Anthoni plots downfall of homeland

He’s Ireland’s ‘inside man’ of sorts as they prepare for one of the biggest weekends of their hockey careers, but Arul Anthoni insists the emotional aspect of facing his native Malaysia won’t be an issue for him.

This sold-out final pool clash (today, 3pm) always looked to be the crunch one for the Irish as they seek a place in tomorrow’s final of the Electric Ireland FIH Road to London — likely against Korea — with the winner taking the sole Olympic qualification berth on offer. A draw will get Ireland to the decider.

Anthoni is Ireland’s assistant coach, a role he previously held with his home nation Malaysia, for whom he earned 80 caps as a player. He admits his personal ties to the Malaysian setup made life hard for him when the sides met in the 2009 Champions Challenge semi-final, with a 2-1 victory for the Irish proving a landmark one for the side as they began to believe they could topple sides ranked higher. But Anthoni isn’t expecting any such issues this time around.