3 1 0 2 7 7 3
TENAGA 3 1 0 2 5 5 3
UNIKL 3 0 1 2 2 8 1
NUR INSAFI 3 0 1 2 4 11 1

Hunt for coach gone wild

WHAT Malaysian hockey need is an academy, not a foreign coach.
The Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) are still hunting for a suitable foreign coach to replace former national player Tai Beng Hai, but their targeted ‘victims’ have either asked for an astronomical salary package, or were scared off by the prospect of coaching a 15th ranked team.
But like full-blooded Greyhounds, MHF are still chasing coaches around the world, even though the scent and excitement of the hunt is fast disappearing, as reputable coaches are tied-down by contracts.
And even if the MHF manage to snare a foreign coach at this juncture, they might end up with someone who is of the same standard as our local coaches, or end up paying through their nose to pay-off the existing contract of a reputable coach.
The better idea is to have a pool of local coaches to handle the various age-groups, and increase their salary instead. But this idea, somehow, seems not to attract the keen nose of the MHF hunting party.
Coming back to the academy, Sports Minister Sports Minister Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek has announced that he is working to realise golf and motor-racing academies because both the industries are money spinners who need qualified people to run the show in the near future.
The cost for both the academies is expected to reach RM70 million, while a hockey academy can be established with minimal cost, as structure and synthetic turf are already in place at the Tun Razak Stadium.
A blueprint, dating back almost a decade, is in the possession of the MHF and if they care to read it again, Malaysian hockey can be saved from further embarrassment in the coming decade.
The plan almost became a reality in 2003, when the MHF selected 70 players from the Malaysia Schools Sports Council tournament in Kuantan, and went to meet the then National Sports Council director general Datuk Mazlan Ahmad.
The MHF delegation in ‘03 was led by the then deputy president Tan Sri P. Alagendra, the late secretary S. Sat gunam and current vice-president Datuk Dr S.S. Cheema.
But Mazlan poured cold water over their plans, as his argument was that the academy will clash with development at the two existing sports school.
“We went to see Mazlan today with the academy proposal but he was not receptive to the idea. He said it was similar to the other sports academy proposals and will not get off the ground.
“But he gave us the green light to use the Tun Razak Stadium to develop hockey,” this scribe had quoted Sat gunam then.
Many now know that Mazlan made a bad choice, as he should have, instead, taken hockey out of the sports schools and placed it in an academy.
The sports schools have too many disciplines under their wings, and taking hockey off their shoulders would have made more sense.
The proposed academy was also to train coaches, umpires, technical officials and take in players from the Asean region to strengthen hockey at the Sea Games level.
But it never took off, and 10 years later, we have a pool of so-so umpires, are still looking for a foreign coach, our technical officials are slowly fading away due to age, hockey is now not even a Sea Games sport, and Malaysia are struggling to qualify for the Olympics and World Cups.
Not to forget, if Mazlan had agreed to the academy in 2003, six years later Malaysia would have a bigger pool of players to select from, and could have even won the Asia Cup in Kuantan and qualified for the New Delhi World Cup.
The ifs will always linger around, so get out of the instant- noodles syndrome to hire a foreign coach, and instead, start an academy to groom our own officials and players.
If not, the ifs will surface again a decade from today.

Presidential target remains blur

Malaysia have their back to the wall at number 15.

2009 Malaysian Hockey In Review

MALAYSIAN Hockey Federation (MHF) president Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah took over the reigns of a sinking ship in October last year, and while most of the debts have been paid, his vision to break into the top-ten in the world will take much longer than he expected.
He entered a world which, in his own words, was quite alien and said that he will need all the help he can get from his state affiliates to realise his dream.
After a year at the helm, he has delivered his promise of bringing in the cash, and even the jaded Malaysia Hockey League (MHL) Premier Division is now shown live on tele vision and will travel out of Kuala Lumpur to woo more youth to take up the sport.
However, the 2-1 defeat to New Zealand in the World Cup Qualifier final has placed Tengku Abdullah and his council in a tight spot.
Malaysia only moved up a rung to 15th in the world in the latest International Hockey Federation (FIH) ranking, while China moved up three rungs to occupy the 10th spot, as they beat Malaysia on penalty strokes to win bronze in the Asia Cup in Kuantan.
The FIH do not take into consideration the ranking points for the 18 teams which competed in three World Cup Qualifiers, where Malaysia did outclass China to reach the final. In the FIH world of weird rankings, the points earned will only be accumulated after the completion of the New Delhi World Cup in March next year.
New Zealand, who struggled to beat Malaysia in the final, are eighth in the world. After the Qualifier, the Kiwis played in the Champions Challenge I, where they beat Pakistan 4-2 in the final and will play in the Champions Trophy next year.
The FIH ranking has shown that teams placed in the eighth to the 16th bracket are almost of the same standard and only separated by determination on match day.
This is the only plus point, which the MHF president and his council members can bank on to work even herded next year.
We have the players who can even upset world No 2 Australia, as they did in the 1-0 win at the Five-Test series in Melbourne, only to lose 11-3 to the Aussies the very next day.
The yo-yo performance is still a mystery, just like the coach issue which has been dragging since Tengku Abdullah took over in October last year.
Tai Beng Hai can now apply to be listed in the Malaysia Book of Records, for being the longest interim coach in the country. He has the distinction of holding the interim reigns for a year, and his assignments include the Azlan Shah Cup, the Champions Challenge II, the Asia Cup and the World Cup Qualifier.
And it looks like he is going to break his own record next year, as the MHF have yet to secure a foreign coach, while the Azlan Shah Cup, the Asian Games, Asian Champions Trophy and the Commonwealth Games await to strengthen his internship next year.
The Korean has said ‘aniyo’, the Dutch said ‘nee’ while the Aussie also said ‘norrr’.
It looks like Tengku Abdullah and his men must first decide on their coach, local or foreign, before they can work towards breaking into the top-10 in the world.
The Asian Games next year provides a direct entry into the London Olympics, and all we need to do is beat our Asian neighbours, which is not too much to ask from this talented squad.
HOW THEY FARED IN 2009:
AZLAN SHAH CUP: 1 India, 2 Malaysia, 3 New Zealand, 4 Pakistan, 5 Egypt.
CHAMPIONS CHALLENGE 11: 1 Poland, 2 Ireland, 3 France, 4 Malaysia, 5 Japan, 6 Russia, 7 Austria, 8 Chile.
ASIA CUP: 1 South Korea (qualified for 2010 World Cup), 2 Pakistan, 3 China, 4 Malaysia, 5 India, 6 Japan, 7 Bangladesh.
WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS: 1 New Zealand, 2 Malaysia, 3 Scotland, 4 China, 5 Austria, 6 Wales.