Double blow for Sports School

BUKIT Jalil Sports School (BJSS) received a double blow this season as the new format for the local league will rob them of one tournament, and they will only be fielding under- 17 players.
BJSS, the double champions last year, have a collection of ten titles under their belt -- six League and Four Overall. They were the ‘unbeatable’ in the JHL since 2003, as they won 24 out of 25 matches - losing only to Petaling Jaya City Council in the 2006 Overall title hunt.
Last season, BJSS fielded a team in the Junior Hockey League (JHL) and also played in the Malaysia Hockey League (MHL), but a change in format will see them play in only one tournament this year.
The Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) competitions committee has decided that this year, there will no longer be a JHL and MHL, but a premier Division and Division One for the seniors, and Division Two and Three for the under-19 boys.
And unlike previous years, the Under-19 team or their players cannot take part in the Premier and Division One.
“Last season we were in an ideal situation because BJSS played in the MHL and also the JHL, but it looks like we will have to make do with only one tournament after the format was changes,” lamented BJSS coach S. Prakash.
But Prakash does not mind fielding only under-17 boys, as his older charges are in training for the Junior World Cup on June 7-21.
The MHF have also decided not to release the World Cup trainees for the local leagues.
“We were a much stronger team in the past seasons because we had pre-university boys with us, but this year, we will only be fielding under-71 boys.
“But that is not a problem, because the duty of the school is to provide national material, and we are glad to be able to blood more youngsters,” Prakash.
But with the new format, the quality playing hours of BJSS boys will be drastically reduced.
The under-19 tournament will start on Feb 20, while the Premier Division is slated sometime in October.