KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) is banking on junior players to defend all four hockey gold medals at stake in the upcoming South East Asian (SEA) Games in Phnom Penh, Cambodia in May.
MHC president Datuk Seri Subahan Kamal said they were preparing the best players to ensure a successful defence at the biennial games, adding that it would allow the junior players to gain exposure and experience there.
The decision by MHC means that there will be no veteran players involved in the Cambodia campaign currently.
“We are targeting the gold with this junior squad. They will participate in the Malaysian Hockey League representing their respective clubs and we will assess them there and make the announcement about the players for the SEA Games.
“We will do whatever it takes to ensure our team wins the gold,” he told reporters after the sports work committee meeting at the National Sports Council (NSC) in Bukit Jalil here today.
The confederation had previously expressed its intention to sweet all four hockey gold medals – the men’s and women’s field hockey, and the men’s and women’s indoor hockey events – being contested at the 32nd edition of the SEA Games. – Bernama