THE LAST BREATH – WHATS NEXT FOR MALAYSIAN HOCKEY AFTER ASIAN GAMES? “MANY CRITICIZE AFTER FAILURE; FEW WARNED BEFOREHAND.” By Maninderjit Singh (Mike) – Double Olympian, World Cupper, and Asian All-Star

THE LAST BREATH 

– WHATS NEXT FOR MALAYSIAN HOCKEY AFTER ASIAN GAMES?

“MANY CRITICIZE AFTER FAILURE; FEW WARNED BEFOREHAND.”

By Maninderjit Singh (Mike) – Double Olympian, World Cupper, and Asian All-Star

CURRENT REPORT CARD – FOR 2026

FIH NATIONS CUP 2026: TARGETED FINALS; FINISHED 5TH.

FIH WORLD CUP 2026: TARGETED TOP 8; FINISHED LAST.

JUNIOR ASIA CUP 2027 – MEN FAILED TO WIN A MEDAL & WOMEN FAILED TO QUALIFY FOR JUNIOR WORLD CUP 2027

ASIAN GAMES 2026:

MEN TARGET GOLD/FINALS: LOST IN THE FINALS 1-5 TO INDIA & NO DIRECT LA28

WOMEN TARGET SEMIFINALS BUT FINISHED 5^TH

CURRENT WORLD RANKING MALAYSIA – MEN AT NO 14^TH AND WOMEN AT NO 21

 

WHATS NEXT FOR MALAYSIAN HOCKEY AFTER ASIAN GAMES?

My Personal View:

"The Road to LA28," it is unlikely that Malaysia will qualify. Winning gold at the Asian Games—historically the most accessible path—has become less indicative of global competitiveness due to the decline in the tournament's quality. Decades ago, four Asian teams ranked in the world top ten: Pakistan, India, Korea, and Malaysia. During that era, Pakistan won the 1994 World Cup and Korea secured a silver medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. In contrast, the recent 2026 finalists from the Asian Games, India and Malaysia, finished 8th and 16th, respectively in the 2026 FIH World Cup. Korea did not qualify for the 2026 World Cup, while Pakistan, despite winning a bronze medal at the Asian Games, finished 12th in the World Cup. India played below par in 2026 Asian Games and it was good enough to win the Gold Medal – it indicates the poor state of Asian Teams in World hockey.

Regarding LA28, only one Asian team—India, as the winner of the Asian continental slot—will compete in the Olympics. Many media outlets have reported incorrect information regarding the qualification system; I am clarifying this for everyone. The FIH Olympic qualification tournament is not next year, but in March 2028. The 16 teams for this qualification will be determined by world rankings, not by Asian Games placements. Some experts have suggested that the FIH should increase the number of teams for the Olympics; however, they appear uncertain whether the Olympics fall under the jurisdiction of the IOC rather than the FIH. The IOC dictates the terms, while the FIH merely recommends the qualification system to the IOC for approval.

Regarding LA28, qualification remains challenging. With the United States occupying one slot, the remaining 11 are divided between five continental champions; 2 for Pro Leagues season (Belgium taken one) and four teams from the February 2028 FIH Olympic Qualifiers. Given the calibre of competition in these eight-team events, securing a top-wo finish is difficult.

For full details about the Road to LA28, click the below link:

The Road to LA28 - The qualification process, challenges, and prospects on 16^th September 2026 my blog https://stickwithmike.blogspot.com/2026/09/malaysian-mens-hockey-team-road-to-la28.html

On the women front – in the recent JAC2026 – we lost to Bangladesh and failed to qualify to women JWC2027 and with newly appointed Coach CR Kumar has guaranteed us that Malaysian Women will break the top 4 bracket in the 2026 Asian Games – it means we will beat KOR and Taipei, Kazak & Bangladesh as China is unbeatable as won Silver medal in last Paris Olympics and we finished no 5 and didn’t meet the target.

What is next Tournaments for Malaysian Hockey?

Malaysian Men Senior

The Hero Asian Champions Trophy Punjab 2026, scheduled to take place from 27 October to 5 November 2026 in Jalandhar and Mohali, Punjab, India. The prestigious continental tournament will bring together six of Asia’s leading hockey nations — India, Bangladesh, China, Japan, Korea and Malaysia — competing for the coveted Hero Asian Champions Trophy title. The level of importance for World Ranking is at 3. Bangladesh replaced Pakistan as they pulled out. It’s a single pool format with top 4 SF – 1vs 4 & 2vs 3 and then Finals with ¾ & 5/6 placing matches.

Malaysian schedule:

27 Oct 2026 13:00           MAS v CHN (RR) JAL        

29 Oct 2026 14:30           MAS v KOR (RR) JAL                        

30 Oct 2026 14:30           BAN v MAS (RR) JAL                     

1 Nov 2026 19:00            MAS v IND (RR) JAL                     

2 Nov 2026 16:45            JPN v MAS (RR) JAL 

Sultan Azlan Shah Cup 2026: November, Ipoh, Perak – 20-28 NOVEMBER – TEAMS MALAYSIA AUSTRALIA S AFRICA KOREA CANADA USA. Level of importance is at 2 for World Rankings.

Malaysian Men Junior

Recent Junior Asia Cup 2026 – target SF and top 6 qualify to JWC27 was an easy task due to 24 teams in JWC27 achieved but no podium finished or no medal as previous few editions – Best finished 1992 Silver, 2000 – Bronze and Champ in 2012.

Sultan of Johor Cup 2026 – this edition 5 nation’s event 17-24th October Taman Daya Hockey Stadium – Teams Malaysia Japan Pakistan China Canada

Malaysian Team Schedule:

18 Oct 2026 19:35             MAS v CHN

20 Oct 2026 19:35             JPN v MAS

21 Oct 2026 19:35             PAK v MAS

23 Oct 2026 19:35             MAS v CAN

LIVE on SUKAN+ RTM & RTM KLIK

Thereafter, Malaysian Junior will participate the 97th All India MCC–Murugappa Gold Cup Hockey Tournament 2026 in India which commence on the 22^nd October 2026, whereas the SOJC ends on 24^th October 2026 in Johor. It’s a back to back competition.

My Predictions:

Men Senior & Junior Team:

As for Asian Champions Trophy we may finished 3^rd and as for Sultan Azlan Shah Cup (SASC) & Sultan Johor Cup Malaysian senior and junior will for sure win a medal and podium finish because the teams invited are all below ranked teams than Malaysia as the dates clashes with FIH Pro League Season 26/26 and India plays test series with NZ.

As for SASC26 – based on rank Malaysia is 2nd best ranked team after Australia and as for SOJC26 – Malaysian Juniors are the best ranked team at 11th placed – with Pak (13), Japan (15), Canada (16) & China (26).

Malaysian Women Senior Team:

The Women's Asian Hockey Champions Trophy 2026 will be held in Bhopal, India during October and November 2026. Host City: Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India, venue: International Sports Complex / Newly developed International Hockey Stadium at Nathu Barkheda (Sports City), dates: October–November 2026. Participating Teams: 6 leading Asian teams (India, China, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, and Thailand). My prediction - Malaysia will finish 5^th place again. The Match Schedule yet to be announced. The level of importance for World Ranking is at 3. It’s a single pool format with top 4 SF – 1vs 4 & 2vs 3 and then Finals with ¾ & 5/6 placing matches.

Malaysian Women Juniors – no any key activities as failed to qualify for FIH JWC 2027. Awaits for Junior Asia Cup 2028 for the next cycle of qualifications.

Furthermore, our squad is currently recognized as the oldest team with the most international caps in world hockey. Most players are aged 33 and above. Our Women team is only good for 5^th place in Asia and more damaging our women juniors didn’t qualify for 2027 JWC.

Due to a failure to develop junior talent, the last two Malaysian Junior World Cup teams have performed poorly, and finishing 4th in the recent Junior Asia Cup 2026 and similar to the last 3 Junior Asia Cup cycles without reaching the podium. In the Junior World Cup, the team placed 12th of 16 in Kuala Lumpur 2023 JWC and 13th of 24 in JWC Tamil Nadu 2025. It is obvious with the inclusion of 3 Junior players such as Azimudin, Faris and Andy - struggling to cope at International stage and now they included Che Nur another junior player in the recent Asian Games and Andy & Che Nur was on the reserve list 19&20.

With an aging national team and a lack of successful junior development since 2015, it is questionable whether the squad can sustain more matches while maintaining consistent results. 

There is significant concern regarding whether veteran players—such as Hafizudin, Marhan, Faiz, Fitri, and Faisal—can they endure this schedule till March 2028 - FIH Olympic Qualifications, given the lack of depth in the current international hockey bench. Many will suffer injuries and burnout. Can these key players be sustained through the LA28 Olympic cycle, or will their potential retirement create a significant vacuum that has been building since 2015?

We lack solutions, having mismanaged the last three Junior World Cup cycles. Regarding the 2027 JWC, there is no proper periodization plan or quality international match schedule; Liaoning tours & India Tours are insufficient. We must play with the European Teams as often as possible.

Furthermore, the second round of the MHL is taking place with massive chaos and interruption of national team’s preparation and senior & junior Coaches fighting for players to be selected for their teams, as all national senior and junior players are having a chaotic busy international & domestic schedules until November. We failed to prepare a detail calendar and it created massive turbulence in the preparation for all stakeholders that is involved in hockey.

By today, the next year 2027 Hockey Calendar (International & domestic) should be out so that a proper planning and preparation will be executed smoothly and in a timely manner.

Our current calendar is poorly structured and managed on an ad-hoc basis. Leading teams like top teams will utilize a four-year cycle aligned with the Olympics, incorporating domestic and international events for U18, U21, Razak Cup, Sukma and senior and junior squads. Heard that all age group competition are called off and not even sure that NHDP – the annual cup will be organised or not. Kelam Kabut situation in Malaysian Hockey….

Best regards. Thank you for reading and following my articles and comments. It is nothing personal; I simply want Malaysian hockey to return to its rightful place, where we deserve to be in the Olympics again and consistently achieving favourable results in world hockey.

MANINDERJIT SINGH (MIKE)

FORMER OLYMPIAN & WORLD CUPPER & ASIAN ALL STAR

FORMER SEC GEN OF MHC/MHF & FIH THINK TANK