KUALA LUMPUR: The national men’s hockey team began their four-match friendly tour series with a 2-2 draw against South Korea at the Jingcheon National Training Centre in Incheon today.
The Speedy Tigers, under the guidance of coach A. Arul Selvaraj, shot into an early third-minute lead with a field goal by forward Muhammad Firhan Ashaari.
Muhammad Firhan then doubled world number 10 Malaysia’s lead with another field goal in the 19th minute.
But world number nine South Korea hit back to narrow the deficit three minutes later through a penalty-corner goal before finding the equaliser in the 29th minute from the penalty spot.
This is one of four warm-up matches lined up for the Speedy Tigers in preparation for the 2023 Asian Champions Trophy in Chennai, India from Aug 3-12.
“Overall, I am very satisfied with our performance. Our players took their chances well and also managed to handle the opposition well, although they are still coming to terms with our new style of play.
“I can see maturity in terms of their confidence level in applying pressure on the opponent,” Arul Selvaraj said in a video clip shared by the Malaysia Hockey Confederation (MHC) today.
Malaysia will play three more matches against the South Korean national team on Friday (June 23), Sunday (June 25) and Tuesday (June 27). - Bernama
