Licence to protest! (25/01/1997 - The Malay Mail)

Publication : MM
Date : 25/01/1997
Headline : Licence to protest!


THERE has been much hue and cry over the ruling allowing States to
register only 15 local players and three foreigners for the new M-League
season.
Strangely, before the decision was made, there were discussions,
explanations and agreement. Now there is confusion, misunderstanding and
protests.
All major matters on soccer are discussed before a decision is made but
often it's only when these decisions are implemented that the parties
concerned suddenly wake up and cry foul or express their dissatisfaction.
It happens because the wrong people are present at the wrong meetings.
Sometimes, the right people are there but do not take part in the
discussions or go along with the majority.
Now, there is the issue of local coaches needing the FA of Malaysia A
licence to coach M-League teams.
Perak's Khaidir Buyong is upset the FA of Malaysia do not recognise his
German A licence while not requiring foreign coaches working in Malaysia
to have the FAM A licence.
There is a Malaysian Football Coaches Association (MFCA) and if there
was any disagreement on the matter it should have come through them.
The fact that even MFCA president Chow Kwai Lam and his deputy
president, M. Karathu - German and England coaching licence holders
respectively - attended the A Licence course to qualify themselves,
underlines that an agreement had been reached.
They both hold the FAM advanced coaching certificate, which was earlier
the highest coaching certificate in Malaysia.
Other German trained coaches like Abdullah Mohamad and Abdul Rahman also
attended the course which was reduced to merely a refresher course in
recognition of their contributions.
Khaidir was supposed to have attended a similar course on Jan 3 but did
not because he was out of the country scouting for players for Perak.
The German A licence is conducted by the German FA together with the
German government once in four years for English speaking coaches and
French speaking coaches from developing nations.
This course and the licence is certainly not the same German A licence
given to their own coaches, which is very much more intensive.
Foreign coaches are not required to have the FAM A licence because it
would be ridiculous for FAM to pass judgment on their coaching
certificates.
Even then, FAM insist State FAs hiring foreign coaches submit the
relevant coaching certificates to them.
The younger breed of Malaysian coaches should take the cue from former
national player Lim Teong Kim who is doing a coaching course in Germany on
his own. He hopes to graduate with a diploma from the Coaching School of
Hennef.
He has been there for almost two years and has attained the B Licence.
He is coaching the Bayern Munich second team for a year as part of the
requirement for testing for the A licence.
It is only after passing the A licence can he apply to join the School
of Hennef which is a six-month course and which will cost him about
RM15,000.
Teong Kim set a record of sorts by playing professional soccer in
Germany in 1987 with Herta Berlin FC. He could well be the first Malaysian
to coach overseas.