The Hindu: Marijne gets a breather, for now

Uthra Ganesan

Performance review meeting not held due to absence of several key officials

Uncertainty continued in Hockey India on Saturday with the high-powered post-Commonwealth Games performance review meeting, supposed to be held in New Delhi, remaining unclear in the absence of several key officials and a formal review of the teams with the Sports Authority of India yet to be scheduled.

An informal meeting was supposed to have been held, but a formal decision on the future of men’s chief coach Sjoerd Marijne has been delayed for now. Senior federation sources insisted that Marijne’s passport had expired and he was waiting for a new one with the requisite work visa.

He is likely to be delayed by at least another 10 days before joining the national camp starting in Bengaluru on Monday.

While that in itself does not guarantee he would continue in the job, it does, however, mean that the Dutchman has received some respite from the intense scrutiny and would return to India at least once.

In the absence of unanimity in decision, the Dutchman might just get one more chance.

Hockey India will also be constrained by the fact that with half the Olympic cycle over, most of the top coaches in the world are already taken even as the number of changes seen by Indian hockey in the last few years severely limits the available pool of proven coaches.

Marijne may still not be completely off the hook. A poor outing at the Champions Trophy in June may well be the last straw. That is, if he continues till then.