The National Men’s and Women’s Indoor Hockey Squad had to settle for bringing home the silver medal, Indoor Hockey Event, SEA Games 2023, Phnom Penh, Cambodia which took place at Dinosaur Park Hall, Chroy Changvar, today,
The two national representatives lost 1-2 in the shoot-out to their respective opponents after the Men’s Team tied 3-3 with Indonesia in the full 40 minutes of action and the Women’s Team tied without any goals with Thailand.
However, the record throughout the tournament saw both national teams maintain an undefeated record but had to concede defeat in a shoot-out that did not favor both national teams in the final stage.
The head coach of the national men’s indoor hockey squad, Mohd Hanip Che Halim, thanked the players and coaching staff who had given the best commitment from the start of training to the final match.
“Today’s match was not our fortune and each player played very well and was disciplined enough to translate every plan that was arranged so that we managed to score three goals.
“But in the last five minutes of the match, mistakes and lack of communication caused lapses and the opportunity was used by Indonesia until the match was dragged to a shoot-out.
“This team showed a very high harmony and fighting spirit and I hope that the revival will be shown in the upcoming tournaments in addition to the opportunities for us to prove the revival of the team after falling today.
“Thank you to Malaysians who always support us, also thanks to the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (KHM), the National Sports Council (MSN) and the National Sports Institute (ISN) who have helped the team from various aspects,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Head Coach of the Women’s Indoor Hockey Team, Mohd Badrul Hisham Osman gave praise to his players who never gave up throughout the tournament and gave their full commitment during the three weeks of team preparation.
“I am still proud of my players and they have given their best and all their strength for the final match even though luck was not in our favor today. Although we won the silver medal, the players deserve credit.
“We have planned as well as we can but we will definitely rise in the next tournament.
“Throughout this tournament, all the players have given their best game, team spirit and fighting spirit which is quite high even though we were only able to prepare the team in a period of only three weeks.
“To the hockey fans of our country, a thousand infinite thanks from us as a team for the support and prayers that have been given to us. To the management of KHM, MSN, ISN, Malaysian Olympic Council (MOM), thank you for all the help and support given to the Malaysian Indoor Hockey Team,” he explained.
