KUALA LUMPUR, April 21 (Bernama) – The national men’s hockey team will play warm-up matches in Perth during a scheduled tour of Australia, as part of their preparations for the FIH Nations Cup campaign in Malaysia this June.
National men’s hockey head coach Sarjit Singh said the friendly matches would serve as valuable experience for his players, as they would be playing high-intensity games.
“This tour must be utilised fully by the selected players. With the high intensity of the matches and the opportunity to face a top-quality team like Australia, this is the best chance for them to showcase their abilities.
“The team also want the young players on this tour to make the most of this invaluable experience to continue improving themselves,” he said in a statement issued by the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) today.
The team, nicknamed the Speedy Tigers, will kick off their campaign against Western Australia on April 23 and 24 before taking on the Australian national team on April 28 and 29 as well as May 1 and 2 at the Curtin University Hockey Stadium in Perth.
According to Sarjit, the main focus of the tour is to assess tactical execution, team cohesion and the players’ resilience under pressure and high-tempo conditions.
He added that he would also evaluate his players’ decision-making in both attack and defence, while testing various strategies and combinations in a competitive environment.
“It’s also a chance for us to finalise our best squad, assess fitness levels, and reinforce the tactical structure we want to carry into the Nations Cup,” he said.
The Speedy Tigers are also set to compete in several other major tournaments this year, including the Asian Cup in India from Aug 27 to Sept 7, which offers an automatic slot to the World Cup, the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup from Nov 22 to 29, and the SEA Games in Thailand from Dec 9 to 20.
A 22-man squad were selected for the tour following a training camp that began on March 3, involving 30 players.
The Speedy Tigers team for Tour of Australia:
1. Muhammad Hafizuddin Bin Othman
2. Mohammad Rafaizul Bin Mohamad Saini
3. Muhammad Marhan Bin Jalil
4. Syed Mohammad Syafiq Bin Syed Cholan
5. Muhammad Amirul Hamizan Bin Azahar
6. Faiz Helmi Bin Jali
7. Muhamad Faris Bin Harizan
8. Andywalfian Jeffrynus
9. Muhammad Najmi Farizal Bin Jazlan
10. Syarman Bin Mat Tee
11. Mohd Fitri Bin Saari
12. Nik Muhammad Aiman Bin Nik Rozemi
13. Mughni Bin Mohamad Kamal
14. Muhammad Adam Ashraf Bin Mohd Johari
15. Muhammad Shafiq Bin Hassan
16. Alfarico Lance Liau Jr
17. Shello Silverius
18. Muhammad Azrai Aizad Bin Abu Kamal
19. Norsyafiq Bin Sumantri
20. Mohammad Harris Iskandar Bin Osman
21. Mohamad Akhimullah Bin Anuar Esook
22. Muhajir Bin Abdu Rauf
-- BERNAMA
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