Courtesy: New Straits Times


3-SIDED FUTSAL: New format should appeal to enthusiasts

by Fadhli Ishak

DEPUTY Higher Education Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah fully backs the innovation and creation of new sports in an effort to keep tertiary level students hooked on an active lifestyle.

Saifuddin, speaking after officiating the Milo Cans 3-Sided Futsal launch yesterday, said youngsters are instinctively on the lookout for new experiences and are always looking for ways to get involved in new sports.

"We do encourage efforts such as this as it can help popularise sports among students," said Saifuddin at Taylors University, Subang Jaya campus yesterday.

"There are generally two reasons why students get involved in sports at university level. The first is generally focused on the competitive aspect where they may have a goal to represent the university be it at national level or at international events such as the Asean University Games or World University Games.

"The second type is in it more for health reasons and new sports such as three-sided futsal will give them more options to stay active."

Three-sided futsal is the result of the Milo Cans Next Game campaign where Milo encouraged Malaysian youths to make their own rules from ordinary sports. More than 5,000 entries were received during the campaign last year.

The game is played on a circular court with three teams with three goalposts and has a number of rule variations compared to conventional futsal.

Saifuddin, who cited the X-Games as a successful example of sports innovation, said he believed the sport would rapidly gain popularity due to its challenging nature.

"The three-sided game does have its own strengths and allure which will appeal to many.

"I feel it is more challenging and forces the players to employ different strategies as they are playing against two teams at one time instead of one in regular futsal."

Milo Cans will be organising 10 road shows at colleges and universities in the Klang Valley to promote the sport from mid-March to late April.

Milo Cans will also be organising a series of three-sided futsal tournaments in May, where 81 college and university teams will be competing.

The first leg and second leg, which will be held at the Sports Planet Futsal Complex, Kota Damansara, are slated for May 5-6 and May 12-13 respectively.

Teams that qualify from the first two legs will be able to compete at the grand finals which will be held on May 27 at the Subang Avenue Shopping Complex.




Posted by Luca Ranocchiari --> luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com