KUALA LUMPUR – National hockey head coach Sarjit Singh expressed frustration with his team for receiving several cards in their ongoing Nations Cup campaign in Gniezno, Poland.
The gaffer’s response came after his side failed to secure a spot in the tournament’s semi-finals, despite a 4-2 win against Canada in their final Pool B match on June 5.
The match saw a total of eight cards – four green and four yellow – shown to the Speedy Tigers, resulting in their third-place finish in Pool B with four points.
Consequently, they will play in a fourth and fifth-place classification match tomorrow.
Since the start of their Nations Cup campaign on May 31, Malaysia has received a total of 14 cards in three pool matches against Pakistan, France, and Canada.
Speaking to Scoop from Gniezno, Sarjit stressed the need for his young players to improve discipline and adhere to the umpire’s decisions, citing how the high number of cards negatively impacts their gameplay.
“I realise we are receiving too many cards in all our games, and it worsened in our last game against Canada. This is disappointing and needs rectification before it becomes too late.
“My boys need to remain calm with the ball and play under pressure without committing unnecessary fouls. They can only rectify these mistakes by playing more games and learning quickly the do’s and don’ts of the game.
“When we receive too many cards, it significantly affects our gameplay.
“A yellow card means a player is sent off for five to 10 minutes, and we tend to struggle in such situations.
“I hope the boys will improve in this aspect and play according to the umpire’s whistle. Apart from this, they have shown much improvement since I came on board.
“We are not sure who we will be playing next in the classification match, but we will go all out to finish our campaign in this tournament in fifth place,” said Sarjit.
Sarjit, brought in by the Malaysia Hockey Confederation on a two-year contract in March this year, selected 18 players from a pool of 30 for his revamped side.
They recently competed in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, where Malaysia finished fourth.
The Speedy Tigers currently rank number 12 in the world with 1,919.58 points. – June 7, 2024
