KIM SWEE MAKES APPEAL TO FAM
Reschedule M-League matches to help coach prepare for Sea Games
THE FA of Malaysia (FAM) should stop their “coffee shop talk” and start taking matters seriously concerning the national youth team’s preparation for next month’s Kuala Lumpur Sea Games.
The national body had first promised to free up this month’s M-League schedule for the AFC Under-23 qualifiers in Bangkok but they failed to take any action.
Yesterday, FAM general-secretary Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin said an appeal has been made to Football Malaysia LLP (FMLLP) to reschedule M-League matches on Aug 2, 5 and 9 in a move to make sure that the Sea Games team get sufficient preparation time.
“FAM have received an appeal from Kim Swee to postpone matches on those dates and we have notified FMLLP about it,” said Hamidin yesterday.
“If this goes through then Kim Swee will have about two weeks instead of five days to prepare his team before the Sea Games football competition starts on Aug 14.”
Credit to Hamidin as he has been working tirelessly in helping Kim Swee to assemble a squad for the qualifiers as it is learnt that he practically begged teams to release players.
But the promise to shift matches in early August could turn out to be “coffee shop talk”. There were proposals to reschedule this month’s matches for the AFC qualifiers but they were turned down.
FAM have gotten their priorities wrong over several matters. Until today, the national body have yet to hire coaching staff and identify players for the AFC Under-19 qualifiers, slated for Oct 31-Nov 8.
When asked about the target for the AFC Under23 qualifiers, Hamidin said Malaysia’s opening Group H match against Indonesia on Wednesday will be crucial towards qualification for next year’s tournament proper in China.
“The target is top two, though, only the champions are guaranteed spots in the tournament proper with the best five runners-up from the 10 groups also going through,” Hamidin added.
After Indonesia, Kim Swee’s team will play Thailand on Friday, followed by Mongolia on Sunday.
Kim Swee was delighted when he heard about the move to postpone next month’s M-League matches prior to the Sea Games.
“It is the best news I have heard so far. The Sea Games is not far away and if this happens, I will have two weeks with the boys and I think it will be good enough to assemble a solid team.
“Based on the current calendar, I will have only five days before the start of the football competition,” said Kim Swee.
His team will leave for Bangkok today with 22 players as Sarawak’s Tommy Mawat Bada suffered an injury in yesterday’s league match against Darul Ta’zim.
“His teammate Nur Syamie Iszuan Amin, however, will report. I will have only 22 players.
“Despite the absences of several players, the current squad are not short of talent. I will have options as most can play in more than one position.
“Hopefully, we can get through the three matches in Bangkok without injuries. We will have a tight schedule.
“It is a matter of making sure the players go through the right recovery processes after each match,” said Kim Swee, adding that a win over Indonesia in the first match will help motivate the players.
Kim Swee has also decided to forget about the six players who have yet to report to him.
They are Darul Ta’zim’s Safawi Rasid and Haziq Nadzli, Penang’s S. Kumaahran and Syamer Kutty Abba, and Pahang’s Matthew Davies and Nor Azam Abdul Azih.
“I consider that the six are not coming. Let’s see how my team perform in the qualifiers.
“If they do well in Bangkok then it will not be fair to invite others to come in for the Sea Games.
“Of course, the ones not here are good but I will stick with my current team depending on the results in Bangkok,” Kim Swee added.