MALAYSIA finished in sixth place in the 2025 FIH Hockey Nations Cup after losing 1-2 to Wales at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil today.
In the fifth-sixth classification match, both teams displayed a balanced style of play before the Speedy Tigers took the lead in the 20th minute through a penalty corner conversion by defender Syed Mohammad Syafiq Syed Cholan.
Wales pulled level in the 42nd minute through a penalty corner by Rhys Bradshaw.
Gareth Furlong, however, proved to be Malaysia’s thorn in the side when he scored the winning goal with just 10 minutes remaining in the match.
Meanwhile, national head coach Sarjit Singh said his players’ performance was still far from satisfactory, citing a lack of speed and missed chances to kill off the game at the right moment.
“The young players need to learn. We cannot afford to make mistakes where we’re leading 1-0 and thus we paid the price.
“But it’s okay, the good thing is every player’s commitment on the pitch was good. Only thing we need to improve is our marking in defence,” he told reporters after the match.
In the previous edition, Malaysia finished seventh in Gniezno, Poland.
In the seventh-eighth classification match also held today, Japan defeated South Africa 2-1.
