Each year the MHC organisors a Charity Shield match between the League and Overall Champions as the curtain raiser for the Malaysian Hockey League.
And it was no different this year as KLHC took on Terengganu HT for boasting rights in winning the first silverware of the season.
But wait a minute, what was the Charity all about?
It's just called the Charity Shield for the sake of giving it a name as no charity benefitted from the match.
In the 1990's when the Charity Shield was first introduced, each player had to contribute to enter the stadium for the match. And even the two teams playing had to buy tickets.
And the money raised would be given to a charitable cause at the end of the match, thus MHC doing its part for a charitable cause.
This year not only was there no charity but the match was not even telecast live.
So why keep calling it Charity Shield when no elements of Charity are attached to it?
It goes on to show that new brooms do not sweep that well and it's mere talk that hockey is headed for better times under the new leadership and administration.
We are in dire straits as countries like Ireland, Canada and Brazil will be at the 2016 Rio Olympics but we will be sitting at home in front of the idiot box watching the action.
Perhaps it's MHC"s way of being charitable - allow lower ranked countries to make it to the Olympics.
So charity does begin at home.
