KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia are expected to field a depleted squad when facing defending champion China in their second 2015 Junior Asia Cup preliminary pool A match at the Wujin National Hockey Stadium in Changzhou, China.
National women’s junior head coach Lailin Abu Hassan said a number of players had suffered injuries during the 2-0 win over Singapore in their opening match yesterday.
In a statement from the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) yesterday, Lailin said among the casualties were captain Surizan Awang Noh who is nursing a left knee injury and Nurain Hidayah who sustained a hamstring injury.
Lailin, a former international also urged his young side, especially the midfield, to figure out a creative way to penetrate the home side’s solid defence.
“We will analyse our game, as well as the opponents and strive for a better performance against one of the region’s hockey powerhouse,” Lailin added.
After the match against China, Malaysia is slated to play against North Korea on Sept 9 before concluding their preliminary fixtures against India, a day later.
Pool B matches involve four teams, namely South Korea, Japan, Thailand and Taiwan.
The top three teams from the tournament will qualify for the 2016 International Hockey Federation (FIH) Junior World Cup in Chile from Nov 26 to Dec 4, next year. — Bernama