KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian hockey team will leave their brakes at home as they plan to cruise on fifth gear at the Gongshu Canal Hockey Field highway in Hangzhou at the Asian Games from Sept 24.
However, team manager Datuk Mirnawan Nawawi expects Thailand, Oman and Indonesia to pack their semi-circle in an attempt to keep the score low. China are also expected to rely on counter attacks while defending in numbers.
"We need as many goals as possible against Thailand, Oman and Indonesia as we will play South Korea after that.
"The contingency plan is to have a better goals average than Korea in case that match ends in a draw.
"That is why we will plan to play attacking hockey with no brakes to hold the players back," said Mirnawan.
But with opponents expected to park the bus, will it become difficult for Malaysia to score big in every match?
"Penalty corners will be the key against opponents who play defensive hockey.
"The first goal is important to open the gates, and after a few early balls on target, we will go for as many goals as possible against every team," said Malaysia coach A. Arul Selvaraj.
Malaysia's toughest opponents are expected to be South Korea, whom they beat 1-0 in the pool and 6-2 in the semi-finals at the recent Asian Champions Trophy.
At the Phnom Penh Sea Games in May, where Malaysia sent their juniors, Thailand were hammered 5-0. And when the senior team last met Thailand at the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games, it was a 10-0 drubbing.
Oman also have a torrid record against Malaysia. In the 2022 Asia Cup where they packed their defence, they still got hammered 7-0.
As for Indonesia, when Malaysia paraded their senior squad at the 2017 KL Sea Games, it was a 18-1 drubbing.
China, who are Malaysia's last group stage opponents, have always been stubborn opponents but were beaten 5-1 at the Chennai Asian Champions Trophy.
In Group A are India, Japan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Bangladesh, Singapore.
"We need to top Group B to avoid highly touted India (ranked No 3) at the semi-finals," said Arul.
On current form, Malaysia are expected to top Group B and should face either Japan or Pakistan in the semi-finals, barring any upsets in the tougher Group A.