Hockey India has done a right thing. It has suspended the coaching camp for Under-18 boys because, to quote official version, ‘preliminary medical tests have shown that most of the 55 selected probables were found overage”.

It is for the first time the hockey authorities at the top level have acknowledged the omni-present problem of over-age in India, and significantly have taken a step as extreme as suspending an ongoing camp. It is also a right measure on the part of Hockey India to acknowledge the truth instead of accepting and trying to hide the malaise.

We earnestly hope the over-age was the sole reason for scrapping the camp, not to cover up any other constraint.

India can achive nothing if the over-age problem is not solved.

The boys at Bhopal were selected after trials were conducted on 3rd and 4th of this month, from nearly one hundred probables drawn from various hockey academies across the country. These shortlisted boys were to undergo two phases of training at Bhopal before the selection of the Indian team for the Asia Cup at Yangon, Myanmar in November.

According to offcial media release, the officials have ‘made it mandatory for the probables to undergo the medical test keeping in view growing complaints regarding players not declaring their correct age’.

Even many claim this year’s Junior World Cup has been truly composed of players of right age, though fingers were pointed at one or two players. It is significant to note at least half a dozen players who played in the August 2008 Junior Asia Cup were dropped for the Junior World Cup to trim the entry of over-age players. Otherwise, technically they were eligible for the Singapore sojourn. OK, India did not do well at Singapore, but at least we had the mortal satisfaction of sending right age players.

The same trend thankfully now continues.

Indian coaches, likes many others in our social set up, are greedy, find short-cut to fame. Its coaches who somehow, even at the IT-controlled registration system, find a way to under-state or tamper with age. There are claring cases where age remains constant still till one lands in good job!!t

Very unfortunately, even government paid coaches and governments schmes are not innocement.

It is the greed of the local coaches and the administrator’s casual attitude towards the coaches’ dishonesty that have combined so venomously that the age-problem has become the undisputed Number One problem of Indian hockey.

This has grown unchecked because, the IHF never had a database. Right now an attempt has to be made to create a Players Data Base for different age groups, Academies and Centre of Excellence.

If Hockey India, for instance, is serious about age problem, it has to right now publicize the list of players selected for the ill-fated camp.

Secondly, participation in the said Asia Cup is a must. Efforts must be made to select right age players and the show must continue.

Then only the very purpose of scrapping the camp will be truly served.

It is always difficult to determine exactly the age of players even with right medical aides and technology. It will be all the more beneficial what method and mode was used this time to identify ‘most of the 55 probables’ were over-age.