Friday, September 28, 2007

Malaysia hos Trofi Juara-juara

KUALA LUMPUR – Persekutuan Hoki Antarabangsa (FIH) semalam memutuskan Malaysia sebagai tuan rumah baru Trofi Juara-juara (lelaki) dari 29 November hingga 9 Disember ini selepas memindahkannya dari Lahore, Pakistan atas sebab keselamatan pada 12 September lalu.

Presiden FIH, Els van Breda Vriesman berkata dalam laman web rasmi, kejohanan itu akan dilangsungkan di Stadium Hoki Nasional, Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur.

Trofi Juara-juara kali ini turut disertai lapan pasukan yang bersaing satu kumpulan berbanding enam sebelumnya. Malaysia pernah menjadi tuan rumahnya pada 1993.

Enam pasukan asal kejohanan ini iaitu Australia, Jerman, Korea Selatan, Belanda, Pakistan dan Sepanyol, dikekalkan dan akan disertai oleh Malaysia dan Great Britain.

Kata Vriesman, FIH tetap mengundang Pakistan demi menebus pembatalan hak tuan rumah mereka manakala Great Britain dipilih kerana pencapaiannya di tangga kelima Piala Dunia 2006 dan Malaysia layak automatik selaku tuan rumah.

Friday, September 21, 2007

Allocation of Teams for Olympic Qualification Tournaments

Despite some surprising results in the Oceania Cup, which was the last Continental tournament for direct Olympic qualification, hockey giant Australia’s women’s team will join their men’s team in Beijing next year in a quest for gold medals.

After the Oceania Cup, nine of the 12 Olympic participants for both the men’s and the women’s hockey tournament are now finalized:

Men: Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, Korea, Netherlands, Pakistan, South Africa, Spain.

Women: Argentina, Australia, China, Germany, Great Britain, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, South Africa.

Furthermore, the FIH is pleased to release the details of the Olympic qualifying tournaments to be played early 2008.

Men:

North Shore City, Auckland, New Zealand – 02/10 February 2008
Argentina, Cuba, France, Ireland, New Zealand and Trinidad & Tobago

Santiago, Chile – 01/09 March 2008
Austria, Bangladesh, Chile, Egypt, Great Britain and India

Kakamigahara, Japan – 05/13 April 2008
Czech Republic, Germany, Japan, Malaysia, Poland, Switzerland

The reserve nations for the tournaments (in order) are:
(1) Netherlands Antilles (2) USA (3) Mexico

Women:

Baku, Azerbaijan – 12/20 April 2008
Azerbaijan, Belarus, Chile, Kenya, Spain and Ukraine

Kazan, Russia – 19/27 April 2008
Belgium, Chinese Taipei, India, Netherlands Antilles, Russia and USA

Victoria, Canada – 26 April/04 May 2008
Canada, Cuba, Ireland, Italy, Korea and Malaysia

The reserve nations for these tournaments (in order) are:
(1) France (2) Uruguay (3) Barbados

The FIH will now request the National Associations and National Olympic Committees of all teams qualified for both the Olympic Games and the WorldHockey Olympic Qualifiers to confirm their participation. In the event that a nation does not accept the invitation to participate in a qualifier, it will be replaced directly by the reserve nations in order of world ranking.

Saturday, September 15, 2007

Mixed results for our juniors in playing tour Down Under

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian junior hockey team have won once and lost twice in their five-match playing tour against the Australian juniors in Queensland, Australia.

Malaysia took the lead in the first match but went down 1-4 on Wednesday.

However, they bounced back to win the next match 3-2 on Thursday.

In the third match yesterday, the national juniors were outplayed 5-0 because most of the players are fasting.

National junior coach Tai Beng Hai said in a telephone interview from Queensland yesterday that out of the 20 players, only forward Harwinder Singh is not fasting.

“The first two days of fasting took its toll on the players as we lost out in every department.

“We are in Australia without six 20-year-old players because we want to expose the Under-19 players, who are preparing for the 2009 Junior World Cup,'' said Beng Hai, who is assisted by Gurmit Singh.

Beng Hai added that they would be playing their next two matches in Buderim, where the Oceania Cup will be held.

Hosts Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea are involved in the Oceania Cup, with the champions earning an automatic berth to the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Australia, the Olympic champions, are favourites to win the tournament and New Zealand are most likely to finish runners-up and will go through the Olympic qualifier.

Malaysia might be drawn in the same group with the Kiwis in the qualifier.

The Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) have sent national coach Sarjit Singh, who guided Malaysia to their first ever bronze medal in the Asia Cup in Chennai on Sunday, to Australia to watch the Oceania Cup with former national coach Paul Lissek.

Beng Hai said after the Australian playing tour they would go to South Korea later this month for more friendly matches.

“We are using the two playing tours to Australia and Korea to prepare for the Singapore International Invitational meet next month,'' said Beng Hai.

The other teams in that tournament are hosts Singapore, Australia, India, Pakistan and Taiwan.

Friday, September 14, 2007

Malaysia keen to host Champions Trophy

KUALA LUMPUR: The International Hockey Federation (IHF) have decided to move the men’s Champions Trophy tournament away from Lahore, Pakistan, due to safety reasons.

And the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) are keen to host the tournament, scheduled for Dec 1-9.

Olympic champions Australia and Spain, who have qualified for the tournament, informed the FIH that they would not be able to participate due to security reasons. Germany, South Korea and Holland also did not confirm their entry.

Reserve countries England and Japan also declined the invitation. With six of the best eight hockey teams not participating in the Samsung Champions Trophy, one of the most important hockey tournaments in the world, the FIH had no option but to change the venue for the 2007 Champions Trophy tournament.

FIH will decide on the new venue in the next few days.

MHC secretary Datuk Dr S.S. Cheema said that they informed FIH on Sept 6 of their intention to host the tournament.

Cheema said that the Malaysian team, who won their first-ever bronze medal in the Asia Cup in Chennai on Sunday, have no competitions left this year.

“So it will really benefit the national team to play in the Champions Trophy as they need to play quality matches to prepare for next year’s Olympic qualifie,” he said.

The national team, who returned from the Asia Cup on Tuesday, will resume training on Tuesday.

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

India pasang impian ke Olimpik

NEW DELHI – India yang berjaya mempertahankan gelaran juara hoki Piala Asia dengan kemenangan 7-2 keatas Korea Selatan Ahad lalu membawa keyakinan baru menjelang Sukan Olimpik Beijing tahun depan.

Jurulatihnya, Joaquim Carvalho kini menyimpan impian yang besar untuk menghadapi temasya itu.

Pasukan tuan rumah itu mengejutkan juara Sukan Asia sekali gus melengkapkan rekod tanpa kalah, satu pencapaian yang menebus kehampaan mereka selepas beberapa kali mengalami kekecewaan.

Carvalho memuji tahap kecergasan dan semangat berpasukan para pemainnya dengan bekas juara dunia itu berjaya menghimpun 57 gol dan hanya melepaskan lima gol dalam tujuh perlawanan, menewaskan Korea Selatan dua kali dan menyingkirkan pemenang pingat perak Sukan Asia, China sebelum bergelar juara.

Juara Olimpik sebanyak lapan kali itu buat pertama kali gagal memenangi sebarang pingat pada Sukan Asia di Doha, Qatar tahun lalu apabila menduduki tangga ke-11 daripada 12 pasukan dalam Piala Dunia, menduduki tempat keenam Sukan Komanwel 2006 dan Trofi Juara-Juara di tempat sendiri.

Stadium dipenuhi 10,000 penonton sewaktu perlawanan akhir – suasana yang sekian lama jarang dilihat dalam sukan hoki selepas kriket mengambilalih sebagai sukan utama pada pertengahan tahun 1980-an.

‘‘Kami memiliki sedikit mantra. Larian yang pantas, melakukan tackle dan memberi tekanan terhadap lawan. Pada masa yang sama, kami tidak menghormati lawan. Kami menghormati mereka tanpa melupakan keupayaan diri,” katanya.

Pasukan itu menampakkan peningkatan yang ketara sejak Carvalho mengambilalih tugas jurulatih pada Mac lalu.

Dengan pusingan kelayakan Olimpik ke Beijing masih berlangsung, India kini tertekan untuk menghasilkan pencapaian terbaik berikutan tindakan kerajaan yang menyisihkan hoki daripada sukan teras untuk mendapatkan peruntukkan tambahan selepas igauan buruk pada Sukan Asia.

Bekas pemain pertahanan, Carvalho mendapat pujian menggunung berikutan kejayaannya menyuntik kembali semangat para pemain, yang sebelum ini sering dipersalahkan kerana kurang bekerja sama dan tidak cergas.

‘‘Saya mahukan para pemain sedar bahawa mereka memiliki kemahiran dan keyakinan tetapi mereka perlu bekerja keras dan tidak hanya bergantung kepada kemahiran individu,” katanya.

Bagaimanapun, beliau menggesa para pemainnya agar memberi tumpuan dan mengelak daripada kekecewaan terlepas aksi Olimpik buat kali pertama.

India perlu memenangi satu daripada tiga kejohanan kelayakan yang akan berlangsung awal tahun depan untuk layak ke Beijing dan persiapan mereka mungkin lebih bermakna jika penganjuran kejuaraan elit, trofi Juara-Juara diberikan kepada negara itu.

Dijadualkan berlangsung di Pakistan Disember ini, kebimbangan terhadap masalah keselamatan mungkin memaksa penganjur memindahkan kejohanan itu samada di India atau Malaysia, yang menjadi venue pilihan.

Aussies, Kiwis fight for Olympic spot

BUDERIM (Australia): Australia and New Zealand's men's hockey teams will fight it out for Oceania's only Beijing Olympics berth at a qualifying tournament here.

Minnows Papua New Guinea, who have no world ranking, will also play but are not expected to challenge defending Olympic champions Australia (ranked second in the world) or the tough New Zealand team (ninth).

New Zealand coach Shane McLeod was confident his team could match Australia but said it would be tough.

“It's going to be the greatest test they have faced since I have been working with the team in the last year,” McLeod said after his team's final training session.

“I'm very happy with our defensive structure but they are yet to be tested by a team like Australia that can rip teams to bits.”

The winners of the Sept 11-16 Oceania Cup earn a place at Beijing while the runners-up will have to come through one of three qualifiers early next year.

In the women's qualifying tournament also being held here, New Zealand (ranked ninth in the world) and Australia (ranked third) are expected to take the two places available for teams from Oceania.

Papua New Guinea (63rd) and Fiji (67th) are not expected to challenge, with Australia demolishing Fiji 14-0 in their opening match yesterday.

The tournament concludes on Sunday with the men's and women's finals both expected to be between Australia and New Zealand. – AFP

Sarjit congak Olimpik

SINARAN Sukan Olimpik Beijing 2008 mula terbayang di mata skuad hoki kebangsaan selepas meraih pingat gangsa pada Kejohanan Piala Asia ke-7 di Chennai, India yang menjadi pembakar semangat menjelang kempen kelayakan bermula April depan.

Apa yang membanggakan, kejayaan itu ialah yang kedua untuk pasukan kendalian Sarjit Singh bermula muncul naib juara Piala Sultan Azlan Shah, Mei lalu yang menyaksikan Malaysia menamatkan penantian 22 tahun untuk beraksi di pentas final.

Malaysia tewas tipis 1-2 kepada Korea Selatan pada peringkat separuh akhir di Chennai sebelum membelasah Jepun, 5-3 dalam penentuan tempat ke-3/4 selain mencipta sejarah mendominasi saingan Kumpulan A yang turut membabitkan aksi gergasi Asia, Pakistan.

Pemain berpengalaman negara, Chua Boon Huat, sendiri mengakui dia optimis mengenai peluang Malaysia layak ke temasya sukan terbesar dunia itu berdasarkan peningkatan prestasi dipamerkan skuad adunan muka baru dan lama itu pada dua kejohanan utama dalam kalendar hoki dunia.

"Pemain menunjukkan peningkatan yang ketara di India berbanding ketika beraksi dalam Piala Sultan Azlan Shah. Bagi saya, ianya satu perkembangan sangat positif sebelum beraksi dalam perlawanan kelayakan Olimpik.

"Kita mencipta rekod baru dengan meraih kedudukan ketiga terbaik Asia di India dan nyaris layak ke final apabila tewas tipis kepada Korea. Saya harap peningkatan ini akan berterusan sebelum beraksi dalam kempen kelayakan," katanya.

"Mungkin kita akan mengetahui lawan perlawanan kelayakan pada akhir bulan depan. Tapi apa yang pasti, kami tidak gentar untuk berdepan mana-mana pasukan sekalipun," katanya.

Mengulas mengenai keserasian skuad terbabit, Chua berkata, dia gembira dengan perkembangan positif aspek terbabit kerana rakan sepasukan terutama pemain muda, mula mengenali corak permainan masing-masing selain mengikut arahan jurulatih ketika beraksi.

"Permainan kian kemas berbanding Piala Sultan Azlan Shah dan saya harap perkara itu berterusan sebelum beraksi di Sukan Sea. Mungkin tiada masalah untuk meraih emas di Korat, tapi saya harap pemain meningkatkan keupayaan semasa kerana kita tidak dimaklumkan mengenai kejohanan lain sebelum kempen kelayakan bermula.

"Ada atau tidak bukan perkara besar kerana yang penting adalah kesedaran pemain untuk meningkatkan corak permainan. Kita meraih gangsa Piala Asia, jadi reputasi juga pasti turut meningkat," katanya.

Sekalipun sudah meraih dua kejayaan besar, namun dia tidak gemar untuk memikirkan soal ganjaran kerana apa yang penting adalah melaksanakan tanggungjawab yang sudah diamanahkan.

"Saya hanya melaksanakan tanggungjawab dan tidak mahu berfikir mengenainya. Soal dapat atau tidak, tidak penting kerana fokus saya ketika menyarung jersi Malaysia hanyalah mahu menjulang piala untuk negara," katanya.

Sunday, September 9, 2007

India stays Men’s Asia Cup Champion

With a superlative performance, India retained the Asia Cup with a thumping 7-2 victory over Korea before a huge gathering here on Sunday. India led 3-1 at half-time.

Powered by an early goal by Shivendra, the Indians held the stage throughout to finish the championship with a whopping tally of 57 goals against five, winning seven matches in a row. It was something like a dream come true for the Indians.

Everyone pulled his weight in the outcome but none more than the winger Prabhjot Singh who not only slotted two goals but had a hand in almost every goal.

The Koreans were on a low key throughout, pressed hard by the Indian attack. Whatever effort they put at the rival end was smothered superbly by goal-keeper Baljit Singh.

Earlier, Malaysia earned its first medal in the Asia Cup, a bronze at that, beating Japan five goals to three.

The shock of the day was the defeat of Pakistan against China in the tie for the 5-6 positions. The sixth place for Pakistan is the lowest since the inception of the championship in 1982.

Results Men’s Asia Cup Sunday 9 September 2007:

FINAL:
India – Korea 7-2

Bronze medal match:
Malaysia – Japan 5-3

Classification 5-6:
China – Pakistan 3-2

Classification 7-8:
Bangladesh – Hong Kong 3-1

Classification 9-10:
Sri Lanka – Singapore 6-0

Final positions: 1.India 2. Korea, 3 Malaysia, 4.Japan, 5 China, 6.Pakistan, 7.Bangladesh, 8.Hong Kong, 9.Sri Lanka, 10.Singapore, 11. Thailand.

India and Korea in Men’s Asia Cup final

Defending champion, India, will take on Korea in the final of the Asia Cup on Sunday. In the semifinals played before a packed stadium in Chennai, India overwhelmed Japan by four goals to one, while Korea downed Malaysia by the odd goal in three.

India continued its sequence of victories with another splendid display. All the four were field goals, conceived well and executed brilliantly. No doubt the Japanese played with a lot of vigour, but the finesse in the Indian attack eventually won the day.

Two brilliant goals in a space of one minute in the first half jolted the Japanese. First, Shivendra struck from a cross by Sunil, and within a minute Prabhot Singh went in a solo move to beat the rival goal-keeper with a deft flick.

After the break, India enlarged the tally when Roshan Minz netted following a move by Prabhjot and Tushar.

The Japanese who found goalkeeper Baljit Singh a tough nut to crack eventually slotted on through Yamabori, but before the final whistle, Prabhjot Singh netted another splendid goal off a solo run from the mid-field.

Earlier, Korea's resilience stood in good stead even as goal keeper Kunmar Subramaniam came with another sterling display. Some of his saves off Jang Jong Hyun were outstanding. But he was flummoxed by a deflection by Oh Dae Keun.

Malaysia had its moment of glory when Azlan Misron levelled taking advantage of a cross from Tajuddin. But before the final whistle, Korea claimed the match winner from a tearaway move by Yoon Sung Hoon.

Results Men’s Asia Cup Saturday 8 September 2007:
Semifinals:
India – Japan 4-1
Korea – Malaysia 2-1

Classification matches:
Singapore – Thailand 4-0.
Pakistan – Bangladesh 10-0
China – Hong Kong 6-1.

Saturday, September 8, 2007

Interesting semifinals at Men’s Asia Cup

Competition in the seventh Asia Cup for men is all set to acquire a new level of intensity when the semifinals surface on Saturday. While the defending champion, India, takes on Japan, whom it beat in the last BDO Champions Challenge at Boom 4-3, Malaysia locks horns with Korea, the Asian Games champion.

India's sweep of five matches with 15 points totally 46 goals underlines the newfound confidence and enthusiasm of the team under coach, Joaquim Carvalho. The team has been consistently doing well with two podium finishes this year at Ipoh and Boom. Coach Carvalo still asserts that a silver would have been appropriate at both these events.

With tremendous home support and the record of victories against Japan, India begins as the favourite but with a touch of caution. Japan, which finished ninth at Monchengladbach BDO World Cup cannot be, and should not be, taken lightly. The trump card is Yamabori whose penalty corner hits can befuddle any goal-keeper.

Malaysia has been playing extremely well moving into the top of Pool A without losing a game. Coach Sarjit Singh is optimistic that the team is in fine trim and can deliver against the highly rated Korea. Penalty corner specialist Zufikli and striker Tajuddin coupled with the seniors like Chua Boon Huat and Jiwa Mohan, not to speak of the athletic goal-keeper Kumar Subramaniam constitute the power block for Malaysia.

As always, Korea is a tough customer for any team in contemporary hockey, and relies mostly on the accuracy of drag flicker Jang Jong Hyun. And that the strongly built star playing with shirt No 25, has rarely failed when it came to penalty corners. Small wonder, he will be the corner stone.

Saturday’s matches: 11th place match: Singapore v Thailand (8:00); (5-8 positions): Pakistan v Bangladesh (7:00); China v Hong Kong (9:30); Semi-finals: Korea v Malaysia (17:00); India v Japan (19:30).

Korea and Japan complete semifinals at Men’s Asia Cup

Defending champion, India, was joined by Malaysia, Korea and Japan in the semifinal of the Asia Cup on Thursday.

While the places for India and Malaysia were confirmed even on Tuesday, there were results to be noted before spotting the next team. Japan needed a victory against Singapore and won in a trot, thus effectively pushing out Pakistan, three time winner of the trophy, from getting a semi-final spot.

It is a pity that for the first time Pakistan is returning without a semifinal berth in the Cup since inception in 1982 at Karachi.

India recorded its fifth consecutive win in Pool B to top the pool with a goal aggregate of 46, the highest in any competition. The previous best was 43 in the Olympics at Moscow in 1980.

The race between Korea and China ended with the former finishing with a goal difference of 33 against the 26 by China.

In the semifinals on Saturday, Malaysia will take on Korea, while India meets Japan.

Results Men’s Asia Cup, Thursday 6 September 2007:

Pool A:
Japan – Singapore 8-0

Ranking: 1. Malaysia 4-10 (26-4), 2. Japan 4-9 (18-4), 3. Pakistan 4-7 (18-7), 4. Hong Kong 4-3 (6-28), 5. Singapore 4-0 (2-27)

Pool B:
China – Sri Lanka 10-2
Korea – Bangladesh 8-0
India – Thailand 16-0

Ranking: 1. India 5-15 (46-2), 2. Korea 5-10 (41-8), 3. China 5-10 (32-6), 4. Bangladesh 5-6 (16-22), 5. Sri Lanka 5-3 (13-43), 6. Thailand 5-0 (1-67).

Wednesday, September 5, 2007

Malaysia in the semis after holding Pakistan to a draw

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia staged a magnificent fightback from three goals down to snatch a 3-3 draw against three-time champions Pakistan in a Group A match to qualify for the semi-finals of the Asia Cup hockey tournament at the Radhakrishnan Stadium in Chennai yesterday.

Pakistan took control of the first-half, which was played in a heavy downpour, to go 3-0 up through Shakeel Abbasi (17th, 26th) and Akhtar Ali (33rd).

But Malaysia hit back in the second-half to salvage a draw. Forward Tengku Ahmad Tajudin (43rd, 57th) scored a brace before defender Megat Azrafiq Megat Termizi equalised one minute from time for a well-deserved point.

Malaysia, who are unbeaten, top the group with 10 points from three wins and a draw. They outplayed Singapore 8-0, whipped Hong Kong 13-1 and edged Japan, ranked 11th in the world, 2-0.

National coach Sarjit Singh said in a telephone interview from Chennai that he was impressed with his players’ never-say-die attitude against opponents who are ranked fifth in the world.

“Pakistan took control of the match in the first-half on the wet and slippery pitch due to rain. We were playing with 10 men after Engku Malik (Engku Mohamed) was sent to the sin bin for a rash tackle and Pakistan took advantage to score two goals,” said Sarjit.

“But my boys fought back and showed that they have what it takes to beat a team who are ranked much higher.” (Malaysia are ranked 16th in the world).

Malaysia will face either South Korea or China in the semi-finals on Saturday.

Defending champions India, who still have a game in hand, have qualified for the semi-finals from Group B after winning four straight matches.

Dates of Olympic Qualifiers released

Following the announcement by the International Hockey Federation (FIH) at its Congress last month of the six hosts of the Olympic Qualifiers for the 2008 Olympic Games, the dates for these six tournaments are now confirmed. Starting from 2 February 2008 until 4 May 2008, the last three Olympic tickets in each gender will be awarded to the winners of the respective Olympic Qualifiers.

The Olympic Qualifiers are the last possibilities for nations who do not qualify directly through their Continental Championships to qualify for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The first nine spots in each gender will be filled from December 2006 until September 2007 during the several Continental Championships.

At this stage, China, Korea and Pakistan are already qualified for the men’s hockey competition at 2008 Beijing Olympics, while China and Japan are qualified for the women’s hockey competition at 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Both for the men’s and women’s Olympic hockey qualifying tournaments, the best 18 nations not qualified will fight in three tournaments of six teams for the last three spots.

The schedule for the Olympic Qualifiers is as follows:

2-10 February 2008: Men’s Olympic Qualifier in Auckland, New Zealand.
1-9 March 2008 Men’s Olympic Qualifier in Santiago, Chile.
5-13 April 2008: Men’s Olympic Qualifier in Kakamigahara, Japan.
12-20 April 2008: Women’s Olympic Qualifier in Baku, Azerbaijan.
19-27 April 2008: Women’s Olympic Qualifier in Kazan, Russia.
26 April-4 May 2008: Women’s Olympic Qualifier in Vancouver, Canada.
In the event that one of the Olympic Qualifier organizers qualifies for the Olympic Games at an earlier stage; the Olympic Qualifier will be allocated to another (reserve) country.

Teams Qualified for 2008 Olympic Games

Updated: 27 August 2007



2008 Olympic Games Men's Hockey Tournament

China (Host)
Korea (Asian Games Champion)
Pakistan (Asian Games bronze medalist, extra quota based upon the WorldHockey team rankings after BDO World Cup 2006)
South Africa (Champion of the African Olympic Qualification Tournament)
Canada (Champion of the 15th Pan American Games)
Netherlands (Champion of the 11th Men’s EuroHockey Nations Championship)
Spain (Silver medalist of the 11th Men’s EuroHockey Nations Championship)
Belgium (Bronze medalist 11th Men’s EuroHockey Nations Championship)
4 vacancies left:

Automatic qualifiers:

Champion of the 5th Oceania Cup

Final 3 vacancies:

Winner of the Men’s Qualifying Tournament for the XXIX Olympic Games – No. 1
Winner of the Men’s Qualifying Tournament for the XXIX Olympic Games – No. 2
Winner of the Men’s Qualifying Tournament for the XXIX Olympic Games – No. 3

Quotas for Men’s Qualifying Tournament for the XXIX Olympic Games

Africa: 1 (EGY)
Asia: 4 (JPN, IND, MAS, BAN)
Europe: 8 (GER, GBR, FRA, IRL, CZE,+3 TBC from EuroHockey Nations Trophy)
Oceania: 1
Pan America: 4 (ARG, CHI, TRI, CUB)

Asia Cup Table (5 sept 2007)

Tuesday, September 4, 2007

Malaysia virtually through

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia have virtually qualified for the Asia Cup hockey tournament semi-finals after scoring a 2-0 win over Japan for their third consecutive win in Group A at the Radhakrishnan Stadium in Chennai yesterday.

Malaysia will play against three-time champions Pakistan in their final group fixture today. And a draw will be enough to give them the top spot in the group. In fact, a defeat by less than an 11-goal margin will still put Malaysia through to the semi-finals.

Malaysia are on the roll in the tournament - having scored 23 goals and conceded only one. In the previous two matches, they thrashed Singapore (8-0) and Hong Kong (13-1).

Yesterday, forward Ismail Abu scored in the first minute of the match and skipper Azlan Misron was on target in the 41st minute.

National coach Sarjit Singh said in a telephone interview from Chennai yesterday that he was delighted with the fighting spirit shown by his players against Japan.

"The boys played their hearts out and matched Japan in every aspect of the game. The win over the higher ranked Japan is very satisfying indeed," he said.

Japan are ranked 11th in the world against 16th for Malaysia.

Sarjit added that they would not take any chances against Pakistan, who are still in with a shot to reach the semi-finals.

In Group B, defending champions India chalked up their fourth consecutive win yesterday, beating Bangladesh 6-0 to book a place in the semi-finals.

The Indians, who finished a dismal fifth in the Doha Asian Games last December, will play against minnows Thailand today and should wrap up their group fixture with full points.

India have scored 30 goals and conceded only two thus far in the tournament. They edged China 1-0 in the opening match and went on to whip Sri Lanka 20-0 before chalking up an exciting 3-2 win over two-time winners and Asiad champions South Korea 3-2.

Against Bangladesh yesterday, two players scored a brace – V. R. Ragunath (31st, 66th) and Prabhjot Singh (49th, 57th). The other scorers were Tushar Khandkar (37th) and Shivender Singh (38th).

Monday, September 3, 2007

India in semifinals at Men’s Asia Cup

India stunned Korea three goals to two to become the first team to ensure a semifinal berth from Pool B in the men’s Asia Cup on Monday. It was a classic performance by the team, which scored field goals thrice to delight the huge crowd at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium. All the five goals surfaced in the first session.

Korea led twice in the match but the Indians recovered well not only to equalize midway through but getting the match winner from a backhander by Prabhjot Singh.

Earlier, the goal riot continued with Pakistan beating Singapore by eight goals to nil, while Japan thrashing Hong Kong 8-0. In another tie, China outplayed Thailand by 13 goals to nil. Japan’s Yamabori and China’s Hu Huiren scored six goals to each to add to the work of the hockey statisticians.

Results Men’s Asia Cup, Monday 3 September 2007:

Pool A:
Japan – Hong Kong 7-1
Pakistan – Singapore 8-0

Ranking: 1. Malaysia 2-6 (21-1), 2. Pakistan 3-6 (15-4), 3. Japan 2-6 (10-2), 4.- Singapore 2-0 (0-16), 5. Hong Kong 3-0 (3-26)

Pool B:
China – Thailand 13-0
Bangladesh – Sri Lanka 3-2
India – Korea 3-2

Ranking: 1. Korea 3-6 (30-5), 2. India 3-9 (24-2), 3. Bangladesh 3-6 (16-8), 4. China 3-6 (19-1), 5. Sri Lanka 3-0 (2-32), 5. Thailand 3-0 (0-42).

Tuesday’s matches: Hong Kong v Singapore (15:00); India v Bangladesh (17:00); Japan v Malaysia (19:00).

Sunday, September 2, 2007

Japan upset Pakistan at Asia Cup

It rained in goals and 60 of them came on the board in the BSNL-Asia Cup on Saturday. But the day 2 will be remembered for the remarkable 3-1 victory that Japan gained over the former World Champion and the three time winner of the Asia Cup, Pakistan. A sort of history was made by this outcome.

Known for their fighting spirit and systematic approach, the Japanese more than matched their rival in speed, stamina to script a new page in their hockey history. The start for Japan was splendid in pool A, where it may to fight with Malaysia, which downed Hong Kong 13-1, for a semi-final berth. Korea outclassed Thailand by 16 goals to nil, scoring 28 goals in all in two matches.

The biggest win for the day came from India, which beat Sri Lanka by 20 goals to nil after leading 10-0 at halftime. The score line equalled the record for the championship that is shared by Pakistan and Malaysia who beat Thailand in 1993 at Hiroshima. Prabhjot Singh was the top scorer for India with five individual goals.

The seventh Asia Cup, which witnessed as many as 103 goals from two days, is interestingly poised, triggering speculation on spotting the semi-finalists. The competition resumes Monday after a day's rest on Sunday.

Malaysia leads the table in Pool A after two victories. Pakistan suffered a reverse against Japan. All the three teams however are in contention for a place for the semi-final.

Malaysia has another rest day on Monday, and takes on the in-form Japan on Tuesday and Paksitan the next day. These two matches will determine the placing for Malaysia in the Pool. It must be noted here Malaysia and Japan have not won a medal in the competition so far.

Korea and India share the top spot with six points each in Pool B. Both come to grips on Monday. This outcome will signal the trend in the Pool even as China, which lost to India on the opening day, is making a valiant effort to be back in contention. The Korea-China match on 5 September is expected to clinch the issue.

Results:
Pool A: Japan – Pakistan 3-1; Malaysia – Hong Kong 13-1; Chia – Bangladesh 6-0.

Ranking: 1. Malaysia 2-6 (21-1), 2. Pakistan 2-3 (7-4), 3. Japan 1-3 (3-1), 4.- Singapore 1-0 (0-8), 5. Hong Kong 2-0 (2-19)

Pool B: Korea – Thailand 16-0; India – Sri Lanka 20-0.

Ranking: 1. Korea 2-6 (28-2), 2. India 2-6 (21-0), 3. Bangladesh 2-3 (13-6), 4. China 23 (6-1), 5. Sri Lanka 2-0 (0-29), 5. Thailand 2-0 (0-29).

Monday’s matches: Bangladesh v Sri Lanka (07:30); China v Thailand (09:30); Japan v Hong Kong (15:00); Pakistan v Singapore (17:00); India v Korea (19:00)

Lots of goals on opening day of Asia Cup

An avalanche of goals featured the first day of the Asia Cup here on Friday. That as many 45 were slotted into the records shows a measure of goal glut.


The only tough contest came late in the evening when India prevailed over China by a solitary goal in a pool B encounter. The match winner came from a penalty corner hit by veteran Dilip Tirkey in
the 46th minute.

It was a tension filled match despite India dominating the exchanges. The Chinese, who beat their rivals at the Doha Asian Games, were relentless in their efforts throughout, but for the deciding goal by Dilip Tirkey.

The Asian Champion Korea hammered a dozen goals against a hapless Sri Lanka, which, much to surprise and shock for many struck two goals through its captain Gazalli.

Pakistan, three time champion, outplayed Hong Kong, after a lethargic start , while Malaysia and Bangladesh luxuriated against Singapore and Thailand respectively.

Results:
Pool A: Malaysia-Singapore 8-2, Pakistan-Hong Kong 6-1.
Pool: B: Bangladesh-Thailand 13-0, Korea-Sri Lanka 12-2, India-China 1-0.

Asia Cup ready to start

The seventh edition of the Asia Cup is all set to roll into history on Friday in Chennai, India. India defends the title won last at Kuala Lumpur in 2003.

For the first time since launch in 1982 at Karachi as many as 11 countries in the region are taking part. The highest thus far (10) has been in Dhaka in 1985.

Pakistan has won the trophy three times so far, in 1982, 1985 and 1989 while South Korea has taken the cup twice, in 1993 and 1999. The only win for India was in 2003.

What is significant in the 2007 edition is the ranking status accorded to the event by the FIH. The participants will earn ABN AMRO World Ranking points.

This is a single motivating factor for every team, including the three, Korea, China and Pakistan, who have qualified for the Olympic Games at Beijing by virtue of their medals obtained in Doha Asian Games.

The tournament holds great significance for India and Malaysia as both are making valiant efforts to take a spot in the 12 for the Beijing Games through the qualifiers early next year.

The Chennai edition was originally scheduled to be held from 1 until 9 September, but the late entry from Pakistan, which was initially reluctant to take part, resulted in shuffling the pools and fixtures. An extra day had to be added.

The following are the pools: A: Pakistan, Japan, Malaysia, Hong Kong (China) and Singapore; B: Korea, India (holder), China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

The title sponsor the event is India's national telecom, BNSL.