KUALA LUMPUR, March 1: For the first time since the start of the World Cup last Sunday, a packed National Stadium saw hosts Malaysia go down 2-3 to Olympic silver medallist Korea Friday.

After the tournament organizers lowered the prices of tickets, fans turned up in numbers and while an estimated 15,000 packed the stadium, hundreds waited outside to get in.

High prices of tickets had kept the spectators away for the first five days of the tournament but the organizers and the president of the International Hockey Federation Els van Breda Vriesman heaved a sigh of relief to finally see such a big crowd.

“It is important for the promotion of hockey to have a full stadium and to involve people in our game,” Els said while praising the Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) for reducing the ticket prices.

She said that good fan support was crucial for hockey and the MHF move would ensure more people can experience the excitement of the sport.

The atmosphere in the stadium was electric as the Malaysian fans cheered their team on all the way, it was sad though that they lost in the end.