Rival PHSI steps up hockey efforts

Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The breakaway board of the Indonesian Hockey Association (PHSI) has pledged to step up efforts to help develop field hockey in Indonesia.

Chairman Erizal Azhar said recently that efforts included plans to hold more national tournaments, training clinics for coaches and coaching clinics for students.

"We have good potential in hockey because we have players at universities, but the level of their play is still far below the quality that would win a gold medal at the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games," Erizal said last week.

Erizal helped set up the breakaway board in April in protest of the reelection of long-serving PHSI head Rajkumar Singh.

Rajkumar, who has chaired the association since 1980, has been blamed by some for the decline in the country's field hockey fortunes. He also has been faulted for what are seen as arbitrary changes to the association's regulations and procedures, as well as for dismissing several regional chapters from the organization.

Since its establishment in April, the breakaway hockey association has sought to gain legitimacy. It was involved in last week's Kabelvision International eight-a-side Hockey Festival at the Senayan Hockey Field in South Jakarta, an annual tournament pioneered by the International Sports Club Indonesia (ISCI).

This cooperation between the breakaway board and the ISCI looks to continue in the future with plans to hold more tournaments and to hire foreign coach, according to Erizal.

With more tournaments, he hopes Indonesian players will be able to improve their level of play, particularly against Malaysia, which has dominated the SEA Games.

Aside from more tournaments, Erizal said the PHSI also would work with the ISCI to invite foreign coaches to train local coaches and to provide coaching clinics for students.