Hakim Is Good, But Lazy

SHAHID Ali Khan with Hakim (in Black).

NATIONAL goalkeepers’ coach Shahid Ali Khan sees promise in junior Hakim Adnan provided he sheds his lazy attitude in training.

Hakim will be the player between the posts for Malaysia in the Junior Asia Cup which starts on Friday in Hyderabad, India.

The tournament offers three tickets to the 2009 Junior World Cup but co-hosts Malaysia and Singapore need not sweat.

Malaysia are in Group A with Singapore, Japan and India, while in Group B are Bangladesh, South Korea, Oman and Pakistan.

“Hakim has the height and is agile and I see a great future for him, but he is lazy and does not like training. Also, he does not keep fit when left on his own.

“I am working to change his attitude, as I believe he can challenge seniors goalkeeper (S.) Kumar in a few years,” said Shahid, who was a former Pakistan international.

The No 2 juniors goalkeeper is Safiuddin Sahrom, but he is unlikely to see much action in Hyderabad.

“Goalkeepers are so well protected these days that one rarely gets injured. Most teams have started with only one goalkeeper so that they can have an extra man in outfield,” said Shahid.

“We also fielded one goalkeeper in many of the Azlan Shah Cup matches and I believe this will be the trend in the Asia Cup too.”

Shahid is also impressed with five young goalkeepers he saw in action at the Terengganu Malaysia Games.

“I will call them for a training stint soon and select a few who show promise to have a bigger pool of goalkeepers.”

Currently Kumar is the No 1, while the others are miles behind.

The Wright Way To Beijing

SUPER MOM: Thelma Wright (1972, 1976; 1,500 metre run)

UBC athlete Anthony Wright is the fifth Canadian Olympian in his family - photo by Martin Dee

By Basil Waugh
Forgive Olympic historians for experiencing déjà vu when Anthony Wright takes to the field hockey pitch in Beijing this summer.

In what surely is an Olympic record, the graduating Human Kinetics student and his national squad and UBC teammate Philip Wright, his younger brother, will become the fourth and fifth members of his family to sport the maple leaf in Olympic competition.
“It feels pretty special,” says Anthony Wright, 24, who counts late grandfather Harold Wright (1932, track and field), mother Thelma Wright (1972, 1976; 1,500 m run) and father Lee Wright (1964, 1976; field hockey) as fellow Olympians.
“I’ve been dreaming of the Olympics since I was five,” says the hard-nosed defender. “For field hockey players, qualifying for the Olympics is our Stanley Cup. You train with one goal in mind with no guarantee that you will achieve it. It is a dream come true.”
Wright, whose parents are both UBC alumni, has added to his family’s impressive athletic legacy in other ways. Winner of the 2008 Bobby Gaul Memorial Trophy as UBC’s Outstanding Graduating Male Athlete of the Year, he followed in the footsteps of his mother, who received the equivalent honour for female athletes in 1974.
Wright chalks up his Olympic development to healthy doses of nature and nurture.

“My parents have been incredibly supportive,” he says: “But I guess it also helps when both your parents are Olympians, gene-wise.”
With seven other current or former Thunderbirds joining Wright on Canada’s 18-member Olympic team, Beijing should be something of a coming-out party for UBC’s men’s field hockey program. League champion for the past three years, the team has not lost a Vancouver Men’s Field Hockey Premier Division game since 2005.
Wright attributes the program’s powerhouse status to three factors: some serious globetrotting, the coaching of former Canadian Olympic team coach Shiaz Virjee, and the distinct advantage of playing home games on Wright Field, a world-class artificial turf facility named in honour of his Olympic forbear Harold Wright.
In addition to UBC trips to Spain and Malaysia, Wright has toured extensively with Canada’s national team, attending the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Australia and qualifying for Beijing by winning gold at the 2007 Pan American Games in Brazil.

He supplemented these team experiences with a semester of study at University of Queensland thanks to UBC’s Go Global international exchange program.
“Field hockey is not a mainstream sport in North America, so you need to travel to play the top players,” Wright says.

“Seeing how huge the sport is in other countries and learning how they play the game has been essential to my development and an amazing experience.”
Out of appreciation for the opportunities he has been given as an athlete, Wright has been a regular volunteer with I’m Going To UBC, which pairs varsity athletes with inner city kids for campus tours, sports clinics and T-Birds games, with the ultimate goal of increasing access to post-secondary education for children who may think it is beyond their grasp.
He also visits with local elementary students every month as part of the Canadian Olympic Committee’s Adopt-an-Athlete program, and will write them weekly by email from Beijing.
Wright has also been a heavy-hitter in UBC’s School of Human Kinetics where he has been a finalist for the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship and a three-time Academic All-Canadian for maintaining an average grade of 80 per cent or higher.

Under-20 for Asia Cup

Junior goalkepeepers after training.

Goalkeepers' coach Shahid Ali Khan training his charges for the Asia Cup.

NATIONAL Juniors coach V. Muraleedharan has set his sights on the semi-finals in the Asia Cup in Hyderabad, India, on July 11-18.

Three tickets to the 2009 Junior World Cup will be on offer in Hyderabad, but since Malaysia have qualified by virtue of being hosts, the Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) selected only players who will be eligible to play next year.

Malaysia open their campaign against Singapore, who have also qualified as co-hosts, and Muraleedharan is confident of three points.

Malaysia have Japan, India and Singapore in Group A, while Bangladesh, South Korea, Oman and Pakistan are the Group B cast.

“Even if Singapore field Under-21 players, I believe we will win three points, and then we will have to beat either Japan or India to qualify for the semi-finals,” said Muraleedharan after naming the 18 for Hyderabad yesterday.

There will be five new additions from the recent European Tour, where Malaysia only won two of nine matches played.

“I believe the team is now stronger and we will aim for the semi-finals.”

The squad: Hakim Adnan, Safiuddin Sahrom; Kazamirul Nasruddin, Sybrie Shamsuddin, Nor Hafiq Gaffar, Marhan Jalil, Noor Khairul Azrain, Khairil Anuar, Shafiq Zain, Hang Edzharsyah, Andika Rahis, Fitri Bakar, Azammi Adabi, R. Nadesh, Fareez Ismail, Faizal Saari, Azreen Rizal. Coach: V. Muraleedharan; Assistant coach: K. Rajan; Manager: Ranjit Singh.

Meanwhile, it has been brought to Timesport’s attention that in a report headlined “Bleak future for Muraleedharan’s squad”. which appeared on June 28, a quote which read: “These are the best players in the country today, but they do not measure up, because the schools system has failed to hammer the basics in them,” was wrongly attributed to Muraleedharan. The error is regretted.

MPGA Strikes Back

MALAYSIAN Professional Golfers Association (MPGA) secretary S. Selvakumar believes the Asian Tour should not interfere in Malaysia’s domestic problems.
On Thursday, Asian PGA Executive Chairman Kyi Hla Han singled MPGA as not interested in developing their pros: " "Unfortunately, the Malaysian PGA is the only organisation which we have had problems with over the years and it’s hindering the growth of Malaysian golf," added Han.
Selvakumar said: "The Asian Tour has not fulfilled its financial obligations with the MPGA since the 2006 Johor Open.
"So, the Asian Tour chairman should not interfere with the affairs of the MPGA, as he has no authority to talk about professional golf in Malaysia."
On the expulsion of a group of players, Selvakumar said: "The decision was taken after giving the said golfers a chance to explain themselves.
"Even after an 11-month appeal period, they did not bother to appeal, and the MPGA did not want to be held to ransom by a group of indisciplined players."
The MPGA statement also read: "The leading professionals in the world today like Vijay Singh and Jeev Milkha Singh all played in the Malaysian Tour which was sanctioned by the MPGA.
"They have excelled with the experience from the Malaysian Tour. Even Kyi Hla Han himself gained from the Malaysian Tour when his own country could not provide him the playing experience."
Selvakumar also said that the MPGA has its own Order of Merit, which is recognised world-wide.
"The MPGA is a growing organisation, currently with 180 members and we hope to have more than 300 members by the middle of 2009," said Selvakumar.
Selvakumar also emphasised the need for the states to ensure that MPGA sanctions these tournament so that local professionals get the benefit.
"Why must tax payers' money be spent on foreign players? Where is the desire to give more seats to locals when they are the ones who need tournaments to hone their skills?"

Asian Tour Kicks MPGA in Groin

(Picture is of Thongchai Jaidee)

THE Asian Tour yesterday took a broad-side sweep at the Malaysian Professional Golfers Association (MPGA), claiming that it was not interested in developing its pros. In a statement, Asian PGA executive chairman Kyi Hla Han singled out MPGA as the only golf body in the region that it has not been able to work with in its goal to develop the professional game across Asia. “Over the years, the Asian Tour has been invited to sanction professional golf tournaments in no fewer than 16 countries.

“We have worked closely with national PGAs and golf associations and subsequently helped develop the game in places like India, Thailand, Singapore, China and South Korea. “This in turn has produced great champions like Jeev Singh, Thongchai Jaidee, Mardan Mamat, Liang Wen-chong and K.J. Choi,” said Han.

“Unfortunately, the MPGA is the only organisation which we have had problems with over the years and it’s hindering the growth of Malaysian golf.”

Han said the Malaysian PGA was not representing the best interests of Malaysian golf and its players.

He also revealed that a new tournament was moved from Malaysia to Thailand earlier this year due to problems within MPGA and warned that professional golf in Malaysia could suffer as sponsors take events to neighbouring countries.

“The MPGA recently suspended over 20 of Malaysia’s best professional players like Airil Rizman, Danny Chia and Iain Steel and interestingly, these players have formed a new Malaysian players’ body,” said Han.

“As the Asian Tour is a players’ organisation, we expect the MPGA to adhere to the same principles as us and work towards enhancing the careers of their players. We are deeply disappointed that the MPGA has done very little to develop golf and is clearly not looking after the interests of Malaysian players.

“Sponsors and state governments are wary of dealing with the MPGA because of its perennial problems. Sponsors do not want the MPGA’s sanction as it does not represent Malaysia’s best players or their interests.”

The Asian Tour, Han added, has supported Malaysian players by providing country exemptions for them to play on Tour and also through places in the Qualifying School .

“Through playing opportunities on the Asian Tour, Airil and Danny have won titles in Pakistan and Taiwan and Iain has also performed very well over the last few years.

“Upcoming players like Ben Leong, S. Siva Chandran, Steven Tan and Khor Kheng Hwai are cutting their professional teeth on the Asian Tour.”

The Asian Tour has been invited by the Selangor state government to sanction the RM1 million Selangor Masters at Seri Selangor Golf Club from Aug 6-9.

A strong contingent of 32 Malaysian players will have the opportunity to rub shoulders with the stars from the Asian Tour.

The leading eight Malaysian professionals ranked on the Asian Tour will gain exemptions while another 10 players will earn places through a domestic ranking system as determined by the Selangor Masters organising committee and Asian Tour.

A qualifying tournament, opened to local professionals and amateurs with a handicap of three and below, will be held for 10 slots while four places will also be offered to the country’s leading amateurs as part of efforts to help develop golf in Malaysia .