PETALING JAYA: National hockey team head coach Brendon Carolan has warned against complacency after the team continued their fine run at the Asian Champions Trophy (ACT) by beating South Korea 3-1 in Punjab, India, on Thursday (Oct 29).
The Speedy Tigers notched their second win at the Olympian Surjit Singh Hockey Stadium following their 5-4 victory over China in their opening match on Tuesday.
Malaysia got a strong start against South Korea after Azimuddin Syakir Kamaruddin scored a field goal in the 10th minute.
South Korea responded in the 31st minute through Song Hae-seong, but Akhimullah Anuar Esook put Malaysia ahead again five minutes later.
Veteran striker Faizal Saari then sealed the win with a field goal in the 50th minute.
Despite the strong performance so far, Carolan reminded his team to not get too comfortable ahead of their next match against Bangladesh today.
Although Malaysia have beaten Bangladesh in their last five meetings, Carolan is aware of the tactics and players who could pose a threat when they face each other.
"We have to respect everyone. Bangladesh have got some good penalty corner takers and individuals that we need to take care of, so we can’t just look at past results," said Carolan.
"We just have to get the job done and then have a day off to recover."
After facing Bangladesh today, Malaysia will take on hosts India on Sunday, before their final group stage match against Japan on Monday.
Carolan was pleased with the result as he saw improvements from their earlier game with China, and at the same time commended the Korean team for fielding younger players.
"I’m happy for the guys. I would say that was a pretty decent performance overall, and our penalty corners were a little better.
"I think South Korea have also done well to bring some young guys to develop the team. So I think it was a pretty controlled performance," he said.
