Asian Games: Women's hockey on Category B ..

By Jugjet Singh

June 22, 2018 @ 7:46pm

Media spotlight.. Abdul Azim (orange stripes) mobbed at the corridors of Olympic Council of Malaysia.

KUALA LUMPUR: Seventeen sports associations tried their luck to travel to the Asian Games in Jakarta for free, but the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) were in no mood to hand out Hari Raya ang-pows yesterday.
  Games Chef-de-mission Datuk Seri Abdul Azim Zabidi said they stood by the fourth-best mark for qualification on merit.
  Athletes who travel on Category A will be fully sponsored while those who go to the Games on Category B will have to boot their own expenses, and need to win a medal to be reimbursed.
  "We received 17 appeals but only entertained the addition of three officials and 10 athletes, while many were rejected based on their ranking and past achievements.
  "Athletes or teams need to be fourth best in Asia to travel on A, while the rest will go on B. Earlier our contingent was 570 athletes and officials, and now 583, which is still a manageable size," said Abdul Azim at Wisma OCM.
  Women's hockey, earlier reported to be in category A, will travel on B, if the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) is willing to foot expenses.
  "Women's hockey is ranked fifth in Asia and the earlier confusion was because they had finished fourth in the Asian Champions Trophy, but that was not one of the tournaments used as a yardstick.
  "They appealed, but we said no to them," said Abdul Azim.
  Among the other notable sports' appeals to Caregory A which were rejected are -- men's soccer, women's badminton team, men's three-on-three basketball, handball, kabaddi, silat, sepak takraw, shooting, artistic swimming, table-tennis, jet-ski and rugby.
  And with a bigger number of athletes than the previous Games in Incheon, Abdul Azim expects the number of medals to be about the same or more than the 33 won.
  "We will have more athletes than 2104 in South Korea, so realistically, I will be expecting them to at least win 33 or more medals in Jakarta," said Abdul Azim.
  Malaysia won 5-14-14 in South Korea.
  And on the drink diving issue, Abdul Azim feels an apology from the national divers is enough said, and done.
  "The divers have apologised, and so they will be competing in the Asian Games. Period."
  Three Podium Programme divers — Pandelela Rinong, Nur Dhabitah Sabri and Chew Yiwei — as well as four juniors Jellson Jabillin, Gabriel Gilbert Daim and Kimberly Bong and Tracy Vivian Tukiet were involved in a party during the Chinese New Year, where they consumed beer.

Dharmaraj: Go for gold, with due respect..

By Jugjet Singh

June 22, 2018 @ 7:43pm

Kirandeep Kaur (left) playing against boys at the recent Matador HC tournament at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian women's coach K.Dharmaraj wants nothing but gold in the Hockey Series Open starting in Singapore today.
  Malaysia, at world n 22, will open accounts against Indonesia (no ranking) while the other teams are Hong Kong (world no 43), Kazakhstan (34th), Thailand (28th) and Singapore (35th).
  Not one to boast without a reason, Dharmaraj cautioned his charges to be confident, but at the same time respect their opponents.
  "We are the highest ranked team here and are expected to win the tournament even though the top-two qualify for the next round," said Dharmaraj.
  "But then again, we need to respect every team as overconfidence can cause many problems."
  Hockey Series Open is a rebranding exercse by the International Hockey Federation (FIH) and was known as World League Round One. It serves an an Olympic qualifier.
  For the record, Malaysia hosted the World League Round Two last year and won a silver medal against much higher ranked teams.
  And on Indonesia: "Our opening match will be very interesting as Indonesia is coached by Malaysian (M.) Mahendran. Although they are not ranked by the FIH, we will not underestimate them."
  Dharmaraj also included 15-year-old Kirandeep Kaur in the squad, a player who will earn her first international cap.
  "Kiran proved during training she is no pushover even though she is only 15, and she is not here for a holiday. She can expect to be utilised when a game situation warrants," said Dharmaraj.
  Whatever the outcome in Singapore, Kirandeep has made history for herself as becoming the youngest player to be selected for Malaysia's senior side.

MHC Competitions Committee yet to welcome new members

By Jugjet Singh

June 18, 2018 @ 5:42pm

KUALA LUMPUR: After writing a 'Thank You' note to eight competitions committee members on Feb 26, manager Brian Fernandez has yet to send out a 'Welcome' notice to new members until Monday.
  The Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) have been running their skeleton crew competitions committee since then, chaired by George Koshy and managed by Fernandez.
  As a re-cap, the competitions committee had “retired” eight of their members about four months ago after their term expired, and are still looking for new blood for another term.
  Manager Brian Fernandez had said back then, that he was instructed to write the “Thank You” emails to all their members by chairman Koshy.
  The previous members, who served for a year, said they only attended one meeting on June 10 last year.
  And now, the 'competitions committee' has recommended to do away with Division One in the Malaysia Hockey League (MHL) next season, leaving about 10 clubs in jeopardy.
  The plan is to host only the Premier Division, and this has not gone down well with many states who run clubs as well.
  A state secretary who declined to be named questioned the validity of the competitions committee's decision.
  "Have they recruited new members from states to fill up seats vacated by the eight members? If not, who decided to remove Division One from the MHL?," questioned the secretary.
  When contacted, Kooshy said: "After the new Competitions committee members are informed and they accept their appointment, I’m sure MHC will update the media.
  "Any changes (to the MHL format) will only be known after it (the matter) has been deliberated by the competitions committee at their next meeting," said the chairman.
  The competitions committee were tasked with revamping the sagging MHL and they decided to only host the Premier Division next year.
  Eight teams have registered for the Premier Division and they are  University Kuala Lumpur (UniKL), Terengganu Hockey Team (THT), Maybank, Tenaga Nasional, TNB Thunderbolts, Nur Insafi, Penang Hockey Club and UiTM.
  Last season, six teams competed in Premier Division while 13 teams in two groups in Division One.
  But the MHC are only interested in about 10-12 teams to play in the Premier.
   Among the Division One clubs which will be hit hard if MHC carry out their plan are Politeknik-KPT, PJCC Tigers, Pahang Juniors, Kedah HC, RMAF Rajawali, Selangor and Ipoh City Council -- to name a few.

Sarjit: Re-think plan to scrap Division One

By Jugjet Singh

June 17, 2018 @ 4:16pm

KUALA LUMPUR: Former national coach and Olympian Sarjit Singh feels the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) should have a re-think about their plan to scrap Division One from next season's Malaysia Hockey League (MHL).

  MHC's competitions committee, chaired by George Koshy, were tasked with revamping the sagging MHL and they decided to only host the Premier Division next year.

  Eight teams have registered for the Premier Division and they are  University Kuala Lumpur (UniKL), Terengganu Hockey Team (THT), Maybank, Tenaga Nasional, TNB Thunderbolts, Nur Insafi, Penang Hockey Club and UiTM.

  "The plan to scrap Division one is not in tandem with development in mind, as it will deprive many players from having a platform to gain experience after they are no longer eligible for the JHL (Junior Hockey League).

  "MHC must ponder about their priorities. If they only want to see a small group of players competing in the MHL, then they can do away with the Division One.

  "But if they want to develop a larger pool of players, then Division One is a very important tournament," said the former national captain who played at the 1984 Los Angeles and 1992 Barcelona Olympics.

  In the MHL, Sarjit had played for Tenaga Nasional and Yayasan Negri Sembilan.

  Last season, six teams competed in Premier Division while 13 teams in two groups in Division One.

  But the MHC are only interested in about 10-12 teams to play in the Premier.

  "If this becomes a reality, those who don't make it for the Premier will only have an option to play in the state leagues as well as Razak Cup, and no other avenue to showcase their talent."

  Among the Division One clubs which will be hit hard if MHC carry out their plan are Politeknik-KPT, PJCC Tigers, Pahang Juniors, Kedah HC, RMAF Rajawali, Selangor and Ipoh City Council -- to name a few.

MHC plan to scrap Division One

By Jugjet Singh

June 16, 2018 @ 5:12pm

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) may organise only the Premier Division in next year’s Malaysia Hockey League (MHL).

The confederation plans to scrap the Division One competition, a move which will deprive up-and-coming players from at least 10 clubs an avenue to hone their skills.

MHC's competitions committee, tasked with reviving the MHL, came up with a plan to only have 10 to 12 teams in the Premier Division next season.

"Yes, our revamp will only see teams competing in the Premier Division, while there will not be a Division One next season," confirmed competitions committee manager Bryan Fernandez.

Last season, six teams played in the Premier Division while Division One attracted 13 teams.

Only eight teams sent in their entries for next year’s Premier Division.

They are University Kuala Lumpur (UniKL), Terengganu Hockey Team (THT), Maybank, Tenaga Nasional, TNB Thunderbolts, Nur Insafi, Penang Hockey Club and Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM).

Missing from the list were Kuala Lumpur Hockey Club (KLHC), who won the Charity Shield and finished second in the league as well as the TNB Cup last season.

For the record, KLHC won the Premier Division six times and were crowned champions five times in the TNB Cup.

MHC are hoping that at least four more teams will play in the Premier Division next year.

Among the Division One clubs which will be hit hard if MHC carry out the culling are Politeknik-KPT, PJCC Tigers, Pahang Juniors, Kedah HC, RMAF Rajawali, Selangor and Ipoh City Council.

However, there is a glimmer of hope

"If clubs and states put up a strong case we might consider reinstating the Division One competition. We have plenty of time to think about it, as it will only be held next year," said MHC president Datuk Seri Subahan Kamal.