ONLY IN MHC

Things like this only can happen in MHC.

Look at the pictures and see how the MHC website genius personalities cannot even understand how a format in a hockey competition works.

These images are taken from the MHC website run by the Senior VP who ridiculed this blog last Sunday at the Competitions Committee Meeting.

In their bid to try to upstage me they have been blundering every day and this is a national website.

PDRM and NS are in Group A at the National Veterans Tournament and according the the image the two teams meet in the semis on Saturday afternoon.

And the same applies for Group B where KL and Perak are to meet each other.

It is very clear that Champion of Group A meets Runner Up of Group B and vice versa for the other semis.

Now now do not get upset when your obvious lack of knowledge of hockey is highlighted.

Its easy to shoot your mouth so it will be easy to apologise. But its war that the MHC Senior VP declared so war it is then.

I am watching you.....

LETS ROLL MALAYSIA

The Malaysian team has made it into the semis of the Champions Challenge registering four wins in as many matches.

It is no mean feat as one needs to dig deep to find out when was the last time Malaysia actually registered four wins on the trot.

They scored four goals in each of those wins, thus breaking the myth of four being an unlucky number as believed by the Chinese community as it signifies death.

But Malaysian hockey is far from death, not taking into account some personalities who put up a false front.

We are just 70 minutes away from creating history, making the final of an FIH event for only the second time.

The first was in Invercargil in 2009 when we failed to make the 2010 World Cup by a whisker, losing the final 2-1 to New Zealand in the final 13 minutes of the match.

We have always done relatively well when new coaches take over the mantle of the team.

One needs to revisit the 1991 Auckland Olympic Qualifier under Terry Walsh, the 1997 World Cup Qualifiers where Volkner Knapp took us to the 1998 World Cup after a 16 year hiatus, or Paul Lissek getting us a silver in the 1998 Commonwealth Games, Stephen van Huizen's exploits in being the first local coach who took us through an Olympic Qualifier in Japan in 1999 and not forgetting his silver medal feat in the 2010 Asian Games, and last but not least Tai Beng Hai.

Who can forget the semis of the 1975 World Cup and also the inaugural Champions Challenge in 2001 where we made the semis as well.

Make no mistake, we admire and respect what Paul Revington has achieved in his three months in Malaysia this far. But its consistency that we yearn for and that can be achieved when we make the final on Sunday the world will and should up and take notice.

Malaysia has beaten Korea in the group stage, a convincing 4-2 win.

But that is history even though hardly a week has passed as Malaysia overturned an early deficit into a convincing win.

What makes Revington different is that he dared take a risk with the likes of ismail Abu, Mohd Amin Rahim, Chua Boon Huat, Jivan Mohan and Izwan Firdaus. And these players have delivered despite many voicing concerns at the selection choice of Revington.

Two facts make this stand out - either Revs knows their worth in gold or these players wanted to prove their detractors wring. Either way Revs proved that he made a good judgement call.

Now back to the match against Korea, on paper we should waltz past them going by our form.

But the players know that it will be foolhardy to take the Koreans lightly and 70 minutes separate us from re-writing Malaysian hockey history.

Whatever happens against Korea, we are on the.right track to make it to the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics.

Lets roll Malaysia!

MALAYSIA MAKES SEMIS

Malaysia defied the odds to make the semi final of the Champions Challenge when they defeated South Africa 4-1 in Quilmas, Argentina.

They will meet either Japan or South Korea in the semis,It is an historic effort as Malaysia has never made it to the semis of the previous five Champions Challenge tournaments.

"We are proud of the performance and tactical discipline of the players," said George Koshy, the team manager.

"The early goal help settle nerves and it was a question of frustrating our opponents.

"Our initial target has been met and now we want to move to the next stage and make the final."

Malaysia attacked from the first whistle and were duly rewarded in the 3rd minute when Izwan Firdaus Ahmad Tajuddin, a last minute inclusion following an injury to Mohd Ameerullah, struck from a quick counter attack.

In the next ten minutes Malaysia were awarded three penalty corners but failed to add to their tally.

South Africa then came close to an equaliser in the 20th minute but the striker failed to put enough power to the shot with only keeper S.Kumar to beat.

It was all South Africa after that as they kept the pressure on the Malaysian defence but could not come up with an equaiiser.

Faisal Saari scored the second in the 38th minute to give Malaysia a 2-O lead.

Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin Tg Jalil made it 3-0 in the 56th minute via a penalty corner deflection before Faisal scored his second and Malaysia's fourth a minute later.

Though South Africa reduced the deficit in the 63rd minute via Austin Smith, Malaysia were safely through.

WHAT THE QUAT?

Look at the picture and notice how the Official MHC Website does not even know their spelling.

Quaterfinal is no way for graduates to spell....

VETERANS TOURNAMENT DAY 1

Unknown to many as MHC failed to send out fixtures, the veterans tournament is being held in Alor Star from today till Sunday.

A total of eight teams are participating and these are the morning results.

Kedah 4 Pahang 0.
KL 1 Perak 0.
NS 1 Johor 0.
PDRM 3 Penang 0.

And below are the evening session results.

KL 5 Kedah 0
Perak 2 Pahang 1
PDRM 0 Johor 0
NS 3 Penang 0

Thus KL and NS have already qualified for the semis.

The other two slots will be determined at the end of Friday morning session.

Guess MHC has no time to inform media as they did not even send out the fixtures to the media.

And for info of MHC officials you have been removed from my mailing list since you deem it fit to stop sending me information and sent to a list you virtually stole from me.

A BRIDGE TOO FAR?

The MHC had made it clear that the merger of its affiliates take place no later then December 31 this year.

This is to facilitate the requirements of the FIH.

But some personalities within MHC are making it difficult for the mergers at states that have yet to do so take place in accordance with the stipulated dates.

Those who are a single entity now, either by choice or design are Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Kedah, Malacca, Johor, Sarawak, Sabah, Armed Forces and PDRM.

Those yet to merge are Selangor, N.Sembilan, Pahang , Perak and Terengganu.

While Kelantan and Perlis never had a women hockey association.

It is now learnt that two mergers of tje states was thwarted by a strange request of wantibg equal number of positions by the womens section.

It is strange that this demand is coming from a third party and not directly from tje administrators of the state HA.

Watch this space for further developments....

D-DAY FOR MALAYSIA

It is the day of reckoning for Malaysian hockey as they line up to face South Africa in the knockout stage of the Champions Challenge 1 in Argentina today.

Three wins in as many matches has got many to sit up and take notice, with many even claiming that it is a welcome relief to what badminton and football has dished out in the past week.

The three wins, 4-0 v Poland, 4-2 v Korea and Canada will just remain historical facts should the team fail to get past the South Africans. A win will give them a place in the semis, and a possible rematch against South Korea or Japan.

But the first thing to do is get past South Africa, a team that has played inconsistently in the preliminary round. Even South Korea, once a feared team were in shambles as they struggled through the group stage, losing even to Poland.

"The most important thing at the moment is to ensure that the winning mentality continues. Its a case of having confidence in your ability and that is what i want from these players," said Malaysian coach Paul Revington.

"We are on the verge of a place in the semis and the players realize the importance of the next match. I am confident in their ability. This is a long process towards achieving our targets and the journey has just started.

Due to the nature of the format of competition, the first three matches are meaningless as its the next three, quarters, semis and final that matter the most. And while it is okay to feel elated that Malaysia won three matches on the trot, a feat last achieved in the Olympic Qualifiers last March in Dublin.

But it is the next match, against South Africa that will prove if Malaysia has returned into the international arena.

For far too long Malaysian hockey has been in doldrums, promising so much yet far from delivering and all that could change in one match, as a semis will better their achievements in all the Champions Challenge Malaysia has played in, dating back to 2003, ironically in Randburg, South Africa, when current national coach Paul Revington was watched to South Africa.

And to add more spice to that is the fact that current South African coach Gregg Clark was a member of the team that Revington took to the 2004 Athens Olympics.

"I had some seriously great times in South Africa and have wonderful memories from my times there. I always appreciate these memories and the value and opportunities given to me as a coach.," said Revington.,

"The team must keep following a process and building internal confidence through doing things correctly all the time - this is the best recipe for dealing with any knock-out stage in any sport.

Revington has been rotating the goalkeepers, giving S. Kumar and Roslan Jamaluddin a match each and it will interesting to see if he carries on with this trend.

And he makes almost all changes in between the 7th and 10th minutes of the last three matches, at times injecting as many as four fresh players onto the pitch a one go.

Malaysia had initially set a target of a top four finish, but Revington took that as a challenge and boldly said that making the final was his ultimate target. And he takes the first step towards that in the knockout stage.

For South Africa, they are well aware of the fact that Malaysia utilizes their speed to maximum effect. They started the tournament with a 4-4 draw against Japan after leading 4-1 with a quarter of the match to go, and then went down 2-1 to Argentina.

The South Africans are awakened side, missing as many as nine players from the 2012 London Olympics squad.

"Malaysia is a speedy team, and we will make the match as difficult as possible for them," said South African coach Gregg Clark.

Fixtures

Thursday

1930H - Malaysia v South Africa

2230H - Japan v Korea

Friday

0130H- Poland v Ireland

0430H - Argentina v Canada

(Malaysian times)

DID WE WIN?

Well it's 3.30am on Wednesday morning and just looked at the MHC Website to find out the score of the Malaysia v Canada match at the Champions Challenge.

As expected there was no result but what was more baffling was the fact that there was a banner stating that Malaysia v Canada was at 12.00 midnight and not at 10pm which was the actual playing time of the match.

So not only do they not provide info as is expected of them but also mislead the Malaysian public with childish errors like this. And this when Malaysia is doing well and giving all fans the feel good factor that football has denied the sports loving Malaysians.

So back to the fact, did we win, what's our position, who do we play in the last eight?

Am sure MHC will lift it from the papers with regards to the match v Canada but even they will not have the fixtures for the last eight.

PS: We beat Canada 4-2, goals by Razie, Tengku Ahmad, and the Saari brothers Faisal and Fitri. And we play South Africa in knockout stage, simple but when others are in slumberland, a blogger takes the trouble to keep you informed.

Signing off at 3.39 Malaysia where ever you are...

WHATS UP MHC?

A hockey fan emailed me the content below. That is why I say its so easy for someone to talk but unable to deliver.

Just read some papers today and one will notice that quotes from Paul Revington was lifted from my blog and translated into Bahasa and published and even some facts that were added on.

And yes why the silence about the Lanco International Series results? A blackout?

But what this hockey fan reveals in his email is a poor reflection of work supposedly being done.

The sad part is only a week ago Tengku Abdullah made an impassioned plea to close ranks. I was game but hours after that call the power games began.

And now its escalating into a full war, all due to the ego of 4 personalities who have gone about ridiculing plans of the President.

Read on....

"Hi, I just went to MHC website and click on contact us, I found an email address to contact them which is office@malaysiahockey.com.my

"I send them and email asking whether they need any help on updating scores etc as this site in not being proactive to provide news to the public.

"However upon sending my email to them, I get Mail delivery Failure reply. I just pasted the important error as per below:

Delivery to the following recipient failed permanently:

     office@malaysiahockey.com.my

Technical details of permanent failure:
Google tried to deliver your message, but it was rejected by the recipient domain. We recommend contacting the other email provider for further information about the cause of this error. The error that the other server returned was: 550 550 No Such User Here (state 13).

"This means, there is no such email address or it is no longer active.This is unbelievable for National level confederation. "

DEFEATS GALORE

Well the Senior Vice President who claims she knows best has opted to " close both eyes " in not wanting to report on the 4 defeats at the hands of the Australian Junior and Senior teams at the Lanco International Super Series held in Perth last weekend.

Well for info of readers of this blog they lost all 4 matches , 7-0 and 5-1 to the Seniors and 3-2 plus 4-0 to their U-21 side.

So selective reporting is the name of the game, no reports on our Project 2013, lifting stories from newspapers, and worst of all ignorant of covering domestic tournaments.

Moral of the story is - look before you dive, for its from a frying pan into the fire.

And she had the cheek to ask me to finalise matches against Germany next February.

Yet opts to ' baling batu sembunyi tangan'.

MALAYSIA HANDS KOREA AN UNEXPECTED DEFEAT

 Pic from FIH Website

Malaysia registered their second win in the Champions Challenge in Argentina when they defeated South Korea 4-2.

The win puts them on the top of the standings in Pool A and a win or draw against Canada in their final preliminary round match on Tuesday will set up a possible quarterfinal match against either South Africa or Ireland.

Ironically both teams were formerly coached by Paul Revington, who took charge of the Malaysian team this August.

Revs was naturally pleased with the winning starts and shared with this blog his thoughts:

"The pleasing aspects have been the willingness on behalf of all the players to listen to what we are asking them to do, and then to have the courage and confidence to put it into practice," said Revington.

 

"The players are working really hard in all areas - and especially mentally - to be able to deal with all the continual improvements we are challenging them with on an individual and team level. 

"It is never easy beating a quality team like Korea - and especially to score 4 goals like we did. The team were a bit frustrated with their performance in the final 8-10 minutes and they are continually pushing themselves to perform more consistently for longer. 

 

"I am pleased the senior players and leaders are contributing so much quality and, although the event is only two games old, I am confident this leadership will get stronger and stronger.

"A "clean sheet" is hard to come by in international hockey so I am extremely pleased too!

"Canada will be a tough opponent as always and we will need to work extremely hard and perform to a very high level if we are to beat them."

For the record, Malaysia's last win over South Korea in a competetive match was registered at the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup in 2011 where Malaysia won 3-1.

And the last defeat at the hands of the Koreans was at the 2012 edition of the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup where Malaysia lost 3-2 in the playoff for the 5/6th placing.

While it is good that Malaysia has registered two wins, it is pertinent to note that winning the quarterfinal match is vital to improve our rankings and improve on last year's finish. The matches in the group stage are to determine rankings for the last eight stage.

Match Report from FIH

In the clash of the Asian representatives in pool A at the Argentina Hockey Champions Challenge 1 today, things seemed to take their expected course when Korea scored an early goal through penalty corner specialist Jang Jong Hyun.

Malaysia had different plans however, and fought back with determination. An 18th minute penalty corner from Muhammad Razie Abd Rahim set the balance back to start, and a blitz hit yielding two goals in about a minute towards the end of the first half, both at the hands of Tengku Ahmad Tajudin Abdul Jalil, established a comfortable lead already.

In the second half, Chua Boon Huat piled on another against a Korean team that didn't seem able to find a way to deal with the speedy Malaysians strikers. Malaysia had a number of further opportunities but it was Korea that scored with about ten minutes left on the clock, once more at the hands of Jang Jong Hyun.

But it was too little too late for Korea, and the Malaysian team celebrated the final whistle that spelt out a 4-2 win for them.

KL CHAMPS FOR THE SIXTH TIME

 Kuala Lumpur successfully defended their MHC-MILO-NSC-MOE Natioanl Under 14 title when they edged Johor 3-2 in extra time in a closely contested final at the Seremban 2 Hockey Stadium.

It was an exciting final, befitting the status of the two teams that were the most consistent teams in the tournament.

Kuala Lumpur have thus won the Milo Trophy for the 6^th consecutive time, since its inception in 2007, a feat that is unlikely to be matched by others for years to come.

Kuala Lumpur took the lead in the 22^nd minute through Fallah Hassan Shahrom Jamil.

But Johor were undeterred and found the equaliser a minute before halftime via Muhamad Haikal Safaruddin who converted a penalty corner.

However despite playing better, Johor were unlucky as they failed to make use of the chances and KL went ahead once again in the 60^th minute with Kavinash Panicker Thevendran finding space to slot in.

Just when KL thought they had clinched the title, Johor found the equaliser two minutes from time throughMuhammad Shafiq Hassan to take the match to sudden death extra time.

And Kuala Lumpur’s Wan haziq Hisyamuddin Wan Ameer Ruzman scored a gem of a goal five minutes into extra time to give the city side the title.

“We were fortunate to win as Johor finished the match stronger. I told my players at the end of regulation time to be patient and no to take risks,” said KL coach Mohd Madzli Ikmar.

“And when the opportunity presented itself, Wan Haziq scored with a beauty. Even I could not have finished that well.

“It is a great moment for us and retaining the trophy is always difficult. I am proud of my players.”

In the match to determine the bronze, hosts Negri Sembilan edged Perak 3-2 in extra time.

Perak took a 2-0 lead within the first 6 minutes through Muhammad Najmi Hayazi (3^rd minute) and Syed Muhammad Syakir Syed Cholam (6^th minute).

Negri fought gallantly and were on level terms through Muhammad Hilmi Hairuddin (18^th minute) and Mahathir Rathuwan (34^th minute).

Results:

3/4 Placing

Negri Sembilan 3 Perak 2 (after extra time)

Final:

Kuala Lumpur 3 Johor 2 (after extra time)

Roll of Honour

Champions: Kuala Lumpur

Runner Up: Johor

Third: Negri Sembilan

Fourth: Perak

Fair Play: Malacca

Top Scorer: Mohd Najmi Hayazi (Perak)

Best Goalkeeper: George Dylan De Silva (Johor)

Man of the Match (Final): Fallah Hassan Shahrom Jamil (Kuala Lumpur)

Most Promising Player: Mahathir Rathuwan (Negri Sembilan)

MHC WEBSITE, ASLEEP LIKE THE SENIOR VP

The great lady Senior Vice President has said that Media Relations for the tournaments should not be given to this blogger as there are many others who can do it.

Well, what has happened to your website of MHC that you are running? How is it that you clamoured to have your so called webmaster at the SOJC when she did not have the courtesy to even apply for Media Accreditation.

And why is the MHC website just lifting stories from the newspapers? Can't construct a sentence is it?

The national ladies team are playing in Perth. Why has nothing been written about this?

The national senior team is in Argentina, so where are the updates?

The National Under 14 team tournament has been going on in Seremban, not a day where MHC website has provided news to the media.

I love competition, but Senior VP, I have seen people like you come and go, all claiming that they are doing things for the interest of hockey.

I have no time to serve MHC with personalities like you around, let it be known to you and the MHC President.

DEBUT WIN FOR REVS

Malaysia defeated Poland 4-0 in their opening match of the Champions Challenge.

Goals for Malaysia were scored by Mohd Razie Rahim in the 4th minute, off Malaysia's first penalty corner.

Nabil Fiqri Mohd Noor doubled the advantage for Malaysia in the 30th minute to give Malaysia a 2-0 lead at halftime.

in the 42nd minute an own goal by a Polish player stretched the lead to 3-0 for Malaysian before Razie scored his second and Malaysia's fourth, also through a penalty corner in the 63rd minute.

Hosts Argentina edged Ireland 4-3 while Japan and South Africa played to a 4-4 draw.

In another match Korea defeated Canada 2-0.

CLINGING ON

Whrn the MHC formed their committees, it was decided that they will serve until 2013 and a change of guard will be initiated.

The year comes to an end soon and seriously the time has come to review the role and effectiveness of members in the various committees and even the Chairmanship as some are just clinging on just because they hold positions as top brass of MHC.

And some are just in one committee too many so much so that it is akin to what the Malay language defines as "Gila Kuasa" or simply put Power Crazy.

There are 12 Vice Presidents, and as many as 4 do not hold or serve in any sub committees, let alone chair the committees.

I was fortunate enough to have served the Technical Committee of the Competition Committee and respectfully left the continuance of my services to the new chairman M.Gobinathan as I was appointed by the previous chairman Dato Abd Rahim Md Ariff. I had indicated via SMS to Dato Rahim my desire to leave this committee after being ridiculed by one B.Muthukumar and V.Rajamanickam on thr issue of appointment as the ATD in the last Sukma.

However Dato Rahim, a true gentleman and who rules with his head rather than heart declined my resignation attempt and did not even bring it up at any meetings.

When this was pointed out to Gobinathan and MHC Secretary, they both checked and confirmed the truth from Dato Rahim.

Yet Muthukumar had the cheek to claim that since I had formally resigned, I was no longer welcomed to attend the Competition Committee meeting on Sunday November 25.

I am not losing sleep over it as other members of the Competition Committee lacked the scoratal gumption to even state their stand when the views were sought over the email, including Tuan Haji Johari Aziz the Secretary of MHC.

Suffice to say that clinging on to seats as some do within MHC is not something that I intend to do.

I shall continue to sit outside and point out your weaknesses MHC as its no big loss to me.

JOHOR-KL FINAL

Johor booked a place in the final of the MHC-MILO- NSC-MOE National Under 14 tournament against defending champions Kuala Lumpur after they defeated Perak 3-2 at the Seremban Two Hockey Stadium.

It is the southern state’s first appearance in the final of the Under 14 while it will be the city side’s sixth consecutive appearance. And they won the last five editions of the Under 14 tournament.

Johor took a 3-0 lead at halftime through goals from Muhammad Shafiq Hassan (5^th minute), Muhammad Haikal Safaruddin (11^th minute) and Mohd Amirul Firdaus Shamsuddin (30^th minute).

Perak reduced the deficit in the 46^th minute when Muhammad Najmi Hayazi scored. And Najmi added another for Perak in the 57^th minute to make it 2-3 and Perak were with a chance.

But time ran out on Perak and Johor celebrated their first final appearance since 2007.

For hosts Negri, it was heartbreak despite dominating large portions of the match and they paid the price for woeful finishing.

“It was a tough game and we took our chances well. The final is a different proposition altogether as we are always mindful of the fact that teams are after our scalp,” said KL coach Mohd Madzli Ikmar.

“We had a narrow escape against Negri and the second goal came at the right time. I dread to think what the consequences would have been had Negri netted the equaliser as they were growing in confidence.”

It was all Kuala Lumpur in the initial stages of the first half as Negri opted to play a two-man attack and depend on counter attacks.

But Negri started growing in confidence as the match progressed, enough to force three penalty corners but they failed to capitalise from the chances created.

They lost their skipper, Mahathir Rathuwan through injury towards the tailend of the half while for Kuala Lumpur’s Muhd Syafiq Abd Ghani Syah and Ahmad Hariz Syazani Ezani were proving to be a handful for the Negri defence.

Kuala Lumpur took the lead in the 41^st minute when off their fourth penalty corner Muhammad Fitri Khairul Ariffin opted to take a direct hit instead of playing a set piece. And the ball sailed past Negri custodian Muhd Amirul Hazim Rashid who until then had an outstanding match.

Negri then took control of the match but failed to make use of the chances created, even missing 4 penalty corners and sitters att times.

And Fitri put the result beyond doubt in the 64^th minute as he weaved past two defenders before unleashing a reverse stick hit from the edge of the semi circle.

Semi Final Results

Kuala Lumpur 2 Negri Sembilan 0

Johor 3 Perak 2

Fixtures

1500H – 3/4 Placing

Negri Sembilan v Perak

1700H – Final

Kuala Lumpur v Johor

WHY DEVELOP OTHERS?

There is no doubt that malaysia is facing a shortage of umpires, so much so that during national tournaments MHC finds it tough to provide 18 umpires for a tournament.

Any yet we go about trying to develop umpires from Singapore on the pretext of having signed an MOU that many have not seen.

During the Under 14 tournament an umpire from Singapore was seen officiating together with 12 other local umpires, five of whom were either Grade 1 or 2.

Now if there is an MOU, why were the Singapore umpires not at the MHL or at the Razak Cup?

It is learnt that a select few Malaysian umpires are sent to Singapore to officiate in 6 a side tournaments and a couple of league matches.

Reciprocal means the same level so have we sent a 16 year old to umpire in the Singapore League since they sent us a 16 year old for our U14.

Are we developing our own or are we helping develop Singapore umpires.  What is the rationale when even at international scene they have not only umpires but even more highly qualified technical officials when its obvious that Malaysia hosts more domestic and international events.

The grape vine has it that some Malaysians have a policy of you scratch mine and I scratch yours so as to please personalities across the causeway and treat their own as stepchildren.

And we thought that Malaysia was liberated in 1957.

NEGRI MAKES SEMIS

Negri Sembilan scrapped into the semi finals of the MHC-Milo-NSC-MOE National Under 14 by the skin of their teeth after defeating Terengganu 1-0 at the Seremban Two Hockey Stadium.

The hosts needed a win after Penang had defeated Perak 2-0 in an earlier match but missed so many chances in the first half. A goal by Mohd Shafiq Mohd Zapi in the 40^th minute gave them the points required to make the semis.

Johor, Kuala Lumpur and Perak had earlier assured themsleves a place in the semi finals.

Negri will play Kuala Lumpur in the semis and ironically the man that will be plotting their downfall is Negri born Mohd Madzli Ikmar, the coach of the city side.

“Sentiments will be set aside as I have to be professional in carrying out my job. But Negri are no pushovers as they play with their heart and it was evident in the match against Terengganu,” said Madzli.

“They have been improving from match to match and its not going to be an easy ride. Still I am confident that my team has what it takes to make the final.”

Johor defeated Perlis 5-0 through goals by Mohd Taufik Kamjai (2^nd minute), Mohd Amirul Hanis Abdul Aziz (28^th minute), Muhd Shafiq Hassan (52^nd and 58^th minutes) and Zulsafiq Amirul Mohd Noor Zailan (65^th minute) to book their spot.

Earlier in the morning, defending champions Kuala Lumpur laboured to a 2-1 win over Kelantan.

Perak who had already assured themselves of the top spot in Group B and the result would have not affected their position. And on the top of that they had two players on a yellow card each – Muhd Zaidi Mat Sait and K. Hariharan.

“With the semis only 24 hours away we did not want to risk playing our first team and it was also to rest some kep players as we are in a group that requires teams to play an extra match,” said Perak team manager Manjit Singh.

“The semis aginst Johor will be tough as they have shown marked improvement over the course of the tournament. We need to get a result within the regulation time or we might be in trouble.

“Having said that my team is just raring to go and make the final this time around.”

Penang scored the opening goal through the efforts of Muhd Aiman Asyraff Mansor in the 25^th minute. Muhd Hairul Aswad Suhaimi made it 2-0 for Penang in the 66^th minute.

Semi Final Fixtures:

Saturday, November 24.

1600H: Kuala Lumpur v Negri Sembilan

1800H : Perak v Johor

Results

Group A

Kuala Lumpur 2 Kelantan 1

Johor 5 Perlis 0

Pahang 2 Selangor 3

Kedah 1 Malacca 3

Perak 0 Penang 2

Terengganu 0 Negri Sembilan 1

GROUP A

                                P        W       D        L        F        A        PTS

K. Lumpur              5         4        1         0       14       5           13

Johor                       5         3        1        1        17       4           10

Selangor                  5         3        0        2         11     9            9

Kelantan                  5        2        1         2         4       6            7

Pahang                    5         0        2        3         4      14           2

Perlis                       5         0        1        4         2       13          1

GROUP B

                                P        W       D        L        F      A        PTS

Perak                       6         5        0         1        15      4           15

N. Sembilan            6         4        1         1        15      9           13

Penang                    6         4        0         2        23      13         12

Terengganu             6         2        2         2         11      8           8

Malacca                  6         2       1         3           8      16           7

Sabah                      6         1        1         4          8      17           4

Kedah                     6         0        1         5          4       17           1

A PHATALOGICAL LIAR

Remember that face for he has ridiculed Malaysian hockey, both the teams and fans as HOOLIGANS. And in an interview with a Dutch website, umpire Coen van Bunge who was one of the two neutral umpires at the Sultan of Johor Cup 2012 claims amongst others:

- that he sent Malaysian captain Mohd Nor Faeez Ibrahim to the sin bin in the Malaysia v Australia match was because Faeez "touched" him.

- that the drum beating was "rhythm of death".

- that spectators were seated near him and he had to stay out of their way.

- that after the match there were four officers surrounbding him and that he was almost pushed out of the field.

- that he was escorted back to hotel with four officers and a gun weilding officer stood in the hallway of his hotel room.

This is something that the Malaysian Hockey Confederation needs to raise with FIH and there is video evidence to show that the so called four officers never touched him, and that his fellow umpires plus Technical Officials were the one who provided safe passage for him to leave the field, and perhaps the most damning that Faeez never laid a finger on him

 
The translation ( via Google translate ) reads as follows:

Referee Coen van Bunge whistled recently in Malaysia six nations tournament for players under 21. He got to do with real hockey hooligans, says the arbitrator in the Spits.
Bunge whistled the match between host Malaysia and Australia. After a short time he gave two yellow cards to players of Malaysia, all hell broke into the stadium - where five thousand men sat - loose. 'One Malaysian player slipped by me and protested vehemently his Australian opponent because I had no map data for an offense, "explains Van Bunge from the newspaper. "Because of the protest I gave him yellow. Immediately afterwards came the leader of Malaysia to redress me and touched me when I showed him yellow. "

"The crowd was incredible pounding and especially the hard core left with their drums in a kind of rhythm of death made themselves heard," says the 31-year division. "The spectators sat on n as three meters from the ground and I tried but a little out of their stay."

In the final phase, according to the newspaper again 3-2 for Australia. Then Van Bunge totally screwed. "Immediately afterwards there were four officers around me, that I almost pushed off the field. Meanwhile, from the stand a glass bottle, plastic bottles and even a stick of a flag thrown at me. "

Then the arbitrator under an escort of four officers drove back to his hotel. He was also escorted to his room. "There was still an hour an agent with gun in the hallway and I was advised that evening at the hotel to stay and room service to order."
When asked whether Van Bunge in the future going to Malaysia to whistle, replies the thirties that he certainly would. "All in all it is a very frightening experience as five thousand spectators so terrible rage against you, and I hope something like that never really more to do. But next time I would definitely go back to Malaysia to whistle. I just think that she would not be so quick to ask. "

Please visit http://www.hockey.nl/26015/van-bunge-agent-zat-met-pistool-op-de-gang for the original posting.

Scheidsrechter Coen van Bunge floot onlangs in Maleisië een zeslandentoernooi voor spelers onder de 21 jaar. Hij kreeg daar te maken met echte hockeyhooligans, vertelt de arbiter in de Sp!ts.

Van Bunge floot de wedstrijd tussen gastland Maleisië en Australië. Nadat hij binnen korte tijd twee gele kaarten gaf aan spelers van Maleisië, brak de hel in het stadion - waar vijfduizend man zat - los. ‘Een Maleisische speler gleed volgens mij uit en protesteerde heftig omdat ik zijn Australische tegenstander geen kaart had gegeven voor een overtreding’, legt Van Bunge uit aan de krant. ‘Vanwege het protesteren gaf ik hem geel. Direct hierna kwam de aanvoerder van Maleisië bij mij verhaal halen en raakte me aan waarop ik hem ook geel toonde.’


‘Het publiek ging ongelooflijk tekeer en vooral de harde kern liet met hun trommels in een soort van ritme des doods van zich horen’, zegt de 31-jarige scheids. ‘De toeschouwers zaten op zo n drie meter van het veld en ik probeerde maar een beetje uit hun buurt te blijven.’


In de slotfase werd het volgens de krant nog eens 3-2 voor Australië. Toen was Van Bunge helemaal de klos. ‘Direct na afloop stonden er vier agenten om me heen, die me zo ongeveer het veld af duwden. Ondertussen werden er vanaf de tribune een glazen fles, plastic flessen en zelfs een stok van een vlag naar mij gegooid.’


Vervolgens werd de arbiter onder een escorte van vier agenten terug naar zijn hotel gereden. Hij werd ook nog eens begeleid naar zijn kamer. ‘Er zat nog een uur lang een agent met pistool op de gang en er werd mij geadviseerd om die avond in het hotel te blijven en roomservice te bestellen.’

Op de vraag of Van Bunge in de toekomst weer naar Maleisië gaat om te fluiten, antwoordt de dertiger dat hij dat zeker zou doen. ‘Al met al is het een heel angstige ervaring als vijfduizend toeschouwers zo verschrikkelijk tegen je tekeergaan en ik hoop iets dergelijks echt nooit meer mee te maken. Maar een volgende keer zou ik absoluut weer naar Maleisië gaan om te fluiten. Ik denk alleen dat ze me niet meer zo snel zullen vragen.’

WHAT A DISGRACE

Just got results of the 4th AHF Indoor Tournament in Thailand.

It reads Malaysia 2 Chinese Taipei 3.

For those who may not know, Chinese Taipei is another name for Taiwan.

What on earth is happening? Why is the Armed Forces team representing Malaysia?

Who made that decision. Why was the Indoor Committee not consulted? Why is all this happening after the debacle of the womens team in the indoor early November?

It is a disgrace losing to Taiwan of all teams. If MHC cannot put up a decent team then why have an indoor tournament?

Its proven that indoor skills help develop skills that can help in outdoor hockey. So why this lackadisical approach?

Bottom line is does everyone in MHC know why ATM were picked in the first place?

DAY 5 MHC-MILO-NSC-MOE NATIONAL UNDER 14

Defending champions Kuala Lumpur have virtually book their place in the semis of the MHC-MIL0-NSC-MOE National Under 14 after they came from a goal down to defeat Pahang 4-1.

And on the adjacent pitch, Negeri Sembilan were dealt a cruel blow when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Sabah.

With the draw, Negri now face an uphill task in trying to make the last four as they have to defeat Terengganu and await the outcome of matches involving Penang.

Last year losing finalists Terengganu are out of the running for a place in the semis after they were held to a 1-1 draw by lowly Kedah.

Penang did their hopes a world of good by trashing Malacca 7-0 to enhance their chances in moving into semis from Group B.

KL have 10 points from four matches and have Kelantan to play on Friday, a match that could well decide who tops Group A as the east coast side need to defeat Johor to set up the showdown for group champions.

Perak only need one point from their remaining two matches, against Malacca tomorrow and Penang on Friday to seal their place.

“Although we are sitting pretty we just cannot afford to take things for granted and have to play our very best. In age group tournaments nothing is certain and thus we have to remain cautious,” said Perak team manager Manjit Singh.

“It is quite open at the moment as three teams, Perak, Penang and Negri are in the running for a place in the last four. And I expect it to boil down to matches on Friday to determine the semifinalists.”

Pahang opened scoring in the 34^th minute through Jamal Abdul Hassan. But the city side hit back with goals from Wan Haziq Hisyamuddin Ameer Ruzman (47^th minute) and a hattrick by Mohd Fitri Khairul Arrifin ( 59^th, 61^st and 70^th minutes) to take all three points.

For hosts Negri, they only have themselves to blame for failing to win all three points after taking the lead through Mahathir Rathuwan in the 23^rd minute. They created numerous chances but could not add on to their tally.

And Sabah punished them with an equaliser in the 56^th minute through Mohd Shafiq Zapi to share the spoils.

In the Kedah and Terengganu, it was Kedah who stunned the east coast side with a goal in the 51^st minute through Mahamad Syafiq Ikmal Md Fauzi. Terengganu drew level ten minutes later through Wan Muhammad Azlan Wan Rozaimi.

Terengganu are on five points after four matches and will face Penang and Negri Sembilan respectively and could play spoilers role as both their opponents are fighting for the second spot in Group B with Perak almost assured of the top spot.

Fixtures: Thursday

Group A

0800H – Johor v Kelantan

1600H – Perlis v Selangor

Group B

0800H – Kedah v Sabah

1630H – Perak v Malacca

1800H – Terengganu v Penang

Group A

Selangor 0 Kelantan 2

Kuala Lumpur 4 Pahang 1

Group B

Kedah 1 Terengganu 1

Sabah 1 Negri Sembilan 1

Malacca 0 Penang 7

GROUP A

                                P        W       D        L        F        A        PTS

K. Lumpur               4        3        1         0       12       4           10

Kelantan                  3        2        1         0        3        0            7

Johor                       3         1        1        1         8        4           4

Selangor                  3         1        0        2         4       8            3

Pahang                    4          0        2        2         2      11           2

Perlis                       3         0        1        2         2       4             1

GROUP B

                                P        W       D        L        F      A        PTS

Perak                       4         4        0         0        13      2           12

N. Sembilan            5         3        1         1        14      9           10

Penang                    4         3        0         1        20      8            9

Terengganu             4         1        2         1          6      6            5

Malacca                  4          1       1         2          5      13           4

Kedah                     4         0        1         3          2       11          1

Sabah                      5         0        1         4          5      16           1