KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) will hold the inaugural national five-a-side tournament at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil from March 2-6.
MHC Hockey 5s and High-Performance Committee chairman Hasnizam Hassan said the tournament, which is open to only Under-23 players, was part of the confederation’s efforts to form a team to compete in the invitational meet organised by the International Hockey Federation (FIH) in Lau-sanne, Switzerland from June 4-5.
“Malaysia are among five nations invited by the FIH based on the performance shown at the 2018 Youth Olympics. We decided to set the eligibility age for participation to Under-23 players after we won gold at the 2018 Youth Olympics in Argentina,” he said in a statement, adding that it was important to unearth new talent.
He said they are targeting the participation of 14 teams nationwide so as to create a hockey 5s culture at the grassroots level and to introduce it to the schools.
“We notice that many schools do not play hockey due to the lack of playing field and such because a hockey field requires a big space. But, with hockey 5s, although you do not have a big field, you can still play,” he said. — Bernama
