A frosty reception in Japan

The national hockey team learnt on their first day in Japan that the weather would also be a factor in their Olympic qualifying campaign, which begins on Saturday at the Green Hockey Stadium.

The team arrived in Kakamigahara yesterday morning and they were out on the pitch to check out the conditions after barely three hours of rest. And what hit them was the cold weather made worse by strong winds. The temperature was around 10°C.

Skipper Azlan Misron in a telephone interview said: “It was bearable today but we were told that it could get worse.

“We were more concerned about the condition of the pitch. The coach (Sarjit Singh, who was in Japan earlier to inspect the venue of competition) was right . It is an old pitch and it is very slippery.

“The players must tread with caution in training to avoid injury. We had a useful workout today as we were able to get a grip of the pitch conditions.”

Ahead of their opening match against Poland on Saturday, Sarjit said that they would have daily two-hour training session on the competition venue and the emphasis would be on set pieces.

“I want to ensure that the players execute the moves well and have a good read of the pitch. We cannot do anything about the weather. We have got the players warm clothing and they have to get used to it over the next few days,” he said.

Only the winners of the qualifying take the last berth available in a 12-team Olympic competition in Beijing in August. Besides Poland, Malaysia will be up against Italy (Sunday), Germany (April 8), Switzerland (April 10) and Japan (April 12).

Two-time world champions Germany are the favourites to take the ticket to Beijing and Sarjit said that they had been in Kakamigahara since March 28.

“They are very serious and have had several days of training here. For us, the main priority is to get ready for the first match against Poland. We will take one step at a time and the first objective is to make the final,” he said.

In the next two days, the team will also view recordings of the Polish team in action in two recent friendly matches against South Korea.

Former national player Reduan Ponirin, who recorded the matches won by the Koreans (7-0 and 3-2) and arrived from Seoul yesterday morning, said: “The Polish team play a typical European game. The second game was not fully completed due to heavy rain.”