ACTIVITY
Handball helps MHC members prepare for the working world
where MSWP were also scouting for talent for their Malaysia Games squad.
Notably, the tournament was organised at RM10,000 less than the original estimate. Spearheading the members in the “costcutting” initiative was Mohamad Hafiz Baharum, MHC’s adviser, head of UniKL’s Human Resource Unit and who is also a part-time lecturer.
Hafiz said the club were actually formed in 2012 as UniKL City Campus Handball Club.
“However, in February 2013, we became MIIT under a new management and underwent a rebranding exercise,” said Hafiz, who took over as MIIT adviser last October.
“I took up the challenge to be the link between the staff and students while reaching out to the latter. And so far, so good.”
Last November, Hafiz led a 50member delegation to the Universiti Malaysia Terengganu Open tournament, where the MIIT men’s team bagged the bronze and the women taking 12th spot.
MHC vice-president Muhammad Ainooldeen Zakaria admitted that both the MHC men’s and women’s teams are among the top 15 college handball sides in the country.
He added that helping to organise the President’s Cup has helped in honing his fast-thinking and decision-making skills.
MHC have more than 80 registered members and two-hourlong training sessions are held on Wednesday nights at the Sultan Sulaiman Club near Kampung Baru, Kuala Lumpur, about a stone’s throw from UniKL’s main campus in Jalan Sultan Ismail.
“Conducting the sessions is a coach for the seniors while UniKL alumni will train the newbies,” said Hafiz, adding that training is conducted on a daily basis in view of a tournament.
“The first 30 minutes is for warm-up exercises and the remaining 90 minutes see the members divided into groups playing against one another under the coach’s guidance.”
Hafiz said the coach is from the Harun Handball Club in Taman Dato’ Harun, PJS2, Petaling Jaya.
“Most of the MHC members were formerly from SM Taman Dato’ Harun. It’s a win-win situation as their club provide us with the coach and we, in return, supply them with players for friendlies or tournaments,” said Harun.
“After the training sessions, we normally have a drink at the nearby mamak stalls, more as a bonding exercise.”
MHC members pay a lifetime fee of RM5 in addition to a RM10 monthly subscription.
Hafiz said the monthly fees go towards buying equipment and attire as well as subsidising members’ birthdays or buying flower bouquets for injured members.
Since handball involves a lot of physical contact and aggressive movements, the risk of injury is high, with players getting hurt primarily on the shoulders, ankles and knees.
Hafiz, who has laid out a twopronged mission for MHC, said: “We hope to open a handball academy where everybody can learn to play the game and secondly, I hope to see MHC taking part in international-level tournaments in five years’ time.
In addition to Ainooldeen, three other MHC members have also started playing handball for more than 10 years or more.
MHC treasurer Muhammad Izzudin Farhan Mohd Khairi, 25, and 23-year-old Zaffry Roslan started playing handball while in primary school. Nurul Affinie Zulkiflee, 22, was picked for the Pahang Malaysia Games squad when she was 13. However, she failed to answer the call-up but that has not doused her passion for the game.
As for “newbie” Nur Syafiqah Saifulldin, 21, who only joined MHC in January this year, it was a “natural” transition from playing hockey to handball as she wanted to pick up different techniques and gameplay strategies.
All students concurred that the qualities of a good handball player are passion, compliance to coach’s instructions, commitment, discipline and teamwork.
“Height is an advantage, but not a winning factor,” said Ainooldeen.
MHC are also awaiting the resumption of the national league organised by the Malaysia Handball Federation.