Thursday, January 5, 2012

WHY THIS KOLAVERI DI



That is the hit song of late and it equates to an incident in the national team.

But before we start one ought to know the meaning of "kolaveri" which when translated means murderous rage.

And the incident in the national team is about a player, Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin walking out of the team after being told off by one of the coaches.

The player with his teammates were going through their paces when a remarked was passed by a coach who literally said that if players were not interested then they were free to leave.

And it seems that is what precisely Tajuddin did and he has been absent from training for the last two days, despite efforts by the coaches to get in touch with him.

Before we accuse Tajuddin of ditching national interest, one has to understand that he, together with some other players studying at UPM are undergoing exams at the moment.

And the particular coach who passed the remark ought to know better as he too was given leeway in training for the 1998 Commonwealth Games.

Players have to look after their future and studies are also important. The Olympic Qualifiers are two months away so letting those undergoing exam have some break is something coaches with common sense should practice.

It is left to be seen if Tajuddin will be coaxed to return by manager George Koshy, the ever diplomatic person and one who understands the players best, and he will most likely be able to persuade Tajuddin to return.

But the damage has been done, and what three players told me after getting the RM4500 upon the Champions Challenge 1 fifth place finish will surely shock hockey fans, for money is far from their mind.

Await that disclosure next