The third edition of the Malaysia Indoor Hockey League (MIHL) will begin on Saturday (14 Sept) at the Sports Arena IOI City Mall Putrajaya. The eight-day tournament will see the participation of eight teams in the men and women divisions respectively. Tenaga Nasional Berhad, MBPJ Black Widow and Malaysia Universiti-Terengganu Hockey Team (MU THT) will make their debut in the men’s category competition. They will be joined by DBKL HT, ATM, Maybank, Stallion-KJLJD and Perlis Mighty Lion.For the record, DBKL HT emerged champions in the 2022 edition of the men’s competition.In the women’s division, the participating team are defending champion DBKL HT, MOHC, BNHC SMZN, CS Mustang HT and Mutiara-PSHA. The debutants are Malaysia University, Politeknik and Wipers-KLHA.Shurizan Mansor, the chairman of the Malaysian Hockey Confederation Indoor Hockey Committee, said this is the first time a shopping mall has been identified as a venue for the tournament.“A venue in a shopping mall adds extra value to the tournament as it gives an opportunity to shopping enthusiasts to watch indoor hockey matches and also enjoy the moment. It will also help generate an interest in the game,” said Shurizan, who is also a Vice President in the national hockey governing body.“It has always been our aspiration to create a wider pool of indoor hockey players who will be absorbed into the development programmes and go on to represent the national team. The national team is currently training for the World Cup 2025,” he said.He added that it is the aspiration of the Indoor Hockey committee members to see this tournament showcase a  high level of performance especially with the involvement of players from the national team and development squad who will represent in most teams.“We hope this third edition of the tournament will also help provide valuable knowledge to all the technical officials and umpires. Their experience and sound knowledge of the rules and regulation of the game is important if we are to develop indoor hockey,” said Shurizan.
The Indoor Hockey championships, he added, will be telecast live on RTM’s sports channel TV Okey (RTM Click).“RTM will broadcast a total of 20 matches live including the semifinals and final. Hockey fans who are unable to go the venue can watch from their homes. I hope this path will create a wider pool of audience and interest among youngsters in the game,” he said.
Men’s Indoor Teams: Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur HT (DBKL HT), Angkatan Tentera Malaysia (ATM), Maybank, Stallion-KJLJD, Perlis Mighty Lion, Tenaga Nasional Berhad, MBPJ Black Widow, Malaysia University-Terengganu Hockey Team (MU-THT).Women Indoor Teams: Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur HT (DBKL HT), MOHC, BNHC-SMZN, CS Mustang HT, Mutiara PSHA, Politeknik, Wipers-KLHA, Malaysia University.
