Thunder.. Thunder.. Thunderbolts!

SSTMI Thunderbolts claimed their fourth straight Division One league title when they beat SSP -MSP-Thunderbolts 3-1 in the MHC-Milo-NSC Junior Hockey League at the Taman Daya Stadium in Johor Baru Friday.

  UniKL earned the second spot when they drew 1-1 with Petaling Jaya Municipal Council. Thunderbolts ended with 22 points, UniKL 19 points while PJCC had 18 points when the dust settled.

  However Thunderbolts, whose only blemish this season was a 2-2 draw with PJCC, received an early wake-up call when SSP -MSP-Thunderbolts took the lead off Idris Samad in the sixth minute when he flicked home off a penalty corner attempt.

  But Firdaus Omar drew level off a penalty corner goal in the ninth minute, while field goals from Luqman Hakim (34th) and Danial Asyraf (65th) made sure the silverware remains with the double champions.

  Now, coach Wan Roslan Wan Rahman wants his charges to life the Milo Cup as well.

  "We received a jolt in the sixth minute, but I never doubted that my players will fail in the final hurdle today (yesterday) and they recovered nicely to score three goals and defend our title.

  "The scoreline does not reflect the match, as my players were guilty of missing many sitters. However, now that we have lifted one title, we will be going for our fourth consecutive double as well when the Milo Cup starts," said Wan Roslan.

  For UniKL Rauf Nazri delivered off a penalty corner attempt in the 27th while ashraf zuhry (52nd) scored the equaliser off a penalty corener goal as well.

  Thunderbolts, UniKL, PJCC and Pahang SS have qualified for the knockout Milo Cup. Four more teams will join them from Division Two.

  RESULTS: Division One: SSTMI Thunderbolts 3 SSP-MSP-Thunderbolts 1, PJCC 1 UniKL Young Guns 1, SSTMI Juniors 3 Bukit Jalil SS 3.

 Division Two playoffs: 1 Mas TBSS Tampin 2 BJSS Jrs 2; 1 Mas Perlis x SMKDBKL PHJ x.

 Saturday -- DIVISION One: Politeknik Malaysia v BJSS (Taman Daya I), SSTMI Juniors v  KLHC (Taman Daya II).

  Division Two Playoffs: BJSS Juniors v Nur Insafi-Penang Hockey (National Stadium II), SMKDBL PHJ v MSN-THT (National Stadium II, 6.45pm).

  Note: All other matches 4.45pm.

ends/

MHC treasurer Radha: Give us two weeks to settle bills

MALAYSIAN Hockey Confederation (MHC) treasurer Datuk N. Radhakrishnan yesterday confirmed that they body has many unsettled bills to honour, but gave an assurance that everybody will receive their due in the next two weeks.
  Officials, umpires, clubs and national players cried foul last weekend when their allowances, winning purse, bonuses and other monetary promises have fallen on deaf ears since last year.
  MHC are said to be in the red, but president Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah will fork out some cash and settle the matter before bowing out of the Confederation.
  "Yes, whatever that has been written about non-payment on our part is true, but the wheels are already turning to make sure payment is made in the next two weeks," said Radhakrishnan.
  The treasurer met Tengku Abdullah, together with MHC secretary general Datuk Johari Aziz to settle the matter.
  "We have contacted some of the sponsors who have yet to oblige their pledges and the outcome is positive. Also, Tengku Abdullah will fork out some personal cash to settle the overdue issues.
  Umpires and match officials, about 50 of them, have yet to receive allowances and traveling costs for officiating at the Malaysia Hockey League which ended in December.
  Each MHL umpire and official is owed at least RM3,000 by the MHC.
  Even match winnings for the top-four teams in the MHL has yet to be settled. The MHC owe TNB CUP clubs a whopping RM190,000. Champions Terengganu Hockey Team (Rm70,000), runners-up Kuala Lumpur HA (RM50,000), bronze medallists Tenaga Nasional (RM40,000) and fourth-placed Maybank (RM30,000) have yet to see the promised purse.
  "I understand the hardships faced by individuals and clubs because of late payment, and apologise for the delay. Rest assured that we are doing all we can to honour everybody we owe," said Radhakrishnan.
  MHC al;so owe TNB CUP roll of honour players Fitri Saari (best player of the final), Faizal Saari (top-scorer, 17 goals) and Hafizuddin Othman (best goalkeeper) RM2,000 each.
  Tenaga are the title sponsors for MHL and other domestic tournaments, to the tune of RM2 million per-year.
   Satates are also still awaiting for the promised subsidy of RM3,000 each for the Raja Noora Ashikin Cup in November.
   On the player-side Faizal, after scoring 12 goals and being named the Best Player in the Singapore World League, refused to attend training since because bonus promises made by certain MHC officials were never realised.
   MHC are at the verge of finalising their election date, and Tengku Abdullah has made a stand of not seeking re-election for the president's post as he wants to concentrate on his Asian Hockey Federation (AHF) president's post, as well as make a move to be elected as an executive board member of FIFA.
  The MHC are said to be in the red to the tune of RM2million, because they also owe at least three officials about RM100,000 each after they forked out personal cash to bail out overseas trips as well as promised bonuses to players for qualifying for the World Cup.

Nasihin: Women ready for challenge..

THE Malaysian women's hockey team will attempt to break their jinx and qualify for the World League Semi-finals for the first time, and its not a piped dream.
  The women will play in the World League Round Two in New Delhi from March 7-15, and are seeded second after becoming champions in the World League Round One in Singapore last year.
  "We are in a good group with teams which we have beaten before and that's why I'm confident that we will play in the final and earn our ticket to the WL Semi-finals this time around," said coach Nasihin Nubli.
  The World Hockey League is a qualifier for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
  Malaysia, ranked 21 in the world are in Group B with Russia, Singapore and Kazakhstan.   World No 13 India, are the top seeds and have Poland, Ghana and Thailand in Group A.
   Nasihin said Russia will be Malaysia’s biggest hurdle to finish tops in their group, and earn a favourable draw by playing the bottom placed team from Group A in the quarter-finals.
  “We beat Russia in our last meeting (in 2013), and I believe we can do the same in New Delhi if we take our chances well," said Nasihin.
  He will select 20 players and head for New Delhi on March 3 were at least four friendlies will be played before Nasihin names his final 18.
  The Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) have set a top-two target for the women.
  MALAYSIA'S FIXTURES -- March 7: Malaysia v Kazakhstan; March 8: Malaysia v Russia; March 10: Malaysia v Singapore.
  Note: All eight teams qualify for quarter-finals.

Umpires flash red card to MHC

UMPIRES and match officials yesterday blew the whistle and flashed a red card to the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) who still owe them money from last year.
  Joining the chorus were four Malaysia Hockey League (MHL) semi-finalists, as they too have yet to receive their TNB Cup winnings -- even though the finals were held in December last year.
  And Faizal Saari is also said to have jumped ship after the Singapore World League Round Two, as he and his team-mates have been promised cash incentives since qualifying for the World Cup, but have yet to see the money.
  "We have been waiting for a long time as we have only received empty promises when ever we called to inquire about our allowances for the MHL. Each umpire and official are waiting for at least RM3,000 and there are 50 of us on the empty promises list," said an official who declined to be named.
  Terengganu Hockey Team, who won the TNB Cup, are still awaiting for their RM70,000. The same goes for runners-up Kuala Lumpur Hockey Club (RM50,000), bronze medallists Tenaga Nasional (RM40,000) and fourth placed Maybank (RM30,000).
  The TNB CUP roll of honour is also still not honoured, as THT players Fitri Saari (best player of the final), Faizal Saari (top-scored, 17 goals) and Hafizuddin Othman (best goalkeeper) were supposed to receive RM2,000 each.
  Tenaga are the title sponsors for MHL and other domestic tournaments, to the tune of RM2 million per-year.
  Faizal, after scoring 12 goals and being named the Best Player in the Singapore World League, refused to attend training since because promises made by certain MHC officials were never realised.
  An official who is close to Fazial said: "He is a very good player, but has been disillusioned since promises were broken after the World League Semi-finals in Johor Baru. Some quarters promised the team the sky if they qualified for the World Cup, but were no where to be seen or heard after Malaysia finished fifth and qualified for the Netherlands World Cup.
  "Players, umpires and even officials are in a quandary as they have not received their match bonuses and allowances for a long time," lamented an official.
  The financial situation of the MHC is really in dire states, as even state affiliates have not received participation subsidy of RM3,000 each for the Raja Noora Ashikin Cup in November.
  Faizal has agreed to turn up for training on Wednesday to join his mates as they get ready for the Azlan Shah Cup in April, but if money still does not reach their pockets, more players might just turn their backs on Malaysia. 

AGAIN: Faizal playing hide-and-seek with coach..

FAIZAL Saari is back at his worst.
  After scoring 12 goals, and being named as the best player in the Singapore World League Round Two Faizal has failed to show up for a single training session, and even coach Tai Beng Hai has no idea where he is.
  And this is not the first time the striker has gone Awol from national duty, or been in trouble with the coaching set up. After the World Cup, he was dropped from the Commonwealth as well as Asian Games squad for his erratic bahavior.
  "I have not been able to contact Faizal since we returned from Singapore, and yes, he has not attended any training or returned calls made to him," said Beng Hai.
  Malaysia are currently playing a series of friendlies against Egypt at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil.
  When contacted Faizal answered his hand phone: "I'm busy and can't talk," was all he said before hanging up.
  After Singapore, Faizal did say that he has received an offer to play in Division Two of the German league, but it is only starting in March.
  "I have tried contacting Faizal many times, but he did not answer my calls and I do not know where he is or what are his plans. Anyway, we are playing against Egypt today (yesterday) as early preparations for the Azlan Shah Cup said Beng Hai.
  Against Egypt Malaysia lost 3-1 and won the second 2-1: "I fielded 11 who did not play in Singapore to give them some playing time ahead of Azlan Shah selections.
  "The results against Egypt does not matter, as I test fringe players," said Beng Hai.
  Results do not matter but fitness does, as a recent test conducted showed that all the players were at a very low level. Infact, the Malaysian men's fitness level are even even below that of a women's team in a neighbouring country.
  When Beng Hai was told about this fact he was surprised.
  "Really? A test was conducted after we returned from Singapore but I have yet to see the results, so I can't comment on this issue yet," said Beng Hai.
  The Azlan Shah Cup will be held in Ipoh on April 5-12, and Malaysia have world No 1 Australia, India, New Zealand, South Korea and Canada for company.
  Malaysia's top assignment this year is the World League Semi-Finals in June which is a qualifier for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
  Meanwhile, The Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) will hold their Council Meeting on March 7, EGM on March 22 and AGM on May 13.