Melaka volleyball players defend coach despite slapping two teenage players

Focus

By SYDI ALIF

02 Jan 2023 10:09pm

Screenshot of the volleyball team's post on its social page today - Instagram (mastanah_vc)

SHAH ALAM - Melaka volleyball players are defending their coach despite caught slapping two female players in a video that has gone viral.

In an Instagram post today, the under 14 and 16-years old state volleyball team came forward after their coach addressed as "teacher Hadee" was criticised by social media users, including Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh.

Yeoh slammed his action alleged to be a reaction following the players losing a point for their team in a match at the 2022 Malaysia B14 Youth Volleyball Championship last Dec 16 2022 in Johor.

The instagram handle mastanah_vc wrote: "We were trained since young by Mr Hadee to play volleyball. From an unknown Melaka female team and just a losing team, we are now a respected team.

"That is all because of the deeds and sacrifices of Mr Hadee and other coaches who sacrificed their time and energy without sigh to train us.

"We are the only ones who had seen, experienced and felt the hard work to shape this team," the volleyball squad expressed their indebtedness to their instructors.

In response to some of the criticism towards the coach: "He is not just a fat and bald guy that you guys can insult all you want.

"He is our coach who trains us from his sincere heart without any paycheck until we successfully created a new history for the state of Melaka.

"We as his students also felt disappointed with what he did but one mistake done will not overshadow all the goodness that he had given us all this time," the female athletes added.

They also said the issue has been resolved.

The Mastanah volleyball club also asked for the public to stop making statements regarding their coach as they believed that they are the only ones who know him.

"Netizens are just outsiders and not our family, only we understand our family members.

"What he did may be wrong, but it is to educate us so that we become better players in the court. Stop making this issue viral because we love our coach," they told social media users.