Hockey: Fuentes the right man to improve Malaysia’s penalty corner flickers

KUALA LUMPUR: Drag flick coach Adel Fuentes of Argentina is the man hired to transform Malaysia’s penalty corner flickers into world beaters.

Fuentes, who played a big role in the team’s campaign in the recent FIH World Hockey semi-final in Johor Baru, will be with the national team for the Asia Cup in Ipoh next month.

The Asia Cup is a qualifier for the 2014 World Cup and only the winners get an automatic berth to the Finals.

National coach Paul Revington said that Fuentes debuted with the team during their South African tour in June and is convinced that he (Fuentes) had a major impact on the team during the Johor Baru campaign.

“His impact was big in the World League in Johor Baru as far as the penalty corner success rate is concerned. We actually wanted him to start work in January or February but various problems delayed this process.

“In Johor Baru he also acted as an extra assistant coach with the team with his job as an opposition analysis and additional strategic voice,” said Revington.

Fuentes, is also a well-known coach, having worked with the Argentina women’s team as assistant coach from 2009 to 2012 and before that as assistant coach with the men’s team from 2006 to 2008. He was coach of the SCHC and Laren (Dutch) Premier League sides from 2006 to 2012 and also runs a marketing and advertising business in Holland.

Revington said that they hoped to have him here early to help prepare the team.

“We hope to have him in Malaysia again from Aug 11-15 during our training camp in Ipoh and then for the Asia Cup from Aug 24,” he said.

Revington said that he knows the quality of Fuentes’ work as he had worked with the Ireland team and coached the Irish players who were in the SCHC team.

“I think it could be seen in Johor Baru that Mohamed Razie Rahim and Faizal Saari had benefited from his training as they scored quite a number of penalty corner goals,” he said.