Malaysia Play Well Against South Korea, Says Coach

KUANTAN (Pahang, Malaysia), Oct 28 (Bernama) -- Malaysian Hockey Coach Stephen Van Huizen is satisfied with overall performance of his team after playing to a 1-1 draw against South Korea in the last league game of 2016 Asian Champions Trophy Tournament in Kuantan Hockey Stadium here Thursday night. He said his team played very well and tried to win every match including that against South Korea in order to improve their world ranking. "We tried to play conservatively and not too hard against Korea because we have faced a tough game with India yesterday (Wednesday). "But, we tried to make something because we are targetting to improve Malaysia's hockey team in the world ranking," he told reporters after the game on Thursday night. Stephen said he was looking forward to prepare his team for the semi-final stage scheduled for Saturday. "What's important for me is my team has qualified to play in the semi final. I don't care if we have to play against India or Pakistan because both teams are equally strong and will give us a tough challenge," he said. Meanwhile, South Korean Head Coach Paul Lissek said he was impressed with performance of the Malaysian team which seemed to have improved compared to other teams in this tournament. "We have a lot of chances to score many goals, but we only can get one and the Malaysian team was capable to chase us. "It was a good game and I am happy with my team because they have played the best performance on Thursday night," he added. --BERNAMA