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occer coach Rahmad Darmawan, who led the Indonesian Under-23 team to a silver medal at the recent SEA Games, resigned from his current position of head coach of the squad on Tuesday, citing his failure to deliver the team to the top of the soccer podium.

Rahmad has repeatedly hinted at resignation due to the Indonesian Soccer Association’s (PSSI) decision to bar players appearing in the Indonesian Super League (ISL) from joining the national squad. He said that the current situation “should not have sacrificed the players”.

“With hesitation, but also with good intention and a clear mind, I herewith resign as the coach of the national U-23 team, as of Jan. 13, 2012,” said the 45-year-old coach, in a resignation letter sent to the PSSI on Tuesday.

Rahmad has been highly praised for leading the U-23 squad to the final of the SEA games soccer competition, having handled the youth team for less than three months. The performance of Rahmad’s young squad has stood out when compared to the performances of the senior team, which failed to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup having lost all of its Round 3 Group E qualifying matches to date, with one still to play.

Rahmad — a marine with the rank of major, who previously led Persipura Jayapura to the Liga Indonesia title in 2005 and Sriwijaya FC to the Piala Indonesia title in 2008, 2009 and 2010 — has denied the suggestion that his resignation was facilitated by the current domestic soccer league situation.

“I resigned because I failed to present the gold medal for Indonesia at SEA Games. That is all,” he separately told reporters.

The letter was delivered to the PSSI secretary-general Tri Goestoro at the PSSI headquarters in Jakarta on Tuesday by Rahmad’s agent Eddy Syahputra.

Eddy said that the letter was also received by PSSI chief Djohar Arifin Hussin’s secretary on Tuesday.

Last Monday, Rahmad and his coaching team held a meeting with PSSI bosses at the residence of oil tycoon Arifin Panigoro in South Jakarta. Rahmad said that during the meeting, the PSSI banned him as the national coach from recruiting players in the ISL, which was regarded illegal by the PSSI. The PSSI is only allowing players from the Indonesian Premier League (IPL) to be recruited into the national team.

The decision was seen as a difficult one for Rahmad in his capacity of U-23 coach, because many of the players in the national team as well as the U-23 squad play in the ISL, which was managed by PT Liga Indonesia.

“I think that the condition we have now [dualism in national league] is terrible for Indonesian soccer. There’s big costs involved for the players. When they sign contracts, they don’t know which league they’ll play in. This is club business, but it must be settled as soon as possible,” said Rahmad.

Eddy said Rahmad is aware of the consequences of his resignation, including giving back his salary for the last three months as he signed the contract in August 2011.

National team coordinator Bob Hippy said that he would seek a new coach to replace the 45-year-old.