SIMPLY A CLASS ABOVE

Malaysia notch another big win

THE national hockey team were a class above as they hammered Thailand 10-0 to keep a strong grip in Group B of the Asian Games in Jakarta yesterday.

The win came at the back of a 16-2 whitewash of Kazakhstan, and after a day’s rest, coach Stephen Van Huizen’s men play Bangladesh.

Their most important group match is against Pakistan on Sunday, where they need to win to top the group and avoid World No 5 India in the semi-finals.

Meor Azuan Hassan opened the floodgates for Malaysia in the sixth minute, followed by goals from Faizal Shaari (18th), Firhan Ashari (19th), Razie Rahim (20th), Azri Hassan (27th), Shahril Saabah (28th, 39th), Amirol Aideed (36th), Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin (43rd), Fitri Shaari (57th).

Van Huizen was pleased with his charges performance.

“I am happy with the performance and this sets us up well for the tougher matches to come.

“We created a lot of chances and this is a good sign. If we can make use of chances then things will be better for us against tough teams,” said Van Huizen.

“We are ready to take on Bangladesh despite the fact that we are playing at noon.

“The heat should not be a factor. We need to display a high level of consistency throughout the match and this will negate the humid conditions,” said Van Huizen.

The gold medallists in Indonesia will qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.

We created a lot of chances and this is a good sign.

National coach