Tenaga match winner Amirul eyes senior team breakthrough

PETALING JAYA: When Tenaga Nasional’s Mohd Amirul Hamizan Azhar connected his hockey stick with the ball to score his team’s winning goal against Terengganu in the TNB Cup final last week, he could only think of the two painful years that he had to endure.

From 2020 to 2021, the youngster had suffered three different fractures of the patella, tibia and fibula, which hampered his progress in hockey.

And he had to wait until towards the end of 2021 to regain his form and touch to be a part of the national junior team that played in the Junior Hockey World Cup in India. Amirul was also one of the key defenders in Wallace Tan’s side and since then, he has only showed marked improvement.

The 21-year-old now hopes to break into the senior team and earn his first international cap after inspiring Tenaga to their cup success.

“Since the start of the Malaysian Hockey League, I wanted to win something for Tenaga because they had helped me since my school days and stood by me even when I was injured,” said Amirul.

“So, winning the TNB Cup felt really good. Scoring the winner, even better.

“I hope with that momentum, I can push for a national team spot. That’s the dream. But I know I have to learn more to get a place in coach Arul’s (A. Arulselvaraj) team.

“I’m lucky to be learning under two defenders - Faiz Helmi Jali and Syed Syafiq Syed Mohd Cholan, who are the best in the nation.”

In the MHL, Amirul scored only three goals in all competitions but impressed more with his defending. He is known for his work rate, where he unsettled many attackers with his constant pressing and interceptions.