We’ve got your back

Dangerous situation: South Africa’s Calvin Davis (left) attempting to score against Malaysia’s Amirul Azahar (second from right) in the Nations Cup match on June 14.

PETALING JAYA: National hockey team head coach Sarjit Singh has the full backing of the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) despite a poor sixth-place finish at the recent Nations Cup on home turf.

The governing body believe Sarjit is still the right man for the job and the senior team are in good hands.

MHC president Datuk Seri Subahan Kamal said the blame does not only fall on the head coach but the players need to take responsibility as well for failing to reach the semi-finals.

“As president, I can see that the players can compete against any big team in the world. The team performed well, but because of some mistakes by players, we did not get the result we wanted.

“This is not on the coach but the players as well. They play a role and in the end, they are the ones who will determine if we walk away with a win or a loss,” said Subahan during a press conference yesterday.

Malaysia, who played as hosts for the tournament two weeks ago, failed to finish in the top five after losing 1-2 to Wales in the fifth and sixth classification match.

Subahan added that senior players in the squad should be leading by example and not contribute to the team’s suffering during tournaments.

“We were leading 3-0 against New Zealand at the Nations Cup but things turned around because our players were carded.

“As senior players, they should not be making unnecessary mistakes to be carded. They should be better,” he said.

After the tournament, Sarjit had made a shocking call to step away from the national team if they fail to qualify for the World Cup next year.

To increase their chances, Subahan said MHC intend to host the World Cup qualifiers early next year as the home ground advantage could give the Speedy Tigers the edge to perform well, even though that hope did not materialise during the Nations Cup.

“So far the national team are in the best form, it’s just that the luck isn’t there.

“We just need to be patient and the results will come,” he said.