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Pic: SSTMI Cobra
THE Selangor Open Hockey 5s was a huge success as 66 teams battled for honours in four categories over the weekend at the Ministry of Education pitch in Kuala Lumpur.
Hockey 5' is an explosive short format played on a
half-regulation size pitch and Selangor Hockey Association is the first state to organise it.
In the Men's category, JLJ Army team edged Dolphins on a solitary goal scored by Shafiq Yacob. And in the women's category SSTMI beat SUKMA KL to emerge champions.
Selangor HA also plans to organise a League as well as introduce an indoor hockey league to help promote the sport.
Roll of Honor:
School Boys':
Champion: STAR Klang (RM 1,000)
Runner-up: St John B (RM 500)
Third: Bandaraya Boys (RM 250)
School Girls':
Champion: SSTMI Red (RM 1,000)
Runner-up: SSTMI BlueRM (RM500)
Third: KL Sports School A (RM250)
Women's Open:
Champion: SSTMI Cobra (RM1,500)
Runner-up: SUKMA KL (RM1,000)
3rd Place: KL Ladies (RM500)
Men's Open:
Champion: JLJ Army (RM1,500)
Runner-up: Dolphins (RM 1,000)
Third: Majlis Bandaraya Ipoh (RM500)
Best Goalkeepers:
Boys: Haziq Hairul (St John B)
Girls: Nor Sophia (SSTMI Red)
Women's: Priyanka Jayaraja (SSTMI Cobra)
Men's: Razain Ramli (JLJ Army)
Best Players:
Boys: Mohd Nizam B. Mohd Isa (STAR Klang)
Girls: Zarifah bt Abdul Aziz (SSTMI Blue)
Women's: Nor Aslinda bt Zaid (SSTMI Cobra)
Men's: Shafiq Yacob (JLJ Army)
A RECORD 30 teams competed in the just concluded MHC-Milo-NSC Junior Hockey League, and Tenaga Nasional are already planning to add two more next season.
JHL, since its inception in 1995 by the then National Sports Council director general Datuk Mazlan Ahmad and the late secretary of the now defunct Malaysian Hockey Confederation S. Satgunam, is the most successful junior development programme in the country.
There were only 11 teams in 1995, and it has seen tremendous growth with clubs clamouring to prepare teams and scouting for next season players in mid-season itself.
Thunderbolts, a product of Tenaga Nasional, fielded two teams this season and both entered the semi-finals of the Milo Cup. SSTMI Thunderbolts became the double champions for the fourth consecutive season, while their sister club SSP-MSP Thunderbolts finished fourth.
Former national skipper and now in charge of the Thunderbolts development programmes, Nor Saiful Zaini is planning to field two more Thunderbolts next season.
"You can see the progress made by both the Thunderbolts and we are in the midst of planning for two more for the next season because there are so many good players out there who are in need of support to shine," said Nor Saiful.
The other successful club is UniKL Young Guns, who have a sound development programme but have been unlucky at the final hurdle for five seasons.
UniKL ropes in national players and coaches every weekend to train, at least a hundred youth below 16, every weekend at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil under collaboration with the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC).
No fees are charged, and everyone is welcome to attend. There is even a goalkeepers' clinic conducted by national goalkeepers coach M. Nadarajan, who uses the latest techniques to teach children as young as 12.
Formed in 2010, UniKL have surprisingly played in six JHL finals todate because of the tiring efforts of a group of dedicated coaches and support staff led by their general manager Amir Azhar Ibrahim.
Petaling Jaya City Council (PJCC) are another solid example of dedicated coaches like Azlan Saufi Ahmad and and team manager Zainal Abidin who keep pushing their players to new levels, but were unlucky to finish third in League and Milo Cup.
The JHL will not be complete without the mention of Olak-PKT, a team which has only missed one season because they lacked financial support, but team manager Joseph de Silva passed the hat around and found a loyal supporter in PKT Logistics Group Sdn Bhd.
The funding force behind Olak is PKT CEO Datuk Michael B.Y. Tio: "With his support we have managed to secure some good players this season, but have bigger plans for next year as PKT also provides study scholarships for our players," said De Silva who is planning to rope in players from Division Two outfits Nur-Insafi PHA and Tunku Besar Secondary School, for next season.
The man who started the JHL Datuk Mazlan is proud that his legacy is now the talk of town: ""I think JHL is continuously serving it's purpose. One simple reason is that it attracts more teams. It's very encouraging to see junior teams, states, and schools expose their players at this platform."
"Competition, not just training, is an important ingredient in development. Fortunately JHL has very loyal sponsors who believe in youth. It made aspirations possible.
MILO have been the title sponsor of the JHL since its inception, and their commitment towards the tournament has increased over the years with significant funding made available not only for the JHL but also other age group tournaments such as the National Under-14 and Under-16 for boys' and girls'.
"JHL is an important component in grassroot development. There are always new faces who shine every season, and it offers a chance to Primary School children to watch competitive matches and aspire a bigger group to take up the sport," said Ng Ping Loong, Sports Sponsorship Manager of Nestle Products.
From the organisational aspects MHC did a great job as the JHL ran without hitches.
"We are grateful to the Technical Committee led by Jusvir Singh and Secretariat managed by Hashim Yusof for managing the tournament well," said MHC Competitions Committee Chairman M. Gobinathan.
SSTMI Thunderbolts lifted their fourth consecutive MHC-Milo-NSC Junior Hockey Legue double when they edged UniKL Young Guns 4-1 in a penalty shoot-out at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil yesterday.
Tied at 0-0 after regulation time ended, SSTMI showed maturity in the shoot-out with steady nerves to lift the Milo Cup but shared the combined prize money of RM25,000 for champions and RM15,000 for runenrs-up with the University side.
In the bronze playoff, Petaling Jaya City Council beat SSP-MSP Thunderbolts 3-1. The PJCC goals were scored by Haikal Zamri (4th) Faid Farhad (16th) and Faiq Razin (69th). The SSP-MSP goal scorer was Haziq Fawwaz (26th).
PJCC received RM12,000 while SSP-MSP RM10,000.
"We are of course happy to win our fourth consecutive JHL double but it was not easy this time around as UniKL put up a great fight and only that we were better in the penalty shoot-out. My players deserve credit for giving their all," said SSTMI Thunderbolts coach Wan Roslan Wan Rahman.
SSTMI have the best players in the country and some of them have been together for the past five years: "There are many quality players who shone this season in many other teams as well and the gap is slowly closing down on us. But I see this as a positive outcome as the country will benefit in the long run with a bigger pool of players," said Wan Roslan.
As for UniKL coach I. Vickneswaran, there was no shame in defeat.
"When I took charge of this team in January, the players were a motley crew which came from all obver the country, and I am proud of them because they managed to click together and share the prize money with SSTMI.
"I see this as a big achievement for my players, as many of them will have a brighter future in hockey if they continue playing like this," said Vickneswaran.
AWARDS: Most Outstanding Player (Chua Boon Huat Trophy): Maxhans Christie (UniKL, RM1,500); Fairplay: MSSD Larut Matang and Selama (RM4,000); Player-of-the-Final: Adi Fazri (uniKL, RM1,500); Best Goalkeeper: Syafifuddin Zain (SSTMI Thunderbolts, RM1500); Top-Scorer: Najme Ahmad 19 goals(Ismo-PHA, Division Two).
THE National women's hockey team failed at the last hurdle when they were edged 1-0 by Poland in the semi-finals of the World League Round Two in New Delhi yesterday.
Malaysia had scored a total of 18 goals in four matches and never let in a single one, until they met Poland in the last four.
Marlena Rybacha was the toast of the Poles, as her third minute penalty corner goal took them into the final, and also earned them a ticket into the World League Semi-finals where berths to the Rio de Janeiro Olympics are on offer.
For the record, it was only Marlena's fourth goal of the tournament which dashed Malaysia's hopes.
The other semi-finals late yesterday was between India and Thailand, with the hosts being hot favourites to advance to the final.
Malaysia will now play for the bronze but it would highly likely be a Sea Games warm-up against Thailand, and the medal would not take them into the WL Semi-finals.
The WL rules stipulate that the highest ranked bronze medallists in three of the Round Two tournaments will also advance, but Azarbaijan, ranked 19th, finished third in Montevideo and are eagerly awaiting qualification.
Malaysia are ranked 21st in the world.
UNIKL Young Guns will be playing in their sixth consecutive Milo Cup finals against SSTMI Thunderbolts in the MHC-Milo-NSC Junior Hockey League at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil today.
The University side made their debut in 2010, and lifted the Milo Cup by beating Thunderbolts who were known as Bandar Penawar Sports School back then.
However, in the next four Milo Cup finals, SSTMI Thunderbolts were the victors and last season it was on a 2-0 scoreline.
This year, SSTMI Thunderbolts beat UniKL 4-2 en route to lifting their fourth consecutive League title.
That is why UniKL coach I. Vickneswaran can't wait to shed the bridesmaid tag: "Even though we have been consistently finishing second, but I believe this time around it will be different."
"They (Thunderbolts) will enter the pitch as favourites but we can't let that affect us psychologically. In terms of experience and chemistry, Thunderbolts will have the upper hand as they not only have some of the best junior players in the country, but have also been together for many years.
"We have planned something special for the final, and hopefully it is enough to upset the formbook," said Vickneswaran.
SSTMI Thunderbolts have been cruising at top speed in the knock-out stage and it would be a major surprise if they do not lift their fourth consecutive double today.
However, Thunderbolts coach Wan Roslan Wan Rahman have brushed aside the favourites tag: “We may have got the better of them during the league, but I can assure you that it would not be so easy tomorrow (today). Both sides have their own strengths and it will all boil down to who can play their cards right.”
Wan Roslan is well aware of the threat that UniKL can pose and has made some tactical re-adjustment for the big game.
“UniKL are very dangerous when they push forward and we will also have to keep an eye on (S.) Deveandran and Norsyafiq (Sumantri), they pull the strings upfront and my defenders must neutralise them.”
National senior team skipper Azlan Misron, who is Down Under on Tour with his men to prepare for the Azlan Shah Cup, made his prediction for the Milo Cup.
“The final is too close to call as this rivalry has been going on for years now. But I predict Thunderbolts have the extra fire-power to come out tops, but on penalty shoot out. I predict a 2-2 full time score," said Azlan.
TODAY: Final -- SSTMI Thunderbolts v UniKL Young Guns (National Stadium Picth II, 5.30pm).
Third-Fourth: SSP-MSP Thunderbolts v Petaling Jaya City Council (National Stadium Picth II, 3.30pm).
