BANGKOK: Malaysia’s men’s indoor hockey team were forced to settle for defeat after going down 2–0 in the penalty shoot-out following a tense final against Indonesia at the 2025 SEA Games.
Despite staging a comeback from a 2–0 deficit to draw level and finishing the match tied at 4–4 at the end of regulation time, luck was not on Malaysia’s side in the shoot-out.
Head coach Muhammad Amin Rahim praised the fighting spirit shown by his players, stressing that despite some challenging decisions from the officials, the team gave their all.
“We played well for 40 minutes, but we lost in the penalty shoot-out. This defeat gives us an opportunity to learn and come back stronger in future tournaments,” he said after the match at the Bangkok Youth Center here last night (Dec 19).
Elaborating further, he expressed hope that sports authorities in Malaysia would provide more training opportunities and international exposure to further enhance the preparation level of the national indoor hockey team.
Team captain Muhammad Najmi Farizal Jazlan also credited all the players for their maximum effort.
He said the national team remained proud of winning the silver medal despite facing a very strong opposition.
“We know Indonesia are a great team, but we put them under pressure and worked hard throughout the match. We will continue striving to improve in the future,” he said.
Muhammad Najmi said although Indonesia had more thorough preparations, including a European tour, Malaysia still managed to produce a highly commendable performance.
Meanwhile, the national women’s team also faced a tough challenge in the final, going down 3–4 to hosts Thailand.
Although the result did not go in their favour, the team showed strong fighting spirit and mounted a serious challenge against Thailand.
Despite missing out on gold, the result remains a proud achievement, with the women’s team showing significant progress throughout the tournament.
