Stadium rental too steep..

HOCKEY clubs are crying foul at Stadium Malaysia Corporation for raising the price of rental at both the National Hockey Stadium pitches in Bukit Jalil as well at the Tun Razak Stadium.
  And with the Junior Hockey League (JHL) starting on Jan 15, the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) is trying its best to negotiate a lower price.
  Last year, it was RM130 for the MHC to rent for one match (two hours) at Bukit Jalil, but the new season will see teams paying RM250 to RM300.
  And at Tun Razak, which is also under the Stadium Corporation, the rates for night remains at RM120, but the minutes have been reduced from 90 to 60 minutes.
  However, for daytime it has now doubled to RM80 per hour, from RM40.
  All these rates are exclusive of Goods and Services Tax (GST).
  An MHC official said he was shocked last year itself, as when he booked for the JHL it was RM130, but bookings for the Malaysia Hockey League went up to RM300.
  Clubs have been venting their frustration on social media, and MHC CEO K. Logan Raj said they are in discussion with the Stadium Corporation to get a better deal for their affiliates.
  "After we received the revised rates, we met Stadium Corporation members and had a few discussions. The Corporation said the increase is because of certain factors, but they are looking at giving MHC and our affiliates a better rate," said Logan.
  One club official, who declined to be named, said: "We hope  the Stadium Corporation would have a re-look at the high rental and lower time allotted at their hockey stadiums.
  "This is because teams use their facilities to compete in the JHL, MHL, social matches, university games and certain schools and clubs training projects.
  "From our (clubs) point of view, the high rates and lesser playing time would make teams train less for tournaments and this would bring down the quality of players over the long run," said the official.
  For private clubs at Bukit Jalil its now RM300 for two hours while schools are charged RM150 for two hours. Last year it was half the rate.
  Comparatively, at the Kuala Lumpur Hockey Stadium the rates are much lower. Its RM40 per-hour for bookings from 8am to 4pm, and RM50 per-hour from 4pm to 7pm. At night under the floodlights, its only RM90 per hour.

Stephen van Huizen's 40

  SENIOR TRAINING SQUAD: S. Kumar, Hairi Rahman, Hafizuddin Othman,  Hazrul Faiz, Razie Rahim, Sukri Mutalib, Aslam Hanafiah, Izad Hakimi, Harmesh Singh, Harmeet Singh, Shahrun Nabil, Shazril Irwan, Baljit Singh, Nabil Fiqri, Azri Hassan, Harvinder Singh, Joel Samuel Van Huizen, Faiz Helmi, Marhan Jalil, Fitri Saari, Ramadan Rosli, Norhizzat Sumantri, Meor Azuan, Rashid Baharom, Dedy Ariyadi, Hafiz Zainol, Faridzul Afiq, Dangerous Lee, Firhan Ashari, Shahril Saabah, Haziq Samsul, Izwan Firdaus, Firdaus Omar, Amirul Aideed, Najib Abu Hassan, Sufi Ismat, Ridzwan Azmi, Nik Aiman, Najmi Jazlan, Nor Syafiq Sumantri. 

Tenaga bank on K. Rajan to revive BJSS

TENAGA Nasional are not only title sponsors of the Junior Hockey League (JHL), but will also have four teams battling for honours starting Jan 15.
  It all started with Bandar Penawar Sports School (BPSS) Thunderbolts, which evolved into Sekolah Sukan Tunku Mahkota Ismail (SSTMI) Thunderbolts and became a winning machine which has four consecutive doubles under their belt (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015).
  BPSS were never in the picture before the Thunderbolts programme was introduced nine years ago, as back then the champions were Bukit Jalil Sports School (BJSS) who has seven League and five Overall titles.
  The Thunderbolts programme by Tenaga is now in three other schools -- BJSS, Pahang Sports School and Anderson.
  Former national juniors coach K. Rajan, a Tenaga employee, has been tasked to revive BJSS' fortunes.
  "BJSS used to be the feared school in JHL as they won seven straight League titles from 2003 to 2009 (and Overall titles in 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2009).
  "But after the Thunderbolts programme was introduced in BPSS, BJSS were left far behind. Tenaga has started the programme in BJSS this season, and hopefully the school will start producing results again in a few years time," said K. Rajan who also used to coach Tenaga in the JHL.
  Three Thunderbolts will play in Division One, while Anderson in Division One.
  "There will be a standard training format for all Thunderbolts, but when we come to a head-to-head clash, there will be no mercy for our sister teams as each has targets to achieve.
  "In a way, this programme will develop a big pool of young players for the country," said Rajan.
   Tenaga are the only all-local team in the Malaysia Hockey League, and with four junior teams as feeders for the senior side, they are spending their money wisely and not lavishly by hiring foreigners to play in the MHL all the other teams.
  This JHL season will see 10 teams in Division one and 26 teams divided into three zones in Division Two.
  Nine teams will play in the South Zone, eight in Central and nine in North. This was done to cut down on travelling as well as cost per team.

Junior HL: MHC agree to host 36 teams

THE MALAYSIAN Hockey Confederation (MHC) competitions committee Saturday decided to accommodate six late entries, turning the Junior Hockey League (JHL) into a record 36-team tournament this season.
  Last year there were 30 teams, and the same number registered when entries closed.
  But Malacca Young Hurricanes, Anderson PHA, Seratas, MSSWPKL, SM Sains Johor and MISCF-UFL placed their entries anyway -- and the competitions committee chaired by George Koshy did not want to deprive anybody of playing hockey.
  "On a positive note, the record entries shows that hockey is a popular sport in the country and many teams are hungry to play in junior tournaments.
  "But we need to wait and see if quality balances with quantity," said Koshy.
  Ten teams will play in Division One, where SSTMI Thunderbolts have been reigning supreme with four back-to back doubles.
  In Division Two, the 26 teams will be divided into South, Central and North Zones
  "Nine teams will play in the South Zone, eight in Central and nine in North. This was done to cut down on travelling as well as cost per team.
  "The top-two teams in each Zone will then be divided into two groups and the top team in each group will play in the final," said George.
  Division Two will see Felda and Malay College Kuala Kangsar play in the North and Central Zones respectively.
  The JHL was incepted in 1995 when the late Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) secretary S. Satgunam proposed, planned and kick-started a league to develop youth.
  "Even if each team only produces one good player, we will have 36 quality players to be trained for the country. Hopefully, teams in Division Two make and impact by playing good hockey and not just make up the numbers," said Koshy.
  The tournament starts on Jan 15, and MHC will provide a grant of RM3,000 per-team.
  DIVISION ONE: SSTMI Thunderbolts, UniKL Young Guns, Pahang Sports School, Old La Sallians of Klang (Olak-PKT), SSTMI Juniors, Bukit Jalil Sports School, Politeknik Malaysia, Petaling Jaya City Council, Nur Insafi and SMK Datuk Bentara Luar Johor.
   DIVISION TWO: North Zone: Perlis Young Lions, Perlis Young Lions Jnrs, Matri Perlis, MSSD Larut Matang, MSS Kedah, MSSP Penang, Kedah HA-MSNK, Seratas, Malay College Kuala Kangsar.
  Central Zone: Sek Tuanku Abdul Rahman, Felda Juniors, Anderson Thunderbolts, MSNPK-ILHC, Anderson Perak HA, BJSS Juniors, MSSWPKL, MISCF-UFL.
  South Zone: TBSS-Tampin, Malacca High, Young Hurricanes, SMK Datuk Taha, Sabah Sports School, MSNT-Terengganu HT, Pahang Hockey Academy, Datuk Bentara Luar Jnrs, SMS Sains Johor.

To a better hockey year for Malaysia...