If you have been following the CommBank Emerging Socceroos Championships this week, you may have noticed a unique addition to the tournament.
That is because this July, as part of a growing collaboration between 西瓜影视 and the Football Association of Malaysia, Malaysia鈥檚 U-15 national teams have come to Australia to take on the country鈥檚 best young players at the CommBank Emerging Championships.
The exposure to a different style of football broadens development opportunities among youth players and helps them grow both on and off the pitch.
Background
A formal Expression of Interest (EOI) process was extended to selected AFC (Asian Football Confederation) members in the lead-up to the tournament. Malaysia responded and confirmed their intent to participate in both the CommBank Emerging Socceroos Championships and the CommBank Emerging Matildas Championships this month.
Malaysia is currently ranked world no.125 in men鈥檚 football. They are a nation on the rise, having soared 49 ranking places since 2017.
FAM president Datuk Mohd Joehari Mohd Ayub explained that the federation is highly committed to their pathways programs, and participating in the CommBank Emerging Championships will only aid them in continuing their rise.
鈥淎t FAM, we are deeply invested in building sustainable pathways that nurture talent from the grassroots through to the elite level,鈥 he said.
鈥淏eing part of these Championships allows our players and coaches to experience international football in a competitive and developmental environment.鈥
Results
Malaysia have been highly competitive at the CommBank Emerging Socceroos Championships, with their results improving as the competition continued.
Consecutive 1-1 draws with Capital Football and Queensland Maroon followed an opening day defeat to Victoria White.
They took the lessons they learned into their game against Tasmania, which proved to be one of the high points of the week. There were five different goalscorers in a 5-0 thumping of the southernmost state, with Muhammad Aniq Thaqif Bin Hairulnizam scoring a brace.
A pulsating penalty shootout victory against Northern New South Wales on Thursday led them into their final day fixture against Queensland White. On this occasion, Malaysia found themselves on the wrong side of a penalty shootout, falling 5-3 after drawing 1-1 in regulation time.
Their coach, Noor Zaidi Bin Rohmat, said that tackling Australia's unique brand of football had been a welcome learning curve for his team.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a different experience from what we are used to,鈥 he said.
鈥淎ustralian players are very physical and technically skilled. It鈥檚 a benchmark for where we want to be.
鈥淭his is very good for them [the players]. It鈥檚 a bit different. They feel very excited, and they feel very happy to be here and participating in this tournament.鈥
Football connects
It isn鈥檛 just on the pitch where the Malaysian players have been learning and growing 鈥 it is off the pitch as well.
On Tuesday, they participated - alongside the other teams involved in the Championships - in a nutrition workshop led by 西瓜影视 dietitian Alicia Edge, where they learned practical strategies to help them fuel appropriately for games.
That doesn鈥檛 mean that they haven鈥檛 had a taste of home during their time in Melbourne. Panjali is a Malaysian food stall run by Tayamany, and has been ever-present at the Home of the Matildas this week.
The Malaysian team have dropped by during the week, as have players, staff and family and friends from across the Championships.
Upcoming Games
Malaysia may be finishing up at the CommBank Emerging Socceroos Championships, but their U-15 women鈥檚 team is preparing to take on Australia鈥檚 best at the CommBank Emerging Matildas Championships at Valentine Sports Park in Sydney next week, from 15 鈥 20 July.
You can view their fixtures . They will take on New South Wales Navy to open their Championships on Tuesday.
You can watch their games on News Corporation鈥檚 KommunityTV. You can find more information here.
