SEA GAMES 2011: KEEPING COOL IN HOT JAKARTA WAS KEY TO SUCCESS

JAKARTA (22 Nov 2011) – One of the key factors to Malaysia’s successful title defence at the Gelora Bung Karno yesterday was their ability to maintain their composure in the face of such hostile and emotionally charged conditions. Many teams have caved in, Vietnam was a clear example in the semifinals, in front of the awesome Indonesian fans, who are probably among the most committed and passionate fans in this region.

The Malaysians had to put up with all sorts of problems but they prevailed and did not allow it to go to their heads and lose their cool. In the group stage, the Malaysians were jeered in every game they played, and it was worse when they faced Indonesia in the final preliminary round game. The effect of this however was that as the tournament progressed, the Malaysian became more and more immune to the taunts and jeers.

In the build up to the final, the Malaysians were unable to train properly at the scheduled venues but had to limit themselves to working out within the hotel grounds. On the day of the final, due to the enormous crowd, the Malaysians took about 45 minutes to get to the stadium, a trip that ordinarily would only take 10 minutes. All along the way, fans beat on the bus and yelled at them.

Under such conditions, many players would snap and it would reflect on the pitch. But Ong Kim Swee and his boys remained cool in the face of such provocation. Instead, they took their fight to the pitch and despite being a goal down, bounced back to win the shootout.

“Apart from all the hard work that has been put in, the mental condition of the players contributed to our victory. It’s not easy playing under such conditions and the players did really well to keep it together until the shootout,” he told reporters last night.

“We were stuck in a jam getting to the stadium, in fact, we were harassed all the way. But all the players kept cool and that shows strong mental strength. That helped us win,” he said.

The fact that many players in the team also featured in the AFF Suzuki Cup last year also helped the team prepare for this competition and the many challenges it offered. “The seniors in the team helped the younger ones and this obviously came through here.”

The Malaysian coach commented that the Indonesia fans while fanatical at times, were extremely supportive and committed to their national team and would easily be the envy of any team.

SEA GAMES 2011 SEMI-FINALS and FINAL RESULTS