Harris willing to help FAM

FORMER national coach Allan Harris is willing to help the FA of Malaysia and no, he isn't expecting a big, fat salary.
Harris, who handled the various national teams in 2000-2004, has been following Malaysian football's recent developments and just wants to give something back. "Football has been good to me and I just want to give something back to the game. Why not in Malaysia?" said Harris, who contacted Timesport from London yesterday. "I believe we can sit down and work things out. I am not looking at earning a big salary. FAM has been very good to me and the fans are also very supportive, so why not? "But FAM can't be looking at short term success as there must, at least, be a five-year plan. All parties must also come together if Malaysian football is to succeed."
Harris, a former Chelsea player, was in charge of the national Under-23 team that won the 2001 Sea Games silver in Kuala Lumpur and guided the senior team to the 2003 Tiger Cup (now Asean Championship) semi-finals after wins over Thailand and Singapore. His pedigree as a coach is unquestionable but is FAM willing to give him a second chance?

No escaping the storm this time, FAM

HAVING weathered numerous storms before, one gets the impression that the FA of Malaysia feels that it is only a matter of time before the criticism that is being hurled at it goes away.
After all, it has happened before as FAM has, somehow, always survived but one gets the feeling that this time, there is no escape. FAM has to change for if it doesn't, then it is staring at the end of Malaysian football. If there was one aspect that always saved FAM before, it was sound governance. Sure, the national team had become a pale shadow of what it once was but that was masked by the fact that FAM had several programmes in place which promised a better future.
That, however, doesn't seem promising based on feedback. The future, they say, is at the grassroots but experts say all Malaysia has to rely on for the future are several 15 and 16-year-old players in the Bukit Jalil Sports School. The rest, and this includes those playing in the Education Ministry Cup, lack basic skills and this is alarming considering that we are talking about 16-year-olds. The mini rise that saw Malaysia win a silver in the 2001 Kuala Lumpur Sea Games turned out to be a false dawn and, should FAM still believe otherwise, that point was driven home in the Asean Championship last year when Malaysia failed to make the semi-finals. Several of those who featured in the 2001 Sea Games played in the Asean Championship and they are products of numerous expensive programmes with the end result still being mediocrity. What makes the situation alarming is that FAM's administration, which was once the best among sports associations, is also no longer what it used to be. The on-going spat in the referees department is proof of that and the 12-month suspension of Felda United coach Reduan Abdullah on Friday goes further in showing that FAM is losing touch with reality. Is suspending Reduan going to stop others from criticising FAM? The disciplinary board made it a point to say that Reduan had gotten his facts wrong but how does that explain the results of the national team's fitness test which only three players passed? Reduan has been silenced but what is FAM going to do about the alarming lack of quality in the M-League? How is it going to attract sponsors when the fans are staying away, even from the historic Malaysia Cup? Even before these, and numerous more, problems are solved, FAM is already planning on restructuring the M-League and word is, the doors will be reopened to foreign players. Why were they shut in the first place? Malaysians are desperate to see football saved but how is that going to happen when FAM's every step forward is followed by three steps back? This time, the storm won't blow away - By Christopher Raj

Worden already staring at exit

HE has only been in charge for three matches thus far but Ken Worden could be staring at the exit door should Terengganu get knocked out of the FA Cup by Young Tigers today. That would be a dubious record for a coach who has won the Malaysia Cup and guided the national team before to have but such is the state of Malaysian football. Apparently, if one official is to be believed, there are some in the Terengganu FA who are unhappy with how Worden is managing the team. "We are not very happy with the way he is managing the team and I think he can't afford to lose against Young Tigers. It is now up to him to walk the talk," said the high ranking Terengganu official, who declined to be identified. Whether this could be due to Worden's "bunch of schoolboys" statement after his first match in charge cannot be confirmed but the Australian is already under pressure. Ironically, his fate could be decided by a side coached by K. Rajagopal, who was Worden's assistant in his Selangor days. Young Tigers lost the first leg 2-1 but with away goals coming into play, a 1-0 win will suffice for them at the National Stadium today. "It is not over yet for us and I believe the boys will deliver. We controlled the first leg and also created many chances and anything is possible," said Rajagopal. "It won't be easy though as we are playing against a tough team. They have a seasoned squad and we have to produce our best." Malaysian Super League (MSL) surprise leaders Kelantan are surely through to the last eight after whipping Police 5-1 in the first leg and the only question is how many more will they score today? Kelantan, who gained a back door entry to the MSL, have the likes of Indra Putra Mahayuddin and Khalid Jamlus and they could be looking at an extended Cup run. Selangor edged the first leg of the Klang Valley derby against Kuala Lumpur 1-0 and they will be confident of finishing the job at the Shah Alam Stadium today.

Own goals keeping local football down ..

Talk to any local football fan and you will only hear regret in his or her voice about the standards of Malaysian football today.

They will most probably reminisce about the golden days of local football in the 1970s and 1980s. And it is very likely that they would not be able to name any big football stars from the current batch.Long gone are the days when football stadiums across the country and the Causeway - the likes of Stadium Merdeka, Likas Stadium, Stadium Larkin, City Stadium and the National Stadium - were packed with hardcore fans.It is very common now to see these stadiums half-empty or with only a handful of supporters watching a match. No match today has the intensity of a Selangor versus Singapore game of the past

For the man on the street, there are many things wrong with Malaysian football, and each would have his or her own suggestions to revive local standards of the ‘beautiful game'.However, Football Association of Malaysia deputy president Khairy Jamaluddin has a rather simplistic, albeit controversial, solution."If I have a free hand, I would suspend the league for next year," he told Malaysiakini."I will not waste money on the league. I would stop everything, tear everything down, and start building it back from the ground up," he added.The FAM presently runs two senior competitive leagues - the Malaysian Super League and Malaysian Premier League. Both the leagues comprise 14 teams each.The FAM also runs two cup competitions - the Malaysia Cup and the Malaysia FA Cup.Players for the national team are drawn from the teams competing in the local leagues. At present, the national football team is without a manager and stands at a lowly rank of 164 in international standings.

Khairy also listed five reasons for the abysmal standard of Malaysian football today - lack of money, no grassroots structure to pool young players from, no professional coaches, the scourge of corruption among players and losing supporters to the European leagues."Football today suffers from a lack of money. We have lost the tobacco sponsorship. So most of the money that we get is spent on the league and all the national teams, both of which are crap," he admitted.It must be noted that about RM300 million was pumped into the FAM from 1997-2005 by then sponsor Dunhill. This funding has now dried up and the FAM is seeking fresh aid from the government to revitalise the local football scene.The cash-flow problem is also a reason why local teams have been barred by the FAM from hiring foreign players.

Many teams have struggled to pay the wages of these foreign players, leaving them unpaid or worse still, having their contracts terminated without proper reasons.Supporters and football pundits have argued that the presence of these foreign players would have added glamour to the league - like how it has done for the Japanese league.The other view - which eventually won the day - was that the presence of foreign players would hamper the growth of local talent.Several local teams too have been guilty of hiring questionable foreign players who are eventually let off due to their sub-playing standards.Khairy, however, felt that it was not just the presence of foreign players that was hampering the growth of the local talent.He blames that squarely on a lack of opportunities for young local talents to be spotted."We don't have a grassroots structure anymore. There are no more (new) state-run academies or any local leagues for new talents to come up and be identified," he said.

And in tandem with this, his third reason for the present malady appears - a lack of professional coaches in football academies or schools of excellence."The academies are not staffed with professional coaches. Coaches are not trained properly. And they are not licensed properly," he charged.Khairy also did not mince his word when he said that corruption still existed in the game

There is still some element of graft in the game, which still affects the top level personnel throwing games and things like that (away)," he said, with his demeanour and body language suggesting that even those in the top echelons of FAM have no idea how to tackle the problem.The golden era of Malaysian football came to a complete halt in 1994 when almost 100 players - including many household names and international players - were barred for life from playing, for their part in match-fixing in 1994-1995.Ever since, the standard of Malaysian football has never been the same. All league results are now viewed with a suspicious eye - be it a big-margin win or an upset defeat.And to make things worse, several players were hauled up last year for allegedly selling matches.Khairy's admission of corruption in the game only adds confirmation to the suspicion that bookies are still controlling local football leagues.Rounding up his fifth reason for the fall from grace of Malaysian football, Khairy blamed the popular European leagues of taking away supporters from local matches.

He, however, said the European leagues alone were not responsible for the troubles plaguing Malaysian football. In fact, local supporters have turned to the European leagues as a result of troubles in local football."It's a vicious cycle. People are not interested in local football

Simply because at the moment Astro decides to show games on a Saturday night, people don't go to the stadium anymore," he said.He also blamed some of the local newspapers for a lack of coverage on local football."It's all about Manchester United, about Liverpool, about Arsenal, so how do you get out of the vicious cycle if Malaysians themselves couldn't care less?"If I ask you to name five players from the national team, can you? Hard pressed, right?" he said.Given such circumstances, he said, his remedy to solve the problem would be to suspend the local league for a year and try to start afresh from the grassroots level.- Source K.Kabilan - Malaysiakini

Reduan Abdullah Banned

FELDA United head coach Reduan Abdullah has been banned 12 months and fined RM4,000 for criticising the FA of Malaysia.
In a decision that is bound to attract criticism, FAM's disciplinary board (DB) meted out the punishment in response to Reduan's assertion that the national body had failed to monitor the fitness tests at the state and club levels.Players have to pass the fitness test in order to get their playing license.The issue blew up after only three players passed a National Sports Institute fitness test prior to Malaysia's Asian Cup qualifier against the United Arab Emirates last month. "We suspended him one year and fined him RM4,000 for hitting out at FAM openly. He had many channels of communication to deal with the matter," said Kamaruddin Abdullah, who chaired the DB, yesterday.
General secretary Lt Jen (R) Datuk Azzuddin Ahmad said FAM had informed all teams in the pre-season that the fitness benchmark of 2008 would be maintained for 2009."How can Reduan claim to not know the benchmark when we had informed all teams? We do send our officials to monitor the fitness test but the onus is also on the teams to ensure that players meet the requirements," said Azzuddin.Reduan said he would appeal the decision."I will definitely appeal as what I said was constructive and meant to help develop football," said the former international.Meanwhile, Datuk Soh Chin Aun and Lt Col (R) Kamaruddin Sakhari have been asked to appear before the board to explain remarks made against referees.Chin Aun is the deputy chairman of the referees board while Kamaruddin heads the department.

Frustrated referees want meeting with FAM president

SOME national referees, fed-up with Lt Col (Rtd) Kamaruddin Sakhari - the head of their department - are seeking an audience with FA of Malaysia president Sultan Ahmad Shah to vent their frustration. The referees department, since last year, has come under fire from the media for the unprofessional way it has dealt with some of its members. This year, some referees whose credentials are questionable, have been assigned to local league matches. Appointments of match commissioners and referees inspectors have also been criticised. "We are sick and tired with FAM (for not looking into the matter). We have complained on numerous occasions and have even written to FAM, but until today we have not received any feedback, and the same person is allowed to manage the department," said a current Fifa referee who did not want to be identified. Things took a turn for the worse when a Singapore official, who is also an Asian Football Confederation (AFC) staff member, was appointed as the match commissioner for a recent Premier League match. Also, there were appointments of referees which were not justified, not to mention officials arriving late for matches. All this has been very frustrating for some referees. The late Nazri Abdullah, who was also the FAM referee's committee chairman, had expressed his disappointment and had met with FAM general secretary Lt Jen (rtd) Datuk Azzuddin Ahmad and informed him that the department had to be revamped. Even referees committee deputy chairman Datuk Soh Chin Aun agreed that the head of the referees department cannot be doing as he pleases. "We have rules and regulations and that must be followed. We want to progress," said Chin Aun. Despite Chin Aun's assurance that something will be done regarding the matter, there are unhappy individuals who contacted Timesport to express their disappointment. It is understood that about 70 referees have signed a letter of protest which is expected to be delivered to the FAM president next week.

FAM shortlists Rajagopal for Laos task

K. RAJAGOPAL has led a somewhat charmed life in the corridors of the FA
of Malaysia but one suspects his end is near.
 As expected, the FAM's technical committee has decided to recommend to
the council that Rajagopal, currently in charge of the national Under-19
squad, be given the Under-23 squad.
 He is also expected to be the interim national team coach as FAM has,
despite having shortlisted three candidates, decided to advertise the
post but Rajagopal's fate will be decided by the Under-23 squad's
performance in the Laos Sea Games in December.
 FAM is targetting gold as it believes Rajagopal will have a strong
squad at his disposal.
 "The coach will have 16 players from the previous squad and some
players from Young Tigers (Under-19) are also expected to make the grade.
Therefore, the target remains as previously decided, which is a gold
medal," said FAM deputy president Datuk Seri Redzuan Sheikh Ahmad after
chairing the five-hour technical committee meeting yesterday.
 Rajagopal will be assisted by former international Khan Hung Meng while
Ong Kim Swee, the current national Under-18 coach, will take over the
Young Tigers, who currently lead the Premier League.
 Redzuan said FAM is determined to have a strong squad for the Laos Sea
Games and that is why (National Sports Institute director general) Datuk
Dr Ramlan Abdul Aziz has been included in the technical committee. We
don't want the players to lack anything."
 There is also a strong possibility that FAM will defer naming a coach
for the senior team given the fact that there aren't any major
international assignments this year.
 Although Malaysia are still involved in the 2011 Asian Cup qualifier,
the 5-0 thrashing by the United Arab Emirates means the campaign is
virtually over and Rajagopal may be asked to blood the Under-23 squad,
with the inclusion of several seniors, for the remaining matches and the
friendly against English champions Manchester United in July.
 Redzuan also virtually confirmed that the national coach will be a
local.
 "We have shortlisted three candidates (from 12 who applied) and we will
continue to advertise the position and see whether there are any more
applications. However, the FAM exco will decide soon and he will be a
local coach."
 That makes sense, considering FAM's financial standing.
 A local may cost FAM RM20,000 a month but a foreigner will expect
between RM50,000 and RM70,000, which FAM can't afford.
 Redzuan said the coaching teams at the Bukit Jalil and Bandar Penawar
Sports Schools have been revamped while former Asian Football
Confederation (AFC) technical director Lim Kim Chon has been appointed as
FAM's youth director. Kim Chon was chosen ahead of Khaidir Buyong and
Mustakim Omar.