KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia are still raw in certain aspects while their rivals, Australia, look well oiled for the Junior World Cup (JWC) on Dec 5-16 at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil.
In the ongoing Sultan of Johor Cup (SoJC), Australia beat Britain 3-0 and drew 2-2 with Germany to show that they are ready even though they have four players who are making their junior debut.
Malaysia lost 3-2 to New Zealand and 3-1 to India, and are struggling in certain areas like giving away too many turnovers while in attack mode.
"We came to the SoJC with an aim to play each match like it was the JWC and keep improving. The 2-2 draw is a good lesson for my players as even though they took a 2-0 lead, they gave away the match in the last 10 minutes to Germany.
"This is a great lesson to learn from as we get ready for the JWC," said Burras head coach and former Kookaburra Jay Stacy.
Australians calls their juniors Burras and seniors Kookaburra.
In the SoJC, Burras have four new faces from their European Tour in June and this is not their complete JWC team. But even then, they have been nothing but a mean machine.
Malaysia, Australia, Chile and Argentina will battle for the top-two positions in Group A of the JWC to break into the quarter-finals.
In the world junior rankings, Argentina are No. 1 while Malaysia are eighth and Australia ninth. The Australians did not compete in the last JWC as they withdrew due to Covid-19. and so their ranking is not a true reflection of their abilities.
World No. 20 Chile also can play way above the ranking assigned to them.
Malaysia must beat Chile and either Australia or Argentina to keep their hopes alive.
Stacy said: "Malaysia have shown speed and skill in the SoJC and with backing from the home crowd in KL, we are expecting a tough match from them in the World Cup.
"No team in Group A can be taken lightly, as all of them have the same mission to qualify for the knockout stage.
"This Burras squad is by no means the final selection for the JWC.
"We are still looking to provide opportunities for players to perform on the international stage and to select the Junior World Cup team. So by no means is this team we have named for the Johor tournament set in stone to be the Junior World Cup team."
Stacy said he is looking for flexibility in the squad and players who have a skillset where they can play across and between lines.
"After completing the six matches in Johor, I will be able to put all of the pieces of the selection puzzle together to come up with a very competitive team at the Junior World Cup," said Stacy.
The SoJC silver medallists, who held India to a 1-1 draw and then lost 4-3 in a shootout in the last edition, look comfortable enough to play in the final again.
Malaysia are at the deep end of the SoJC pool, and the hosts will attempt to finish fifth among eight teams in Johor to keep their pride afloat.