Thursday, August 21, 2008

Viewpoint: "MHF National Coaches"

This is an anonymous comment for the previous article titled Part 2 - "The takeover plot". I have posted it again as a main article for the full view of the visitors to the blog. It is good to note the different dimensions to the various arguments. It does encourage a thinking process and calls into question what is happening in Malaysian hockey.

Below is the text of the anonymous comment:

"Dear fellow internationals, its time to rise and protect the wonderful game of hockey. We cant be just sitting back and see the game going down...oops we are already there. Probably we are waiting to see Iceland to the forefront??? please....

Let me take you straight to the point. We read the bias papers and everything is blamed to either the development programme or our players are not good enough for international hockey. Trust me its Bullshit!!! Basically, the coaches are not qualified. Look at the Juniors coach he is the coach who has been with the boys since they were in Bkt Jalil sports school. He nurtured them since then. Five years is a long time for a coach to know where the boys stand. But all we hear is we dont have the players to play in big games. The training programme for the last 5 years merely simple contact game, transfer, pc and goal shooting. Big games are not as simple as that. Tactical approach is the order of the day and our trainings must be skewed to that. We are no where to that and there is no planned set moves or any of that sort. No individual hockey specifics are embedded in the training programme. That is the reason we don't develop a champion or in the olden term "Hockey Wizards.

Why he is not doing it? We cant blame him. The answer is simple. He need to know it himself to teach those advanced skills. He must be able to pick up and correct it during trainings. He need to analyze and find the right match. Guys you and I know that. The juniors coach don't even know how to scoop or flick. Its not a story...you can check yourselves. The coach must be savy enough to be creative or design what best suit his players instead of using some German's training template day in and day out. Boredom eventually sets in and the thinking diminishes. That's the reason the players jam during tight situations. Next we go to U-16 squad. The coach was a waterboy for a Razak Cup and National League team. Never was he involved directly in a game proper. Cheerleader perhaps. Next we have this bald headed coach. For me he is no coach.

We entrust our future of hockey to all these clowns?? No way mate!!! Well one skil they are really excelled in....pussy footing. Sorry to use that phrase on men but similiarities appears here. They adore the chief coach of the National Team. Chief coach became a chief after dropping the senior players and manintained the younger players. This even became easier having the clown coaches around him . This makes him clever. The joke is none of them has a FIH accredition. LOGIC, tells to be top 10 hockey nation, our coach must be top 10. Do we have one? None of the coaches in the line up will qualify for FIH accredition. Next question is what happen to our FIH coaches? Well those with such qualifications were move out tactically to pave the way through for the clowns and the politician. We have two coaches whom were in the same batch with Hendriks in the FIH coaching course . Till date they exchange notes on coaching aspects. None of our clowns has that ability to exchange ideas with the best. Why? Infact, lately one of our up and coming coach attended a FIH coourse conducted by Hendriks and few others. He was also given a opportunity to present a paper for a group. Where is he know?

Mind you all these FIH coaches are olympians and intelectually sound. And MHF rather have an illiterate or a waterboy as the coach instead. Where do you think we are heading to then? MHF least bothered on the quality of coaches. They are more interested in organising tournaments instead. Perhaps they have more important agenda? "

It is sad when the comment engages in "name calling" and some form of personal attack. It kills the message. One may be angry at what is going on, but that does not permit one to indulge in such comments. Nevertheless, the massage is that there is something wrong with the coaches and their training program.

I wonder whether the National Coach for the Senior Team and the Chairman of the Coaching Committee may help shed some light. Surely they have a lot at stake and this blog can provide them with the opportunity.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Gandhi,

If we pause for two years and let this current group in MHF who love their position more than the game run.

They will run it down to a level where we will be battling with Singapore,Thailand and Cambodia.

Remember hockey is the first game that represent Malaysia in Olympics thats in 1956 Melbourne,Australia.

Please save hockey.

Anonymous said...

Gandhi,

Please take all our MHF appointed national coaches and look at their qualifications.

You will be shock and might even get a heart attack.

Please take note the current setup in MHF is there because of the coaches role in getting the votes for them.

I hope it will clear the cloud
who appoint who.

Anonymous said...

Hello Brother, Your Comment is good. I like to give some comments-Not all national players can become good coaches but it will be an asset if they take it up. Coaches must go from level 1, 2 and 3 but he or she must start from grassroot level. He should not take ready made teams than latter he will have problem when handling higher levels. He must be dedicated, passion for the game and willing to make sacrifices like being committed to the job. Money is important but not to the extend of selling the countries name by match fixing. As a coach can request for a pay rise if you have succeeded.
If you look at most of the foreighn coaches, they were not great hockey players but they went to school of coaching. To name a few Maurice Hendriks, Barry Dancer,Roland Ottermans , Kevin Towns and Rudolf.
We must know that collecting coaching certificates is easy in Malaysia. We must have interviews from applicants so that we will know how much knowledge they got.Contracts must be sighned not on yearly basis but on performance basis. In Malaysia if you resighn as a coach they will still put you somewhere just to finish contract and the same coach will sit there and spoil everything.
Coaching is a burning desire to get results not money. The courage to stand critics and produce results.
Coaching is a dying breed in Malaysia. Gone were the days when coaches were working just for the passion of the game and not for money. The dying breed were almost dedicated teachers in the 50's, 60's, 70's ,80's and mid 90's. Now almost the dying breed have already died and left with teachers whom are looking at the sky for money because they get good feedback from the present National Coaches how to make money- 10/2 and 10 %.
Look around who are coaching and get the best.Ask around . Do some identification.

Ex Hockey Coach & Teacher

suki said...

Teachers can teach you basic of the game but remember this is on the international level.Once the game is on a different level you need people who can think and react to situations during the game.I still believe that one man should be given the chance,M.Mahendran is the man to bring some pride back into the game.

Anonymous said...

Gandhi,

So much fuss about the Malaysian coaches. What are the criteria to be a national coach? Are coaches groom to take the job or are they just naturally born with these special skills. Some skills can never be inquired through learning. Is this true?

suki said...

The last guy who posted a comment need to know the story of loft which goes this way when bill gates took up golf he asked tiger for some tips and tiger said you need to have loft.
Try as he could bill couldn't make it after a year he met tiger and askd what is wrong i'hve changed all the loft's and still i have problems, lo and behold tiger said loft means lack of f---ing talent.My friend the moral here is some are born with it and some just live a dream.

Anonymous said...

Mr Gandhi,

Obviously when the coaches continue to take things for granted and continue to "fix things", there will never be improvement on their part. I wander what the FIH course conductor did with the full bag of souveniour T-shirt presented to him.

How can they as coaches perform their job effectively when they continue to take shortcut not wanting to enrich their coaching knowledge and skills the RIGHT WAY. Shortcut seems to be in their blood.