MJWC: Malaysia: Sarjit: Well go for fifth spot
 |
| Malaysia |
July 4, 2005
New Straits Times
> Page Views 1284
Jugjet Singh in Rotterdam
MALAYSIA will be chasing to finish fifth in the Junior World Cup today when they meet hosts Belgium at the Rotterdam Hockey Club.
A semi-final berth is out of reach because of mistakes in their first round matches, but coach Sarjit Singh and his boys are confident of playing in the fifth-eight bracket.
"Losing to Argentina (1-0) and Germany (7-5) in the first round has dashed our hopes of a top-four finish, but we are still in the running for fifth, and Belgium will be the first hurdle," said Sarjit.
Sarjit and consultant Paul Lissek watched Belgium draw 0-0 with Argentina, and there was an air of confidence in the Malaysian camp as they jotted down the Belgians’ weaknesses.
"We have done our homework, and I feel we have a good chance of finishing fifth in this World Cup," said an upbeat Sarjit.
The Belgians, however, said that they are in this World Cup to build a side for next year’s European Championship, and that the results do not matter at this stage.
"We have only been training for eight months because most of my players had league or examination commitments. That is why we have decided that results will not matter in this World Cup," said Belgium coach Pascal Kina.
Kina said he will watch a video of the Australia-Malaysia match, and prepare his team accordingly as they did not do any homework on Malaysia.
On the Malaysian front, the forwards, especially Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin, showed great form against Australia but were disappointing in the other three matches.
"Tengku said he does not feel comfortable in this World Cup, and that is why his game has slackened, but he played well against Australia. I hope the other forwards will also pick up momentum," added Sarjit.
Of the 12 goals Malaysia have scored in the World Cup to date, eight came from defender Zulkiffli Rejab, and one each from S. Selvaraju, Azli Misron, Ismail Abu and Shukri Mutalib.
The forwards, for reasons known only to them, have been goal-shy and prefer to win penalty corners because Zulkiffli's stick has been on fire in this tournament.
After Belgium, Pakistan are next and if Malaysia can collect a maximum of seven points in the second round they will play in the fifth-eighth bracket.
Your opinion counts.
Rate this article or enter your comments below.
|
