KUALA LUMPUR: National men’s hockey team captain, Muhammad Marhan Mohd Jalil admitted that the Speedy Tigers will face great pressure when they take on Pakistan in the first Group B match of the 2025 FIH Nations Cup Hockey Championship tomorrow at Bukit Jalil National Stadium here.
According to him, playing before their own fans is not an easy task, but he hopes that the players can take the pressure in their pursuit for a first win which is expected to provide a motivational boost for the national team.
“For me, every game, anywhere, there is definitely pressure, especially when playing on home turf, the pressure is the team wants to give the best result.
“So the team needs to be more disciplined on the field from the first minute until the end. This is because the first game is important and we need to win to increase our motivation and increase our chances of advancing to the semi-finals,” he said at a pre-match press conference here today.
Meanwhile, when asked to comment on the Pakistani team, the 35-year-old described his opponent as a strong team besides having the advantage of penalty corner specialist Sufyan Khan.
However, he asked the team not to focus too much on the player because he believed the Pakistani team had a different strategy.
“We cannot focus on just one person because we need to remember that they (Pakistan) may have other weapons. Maybe they have a second person, we don’t even know.
“So, we will follow the plan that has been planned by the coach and hope the defence is at its best in the match,” he said.
At the FIH Nations Cup Hockey Championship, Malaysia were drawn in Group B with Pakistan, New Zealand and Japan, while Group A comprises France, South Africa, South Korea and Wales.
For the record, Speedy Tigers finished the previous edition in Gniezno, Poland in seventh place.
