Why silence the players, just for being honest?

FOOTBALL journalists love a quotable quote from players and coaches. That is what adds flavour to the performance on the pitch.

Sadly, though, many in Malaysia are hardly articulate. “We did well”, “We got the three points”, “It was the result of teamwork” – these are the kinds of statements that players often make.

There really is a lack of feistiness and passion in post-match press conferences, unlike during matches.

Nippy winger Faisal Halim is different – he always delivers with his comments, and is respected for his views.

The Selangor player was also made captain of Harimau Malaya during the AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup last year, which showed his character as a leader.

However, the player fondly known as Mickey has hit the headlines for the wrong reasons. The 25-year-old has been suspended for a month over a statement he made during an interview after the Super League match against Sabah three months ago.

Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) secretary-general Noor Azman Rahman says Faisal had violated Article 61 of the FAM Disciplinary Code (press statements) and Article 82 of the FAM Statute (contributions to the media).

Article 61 says officials or players cannot make statements to the media, verbally or in writing without approval from the Executive Committee.

But one quote from Noor Azman’s statement piqued my attention. “FAM would like to advise players who play in the Malaysian League to be more careful when giving media statements and to learn from this case.”

What is that about? That one statement is enough to deter players from giving their take on matches or even talking about themselves.

Football is not about the image of the governing body. It’s about emotion, passion – and truth. Sports is indeed a business these days and to survive, it needs these traits.

If you stifle them, it is going to hurt the game. Not only are you instilling fear among players and coaches to express what they feel, the marketing of the game is going to be dented, too.

What was so bad about Faisal’s statement?

He said: “I’m disappointed with the way we lost. Everyone knows, every year this happens. If I as a player say it directly, I have no money to pay the fines and everything. If the match is fair, we lose 1-0, we would even accept losing 10-0, but not in this way.

“We know a lot (of people) want to bring Selangor down, a lot are uncomfortable with the Selangor team. But this is football, we have to play fair and we have to remember honesty. We want changes, not the same thing happening again.”

He was talking about the officiating, which to be fair, has not been great this season.

There have been many contentious decisions and Faisal was making a plea for a change.

Was it malicious? And why did it take three months before he was punished? It’s baffling.

Faisal was not blaming anyone. He just aired his views and feelings, which are shared by others.

Even coaches have lamented about the officiating. Former Kuala Lumpur coach Bojan Hodak says he has sent many official complaints and the FAM have said they would take it seriously.

Faisal is a key player under national coach Kim Pan-gon and he will now miss five matches for Selangor because of his honest statement.

Criticisms are part of the game. Not everything is always rosy. Why curb honesty? Yes, rules are rules but when they are archaic, they need a review.

There has to be a willingness to gather and discuss some of the laws governing the game. We need to see changes in terms of our refereeing.

The league has expanded but poor decisions have cost some teams. That has to end.

I do hope Faisal returns stronger to the game.

More importantly, I hope he – and all other players – will continue to speak their minds. Players, after all, make the game.