PETALING JAYA – The Youth and Sports Ministry is offering allocations through matching grants to all state youth and sports committee chairmen to upgrade selected football pitches with Zeon Zoysia grass.
Its minister Hannah Yeoh said the offer was made during the first ministry meeting with state excos in January and now they were waiting for feedback, which is expected to be presented in the upcoming second meeting.
She said each state has to choose one stadium for the upgrade and conduct initial maintenance before the allocation is approved.
“They need to maintain the pitch to ensure the drainage is okay, after it’s done, then the ministry will provide the allocation for the grass,” she told reporters as she visited the Malayan Tigress’ last training session at the Football Association of Malaysia football field here yesterday.
Yeoh said annual maintenance would be the responsibility of each state government if they chose to take the offer.
“Not every state wants this grass and not every state can afford the maintenance, that’s why we’re waiting for the feedback,” Yeoh said.
She added that her ministry would continue supporting women’s grassroots football in terms of infrastructure and allocation for the next five years.
“What’s most important is they are given the opportunity to show their skills and performance so that football and women are synonymous and not odd, that’s a stereotype that needs to be done away with.
“In conjunction with Women’s Day tomorrow (Wednesday), I’m here symbolically to tell every woman in Malaysia that women in sports must be given the opportunity to unearth talent and for them to succeed,” she added. – Bernama, March 8, 2023
