Goalkeeper Adrian Andy Roberts has been recalled by national senior team head coach Sarjit Singh for the upcoming Asian Champions Trophy in Hulunbuir City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region (China) from Sept 8-17.
The 27-year-old Sabahan steps into the team to assist Muhamad Zaimi Mat Deris following injuries to Mohamad Hafizuddin Othman and Che Shahrul Azmi Che Saufi who are both still recovering.
Hafizuddin, 32, and the national No 1 goalkeeper with 112 international caps, sustained a right shoulder dislocation (posterior labrum tear) during a friendly match against New Zealand before the start of the Nations Cup in June held in Poland. He is showing great recovery progress.
Che Shahrul Azmi, 23, who gave an outstanding performance in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, and the recent tour of Europe, is recovering from a hamstring injury.
“It is unfortunate that Hafizuddin and Shahrul are still in the recovering stage. For Adrian, this is a good opportunity for him to prove himself. He has the potential to move up the ranks. I am giving equal opportunity to every player,” said Sarjit after a short break in training at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil today.
“The players are currently undergoing physical conditioning and strength training under Jorg Teichmann. There is a lot of progress now,” he added.
Adrian, who joined the national team six years ago had trained under coaches Stephen van Huizen, Dutchman Roeland Oltmans, and Arul Selvaraj. Last international assignment was at the 2023 Hockey World Cup in India. The Speedy Tigers finished in 13th place.
“I wish to thank coach Sarjit for giving me the opportunity and I aim to do my best for the team. It is not easy to get into the national team and this opportunity means a lot to me,” said Adrian who joined the training camp last week. He was earlier dropped from the training squad that was trimmed down to 25 from 40.
Meanwhile, the 27-year-old Zaimi, who is preparing for his engagement on Aug 25 in Terengganu, said the challenge in the ACT is enormous with the top six Asian countries vying for supremacy.
“My target is that we reach the final once again,” said Zaimi.
“There is a lot of responsibility on us (goalkeepers) and we must step up in our game. No room for slip-ups.” he said.
Zaimi was the lone goalkeeper in the Malaysian side during the Nations Cup in Poland following a pre-tournament injury to Hafizuddin.
Zaimi played in seven matches at the Nations Cup and also had a rewarding experience with the Speedy Tigers playing against Paris Olympic champions the Netherlands, Germany, India and Belgium during the tour of Europe.