05 February 2013

National team wants 30 new players for 2013 SEA Games


Tuesday, February 5, 2013
THE NATIONAL football coach is hoping to recruit about 30 new players to the national squad and begin centralised training by early March as part of preparations for the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Naypyidaw, Myanmar in December.

"We are hoping to add 10 more defenders and midfielders each, seven new strikers and four goalkeepers," Kwon Oh-son told The Brunei Times in an interview at the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium during a final selection for new players yesterday.

"The selection for new players will depend on how well they perform in the trial. Once we have finalised the team members, we are hoping to begin training in March," he said, adding that training locations will vary between the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium, Balapan Track and Field at the Hassanal Bolkiah National Sports Complex and the Berakas Sports Complex.

Other than new players, he also said that the squad should comprise of eligible players from the Hassanal Bolkiah Trophy (HBT) team, DST Super League and other local leagues.

Kwon also coached the national Under-21 team which won the HBT with a 2-0 win over Indonesia last year. The SEA Games, though, caters for Under-23 players.

Over 60 players turned up for the final selection which began with a warm-up session before the group was divided into teams to play in a 20-minute match.

Kwon also insisted that the selection process would carry on in February, in which the selected players will compete for a spot in the national team. "We want to make sure that we are getting the best out of the best players."

In a January report, Kwon confirmed that the SEA Games squad would be boosted by some players from the HBT 2012 winning team.

At that time, the national team manager Hj Feisal Hj Eusoff said that the additions were necessary because the HBT players will add experience to the teaml which is needed especially when facing the top teams in the region.

He also added they seeking to build a team that can defend Brunei's HBT title in 2014 from the same batch of selected players.

The Brunei Times

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