KUALA LUMPUR – National hockey head coach Sarjit Singh has not ruled out the Speedy Tigers’ participation in the FIH Pro League in years to come.
The 61-year-old coach has scouted between 40 and 42 players from the ongoing Malaysia Hockey League and believes that his team must play against European teams consistently to become a formidable side capable of withstanding the challenges posed by the world’s top teams.
Sarjit will begin training with the selected players on March 19.
“We need to be realistic. There is no way for us to improve our play if we don’t compete against some of the best teams in the world. We need to assess our team and understand the gap between us and the top teams.
“We shouldn’t focus solely on playing against Asian teams; we need to shift our focus to playing against European teams regularly. The modern game is dominated by European teams, and to reach their level, we need more exposure to playing against them.
“I have decided to stop chasing world rankings. It’s time for our players to win tournaments and gain exposure by playing against European teams regularly.
“I don’t mind if we get beaten badly when playing against them. As long as we continue to play against them, we will see improvements in our team’s performance in the coming years. That’s my game plan for now.
“Sometimes, we focus too much on rankings. I think it’s time for us to focus on winning tournaments, gaining exposure by playing against European teams regularly. Even if we get beaten badly, we’re okay with it. That’s the game plan,” said Sarjit during a press conference at the Bukit Jalil National Hockey Stadium today.
Meanwhile, Malaysian Hockey Confederation president Datuk Seri Subahan Kamal echoed similar sentiments, stating that the governing body is ready to support the new head coach in every way necessary if he believes participating in the FIH Pro League will bring fruitful results to the national team.
“We’ve always wanted to play in the Pro League, but budget constraints prevented us from doing so. If Sarjit believes that participating in the Pro League will bring results, we can work on making it happen.
“All he needs to do is inform the chairman of the national team management, Datuk Najmi Abdul Razak, and his committee will work on including our participation in the league in our match calendar,” said Subahan during the same press conference at the National Hockey Stadium.
For context, the FIH Pro League, which replaces the Men’s FIH Hockey World League, also serves as a qualifier for the Hockey World Cup and the Olympics.
The best team of the season – having accumulated the highest number of points at the end of the league among nine teams – are crowned champions and receive the coveted FIH Hockey Pro League trophy.
From the 2021-22 season onwards, the bottom team at the end of the season will be relegated and replaced by the winner of a new competition called the Men’s FIH Nations Cup. – March 4, 2024