The Hindu : Sport / Hockey : Focus on strong defence: coach

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, May 20, 2005

Sport

Sport - Hockey

Focus on strong defence: coach

Sports Reporter

HYDERABAD: "Our focus will be to build a strong defence and improve our penalty corner conversion," said Rajinder Singh (Jr.), coach of the Indian team, which will take part in the Sultan Azlan Shah trophy hockey tournament in Malaysia.

"Any team which is sound in these two areas, can be very hard to beat in international hockey," he added.

The team arrived here on Wednesday to practice under foodlights and also play a series of warm-up matches against the India Junior side, which has been camping in Hyderabad ahead of the junior World Cup.

Speaking to the media after a practice match on Wednesday evening, Rajinder Singh (Jr.) said that the last stage of the seniors' camp was shifted from Delhi to Hyderabad to give the players the benefit of playing under lights.

About the junior team he said that it was a tough side and it would be able to provide the senior outfit some match practice before the prestigious Azlan Shah tournament.

He felt that being able to engage in practice matches against the well-trained junior side would go a long way to establish cohesion and co-ordination in his team.

Adequate match practice

He was of the opinion that adequate match practice was a vital component of any team's preparations before an international competition.

Although some key players such as Vikram Pillay, Viren Resquinha and Sameer Dad, are all on the injured list, the coach felt that his team had enough depth to overcome the handicap and put up a good display in Malaysia.

Rajinder Singh (Jr.) also said that there was not much difference between the top 10 to 12 teams in the world. "What matters is who plays well on the day."

He did not agree that there will be pressure on him because of expectations and also because the duration of the camp was short.

"The 10-day camp in Delhi gave me an indication about the team's strengths and weaknesses. We are working on various areas. The job of a coach is always demanding whether he is coaching the Indian team or a club side. I am enjoying it thoroughly," he said.

He added that the Senior team will play a couple of more matches before departing for Malaysia on May 24.

Dilip Tirkey, who was named the captain, said he was feeling better after playing his first match. He was injured during the inaugural Premier Hockey League here in February. Commenting on the Indian team, the captain said that the side has five new faces.

"However, we should mainly look up to the seniors to deliver. There will be some pressure but we are capable of handling it."

On the new coach, Tirkey said, "he is working hard and we hope to show better results by improving our short-corner conversion."

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Sport