In 2017, Baljit Singh said goodbye to international hockey. Earlier this year, the defender helped UniKL score a treble by clinching the Charity Shield, League Cup and TNB Cup.
Today, the Ampang lad who turns 34 on Sept 22, is setting his sights on coaching as he hopes to be part of the national junior set-up.
“The faster I learn (about coaching), the better for me,” said Baljit, who holds a Level 2 coaching certificate.
“When you leave hockey for a few years, you may lose your momentum even as a coach. I don’t want that to happen.
“My family is happy that I’m eager to carve a career in coaching,” added Baljit who was blessed with a baby girl in February.
Baljit met representatives from UniKL on Thursday over his release to the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) and will meet MHC officials soon to iron out details.
It is understood that MHC plans to include Baljit in its junior coaching set-up which is headed by the experienced Wallace Tan.
“I haven’t seen any contract yet but the plan is for me to be part of Wallace’s team,” he added.
“This will indeed be a good opportunity and it’s something that I really wanted for a long time.”
Baljit joined Tenaga Nasional Berhad in 2004 and helped the electricity giants win three overall titles in the Malaysia Hockey League in 2004, 2007 and 2009.
He made his international debut with the senior team at the 2007 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup and was part of the team that won the silver medal at the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games. He also played for the national team that won a gold medal at the 2013 SEA Games in Yangon, Myanmar.
Another former international who recently joined MHC’s coaching set-up is goalkeeper S. Kumar.
Soon after announcing his retirement in February, Kumar was appointed by MHC to coach trainee goalkeepers for the national junior team.
