The Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) will hold a two-day trial to pick a team for next year’s Malaysian Junior Hockey League (MJHL).
The trials will be held at the MBPJ Hockey Stadium tomorrow and on Sunday beginning at 8.30am on both days.
Only players born on or after Jan 1, 1990 are eligible to attend the trials.
For details, contact chief coach Paul Raj (017-3715428) or assistant team manager Zainal Abidin Ismail (019-3608620).
Friday, December 12, 2008
Livermore on comeback trail
Brent Livermore, the second most-capped player in Australian field hockey, is to return to the national team for next month’s four-match home series against Holland, Hockey Australia said yesterday.
Livermore, 32, who has played 289 internationals, was named in the squad by new coach Ric Charlesworth after missing this year’s Beijing Olympics with injury.
Livermore suffered a fracture in his left foot ruling him out of his third Olympics.
Despite speculation that he may retire, Livermore said he was looking at playing on until at least next year’s Champions’ Trophy in Melbourne.
If Livermore’s return is successful, he will have the opportunity to break Jay Stacy’s record of 319 international matches and become the most capped Kookaburra.
Australia face the Dutch in Western Australia from January 20-25.
Livermore, 32, who has played 289 internationals, was named in the squad by new coach Ric Charlesworth after missing this year’s Beijing Olympics with injury.
Livermore suffered a fracture in his left foot ruling him out of his third Olympics.
Despite speculation that he may retire, Livermore said he was looking at playing on until at least next year’s Champions’ Trophy in Melbourne.
If Livermore’s return is successful, he will have the opportunity to break Jay Stacy’s record of 319 international matches and become the most capped Kookaburra.
Australia face the Dutch in Western Australia from January 20-25.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
MHL : Knockout Stage
Maybank snatched a slim advantage when they edged Nur Insafi-Penang 1-0 in a Malaysia Hockey League (MHL) quarter-final first-leg match at the USM AstroTurf Stadium here yesterday.
And it was veteran forward Chairil Anwar Aziz who gave then the cushion for the return match at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil on Saturday.
The 36-year-old former international deflected home a cross from Mohd Razali Zulkipli in the 42nd minute.
Maybank coach S. Velappan, though pleased with the result, readily admitted that their battle for a semi-final berth was far from over.
“I am glad that we succeeded in taking an advantage into the second-leg match. But believe me, nothing is confirmed. There is still plenty to be done in the return match and we can expect Nur Insafi to throw everything at us on Saturday,” he said.
“What we can ill afford to do is to repeat the defensive approach we took in the second half today. We have to continue to bring the fight to them as we did in the first half. Otherwise, it could spell trouble.”
Nur Insafi reacted positively after conceding the goal to Maybank.
With twin strikers Prem Kumar and Mubeen Ur Rehman a constant menace, Nur Insafi had Maybank pinned deeo in defence.
They earned seven penalty corners in the second half but drew blanks. Maybank goalkeeper Mohd Hanafi Hassan pulled off two great saves while his defenders turned away all the other Nur Insafi set-piece attempts.
Mubeen did beat Mohd Hanafi with a rising shot in the dying minutes of the match but the woodwork stood in the way.
Nur Insafi coach Dr Thaitchana Muruthi did not hide his disappointment over the defeat.
“I felt very sorry for the boys. They were plain unlucky. But all is not lost. From our creativity today, I am confident we can overturn the deficit and beat Maybank to qualify for the semi-finals,” he said.
The winners of the tie will play against Division One champions Ernst and Young for a place in the final.
The other semi-final is between defending champions Tenaga Nasional and Sapura.
And it was veteran forward Chairil Anwar Aziz who gave then the cushion for the return match at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil on Saturday.
The 36-year-old former international deflected home a cross from Mohd Razali Zulkipli in the 42nd minute.
Maybank coach S. Velappan, though pleased with the result, readily admitted that their battle for a semi-final berth was far from over.
“I am glad that we succeeded in taking an advantage into the second-leg match. But believe me, nothing is confirmed. There is still plenty to be done in the return match and we can expect Nur Insafi to throw everything at us on Saturday,” he said.
“What we can ill afford to do is to repeat the defensive approach we took in the second half today. We have to continue to bring the fight to them as we did in the first half. Otherwise, it could spell trouble.”
Nur Insafi reacted positively after conceding the goal to Maybank.
With twin strikers Prem Kumar and Mubeen Ur Rehman a constant menace, Nur Insafi had Maybank pinned deeo in defence.
They earned seven penalty corners in the second half but drew blanks. Maybank goalkeeper Mohd Hanafi Hassan pulled off two great saves while his defenders turned away all the other Nur Insafi set-piece attempts.
Mubeen did beat Mohd Hanafi with a rising shot in the dying minutes of the match but the woodwork stood in the way.
Nur Insafi coach Dr Thaitchana Muruthi did not hide his disappointment over the defeat.
“I felt very sorry for the boys. They were plain unlucky. But all is not lost. From our creativity today, I am confident we can overturn the deficit and beat Maybank to qualify for the semi-finals,” he said.
The winners of the tie will play against Division One champions Ernst and Young for a place in the final.
The other semi-final is between defending champions Tenaga Nasional and Sapura.
Asia Cup : Nurul to shoulder dual role at junior Asian tournament
Nurul Nadia Mokhtar will shoulder a heavy responsibilty in the Junior Asia Cup women’s hockey tournament, which begins on Saturday at the Seremban II Hockey Stadium.
The 20-year-old Penangite not only has to marshal the defence but she is also depended on to deliver the goals from penalty corners.
But Nurul is not satisfied with her penalty corner conversion rate in two friendly matches against the South Korean juniors last September.
“I took six penalty corners in the two matches and managed to score only one. The pressure is definitely on me to deliver the goals in the Junior Asia Cup,’’ said Nurul, who was in the national senior team for the 2006 Doha Asian Games.
Nurul, who has 40 international caps to her credit, added that she was working on improving her penalty corner execution and hoped to get it right in the tournament.
Malaysia will open their campaign in Group A against Japan on Saturday. Their other matches are against defending champions China (Dec 15), Pakistan (Dec 17) and Thailand (Dec 18). Group B comprises three-time champions South Korea, India, Singapore and Taiwan.
The tournament, which ends on Dec 21, offers three places to the 2009 women’s Junior World Cup Finals in Boston scheduled for Aug 3-18.
And Nurul admitted that it would be difficult for Malaysia to get among the top three.
“China, South Korea, Japan and India are much stronger than us. But we will give our best to finish in a creditable position,’’ said Nurul, who was also in the national team for the Olympic qualifying tournament in Victoria, Canada, last April.
The final squad of 18 player for the Asian Juniors were named yesterday. The team is under the charge of Yahya Atan and he is assisted by Tai Beng Hai and Mohd Nasihin Nubli.
The 20-year-old Penangite not only has to marshal the defence but she is also depended on to deliver the goals from penalty corners.
But Nurul is not satisfied with her penalty corner conversion rate in two friendly matches against the South Korean juniors last September.
“I took six penalty corners in the two matches and managed to score only one. The pressure is definitely on me to deliver the goals in the Junior Asia Cup,’’ said Nurul, who was in the national senior team for the 2006 Doha Asian Games.
Nurul, who has 40 international caps to her credit, added that she was working on improving her penalty corner execution and hoped to get it right in the tournament.
Malaysia will open their campaign in Group A against Japan on Saturday. Their other matches are against defending champions China (Dec 15), Pakistan (Dec 17) and Thailand (Dec 18). Group B comprises three-time champions South Korea, India, Singapore and Taiwan.
The tournament, which ends on Dec 21, offers three places to the 2009 women’s Junior World Cup Finals in Boston scheduled for Aug 3-18.
And Nurul admitted that it would be difficult for Malaysia to get among the top three.
“China, South Korea, Japan and India are much stronger than us. But we will give our best to finish in a creditable position,’’ said Nurul, who was also in the national team for the Olympic qualifying tournament in Victoria, Canada, last April.
The final squad of 18 player for the Asian Juniors were named yesterday. The team is under the charge of Yahya Atan and he is assisted by Tai Beng Hai and Mohd Nasihin Nubli.
Indoor Hockey : Malaysia eye place in final of inaugural Asia Cup
Malaysia expect to qualify for the final of the inaugural men’s Asia Cup indoor hockey tournament, which begins today at the Indera Mulia Stadium in Ipoh.
Malaysia have two teams in the fray. The others are Iran, Singapore, Thailand and Uzbekistan.
The preliminaries will take a round-robin format with the top two teams contesting the final on Sunday.
Iran, who won the gold medal in the second Asian Indoor Games in Macau last year, will start as the favourites.
Malaysia A team manager Kenneth Pereira said that Iran had the same set of players from the Games-winning side and they were also favoured to make the final in Ipoh.
“We also have the same team who played in Macau and held Iran to a 3-3 draw in a group match. We are banking on reaching the final,’’ said Kenneth.
Former national skipper S. Kuhan will spearhead the Malaysia A challenge.
The other members of the team are goalkeeper Mohd Nasihin Nubli, K. Keevan Raj, S. Shanker, P. Prabahkaran, Mohd Rodhanizam Mat Radzi, Mohd Razi Mohd Ismail and the Mohan brothers, Jiwa and Jeevan.
Malaysia B are represented by Mohd Hafizuddin Osman, Mohd Khairul Effendy Kamarulzaman, M. Vizayan, Mohd Adam Mustaffa, Mohd Hafiz Zakaria, Mohd Faizal Kamaruddin, Joel Samuel van Huizen, Hafis Jami and G. Sasitheran.
Kenneth added that the tournament would be good for players to sharpen their skills.
“The tournament is also meant to help develop indoor hockey in Malaysia. And youngsters are encourage to come and watch the matches to learn more about the game,’’ he said.
Malaysia have two teams in the fray. The others are Iran, Singapore, Thailand and Uzbekistan.
The preliminaries will take a round-robin format with the top two teams contesting the final on Sunday.
Iran, who won the gold medal in the second Asian Indoor Games in Macau last year, will start as the favourites.
Malaysia A team manager Kenneth Pereira said that Iran had the same set of players from the Games-winning side and they were also favoured to make the final in Ipoh.
“We also have the same team who played in Macau and held Iran to a 3-3 draw in a group match. We are banking on reaching the final,’’ said Kenneth.
Former national skipper S. Kuhan will spearhead the Malaysia A challenge.
The other members of the team are goalkeeper Mohd Nasihin Nubli, K. Keevan Raj, S. Shanker, P. Prabahkaran, Mohd Rodhanizam Mat Radzi, Mohd Razi Mohd Ismail and the Mohan brothers, Jiwa and Jeevan.
Malaysia B are represented by Mohd Hafizuddin Osman, Mohd Khairul Effendy Kamarulzaman, M. Vizayan, Mohd Adam Mustaffa, Mohd Hafiz Zakaria, Mohd Faizal Kamaruddin, Joel Samuel van Huizen, Hafis Jami and G. Sasitheran.
Kenneth added that the tournament would be good for players to sharpen their skills.
“The tournament is also meant to help develop indoor hockey in Malaysia. And youngsters are encourage to come and watch the matches to learn more about the game,’’ he said.
36-year-old Chairil wants to play for a couple more years
Chairil Anwar has featured for Maybank in the Malaysia Hockey League (MHL) for 17 years and he is not about to quit yet.
The 36-year-old forward felt that he is still good enough to play competitive hockey for another couple of years.
“I believe that I am the oldest player in the MHL but I am still fit and still enjoying the competition,’’ said Chairil, who retired from the national team in 2003 with 279 international caps.
“However, I am not satisfied with my performance in the MHL this season. I have only two goals to show from 10 league matches.”
Chairil added that he hoped to go on target against Nur Insafi in the quarter-final first-leg match at the USM pitch in Penang today.
“Nur Insafi have seven Indians and two Bangladeshis in their ranks and they are a strong side, improving with each match in the competition.
“We defeated them 5-2 in the first round of the league but they beat us by the same margin in the second round,” he said.
“We can expect a tough time against them tomorrow. They are fast with their counter attacks and we have to be on our toes. We also have to make full use of our chances to chalk up a good result in Penang.”
Besides Chairil, the other forwards in the Maybank team are Suhaimi Ibrahim, Hafifihafiz Hanafi and Hang Edzharsyah Hang Tuah.
In the six-team Division One, Maybank finished fourth, one rung above Nur Insafi.
The quarter-final ties were scheduled for Dec 5 and 7 but Nur Insafi requested for a postponement as their Indian players had to return home to play in the domestic league.
Maybank agreed to their request and the return match will be played on Saturday at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil.
The winners of the match will be up against league champions Ernst and Young in the semi-finals. The other semi-final is between defending overall champions Tenaga Nasional and Sapura.
The 36-year-old forward felt that he is still good enough to play competitive hockey for another couple of years.
“I believe that I am the oldest player in the MHL but I am still fit and still enjoying the competition,’’ said Chairil, who retired from the national team in 2003 with 279 international caps.
“However, I am not satisfied with my performance in the MHL this season. I have only two goals to show from 10 league matches.”
Chairil added that he hoped to go on target against Nur Insafi in the quarter-final first-leg match at the USM pitch in Penang today.
“Nur Insafi have seven Indians and two Bangladeshis in their ranks and they are a strong side, improving with each match in the competition.
“We defeated them 5-2 in the first round of the league but they beat us by the same margin in the second round,” he said.
“We can expect a tough time against them tomorrow. They are fast with their counter attacks and we have to be on our toes. We also have to make full use of our chances to chalk up a good result in Penang.”
Besides Chairil, the other forwards in the Maybank team are Suhaimi Ibrahim, Hafifihafiz Hanafi and Hang Edzharsyah Hang Tuah.
In the six-team Division One, Maybank finished fourth, one rung above Nur Insafi.
The quarter-final ties were scheduled for Dec 5 and 7 but Nur Insafi requested for a postponement as their Indian players had to return home to play in the domestic league.
Maybank agreed to their request and the return match will be played on Saturday at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil.
The winners of the match will be up against league champions Ernst and Young in the semi-finals. The other semi-final is between defending overall champions Tenaga Nasional and Sapura.
Pakistani legend Manzoor dies
Pakistani hockey legend Manzoor Hussain Atif died early on Monday aged 81 after a long illness, his family said.
Atif represented Pakistan in four Olympics and was part of the team that won the gold medal at the 1960 Rome Games. He was team manager when Pakistan won their second and third Olympic golds, in Mexico in 1968 and in Los Angeles in 1984.
He served as secretary of the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) for 11 years, becoming the first non-European chairman of the International Hockey Federation (IHF) rules board in 1994.
Atif also held the position of Asian Hockey Federation (AHF) secretary for 16 years and was vice president of the organisation between 1982-2001.
He was highly respected in the hockey world and was instrumental in raising the sport’s profile at international level.
Atif represented Pakistan in four Olympics and was part of the team that won the gold medal at the 1960 Rome Games. He was team manager when Pakistan won their second and third Olympic golds, in Mexico in 1968 and in Los Angeles in 1984.
He served as secretary of the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) for 11 years, becoming the first non-European chairman of the International Hockey Federation (IHF) rules board in 1994.
Atif also held the position of Asian Hockey Federation (AHF) secretary for 16 years and was vice president of the organisation between 1982-2001.
He was highly respected in the hockey world and was instrumental in raising the sport’s profile at international level.
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