Syarman eyes Youth Olympics after MJHL victory

KUALA LUMPUR: Defender Syarman Mat Tee helped Tunku Mahkota Ismail Sports School (SSTMI)-Thunderbolt to win the Malaysian Junior Hockey League ( MJHL) Division One last week.

And now the Kuala Terengganu lad wants to help Malaysia to finish tops in the Asian hockey qualifiers in Bangkok from April 25-29.

A total of 11 teams will feature in the tournament, played as a five-a-side format, and the top two teams will qualify for the Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires, Argentina from Oct 6-18.

Malaysia are drawn in Group B with Pakistan, Bangladesh, Singapore, Taiwan and Cambodia while Group A comprises India, South Korea, Japan, Hong Kong and hosts Thailand.

The 17-year-old Syarman said that he is in high spirit and in top form after helping SSTMI-Thunderbolt lift the league title.

“But the main challenge for me is to help Malaysia qualify for the Youth Olympics. Malaysia have a fighting chance of finishing the top two in Bangkok to qualify for the Youth Olympics.

“We will play a five-a-side format game, which is different then the usual 11-a-side game. But we managed to adapt to it as we have been training since the MJHL (Malaysian Junior Hockey League) began in January,” said Syarman.

“We have a reliable team that can get the better of powerhouse teams such as India and Pakistan.

“The challenge will be on us as Malaysia failed to qualify for the last two Olympic Games,” said Syarman, who has represented Malaysia since he was 15.

He featured in the Fournation Under-16 tournament in Mannheim, Germany in 2016 and last year he played in the six-nation Under-21 Sultan of Johor Cup in Johor Baru.

Besides Syarman, four other SSTMI-Thunderbolt players in the Youth Olympics Games training squad are Mohd Akhimullah Anuar Esook, Muhd Muhibuddin Moharam, Muhd Amirul Hamizan Azhar and Mohd Arif Syafie Ishak.

The inaugural Youth Olympics, which is for Under18 players, was held in Singapore in 2010. Nanjing, China hosted the second Games in 2014.