Malaysia

BY S. RAMAGURU

KUALA LUMPUR: The time has come for the Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) to form a permanent “development squad” which can serve as a feeder squad for the national team.

In the late eighties there was a national “B” team but a lack of tournament for them to play in led to the squad being disbanded.

Now that the MHF have decided to accept an invitation to play in a four-nation meet in Singapore from Aug 24-28, a development or B team will be assembled under national Juniors coach Sarjit Singh.

Former national coach C. Paramalingam said the time is right for a permanent team to be formed.

“I agree that a development squad is needed now more than ever. It can be a platform for the national juniors who failed to find a place in the senior team, to train and gain exposure and also to prove their worth.

“I think the MHF should seriously look into forming such a team,” said Paramalingam.

For the Singapore meet later this month the MHF are likely to pick mostly players from the Under-18 squad as most of the senior and junior players are involved in the Malaysia Hockey League which will only end on Sept 11.

The team have not been selected but Malaysia are slated to play against South Korea, Hong Kong and Singapore in the four-nation meet.

MHF coaching committee chairman Datuk R. Yogeswaran (pic) said that they have discussed the status to form a permanent development team and a working paper has been submitted to the MHF management committee.

“It is not a new idea and we at the committee level have discussed the matter. There is certainly merit in having a permanent team and it is now left to the MHF to decide.

“At the same time we have to ensure that the team assembled have tournaments drawn up for them to play in. It must have meets where they can go and gain exposure and also for the players to be monitored and their performances evaluated. We also want to have a uniform coaching structure for all levels,” said Yogeswaran.

The MHF currently have four national teams – the senior, junior (Under-21), Under-18 and the Under-16 teams who all have their own programme and tournaments to play in.

But there is gap between the juniors and the seniors. Currently from the 2005 national junior squad only eight players are expected to make the senior training squad.

The other 10 to 12 players will have to play in domestic meets to impress the selectors and coaches but very often they just fade away after playing for the clubs.

Paramalingam said that a few of these players with the right guidance and exposure could make the grade.

“But then there was no development squad and the only help they can get is from the club coaches. Having such a squad will incur additional expenditure but in the long run it will benefit the game.”

“When I was with the national team and went on a tour to Australia we saw about 200 South Korean players training there and watching the matches. We learnt later that this was part of their development programme to expose their young players.

“So is it not surprising to see the Koreans improving and getting ahead of us in the game,” said Paramalingam.

The MHF's next council meeting is in October and hopefully the council will endorse the working paper on forming a permanent development squad with a full time coach.

Rate This Article

Select Here  5 Stars  (Best Rating)   4 Stars   3 Stars   2 Stars   1 Star  (Worst Rating)

Your opinion counts.
Rate this article or enter your comments below.