Japan v Malaysia: The Hosts Meet the Team Nobody Wants to Play
Japan scored eight goals on day one and barely celebrated any of them. That’s the mood they bring into Tuesday.
Japan v Malaysia. Tuesday, 4:35 pm PKT, Taman Daya Hockey Stadium. The hosts, at home, in the late game, against the side that has looked coldest and most clinical in Johor so far.
Eight goals, eight different scorers
Read Japan’s day-one sheet again, because it’s a strange one. Japan 8-1 Canada, and not one player scored twice: Hanayama Shota 15′, Higuchi Yuto 16′ from a penalty corner, Yamada Seia 22′, Ninomiya Rei 28′, Furusawa Chihiro 30′, Sasaki Shogo 46′, Mori Matsuki 56′, Shinohara Ryosuke 57′. Five up by half-time, job done, everyone involved.
That’s harder to defend against than one hot striker. Mark a man out of the game and Japan just score through somebody else.
Their coach Yoshihiro Anai, in coverage of the day-one win, said he was happy with how his side took their chances and still wanted more improvement before facing the hosts. Coaches always say that. The worrying bit for Malaysia is that he might be right, because Japan left chances out there even in an 8-1.
Japan also come in rested in a way Malaysia don’t. Japan had no game on day two. Malaysia did.
Malaysia won, and their coach still wasn’t happy
The hosts opened on Sunday with a 3-0 win over China. Nabil Yusof scored twice, both from penalty corners, in the 5th and 28th minutes, and Aferullsyah closed it out at 57. Clean sheet, three points, job done on paper.
But head coach Nor Saiful Zaini said afterwards his side missed a lot of chances, that the finishing problem goes back to the Asia Cup, and that the maths of this tournament is unforgiving: draw or lose to Japan and, in his words, Malaysia won’t make the final. “We have to win.” That’s not coach-speak for the cameras, either. Japan’s plus-seven goal difference from one game is exactly why he said it.
The home crowd at Taman Daya is a real factor in this tournament. Malaysia feed off it, and a fast, noisy start is their best route into this game. Sit back and let Japan settle into their passing and it becomes a long evening of chasing.
What a result does to the week
Five teams, round robin, top four reach the medal matches on Saturday, top two play the final. Japan already have three points and a goal difference of plus seven from one game. Beat Malaysia and they’re close to booking a final place with two games left.
For Malaysia, even a draw keeps them in the top-two conversation before Wednesday’s game against Pakistan, which is already shaping up as the loudest night of the week. A heavy defeat, and goal difference starts working against them in a table where two sides have already won by five and seven.
Our take? Japan are favourites, and it’s not close on day-one form alone. But this is the one game where the venue actually counts for something. If Malaysia score first, Taman Daya will make it feel like two goals. If Japan score first, the silence will tell you everything.
Tuesday at the Johor Cup: Canada v China, 2:05 pm PKT, then Japan v Malaysia, 4:35 pm PKT, both at Taman Daya Hockey Stadium, Johor Bahru. In Malaysia the tournament is on Sukan RTM (Sukan+) and RTMKlik; no international stream has been announced.
How the night finished: Day 3 round-up — Malaysia’s three goals in nine minutes. And here’s where to watch the Johor Cup.
