Bojan to use Sanix Cup for players to gain experience

PETALING JAYA: National coach Bojan Hodak is hoping his young charges will gain valuable experience in the Sanix Cup International Youth Soccer in Fukuoka, Japan.

The four-day tournament which starts tomorrow until March 18, will feature teams from Russia, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan. Malaysia are drawn with Tokyo FC, Maebashi Ikuei HS and Ohzu HS in Group A.

Hodak said the stint in Japan is a part of his preparation for their two major assignments in Indonesia – the AFF Under-18 Championship from July 2-14 and the AFC Under19 Championship from Oct 18-Nov 4.

Malaysia qualified for the AFC Under-19 Championship for the first time in 11 years after finishing as one of the five best group runners-up in the qualifying rounds in South Korea last November.

“We want to give the players international exposure. We want to see how many of these players can cope with the demand of international football and if they have the potential to make the team in the AFF Under-18 and AFC Under-19 tournament,” said the Croatian coach.

“We will get to play Japan’s best three development sides who are drawn in our group so I believe these matches will be good for our boys.”

Hodak has only retained two familiar faces – A. Shivan Pillay and Hadi Fayyadh Abdul Razak – in the 22-player squad.

“We have Shivan and Hadi who have been with the national Under23 side, they will be guiding the younger players in the team. This team have good potential, maybe some of the players can play for the older age group team,” said the former Kelantan coach.

“We’ll see how the players perform during matches, they have done well in training but performance in matches is important. Some players do well in the President’s Cup and Youth Cup level but they struggle when playing at international level.”