 |
|
|
|
 |
ARTICLES |
 |
When 12 nations gather at Utrecht for the World Cup, the Australians will not only face the old foes-but one of their own. Barry Dancer, an Olympic silver medallist for Australia at Montreal '76, will coach the English team. And he sees no irony in the English swallowing hard on pride to give the prized job to an Australian.
"It's a natural evolution of our time-and it's been happening more around world hockey," says Dancer, noting that the current Aussies coach Terry Walsh led Malaysia and the late Ric Purser revived the U.S. national men's team.
But England, the birth place of hockey?
"I'm sure back in England they'd be the feeling the job should have gone to one of their own," says Dancer.
"And it's important in my time that I develop the next group of English coaches so that the next England coach is English."
England-or Great Britain-was Australia's nemesis at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles where it beat the Kookaburras for bronze and again at the 1988 Games in Seoul where the English stopped Australia unbeaten run 3-2 in the semi-finals.
As it would be, England has been placed in the same pool as Australia for the World Cup in The Netherlands in My when Dancer will face the Kookaburras for the first time as a rival.
"I'm a competitor then," says Dancer, who played 49 internationals for Australia from 1973-79. "I"ll have a job to do. And that's how I'll focus on it.
"I'm a competitor then," says Dancer, who played 49 internationals for Australia from 1973-79. "I'll have a job to do. And that's how I'll focus on it.
"I'm sure there will be mixed emotions, but I can't afford to be distracted by those emotions.
"I can only hope there will not be too many games where the result of England-Australia matches will influence either team's objectives significantly."
Dancer, the head coach at the Australian Institute of Sport hockey unit in Perth and young Kookaburras coach for the past six years, applied for the England job in August after thumbing through a copy of World Hockey and seeing an advertisement for the job.
His application was filed on the eve of the deadline. A fortnight later he was in England leading the young Kookaburras to their first World Cup triumph. After the world championships ended at Milton Keynes he had the job.
Dancer will join the England team at the end of the month in a four-nation tournament in Cairo, Egypt where he will have a look at the senior players of the squad. There Dancer will rely heavily on assistant coaches Dick Clarke and John Hurst to direct the England team.
Dancer will move full-time to England in the New Year, after spending Christmas with his wife Donna in Perth.
Dancer's contract is for three years-taking him to the Sydney Olympics in 2000 if he gets Grate Britain to qualify-and he believes he will need five to seven years to fulfill his ambition of seeing England in the top-three of world rankings.
Like Walsh, who built his coaching experiences in Malaysia, Dancer hopes to become Australia's national coach after his stint in England. "My ambition always has been to coach Australia," he says. "But I don't have the experience to run our national programmed and I can't achieve that experiences here. Going to England will give me greater credibility at home."
The task of rebuilding England's national team-a challenge that will not be hindered by lack of money as English hockey benefits from the national lottery - will be made easier by the appointment of a fellow Australian to the English program.
Chris Spice, assistant coach to Ric Charlesworth in the successful Australian women's programme, is also moving to England as the director of performance for both men and women.
"Chris's presence will be a great benefit to me," says Dancer. "I have a high regard for his ability and he will be good for English hockey. We have the same background in Australian hockey and the same philosophy."
And what is this philosophy that will hopefully lift England back to the upper echelons of world hockey?
"The argument that you need to see the cloth before you can fashion any suit is quite appropriate here," responds Dancer. "My vision is to see England play successfully at the top level. The limitations are determined by our personnel.
"But my philosophy is that we have a team that attacks with a lot of fluidity. Our performances will be based on a sound defence first - that will be the foundation of our team."
Dancer's first mission is to get Great Britain to qualify for Sydney 2000. His vision for the England team stretches well beyond the Games. "We'll need seven years to put forward all the changes and establish a full programme sot hat England gets back to the top-three in world rankings,"says Dancer needing no-one to remind him he has one of the toughest job in the world of hockey.
India trips at the final hurdle
Where, when and how India will ever again be in line for a trophy triumph in a World championship falls in the realm of an Utopian dream. But on that brilliant sun-drenched Sunday at Milton Keynes the configuration was perfect. Yet, the team tropped out, disappointment writ large on every face, eyes moist, throats choked and emotion over-whelming. It was a pathetic scene.
India had lost the Roger Danet Trophy. Another junior World Cup had come to an end. A combination of factors, some contrived and a few consciously created, thwarted India. Umpiring, for instance, was one such element. How long is this nation going to pay for that aberration of the Asia Cup in 1985? It is heart-breaking to see umpires as a bunch showing no qualms at being hostile, often in the garb of innocence, pulling the team down at crucial moments. It has happened in the Olympics, almost in every event where India stood on the precipice of regaining its status as a hockey power, in the last 12 years since that ugly happening at Dhaka. You can't do anything about it except despair.
Just look at the personages behind the final. The Tournament Director, Eric Gonegani of Canada, the country which accused India of fixing the game against Malaysia in the pre-Olumpics at Barcelona last year. The two umpires, Richard Wolter of Germany, which lost its four-time hold on the cup through that peach of a golden goal by Rajiv Mishra in the semi-final" the other, Xavier Adell from Spain, the team that sunk to the eighth place after failing by a whisker to qualify on a three goal difference, despite the win against India in the opening game.
Whatever the strict neutrality in umpiring they speak about, is it not mandatory that Caesar's wife must be above suspicion? Not once, but twice in the match, India was denied a stroke, a fact note of by even non-India, commentators like Sydney Friskin. A geniune umpiring error, after all they too are human, one might say. But should every genuine error occur only when Indians are on the field?
Notwithstanding the umpiring conundrums, India could still have taken the centre-stage but for its imperfections in a couple of areas, Conversion, or the failure, of penalty corners is one - the team frittered away as many as a dozen in the second half of the final, with only a goal separating the cictor and the vanquished.
Arguably, it was a moral victory, trophy or not. The world now knows that India's resurgence is real. Born out of this voyage is the confidence that India, after all, has the potential to break through again. The talent flowered at the right place, and at the right moment. Even thosee who harboured doubts about the squad, assiduously worked upon by the unassuming Vasudevan Bhaskaran, of progressing this far in a World Cup, are now waxing eloquent.
The experiment of increasing the number of institutional teams in the National hockey championship only highlighted the negative aspects of the endeavour. Already plagued with a multitude of problems, the move only devalued the quality of hockey by an incredible degree. In the end, no one, including the sponsor, Punjab and Sind Bank, appeared satisfied over what passed off as the premier even of the Indian Hockey Federation.
If the move of adding six institutional teams was to improve the quality of competition it did not come about in the quality of competition it did not come about in the expected measure. On the contrary, it crippled traditionally powerful outfits like Punjab and Mumbai. It was with disbelief that one noted the absence of Punjab from the eight qualifiers who fought for the handsome Rangaswamy Cup at Bangalore. Also, it was a clear indication of the alarming decline of talent in a state like Punjab, long regarded as the nursery of Indian hockey. People in the village of Sansarpur, near Jalandhar, would have missed a heart beat or two to know that Punjab failed for the first time in the history of championship to make it to the last eight.
The point held out against the induction of the institutional outfits-Air-India, Border Security Force, Steel Authority of India, Central Excise and customs, Punjab and Sind Bank, and Central Reserve Police Force-was the State teams, which trained and nursed the players representing these unites in various other tournaments, were weakened. It is possible that Punjab could not avail of the services of players from PSB and BSF and it resulted in fielding a make-shift combination with Punjab Police providing the major input. Equally, Mumbai suffered from the non-availability of Air-India players and put up a pathetic show, finishing without a medal. Interestingly, Air-India was the only outfit from among the six to move into the quarterfinal line-up.
It is nobody's case that the institutional outfits should be ignored. Everyone interested in the sport is alive to their contribution to the game and the respect they deserve on that score. But the National championship is hardly the theater for them. The best that could be done for these institutional teams is to frame a separate national league with sizable prize money or a competition in the same format as the national championship. It is not impossible for the IHF to admit some more institutions like the Banks, the Electricity Board etc. as associate members to make the tournament more interesting than even the National. Finding a sponsor to run this would not be difficult either.
There is as yet no clue to IHF's thinking on the subject. But the popular expectation is that, based on the experience obtained during the Nationals, it should initiate a debate and arrive at an acceptable solution. The sentiments of the State units, who constitute the federation, should have to be given due weightage. After all, the federation sustains itself on the support extended to it by its affiliated units.
Apart from the need to review the continued inclusion of the six institutional teams in the next championship, another aspect on which a consensus emerged was in relation to the current format. In its present form, the competition is an enormous financial drain and does nobody any good. The league phase saw as many as 69 matches played between teams of unequal strength, reducing the hockey on view to a farce. Understandably, spectator response was nil, and will continue to be so if a remedy is not found. Before the next edition comes through, the IHF would do well to review the whole exercise of conducting the entire programme involving 35 teams in one centre. A discussion could have been started even at Bangalore where most of the member associations were present. It is unfortunate that the scheduled meeting did not take off.
Studied against the background of the trials and tribulations the players were subjected to by the uncertainty faced by the Karnataka Association of getting ready the new polygrass pitch, the triumph of the Railways team for the 21st time was indeed praiseworthy. The dates of the tournament were altered no less than three times. heightening the tension for everyone, the host included. Caught between the IHF and the Karnataka Government, which was directing all its energies into getting the National Games on schedules, the KSHA did a commendable job of coming to grips with the problems. The support extended by the Sports Authority of India, headed by former India captain, M.P. Ganesh, was a godsend to the harried KSHA officials. Over 65 matches were conducted at the SAI Centre, Kengeri.
Though quality was a casualty, the matches went on without a hitch, thanks to the imaginative handling of the situation by the Tournament Director, Muneet Sait, whose experience came in handy. Hiccups no doubt surfaced, but there was nothing to match the embarrassment caused by the burst6ing pipelines when the KSHA shifted the quarterfinal to the new stadium at Longford Avenue. The second tie involving Mumbai and Services had to be shifted to SAI again. Everything, however, was brought under control for the semi-final and then for the final on May 30.
A great effort was needed by Indian Railways to regain the crown it last won in 1993 at Bikaner. The coaches V. Bhaskaran and Balwinder Singh deserve credit for the manner in which they handled the players under them. It was no doubt a mixture of youth and experience, but the two coaches, with their experience and expertise, shaped a winning combination. One segment that stood pronounced for Railways was its deep defence. Veteran Ashok Kumar (Sr.) was a pillar of strength. He played with such assurance that he inspired a youth as talented as L.Barla, at leftback, to measure up to the demands. Mention must also be made of the Railways goalkeeper, Ambuj Srivatsav, who displayed a lot of gumption under the bar. His final save in the sudden death tie-breaker signalled the trophy triumph.
Tamil Nadu never had it so good for a little over two decades. To be precise, not after 1975 has it ever come so close to winning the trophy. On two occasions (1955 and 1967) it was the joint winner - both times it hosted the championship. But at Bangalore, Tamil Nadu was twice within a stroke from the trophy but failed to grasp it. First, Thirumalvalavan flunked at 4-3 and then, Mohammad Riaz, stroked out when on an advantage in the sudden death. The question now is will Tamil Nadu ever have another chance?
Before evaluating Tamil Nadu's show, the effort put in by coaches C.R. Kumar and Jeyasekaran must be acknowledged. Both spent long hours with a talented bunch and the results showed. There is little doubt that Tamil Nadu was the most balanced side in the competition secure in defence, stable in mid-field and systematic in attack. Individually too, everyone looked competent enough to handle any given situation.
Bronze medallist, Air-India, which relied heavily on its veterans, Darryl D'Sourza, Edward Aranha and Edgar Mascarenhas,and , on the out-of-form Anil Aldrin, edged its way into the semi-final before succumbing to the might of the Railways. Air-India's struggle to outwit Karnataka int he quarterfinal was one of the dramatic moments of the tournament. Till the last two minutes, everything pointed towards Karnataka making it until Floyd D'Sourza settled the issue in favour of Air-India. Karnataka's star in the championship was Samson Fernandez who was propped up by Shanmugam and Amar Ayyamma.
A fourt6h place for Mumbai-runner up in the last edition k- was a small consolation. Dhanraj Pillay lent some strength to the frontline where Sabhu Varkey, Amjad Khan and Ravi Nayakar worked hard. But the poor deep defence and an inconsistent mid-field, despite the presence of the former India pivot Sandeep Somesh, came in the way of Mumbai making an impact.
The outcome clearly showed that seasoned outfits like Indian Airlines, Services and even Punjab, need fresh blood to strengthen their claims to remain in the tip bracket. Gujarat, which entered the elite zone for the first time by a marginal goal aggregate against Andhra, deserves a word of praise.
Supervision ranged from good to mediocre leading to a strange situation of a spate of yellow cards coming up in a pool match involving Tamil Nadu and Central Excise. Umpires in the caliber of Shakeel Quereshi exercised their authority with assurance and restraint, pulling up erring players and showing no qualms. More than once, Shakeel reversed the award of a penalty corner following dissent or ungentlmanly conduct. But the existing gap between good and bad umpires need to be bridged, and as early as possible.
To manage a show that had to pass through such unprecedented phases of uncertainly required enormous patience and perseverance. The KSHA had the man with such refinement. Nothing affected the unflappable, K. Krishnamurthy, the organising secretary, whose equanimity, sometimes, seemed saintly. And when the last shot went home on May 30, the sense of relief that must have coursed through Krishnamurthy can easily be imagined.
Courtsey The Sportstar
| business | entertainment | news | articles | own
server | free
listing | query |
| advertise | suggestions | hit report | search | reminder | send mail | chat room |
| subscribe | guest book | clients | about us | india links | home |
