21/07/2003
THIS column is not to provide an excuse, but to clear the air on
Malaysia's performance in the first match against South Africa.
The fact is that the national hockey players were ready to maul the
hosts. And after skipper S. Kuhan scored the third minute penalty corner
goal everyone at the stadium, including both umpires, knew that the South
Africans were in for a hiding.
Every pass, stop, and attacking formation of our young forwards was
flawless - until German umpire Markus Meyer decided that he has to do
something to bail out the hosts.
National chief coach Paul Lissek, after the match, just shook his head
and said: "I know the umpire (Meyer). Maybe he was under tremendous
pressure to prove to everyone that he has nothing to do with Paul Lissek.
"That he was very neutral. Maybe I'm wrong, but that was the gut feeling
that I got during the entire match."
In the span of five minutes after Malaysia's opening goal, Meyer started
handing the South Africans dubious decisions, which even shocked some of
the local supporters.
The most glaring was in the 12th minute when he gave the South Africans
a penalty corner because the ball hit Madzli Ikmar's foot in the semi-
circle.
However, the truth is that South Africa were rewarded a free hit just
outside the semi-circle, and as Madzli was walking into the semi-circle
with his back to the ball, the free hit was swiftly taken and it struck
his foot.
Instead of blowing for a retake, Meyer blew for a penalty corner and
this blew the top of the Malaysian players.
Kuhan protested vehemently, and to a certain degree, the Malaysian
players were too angry to think clearly. Then Justin King levelled the
score with a low penalty corner flick.
Malaysia forgot about the goal and went on the offensive, but Meyer had
other plans. Malaysia lost the match because they played against 13
players.
At the other end, umpire Murray Grime from Australia picked up the tempo
for the hosts by sending Madzli to the sin bin - yes, docile Madzli who
will hesitate to swat a fly even if it was threatening his life.
After that, it was time for Chua Boon Huat to be taken out. Chua was
shoved from the back by Ken Forbes, and on his way down, his stick hit the
face of the South African.
While Chua deserved a technical red card, the South African should have
at least been handed the yellow. He walked away scot-free without as much
as a verbal warning from Grime.
The hosts' win was worth a single column in the local Sunday Times
newspaper. The heading read: SA hold up against fiery Malaysia.
The Times reporter wrote: "The Malaysians, although more defensively
inclined, scraped for everything and showed technical finesse. Indeed
there were many unforced errors from the Malaysians, a team with men of
goatees, pony tails and tempers perpetually threatening to come to the
boil."
The temperature was a cool 10 degrees Celsius but things were really
heating up at the Randburg Hockey Stadium yesterday because South Africa
fielded 13 players and the FIH officials turned a blind eye.
(END)
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Randburg misery continues
21/07/2003
Malaysia ..................1 New Zealand .....................1
South Korea ...............3 Spain ...........................2
England....................2 South Africa ....................0
RANDBURG: Malaysia held New Zealand to a 1-1 draw in the Champions
Challenge at the Randburg hockey Stadium here in South Africa yesterday to
keep their hopes alive.
The match belonged to the Malaysians but Tajol Rosli, who normally takes
his chances well in the circle, missed four sitters, forcing Malaysia to
share the points.
Malaysia adopted a defensive approach by fielding four players at the
back - Amin Rahim, K. Gobinathan, S. Kuhan and Nor Azlan Bakar - and the
gameplan worked as the Kiwis became extremely frustrated as the match
progressed.
It took New Zealand 18 minutes before they could test Malaysia's second
choice goalkeeper S. Kumar as Roslan Jamaluddin, who had a poor game
against the South Africans on Saturday, was benched yesterday.
Everything went well for Malaysia from the start with coach Paul Lissek
opting for Amin instead of striker Azlan Misron.
The Kiwis, who did not field penalty corner specialist Hayden Shaw who
is down with a stomach strain, were awarded a penalty corner in the first
half but Ryan Archibald's attempt was palmed away by Kumar.
However, a defensive error in the 32nd minute saw the Malaysians trail
by a goal.
It started when New Zealand were awarded a free hit outside the semi-
circle and just as all 11 Malaysians clamoured for position, Gareth Brooks
took advantage of the situation by taking a quick shot over Kumar's
shoulders.
Malaysia had four open chances at the New Zealand goalmouth but Tajol
Rosli, Riduan Nasir and Saiful Azli blew it.
And five minutes after resumption, Fairuz Ramli took the full force of a
clearance and had to be stretchered out. The medical team took almost five
minutes to strap a neck brack before taking him to hospital.
It took Ismail Abu to score for Malaysia in the 55th minute with a
reverse stick shot which sailed past goalkeeper Paul Woolford for the
face-saving equaliser.
In other matches, South Korea stunned Spain 3-2 while England defeated
South Africa 2-0.
Lee Jung Seon was the toast of the Koreans as he rallied his team-mates
in a tough encounter against the Spaniards and then notched a hat-trick to
keep their hopes alive.
The Spaniards, fresh from their 6-2 demolition of England on Saturday,
found the Koreans in an uncompromising mood.
But on the rare occasion that they did cross the 25-yard line in the
fifth minute, Eduard Tubau dribbled past goalkeeper Ko Dong Sik and tucked
in the ball.
But that was as far as they went in the first half as the Korean
defenders closed ranks.
The Koreans piled on the pressure and received their third penalty
corner in the 47th minute.
Lee Jung Seong's flicked the ball past the goalkeeper. And when the
Koreans were awarded the fourth penalty corner eight minutes later, they
celebrated first before Lee flicked it home to give them a 2-1 lead.
The Spaniards clawed back into the game through Xavi Ribas in the 65th
minute with a low flick from a penalty corner.
South Korea made the most of the attacks after that, and Lee notched his
hat-trick when he pounced on a penalty corner rebound in the 64th minute.
England's win over South Africa has thrown the tournament wide open.
(END)
Malaysia ..................1 New Zealand .....................1
South Korea ...............3 Spain ...........................2
England....................2 South Africa ....................0
RANDBURG: Malaysia held New Zealand to a 1-1 draw in the Champions
Challenge at the Randburg hockey Stadium here in South Africa yesterday to
keep their hopes alive.
The match belonged to the Malaysians but Tajol Rosli, who normally takes
his chances well in the circle, missed four sitters, forcing Malaysia to
share the points.
Malaysia adopted a defensive approach by fielding four players at the
back - Amin Rahim, K. Gobinathan, S. Kuhan and Nor Azlan Bakar - and the
gameplan worked as the Kiwis became extremely frustrated as the match
progressed.
It took New Zealand 18 minutes before they could test Malaysia's second
choice goalkeeper S. Kumar as Roslan Jamaluddin, who had a poor game
against the South Africans on Saturday, was benched yesterday.
Everything went well for Malaysia from the start with coach Paul Lissek
opting for Amin instead of striker Azlan Misron.
The Kiwis, who did not field penalty corner specialist Hayden Shaw who
is down with a stomach strain, were awarded a penalty corner in the first
half but Ryan Archibald's attempt was palmed away by Kumar.
However, a defensive error in the 32nd minute saw the Malaysians trail
by a goal.
It started when New Zealand were awarded a free hit outside the semi-
circle and just as all 11 Malaysians clamoured for position, Gareth Brooks
took advantage of the situation by taking a quick shot over Kumar's
shoulders.
Malaysia had four open chances at the New Zealand goalmouth but Tajol
Rosli, Riduan Nasir and Saiful Azli blew it.
And five minutes after resumption, Fairuz Ramli took the full force of a
clearance and had to be stretchered out. The medical team took almost five
minutes to strap a neck brack before taking him to hospital.
It took Ismail Abu to score for Malaysia in the 55th minute with a
reverse stick shot which sailed past goalkeeper Paul Woolford for the
face-saving equaliser.
In other matches, South Korea stunned Spain 3-2 while England defeated
South Africa 2-0.
Lee Jung Seon was the toast of the Koreans as he rallied his team-mates
in a tough encounter against the Spaniards and then notched a hat-trick to
keep their hopes alive.
The Spaniards, fresh from their 6-2 demolition of England on Saturday,
found the Koreans in an uncompromising mood.
But on the rare occasion that they did cross the 25-yard line in the
fifth minute, Eduard Tubau dribbled past goalkeeper Ko Dong Sik and tucked
in the ball.
But that was as far as they went in the first half as the Korean
defenders closed ranks.
The Koreans piled on the pressure and received their third penalty
corner in the 47th minute.
Lee Jung Seong's flicked the ball past the goalkeeper. And when the
Koreans were awarded the fourth penalty corner eight minutes later, they
celebrated first before Lee flicked it home to give them a 2-1 lead.
The Spaniards clawed back into the game through Xavi Ribas in the 65th
minute with a low flick from a penalty corner.
South Korea made the most of the attacks after that, and Lee notched his
hat-trick when he pounced on a penalty corner rebound in the 64th minute.
England's win over South Africa has thrown the tournament wide open.
(END)
Spain bent on title
21/07/2003
SPAIN will stop at nothing to win the Champions Challenge gold medal, as
they crave to join the world's elite six hockey playing nations.
Unlike the rest of the five countries in Randburg, South Africa who want
the experience to prepare for the Olympics and World Cup, Spain are hungry
for the glitter of gold.
"We are not here for exposure, but to win the gold medal and rejoin the
elite six in the world. Our objectives are clear from the onset, and the
players know their mission," said coach Francisco Cortes.
The 6-2 hiding they handed England was a clear warning for the other
teams which harbour any hopes.
And though they lost 3-2 to South Korea yesterday, their aspirations
would appear to remain intact, given the open field at this stage of the
tournament.
On the European Championships, Cortes was more realistic: "It is our
dream to beat the best in Europe, but we will leave it at that.
Realistically, we are still far behind Germany and the Netherlands."
Before the Challenge, Spain played a series of matches against Germany,
the Netherlands, Argentina and India.
"Believe me, we got our butts kicked in most of the matches. But that is
the only way to improve, we need to play more matches against Champions
Trophy teams.
"The only way to get that exposure is to win the Challenge in South
Africa," said Cortes.
Spanish skipper Juan Escarre, 33, is still as fit as ever and rallied
his team-mates to play like champions.
"We have the best team available for the Challenge, and we had to leave
three more budding players back home because only 18 can be fielded here.'
(END)
SPAIN will stop at nothing to win the Champions Challenge gold medal, as
they crave to join the world's elite six hockey playing nations.
Unlike the rest of the five countries in Randburg, South Africa who want
the experience to prepare for the Olympics and World Cup, Spain are hungry
for the glitter of gold.
"We are not here for exposure, but to win the gold medal and rejoin the
elite six in the world. Our objectives are clear from the onset, and the
players know their mission," said coach Francisco Cortes.
The 6-2 hiding they handed England was a clear warning for the other
teams which harbour any hopes.
And though they lost 3-2 to South Korea yesterday, their aspirations
would appear to remain intact, given the open field at this stage of the
tournament.
On the European Championships, Cortes was more realistic: "It is our
dream to beat the best in Europe, but we will leave it at that.
Realistically, we are still far behind Germany and the Netherlands."
Before the Challenge, Spain played a series of matches against Germany,
the Netherlands, Argentina and India.
"Believe me, we got our butts kicked in most of the matches. But that is
the only way to improve, we need to play more matches against Champions
Trophy teams.
"The only way to get that exposure is to win the Challenge in South
Africa," said Cortes.
Spanish skipper Juan Escarre, 33, is still as fit as ever and rallied
his team-mates to play like champions.
"We have the best team available for the Challenge, and we had to leave
three more budding players back home because only 18 can be fielded here.'
(END)
Nightmare for Malaysia
20/07/2003
IT was a nightmare beginning for Malaysia in the Champions Challenge as
they were greeted with one red card, one yellow and two soft goals - which
presented hosts South Africa the perfect opening match at the Randburg
Hockey Stadium yesterday.
Malaysia had a good grip of the match until Madzli Ikmar was flashed the
yellow, followed by a red card for Chua Boon Huat minutes later. And the
match was lost.
Chua received a one-match suspension and will not feature against New
Zealand today.
The Malaysians entered the pitch oozing with confidence, and after a
long spell, looked like they were going for a win.
The young forwards - Tajol Rosli, Azlan Misron and P. Prabahkaran -
ripped the South African defence apart, but good goalkeeping by Dave
Staniforth stood in their way.
After numerous pressing attacks, Malaysia took the lead from a penalty
corner in the third minute.
Skipper S. Kuhan sent a low ball, which went crashing into the net and
silenced the 1,000-odd fans.
While the forwards became bolder, Malaysia's defenders cracked under
pressure, allowing the South African strikers too much space for which and
they were punished with a penalty corner.
Justin King sent a low flick on the left of goalkeeper Roslan Jamaludin
and South Africa were back in the match.
Malaysia had 70 per cent possession in the last few minutes of the first
half but the umpire failed to check on dangerous stick-checks employed by
the South Africans, and the score remained.
After the restart, the national team kept up the pressure and got their
break in the 39th minute. But K. Gobinathan's low shot did not connect at
the other end.
The South Africans became frustrated started shoving our players around.
In the 49th minute, Charl van der Merwe was sent to the sin-bin for a bad
tackle on Madzli Ikmar and Malaysia started pressing forward more
urgently.
But just as Merwe came back into the match, Madzli Ikmar was sent to the
sin-bin. South Africa were awarded with a penalty corner which was tucked
in by King for the lead.
To make matters worse, Chua Boon Huat was flashed the red card after he
lifted his stick too high, which caught the face of South Africa's Ken
Forbes.
Malaysia, reduced to nine players, now had a mammoth task of finding the
equaliser.
South Africa pulled further ahead in the 53rd minute when Emile Smith
sounded the board after a mistake by Malaysian defenders.
In the first match of the day, South Korea were held 0-0 by a fighting
New Zealand but there was an element of good news for Malaysia, who face
the Kiwis today.
The towering Kiwi penalty corner specialist Hayden Shaw was used
sparingly in the first half due to a stomach strain.
"We will field him against Malaysia today, because the strain is not too
bad. Today (yesterday) we rested him as a precautionary measure," said
Oscroft.
In the second match, Spain beat England 3-1 to sound an early warning in
their title quest.
The Spaniards scored off a fifth minute penalty corner when Xavi Ribas
sent in a crackling flick.
But England drew level with a 12th minute penalty corner by Dave
Mathews.
Spain were not in a compromising mood and surged ahead with two goals in
two minutes. Ribas was on target again in a 34th minute penalty corner and
just after restart, Pol Amat sounded the board with a superb field goal
for a comfortable lead.
After the breather, Spain hammered in three more goals via Eduard Tubau
(40th, 68th) and Amat (44th).
England scored a 70th minute goal off Jerome Goudie but it made no
difference.
Malaysia.........1 South Africa....... 3
New Zealand......0 South Korea........ 0
England .........2 Spain ..............6
(END)
IT was a nightmare beginning for Malaysia in the Champions Challenge as
they were greeted with one red card, one yellow and two soft goals - which
presented hosts South Africa the perfect opening match at the Randburg
Hockey Stadium yesterday.
Malaysia had a good grip of the match until Madzli Ikmar was flashed the
yellow, followed by a red card for Chua Boon Huat minutes later. And the
match was lost.
Chua received a one-match suspension and will not feature against New
Zealand today.
The Malaysians entered the pitch oozing with confidence, and after a
long spell, looked like they were going for a win.
The young forwards - Tajol Rosli, Azlan Misron and P. Prabahkaran -
ripped the South African defence apart, but good goalkeeping by Dave
Staniforth stood in their way.
After numerous pressing attacks, Malaysia took the lead from a penalty
corner in the third minute.
Skipper S. Kuhan sent a low ball, which went crashing into the net and
silenced the 1,000-odd fans.
While the forwards became bolder, Malaysia's defenders cracked under
pressure, allowing the South African strikers too much space for which and
they were punished with a penalty corner.
Justin King sent a low flick on the left of goalkeeper Roslan Jamaludin
and South Africa were back in the match.
Malaysia had 70 per cent possession in the last few minutes of the first
half but the umpire failed to check on dangerous stick-checks employed by
the South Africans, and the score remained.
After the restart, the national team kept up the pressure and got their
break in the 39th minute. But K. Gobinathan's low shot did not connect at
the other end.
The South Africans became frustrated started shoving our players around.
In the 49th minute, Charl van der Merwe was sent to the sin-bin for a bad
tackle on Madzli Ikmar and Malaysia started pressing forward more
urgently.
But just as Merwe came back into the match, Madzli Ikmar was sent to the
sin-bin. South Africa were awarded with a penalty corner which was tucked
in by King for the lead.
To make matters worse, Chua Boon Huat was flashed the red card after he
lifted his stick too high, which caught the face of South Africa's Ken
Forbes.
Malaysia, reduced to nine players, now had a mammoth task of finding the
equaliser.
South Africa pulled further ahead in the 53rd minute when Emile Smith
sounded the board after a mistake by Malaysian defenders.
In the first match of the day, South Korea were held 0-0 by a fighting
New Zealand but there was an element of good news for Malaysia, who face
the Kiwis today.
The towering Kiwi penalty corner specialist Hayden Shaw was used
sparingly in the first half due to a stomach strain.
"We will field him against Malaysia today, because the strain is not too
bad. Today (yesterday) we rested him as a precautionary measure," said
Oscroft.
In the second match, Spain beat England 3-1 to sound an early warning in
their title quest.
The Spaniards scored off a fifth minute penalty corner when Xavi Ribas
sent in a crackling flick.
But England drew level with a 12th minute penalty corner by Dave
Mathews.
Spain were not in a compromising mood and surged ahead with two goals in
two minutes. Ribas was on target again in a 34th minute penalty corner and
just after restart, Pol Amat sounded the board with a superb field goal
for a comfortable lead.
After the breather, Spain hammered in three more goals via Eduard Tubau
(40th, 68th) and Amat (44th).
England scored a 70th minute goal off Jerome Goudie but it made no
difference.
Malaysia.........1 South Africa....... 3
New Zealand......0 South Korea........ 0
England .........2 Spain ..............6
(END)
Malaysia ready to push back when shoved
20/07/2003
AFTER months of training and preparing for the big day, the Malaysian
hockey team is finally exuding an air of confidence unseen for a long
time.
The Champions Challenge starts today at the Randburg Hockey Stadium in
South Africa, and Malaysia have the unenviable task of starting their
campaign against the host country.
And the fact that South Africa are ranked 13th in the world while
Malaysia are 10th, will not count, as it is the norm for the host country
to plan the fixtures in a way that they play, who they perceive as the
weakest team, first.
The South Africans picked Malaysia as their first opponents because in
the last Champions Challenge in Malaysia, they beat us to reach the final.
Malaysia played a friendly against the South Koreans yesterday
(Thursday) and did the country proud by making a gallant comeback in the
last 10 minutes to hold the Olympic silver medallists 3-3 after trailing
1-3.
The young Malaysian players showed that they are ready to push back when
they are shoved.
Chief coach Paul Lissek used Jiwa Mohan, Chua Boon Huat and K. Keevan
Raj as a defensive midfield and, finally, strike trio Tajol Rosli, Ismail
Abu and Azlan Misron started receiving the ball more regularly.
Malaysia always had problems in midfield but it looks like Lissek has
finally found the right recipe.
South Korea's coach Jeon Jaeng Han, while impressed with the Malaysian
team's progress since the Azlan Shah Cup in Ipoh in January, still feels
Malaysia will struggle in the tournament because they do not have the
physique to challenge the bigger built players from New Zealand and
England.
"Malaysia now have some very exciting and young forwards (Azli Misron,
Ismail Abu, Tajol Rosli and Azlan Misron) who are very skillful with the
ball. But they don't have the build and it will be very easy for big
defenders from Europe to shove them aside," said the experienced coach.
But on the Malaysian front, the morale is very high and it looks like
the opponents will have to bring out their best to shove aside our
`petite' strikers.
South Africa are resigned to the fact that they will finish in mid-
table, but they have set their sights on beating Malaysia in the opening
encounter.
England and New Zealand played a friendly yesterday and neither side
looked impressive in the 1-1 draw - a good sign for Malaysia.
Malaysia have beaten all five teams in the Challenge in the past, and
with South Korea targeting the Asia Cup in Kuala Lumpur in September as
their No 1 goal for this year, a good finish can be expected from the
young Malaysians.
Skipper S. Kuhan made it clear that they will fight tooth-and-nail to
boost hockey's sagging fortunes.
"We have been training very hard for tomorrow (today) and my team-mates
are physically and morally very upbeat. This is a good chance for Malaysia
to break into the top-six bracket in the world and we are not going to let
it slip," said Kuhan.
(END)
AFTER months of training and preparing for the big day, the Malaysian
hockey team is finally exuding an air of confidence unseen for a long
time.
The Champions Challenge starts today at the Randburg Hockey Stadium in
South Africa, and Malaysia have the unenviable task of starting their
campaign against the host country.
And the fact that South Africa are ranked 13th in the world while
Malaysia are 10th, will not count, as it is the norm for the host country
to plan the fixtures in a way that they play, who they perceive as the
weakest team, first.
The South Africans picked Malaysia as their first opponents because in
the last Champions Challenge in Malaysia, they beat us to reach the final.
Malaysia played a friendly against the South Koreans yesterday
(Thursday) and did the country proud by making a gallant comeback in the
last 10 minutes to hold the Olympic silver medallists 3-3 after trailing
1-3.
The young Malaysian players showed that they are ready to push back when
they are shoved.
Chief coach Paul Lissek used Jiwa Mohan, Chua Boon Huat and K. Keevan
Raj as a defensive midfield and, finally, strike trio Tajol Rosli, Ismail
Abu and Azlan Misron started receiving the ball more regularly.
Malaysia always had problems in midfield but it looks like Lissek has
finally found the right recipe.
South Korea's coach Jeon Jaeng Han, while impressed with the Malaysian
team's progress since the Azlan Shah Cup in Ipoh in January, still feels
Malaysia will struggle in the tournament because they do not have the
physique to challenge the bigger built players from New Zealand and
England.
"Malaysia now have some very exciting and young forwards (Azli Misron,
Ismail Abu, Tajol Rosli and Azlan Misron) who are very skillful with the
ball. But they don't have the build and it will be very easy for big
defenders from Europe to shove them aside," said the experienced coach.
But on the Malaysian front, the morale is very high and it looks like
the opponents will have to bring out their best to shove aside our
`petite' strikers.
South Africa are resigned to the fact that they will finish in mid-
table, but they have set their sights on beating Malaysia in the opening
encounter.
England and New Zealand played a friendly yesterday and neither side
looked impressive in the 1-1 draw - a good sign for Malaysia.
Malaysia have beaten all five teams in the Challenge in the past, and
with South Korea targeting the Asia Cup in Kuala Lumpur in September as
their No 1 goal for this year, a good finish can be expected from the
young Malaysians.
Skipper S. Kuhan made it clear that they will fight tooth-and-nail to
boost hockey's sagging fortunes.
"We have been training very hard for tomorrow (today) and my team-mates
are physically and morally very upbeat. This is a good chance for Malaysia
to break into the top-six bracket in the world and we are not going to let
it slip," said Kuhan.
(END)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
