SAPPORO, Japan – Two of the teams that made their debuts at the Asian Winter Games have had varying results, but possess commonality in the same areas - gratitude for representing their countries in an international competition and optimism for the future of the hockey in their countries.

The men's squad from the Philippines improved their group record to 2-1 with an 8-3 victory over Kuwait in a spirited contest on Friday night at Hoshioki Skating Rink and the beat Macau 9-2 in the game for third place in the Division II tournament.

Conversely, the team from Indonesia was soundly beaten 12-2 by Turkmenistan on Friday and ended the tournament in last place with a 0-3 mark.

Both groups have had to overcome significant obstacles to get organized and form their squads, but are united and motivated by their love for the sport. And they played internationally for the first time increasing the number of countries from Southeast Asia to five.

The Philippines is coached by Daniel Brodan, who is from the Czech Republic. He is very enthusiastic about how his side has performed and the outlook for hockey in Southeast Asia.

“This has been great. We started six months ago with 10-20 players. We would get together and practise and try to teach them some techniques,” Brodan commented. “I'm happy to see that after three games we can play for the medal. I am very proud of this team.”

Brodan is encouraged by the progress he has seen during his time in the Philippines.

“The future of the sport in Asia is good. Everywhere I go I see a lot of young players,” Brodan noted. “I also see a lot of international coaches, who are experienced and played before in North America and Europe. They are sharing their experiences and that is great. I think in the next five to 10 years we will see the level of hockey in Asia going up.”

Brodan explained the dynamic for hockey at this point in the Philippines.

“Right now hockey is only in Manila. We have three rinks there, but we only have one rink for this level,” he stated. “We have to practise early in the morning or late in the evening. We have some limitations. I think 70 per cent of our players are under 25, which is good for me.”

Steven Fuglister, the captain of the Philippine team, is Swiss-Filipino. He grew up in Zurich and began playing when he was eight.

“It's a huge honour for us to represent the country here. It's a big challenge for us as a team because it's the first time we have actually played organized games with real contact,” Fuglister said. “There were some guys who had to adjust first, but now I think we have found our groove.”

The 31-year-old Fuglister explained how he came to be a part of the team.

“I moved back to the Philippines more than three years ago for a job and have been there ever since. I started with the hockey program and it's been great,” he stated.

Forward Paul Sanchez is a native Filipino, who left the country at a young age but returned as an adult.

“I was born in the Philippines and moved to Canada when I was five,” Sanchez recalled. “I moved back to the Philippines for work about two years ago.”

He didn't realize there was hockey in the country until a relative informed him.

“I got involved after my uncle saw a sign and told me about it,” Sanchez remembered. “I was actually sceptical, so I had to see it for myself. After I did my research, I saw it on Facebook and contacted a few guys on the team and here I am now. I really could not ask for anything more.

“It was actually a surprise to know that there was hockey there for one,” he added. “The second surprise was how good everyone was, how dedicated they were, and how much they love the sport.”

Sanchez, who is 26, played junior hockey growing up in Ottawa and feels good about the progress of the team up to now.

“This is our first tournament, so we know that there is a feeling out process,” he commented. “But at the same time we know that we do have a good team. This is the first time that there is a hockey team from the Philippines and we got that first medal in the Asian Winter Games for the Philippines. We knew we are capable of it.”

The group will get together again this summer for another event.

“We will have the Southeast Asian Games in Malaysia in August, but we are not really focused on that yet. But we are looking forward to it,” Sanchez said.

Brodan welcomes the contributions of his players who have played hockey abroad.

“Steven and Paul are sharing their experiences from overseas and helping me,” Brodan cited. “I'm happy they are a part of it and are helping the young guys.”

The Indonesian squad, meanwhile, is looking at the big picture during their initial foray into an international event.

“This is our first time. We don't have too many hopes,” stated forward Ronald Wijaya. “Hopefully we can come back next time with a stronger team.”

Wijaya, who is 27, said part of this process includes bringing younger members into the team.

“We now have a youth program development to make a new generation,” he pointed out. “The Indonesian national team players are already around 30 years old. We have only three players under 20. Our development in ongoing.”

Forward Felix Cahyono has an optimistic outlook for hockey in Indonesia.

“We will have a good future for our dream,” he said. “We have a big country with a population of 300 million. We believe in the faith.”

Budi Sudharta, the Indonesian captain, feels his team has made strides in their first tournament.

“We always consider ourselves as a baby in this tournament,” Sudharta stated. “This is only our third game. Our first game against Malaysia was our first game ever.”

Sudharta said he and his teammates are being realistic about their standing now.

“We didn't have a very high expectation for the tournament. We want to be a competitor, not just a spectator,” Sudharta commented. “I think we have achieved that part for being a competitor. The whole team played hard. We showed that even though we are a tropical country we can play an ice game.”

The 35-year-old Sudharta detailed the challenges the group has faced.

“We have 17,000 islands, we are the largest archipelago country in the world,” he noted. “But we only have two ice rinks and they are not international size. So we have small rinks, which is a limitation for us.

“Most of the players have jobs, so they are not professional athletes,” he added. “It takes most of us 2-3 hours to get to the rink every day because of the traffic. We practise usually once or twice a week. This is just a start for us.”

Sudharta is pleased at the support the government has given the team.

“One thing that we should not forget, is that all our government officials are here,” he stated. “So they are not just sending us to play, but they are actually sending us, taking care of us here, watching us and they know and experience that they have a team that wants to fight for the country. Hopefully this can be a milestone for us to grow ice hockey in Indonesia even more in the future.”

Sudharta explained the situation with domestic hockey in his country at this time.

“In Indonesia we have a few teams. One of the most known teams is the Batavia Demons,” he said. “We have been there for quite a while and we won some tournaments in Singapore, Malaysia and also in Indonesia, and because of that many of the young players are joining the team. Hopefully with the government we are going to build the regeneration of the players. We think there is a bright future for Indonesian hockey.”

Both Indonesia and the Philippines became member of the International Ice Hockey Federation last year and played their first national-team competition at the Division II tournament of the Asian Winter Games. The Philippines will also participate in the IIHF Ice Hockey Challenge Cup of Asia events with the men’s and women’s national team.

In August the two countries will play in the first ice hockey tournament ever held at the Southeast Asian Games. They will be joined by host Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore, who all have participated in IIHF-sanctioned events for several years.

Click here for scores from the four ice hockey tournaments at the 2017 Asian Winter Games.

JACK GALLAGHER