KUALA LUMPUR – The 2022 Malaysia Hockey League (MHL) season will comprise seven men’s teams and six women’s teams.
The men’s teams will be competing for the TNB cup, while the women’s teams will compete for the Vivian May Soars Cup that will be held on February 18.
The men’s teams are Terengganu Hockey Team, Tenaga Nasional Berhad, TNB Thunderbolts, Maybank Hockey Team, Nurinsafi, UniKL, and UiTM Hockey Team.
The women’s teams are KPT, United TB, Mutiara Impian, and three new teams – Negeri Sembilan Girls, Sarawak Girls, and Sabah National Development Team.
“We, however, won’t be having a men’s team from Sabah due to budget constraints. At least half a million ringgit is needed just to send one team,” said Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) competitions committee chairman Datuk Seri Anil Jeet Singh.
During a press conference earlier, Anil Jeet told the media that this season’s tournament will end earlier than initially scheduled.
The league, which is to be held on February 18, will finish by the end of March so as to avoid clashing with the International Hockey Federation’s (FIH) tournament calendar.
“We want to finish it early to avoid clashing with the FIH calendar so that our national coach will have ample time to train the national players,” he said.
He added that they will adhere to the Covid-19 standard operating procedures set by the Health Ministry and National Security Council.
Each team is allowed to register a maximum of four foreign players, although no requests have been sent in as of yet.
Anil Jeet also said that this season’s league will take on the home-and-away format.
“We have identified five pitches where these teams will be playing in Penang, Negeri Sembilan, Terengganu, Selangor, and Kuala Lumpur,” he said.
Supporters will also be allowed to attend the games with no-fee entrance. - The Vibes, February 4, 2022
