LISSEK POINTS FINGER AT MHL
German coach says declining national league affects Malaysia team
FORMER national coach Paul Lissek believes Malaysia’s fortunes could turn for the better, or worse, depending on their Olympic qualifying campaign in April. The German said this on the sidelines of the Matador Hockey Club jersey launch event in Seri Petaling yesterday.
“If Malaysia qualify, it could open fresh avenues, but if they fail yet again, I am afraid it will take hockey in the country through difficult times,” said Lissek.
Lissek started off as a consultant to the Malaysian team three months before the 1998 Kuala Lumpur Commonwealth Games and guided them to the silver medal.
He was then employed on a full-time basis after the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
However, in the span of four years, the only success under the German was the third-place finish at the 2002 Busan Asian Games.
“Malaysia is a hockey-loving nation. People here are actively playing hockey at all levels, but sadly very little progress has been made over the years.
“For example, the urge to qualify for major tournaments is there, but once they qualify, the results are not forthcoming,” said Lissek.
Malaysia overcame a tough group to qualify for last year’s Bhubaneswar World Cup only to finish 15th out of 16 teams.
“When Malaysia finished fourth at the 2013 (New Delhi) Junior World Cup, I felt that was the break this country needed to transform themselves.
“But somehow, instead of moving up, there was little progress and it’s back to trying to qualify for major events again.
“And I really hope Malaysia qualify for next year’s Tokyo Olympics to get another break to excel in the sport.
“But if they fail again when it matters most, like at last year’s Asian Games in Indonesia, there could be another long spell of trouble trying to wake up yet again,” said Lissek.
On what could be the problem, Lissek pointed out towards the ongoing Malaysia Hockey League (MHL).
“There used to be four to five good teams in the MHL, but right now there are only three (Universiti Kuala Lumpur, Terengganu Hockey Team and Tenaga Nasional) while fourth-placed Maybank are struggling to cope.
“For a country to progress, there must be tough local competitions. It was also sad when well-managed teams like KLHC (Kuala Lumpur Hockey Club) and Sapura just disappeared after a few seasons.
“Malaysian hockey right now is akin to floating in a river, and if they fail to qualify for Tokyo, the sport will not have its own direction but instead pushed in every direction by the currents from other countries.
“But if they qualify, Malaysia must make sure they do not waste the chance to finally break free from the ‘qualifying mentality’ and start aiming for better results,” said Lissek.
And he hopes Malaysia will not choke against lower-ranked teams in the Olympic Qualifier at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil on April 26-May 4.
The other teams involved in the Qualifier are Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, Italy, Vanuatu and Wales.
MATADOR HC, helmed by businessman Sarwan Singh, received RM99,000 in sponsorship yesterday.
Among the attendees were Malaysian Hockey Confederation representatives George Koshy and Terry Walsh along with former internationals Sarjit Singh, Maninderjit Singh, M. Nadarajan, Balbir Singh, S. Selvaraju and Kelvinder Singh.
The club, formed four years ago, conduct coaching clinics for players between the ages of seven and 17.