Malaysian Hockey Confederation president Datuk Seri Subahan Kamal admits much more needs to be done to raise the standard of coaching in the country.
This includes finding ways to improve communication and presentation skills of coaches who harbour ambitions of earning an FIH (International Hockey Federation) certificate.
He also said MHC is planning to help national goalkeeper S. Kumar get his coaching certificates to prepare him for when he decides to retire.
“Kumar is still our No. 1 but we want to bring him into the system and become a coach,” Subahan said of the 40-year-old Tampin goalkeeper.
“We also need to help our players and coaches be better communicators as to get an FIH coaching certificate they would need to present their ideas.
“We need to get more coaches involved although I refute the suggestion we are recycling old coaches such as Wallace (Tan) for our national juniors team.”
Subahan was referring to a Twentytwo13 article which asked where are the younger coaches in the country.
He explained that one reason Tan was brought in as coach was many of those in the team had played under him previously.
“Quite a few players in the team were under Tan when they won the 2018 Youth Olympics gold.
“As such, they are comfortable with his coaching style and with the Junior World Cup qualifiers (Asian Junior Championship) five months away, we need a steady hand.
“(Nor) Saiful (Zaini Nasiruddin) has worked with the boys for a long time but we felt we needed someone like Tan – a cool and calm character – to be in charge for this very important assignment.”
Asked about the ‘poorly received’ advertisement MHC put out on social media for a national women’s coach and an assistant, Subahan defended it.
— MHC (@hockeymalaysia) January 28, 2020
“We followed the example of some European countries which advertised for coaches,” said Subahan.
“I would also like to stress that this is just the first step for us. We are planning more advertisements for coaches.
“But this does not mean those already in our system can’t apply. Please do so. The coaching committee will meet and select the best candidate.”
He added they want the coaches to present their ideas and set their KPI (key performance index) and salary.
“Obviously we have our own KPI and we will see how we can ensure only the most suitable candidate will be approved by the coaching committee.”
Separately, Subahan urged teams in the Malaysian Hockey League (MHL) to help raise its profile.
“As the organisers, we are sad there are not many spectators but this has been going on for years.
“In its glory days, fans flocked to the stadium. One of the reasons was teams such as the Royal Malay Regiment, MBf, Maybank and the other banks used to give staff time off to support their teams,” he said.
“To be fair, the Terengganu Hockey Team does bring a few busloads of fans to watch their matches.
“For the national league, we are providing a platform for teams to play. We don’t charge for tickets – unlike football, which is also struggling to attract fans.
“I feel the onus should be on the teams to arrange for their staff to support the team.
“The university teams should also encourage their staff and students to come to cheer them on,” he added.
