Foul!

It has been an interesting year. The national football team ( pic ) defended their Sea Games football medal with style after beating Indonesia twice in Jakarta. Lee Chong Wei defeated Lin Dan in the final of the All-England title. There was the fiasco of who owned the rights to the national tiger stripes jersey which is now being sorted out by the courts. Then we had a National Sports Council officer who said that gymnasts "took gifts" for judges during tournaments. The National Sports Institute is now an independent body. Our 4x400m men's athletics team returned with a Sea Games gold medal from Indonesia. Squash queen Nicol David wins her sixth World Open title. Our national football team drew 1-1 before losing 3-2 to India in a series of friendly matches. KL hosted three English Premier League teams - Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea. Marco Simoncelli died in a horrific MotoGP accident at the Sepang International Circuit. Our sprinters skipped a doping test with a handful

The FA of Malaysia (FAM) confirmed there have been on-going meetings and possible collaboration with their counterparts across the Causeway in a bid to weed out match-fixing for the 2012 M-League season. FAM vice president Hamidin Amin ( pic ) acknowledged the meetings but declined comment. This does not come as a surprise after a Singaporean bookie and a Malaysian coach was charged for match-fixing this year. Singapore's LionsXII will play in the Super League next season while the Harimau Muda A lads will play in the Republic. A Cambodian team will also play in the FA Cup. Meanwhile, the competition committee met at Wisma FAM yesterday and decided the following; 1. Incentives - grants and incentives totalling to RM5,167,762.23 have been credited to the participating clubs and state teams on December 28. - teams must prioritise their spending and ensure players are paid their wages, EPF, Socso and income taxes on time. -distribution of prize money for 2012 season as follows: Supe

Stadium Angkasa on RTM1 last night featured the FA of Malaysia (FAM) competition committee chairman Hamidin Amin, coach Reduan Abdullah, Felda United goalkeeper Hamsani Ahmad and Berita Harian's Wan Fakhrul Wan Bakar. The topic discussed was about the introduction of foreigners in the M-League. Hamidin pleaded that his committee be evaluated after they have completed their full term in 2014 and that fans understand changes are important to go forward. Reduan, who was rather quiet throughout the show, hoped 2012 will be the turning point for Malaysian football - for the better. He also cautioned there are rumors of players being on the take and fixing matches even at the lower divisions. Hamsani advised his peers that football bribery is "not worth it". Wan Fakhrul summed his session up by saying there is no point of the Media hyping up about the teams if the fans do not play their part by heading to the stadiums and cheering on their teams from the start to the end of the

"Leaving without saying goodbye is low in my book and apart from coaching them football, I hope Yunus Alif will coach them some manners too." Those were the words of Permai Hotel public relations manager Ruhana Abdullah. Ouch! T-Team latest imports Zambian striker Zacharia Simukonda ( pic ) and Bosnian defender Bojan Petric had apparently snubbed a Christmas dinner organised by the club, as published in today's New Straits Times . Perhaps the players were "tired". But turning their backs against the fans even before the season starts is not a good way to start a healthy relationship. Both players now better prove their salt or they could very well suffer the wrath of the T-Team fans. HD says : Public relations and engaging with the Media is key to the making or breaking of any individual, club and organisation.

Here's the season to be jolly.... Foul! would like to wish each and every one of you a Happy, Merry, Gong-Xi Christmas! And here's an Xmas treat by badminton aces Lee Chong Wei, Lin Dan, Peter Gade and Taufik Hidayat. Enjoy! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RiXL7TmyDo

We live in a society where you don't need to be well educated or good at what you do to climb up the ladder, just a basic degree in 'bodek-logy' will do the trick. However, there isn't any reputable learning institution that offers such a course. It is high time we capitalise on this and start a programme, starting with a 9 month certificate course followed by a two-year diploma and a three year degree programme. We can get experts from most of the National Sports Associations (NSAs) to conduct the lectures. I'm sure they will be happy with the side income. The FA of Malaysia (FAM) is well known to shut the mouths of those who apparently "critise policy matters". Ask Reduan Abdullah and B.Satianathan. The Malaysia Athletics Union (MAU) has jumped on the bandwagon after the national body slapped national hurdler Noraseela Khalid ( pic ) with a show cause letter for allegedly "criticising the MAU management for not appreciating the services and sacrifi

FOUR new sports schools will be constructed in Pahang, Perlis, Terengganu and Sabah. Officials from various National Sports Associations (NSAs) were invited to the Education Ministry in Putrajaya on Monday to discuss about their sports being absorbed into those schools. It should be good news. Currently there are two sports schools in Bukit Jalil and Bandar Penawar. Yet, some of the NSAs were skeptical and I don't blame them. We have the tendency of wanting to do everything but do not put much thought into what we do. They are afraid some of the programmes run in the new sports schools may fail due to lack of expertise and infrastructure. It has happened before. Also, not many understand that sports schools are still required to clock in the academic hours and are bound by MoE's regulations as seen in other government schools and this can be frustrating for the teachers and principals. Nevertheless, the idea is noble and it was nice of MoE's sports unit director Ee Hong to

An advertisement was placed but judging by the looks of it, the BA of Malaysia (BAM) will resort to head hunting their candidate to fill the high performance director's post. And judging by today's Mailsport , a respectable man from the National Sports Institute (NSI), Lt Col (R) Wong Ah Jit ( pic ) could be their man. Ah Jit was approached on Friday but he insisted he will not quit NSI to help BAM. Ah Jit is a no nonsense man with a proven track record. He did his wonders with the Squash Racquets Association of Malaysia, National Sports Council and now NSI. I'm sure he will be able to contribute to BAM. And I'm sure BAM secretary Ng Chin Chai will speak about this during the Dengan Izin show with Rizal Hashim on Astro Arena which will be aired on Friday. But here's a question, shouldn't BAM have directly approached their potential candidates before placing an advertisement? And is the role suitable for Ah Jit? HD says: Ah Jit was great company during our trip

According to the recently launched official website , it is July 5-14, 2012. But the Education Ministry (MoE) has not been informed of the dates. The National Sports Council (NSC) claim the dates are not confirmed. Aik? It is a problem to hold Sukma early July as it clashes with the 4th Asean Schools Games meet in Indonesia. And MoE has made it very clear they want their best student athletes representing the country. Word has it that the state sports councils are pissed while folks in MoE are not amused. Wouldn't all this be avoided if there was proper planning by all the parties concerned - including the Higher Education Ministry (for availability of university facilities). The uncertainty will also disrupt the 2012 calender for the National Sports Associations. Read the Sukma Dilemma in today's Mailsport. HD says: Dilemma aside I must state on record my appreciation to NSC director of sports Abdul Jalil Abdullah for his time earlier. He certainly sets a better example comp

Former international Lim Teong Kim, who has made a name for himself in Germany, took a swipe at the Victoria Institution field - said to be one of the best school fields in the country. However, Teong Kim ( pic ) has not seen the other fields in the country. Steve Darby, meanwhile, used to call our pitches "kampung fields, where cows graze on them". But that isn't the only thing that riles up Teong Kim. I saw the frustration on Teong Kim's face at Tony Mariadass's office on Thursday. Sadly, I was forced to excuse myself early for another event. Teong Kim is certainly "sick and tired of talking about Malaysian football", as observed by Mailsport reporter Vijhay Vick. Read more here . One would not blame Teong Kim for being frustrated. He is out of the Malaysian system and is able to be honest. None of our coaches are able to voice their grouses for fear of being penalised. In fact a handful of coaches voiced their concerns during the FA of Malaysia (FAM)

The least the Japanese officials can do to thank us is by hosting a handful of FA of Malaysia (FAM) officials in Japan for about a week. The Japanese learnt from us to restructure their league some three decades ago. However, tables have turned. The Japanese are far ahead - both their league and the national team. We are still stuck in third gear. Now our officials are in Japan to learn from the Japanese - as published in today's Mailsport . Remember the 1984 movie Karate Kid? It's like Mr Miyagi learning how to "wax on wax off" from his protege Daniel LaRusso. How times have changed. HD says: Boys and girls, grab your guitars and come let's sing along to Bob Dylan's The Times They Are a-Changin'

UPDATED 4.08pm: National squash player Azlan Iskandar defends his fellow athletes on twitter. It read: 1" That's why sport in england is dying..google how much the cycling team is being funded n that will give an indication on how much the gov is spending...FYI.. ." 2 "@ HareshDeol and with their current state of their economy it isn't their priority.Great time for malaysian sports to push hard n catch up!" ---- The sprinter has just completed his most successful season after four years of injury but has not received a single reply to the thousands of sponsorship emails he sent. The 26-year-old, who ran the second-fastest 200 metres by a British athlete and represented Great Britain at the World Athletics Championships, has turned to eBay to get the backing he says is needed to take him to the next level. That is the story of top UK athlete James Ellington ( pic ), as published in the major UK dailies including Metro.co.uk. In Malaysia, athlet

NOTE: The author is not linked to any member or official from KLFA and is not a representative of any party associated to KLFA. --- UPDATE 2.21pm: Indonesia-based blog Jakarta Casual, in its posting Tough Times for KL , had this to say: "It's a shame them Malaysians who own Queen's Park Rangers and Cardiff City can't do their bit for local football instead of sending their money overseas and grabbing cheap, meaningless headlines by asking the likes of Safee Sali and Safiq Rahim for pointless trials." ---- The fans have played their part. Now it is up to KLFA to buck up and be serious in their quest to stay alive in the Super League. I must thank those who attended the Save KLFA Campaign drive this morning, including MSL Sdn Bhd CEO Stuart Ramalingam, KL coach Razip Ismail and DuniaSukan's Faliq Firdaus . A total of RM700 was collected. Not much, but it was a start. The cash was immediately handed over to KLFA secretary Nokman Mustapha. Nokman agreed KLFA wi

UPDATED Dec 18, 2011: Top UK athlete scouts for funds online to race in London Olympics. Read more here . --- Immediately after the OCM-Carlsberg Athlete Retirement Scheme ceremony at Wisma OCM, OCM president Tunku Imran Tuanku Jaafar ( pic ) walked towards me saying; "Deol, Mr Haresh Deol, how are you?" And before I could answer him, the laid back Negeri Sembilan prince said; "Don't you think rewarding our Sea Games winners with so much money is a double edged sword?" Deja-vu. Minutes earlier I was in Tony Mariadass's office together with former international Lim Teong Kim who has now made a name with the Bayern Munich football academy. And we were speaking of the same subject too! Is this a case of athletes being overly pampered that they will only need to set their sights on the Sea Games and nothing beyond? Read Mailsport's Reward athletes with pensions and Rizal Hashim's Duit, duit... HD says: Teong Kim is currently enjoying a short break in

Almost every city in the world has a top class football club. Not in Malaysia. KL are only basking on their past glory in the 80s. Some claim it was the then Lord Mayor Tan Sri Elyas Omar who had unintentionally spoilt KLFA by giving them generous funding and land. Elyas's successors were not so generous and I don't blame them. After all City Hall money is collected from KL folks and thus it should go back to the city people. Not just one football team. Not too long ago KLFA managed to get funding from chemicals giant Ancom Bhd but many were clueless towards what the money was splurged on. Today KLFA are feeling the pinch for they learn not many companies are as generous as Ancom. And the small but loyal fans are getting rather annoyed with this uncertainty. The fans want to lend a helping hand . December 17, 2011, KLFA Stadium, 10am. It is not about the total amount that will be raised but the support towards KL. Dunia Sukan has jumped on the bandwagon as well, as seen in the

That is the contrasting tales of world No 1 Lee Chong Wei and team mates men's doubles pair Koo Kean Keat-Tan Boon Heong. The Star's Rajes Paul , who is covering the Super Series Masters Finals in LiuZhou, China said; Malaysia’s top pair Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong played one of their best matches in recent times but still went down to South Koreans Lee Yong-dae-Jung Jae-sung 21-18, 15-21, 18-21 in 61 minutes in their Group B opener. Chong Wei, meanwhile, defeated Japan's Sho Sasaki 21-11, 18-21, 21-12 after he was named BWF World Player of the Year. Satwant Singh Dhaliwal, in his twitter yesterday said: Koo/Tan lost to Koreans 21-18, 15-21,18-21. 3 coaches cannot help them win . Jae-sung competes despite an injured playing arm. The doubles pair have only won the Malaysian Open GP Gold this year. Perhaps the tight schedule is taking a toll on the players who have slipped down the BWF standings. Will lack of mental strength be used as an excuse again? Or is it high tim

Indonesia's Dede Suryana ( pic ) got the best of both the windy 3-4 foot windblown beach break conditions and his fellow finalists yesterday to win the Men's Open Division of the Terengganu Quiksilver Best Event Surf Contest at Batu Burok Beach and nab the first place trophy and RM 2,500 ($US 850). It was an all Indonesian affair with Suryana up against Quiksilver teammates Tipi Jabrik, Sandi Selamet and Devis Ratif in the 25 minute final, with Suryana aggressively attacking the waves and dominating the lineup, posting the highest score of the day and of the final, a 7.1 (out of a possible 10), and the highest combined score of the day, 14.10 out of 20. Given the conditions, it was an especially amazing performance. "I’m super stoked to win this event," said Suryana. "It was great fun to be out there with my team mates, even though it was windy and not the best conditions in the final. The waves were pumping all morning, the best we’ve gotten so far in the co

Mailsport highlighted that Zulfadli Zulkifli has been lured by the USA Badminton Association to play for the USA as seen here . SS Dhaliwal, had in his blog, questioned Zulfadli's much awaited reward since last year as seen through the title of his blog post 'Why the delay NSC?' The BA of Malaysia (BAM) would now want to reward Zulfadli through their own incentive scheme and is hoping Zulfadli will stay put in Malaysia. Read BAM secretary Ng Chin Chai's ( pic ) thoughts here . Most players would not think twice to play for USA. It's even easier for LA-born Zulfadli since his dad has been living there since his varsity days and even coached the US team in the early 90s. Zulkifli knows most of the players and US BA officials there. Let's give Zulfadli a darn good reason to stay put in the country. And this isn't about money where the USA will be able to offer more. HD says: Life isn't all about money. It's about paying respect and acknowledging a perso

UPDATE 10.49pm: FAM website is up and running. ------ The FA of Malaysia (FAM) website has been hacked again ! This comes hardly two months after the website was defaced in late October as seen here . There is only one sentence mocking the country as the whole web page is blank. It remains unclear what sparked the incident or who is responsible for the attack. The Mole (www.mole.my) website was also hacked days ago. Malaysia has been riding high since edging Indonesian twice on home soil at the Sea Games in Jakarta but lost their two other matches in the run up for the London 2012 Olympics. The Olympic squad is currently in Australia where they beat Sydney FC 3-0 and will play Central Coast Mariners next. HD says: Kena hack lagi. Waduh!

Zulfadli Zulkifli ( pic ) has been the pride of the nation since winning the World and Asian junior championships this year. But Zulfadli is from KLRC and some believe he is guilty by association. Perhaps that explains why he has not received his incentives since last year. Zulfadli isn't complaining nor is he threatening but he has been approached by the USA Badminton Association to exercise his right to be a US citizen and play for Uncle Sam. Zulfadli says he wants to play for malaysia nevertheless. Hmm... Read more in today's Mailsport . HD says: USA, the land of opportunities?

That's going to piss many hardcore fans off I assure you. Thankfully my subject today is about Selangor and not Kelantan. I really hope Selangor's new coach Irfan Bakti ( pic ) will continue to weave his "magic" as he did with Terengganu. Irfan is out to attack and attract, as published by NST . However, a chat with several seasoned coaches reveals Irfan is going to have a really tough time in Selangor - mostly based on their personal experiences. Why? 1. He had good players who connected well with each other in Terengganu. It's not the same with Selangor as many of the seasoned players have been dropped and many new faces roped in including the two new foreigners - Lebanon defender Ramez Dayoub and Congo striker Lelo Mbele. Do they have enough time to gel? Remember Tony Cottee? 2. The politics in FA of Selangor. It can get very very messy unless Irfan puts his foot down. But that would also mean officials stabbing his back - based on the personal experience of se

“I ask that you immediately contact the president by e-mail to apologise for your comments and that you unconditionally withdraw them from the public arena. “The immediacy and extent of your apology and retraction will inform the nature of any further action to be taken by the FIH. “For your information, at the time of writing no decision has been taken with regards to any replacement for South Africa as the FIH is following the process outlined in the Qualification system. “It is really unfortunate that you have either deliberately chosen to ignore the aforementioned Qualification system or have written what you have in total ignorance of the published system.” Above are the contents of an email by the International Hockey Federation (FIH) to Malaysia Hockey Federation secretary general Maninderjit Singh (pic) . According to NST's Jugjet Singh, Maninderjit, or better known as Mike, considers the matter closed as seen here . Is the matter indeed closed? HD says:

LATIHAN DAN PEMILIHAN PASUKAN BOLASEPAK OLIMPIK KEBANGSAAN Adalah dimaklumkan bahawa Persatuan ini telah mengatur jadual latihan untuk Pasukan Bolasepak Olimpik Kebangsaan sebagai persiapan untuk perlawanan kelayakan pusingan ketiga Sukan Olimpik London, 2012. Bagi memenuhi maksud yang tersebut di atas, Persatuan telah memilih 23 pemain untuk mengikuti Latihan dan Perlawanan Persahabatan di Sydney, Australia dari 10 hingga 22 Disember 2011. Berikut senarai pemain yang terpilih:- Khairul Fahmi Che Mat Nazirul Naim Che Hashim Mohd Izuan Solahuddin Mohd Zubir Mohd Azmi Mohd Irfan Fazail Sivanesan Shanmugam Thamil Ambumamee Ahmad Fakri Saarani ( pic ) Shahrul Mohd Saad Mohamad Muslim Ahmad Mahali Jasuli Mohamed Amer Saidin Wan Zack Haikal Wan Nor Mohamed Fandi Othman Syahrul Azwari Ibrahim Mohd Affizie Faizal Mamat Mohd Izham Tarmizi Roslan Gurusamy Kandasamy Saarvindran Devandran Mohd Shahril Saari Muhd Nazmi Faiz Mansor Mohamad Fadhli Mohd Shas Ahmad Hazwan Bakri Sekia

Could the Malaysian Amateur Athletics Union set a precedent to other sports associations in the country? Read the Press statement below; JOINT VENTURE OF MALAYSIA AMATEUR ATHLETIC UNION / NATIONAL SPORTS INSTITUTE (ISN) TOWARDS THE DEVELOPMENT OF BOTH JUNIOR AND ELITE ATHLETES TOWARDS PREPARATION FOR MAJOR COMPETITIONS It has been clearly indicated openly by YBhg Dato Zolkples Embong the Director General of National Sports Council of Malaysia that he cannot work with MAAU in particular with Mr. Karim Ibrahim the Deputy President, citing various reasons in the local electronic and written media continuously. Numerous forms of approaches had been made indirectly through the MAAU President YB Dato Seri’ Shahidan Kassim as well as sports enthusiast to amicably solve this ongoing fiasco, but unfortunately all the efforts turned futile. Since it is realized that we are already at a dead end in seeking a solution on this matter, and that MAAU being the Association partly re

NST's Devinder Singh and I were watching KL play Armed Forces in a friendly match at the KLFA Academy in Taman Melati on Tuesday. We were keeping close tabs on several players and as I was trying to identify a particular player - Jacob Anderson from Ghana. And when Devinder pointed out Anderson to me, I quickly said; "Damn, he looks like Snoop Dogg." Devinder agreed instantaneously. Later we met the midfielder, thinking he could be the right player for KL. We were wrong. Apparently Anderson is an illegal. He has overstayed in the country for more than seven months. Damn! Read all about it in today's Mailsport . HD says: And this is the 'quality' of foriegn footballers trying to play in Malaysia.

UPDATE 10.00am: Here's the final paragraph of Mazlan's commentary (Part 2) published in Utusan Malaysia today; Yang perlu diketahui bahawa persatuan sukan dan MOM boleh hidup dan berdiri secara sendiri tanpa MSN tetapi MSN tidak boleh hidup tanpa persatuan sukan dan MOM. Inilah hakikat sebenarnya. ------ I was 16. My cousin and I were on our way back from Bangsar and there was a roadblock near Bangsar Shopping Center. We got off my cousin's ever reliable Ex-5 as a rather attractive policewoman approached us. She asked for my cousin's identification card, licence and road tax. My cousin gleefully handed her the documents and tried his luck by saying; "You want to see anything else?" And her reply: "It's not funny, you know." She then gave us the green light to leave. We got on the motorcycle and laughed our hearts out. It's something my cousin and I still talk about even till today. What is no longer funny is the supposed tiff between the Nat

Before we continue with the debate of Malaysians playing in Europe, Foul! would like to extend our sincere condolences to Khairul Fahmi Che Mat and his family after his younger brother Amirul Izzat passed away yesterday. Back to business. Stanley Bernard Samuel is not an import player - as once published by a local daily. He is a Puchong lad who started honing his football skills at the KLFA Academy and sent on to play for the city team followed by the now defunct MyTeam. He then tried his luck and got a place with India's Sporting Clube de Goa. Some people claim the standards in India is not great after all but do remember their national team managed a 1-1 draw followed by a 3-2 win against K.Rajagobal's lads recently. And Stanley has called on his fellow peers to forget about Europe and start conquering Asia instead. Look at the Middle Eastern teams, Japan and Korea. Read more in today's Mailsport . HD says: KL will play Armed Forces in a friendly match at the KLFA Acad

FA of Malaysia (FAM) vice president Hamidin Amin has told footballers and fans alike to "jangan terlalu menaruh harapan" when it comes to foreign stints especially in Europe. Judging by Hamidin's tone, he doesn't seem please with these club sides offering stints as they seem to toy with the sentiments of the players and the fans. It's like trying to "pei min" (give face in Cantonese). But the Selangor FA secretary stressed he is happy that players are able to experience training with reputable names. As such he has asked our local footballers to just enjoy the moment and don't get your hopes up - as published in today's Mailsport. He was referring to Safiq Rahim's speculated training stint with Queens Park Rangers next month. Perhaps Hamidin is right. HD says: We have had many other Malaysians who actually played for clubs abroad - Chow Chee Keong ( pic ), James Wong, Lim Teong Kim, Akmal Rizal Rakhli and Stanley Bernard to name a few.

It is not easy for a Malaysian to play in the English Premier League. It is not about the football standards alone but obtaining the work permit. Safiq enjoyed a training stint with Wales club Cardiff City recently. Yet, that has not stopped fresh speculation of national skipper Safiq Rahim playing for Queens Park Rangers next year. According to EyeFootball.com ; "Tony ( shouldn't it be Neil ?) Warnock has been recommended Rahim by (Tony) Fernandes' representatives, and the player will arrive on trial in January to spend time with the first team." But what caught my attention is the final paragraph of the article; "Selangor value the midfielder at around 300,000 GBP but a trial period is expected prior to any permanent deal." That's about RM1.4 million! No disrespect to Safiq but....biar benar wei?!?! HD says: The above mentioned website seem to have placed a wrong picture. I'm a little skeptical over the report.

Haven't we seen so many occasions whereby our Malaysians will lead a match or competition only to suffer a defeat when the final whistle is blown. Our shuttlers suffer from that most of the time and the same excuse whipped up by the coaches and officials is "lack of mental strength". I'd expect more from professional athletes. NST's Jugjet Singh, had in the first paragraph of his story Captain marvel needed , said; MALAYSIA learnt a bitter Indian lesson in the quarter-finals of the (hockey) Champions Challenge I in South Africa, and now have three months to add the missing spice in their game. He was referring to the match between India and Malaysia. Our national hockey squad were down 2-0 but bounced back to lead 4-2 only to lose 5-4 at the end of the match. So what actually transpired? Did our lads lose focus after leading 4-2? Were they complacent and started taking things lightly? Were they 'mentally weak' that they can only concentrate for a short spa