Hockey officials must quit in national interest

Pargat Singh, Hindustan Times

An 8-0 humiliation by the powerful Kookaburras in the summit clash before the packed Major Dhyan Chand Stadium was the result of inconsistent display by our players.

Every Indian hockey supporter throughout the world will feel disgraced and disappointed with today’s performance. I am totally upset with the margin, the biggest so far against eight-time Olympic champions India.

We played inconsistently throughout the tournament. The last two games against England in semifinal and against traditional rivals Pakistan in the group stage might have given the players a false sense of euphoria that they could conquer the rampaging Ric Charlesworth’s fleet-footed team.

It was a superfluous confidence, as the management had not done its homework properly and systematically. Consequently, we fell flat and had to bite the dust in the final even though the supporters’ aspirations were very high.

The quality our players displayed as a team was of poor standard.

With the exception of Sardar Singh, Shivender Singh and Gurbaz, the team’s display throughout the tournament, especially in the title clash, was mediocre.

Whenever there were good patches, it was not because of a combined effort of the team, but individual brilliance.

We conceded a number of goals because, on those occasions, the opponents were not marked and were lurking freely in the defence.

We offered our rivals goals on a platter. The Australians have exposed big chinks in our defence as well as in our system.

Victories against England and Pakistan would not bring back the past glory. For regaining lost glory, we have to learn from others, namely Australia, Holland and Germany.

Ground level establishment is required for consistent performance at sub-junior, junior and senior level.

We should accept a well-established system and involve knowledgeable persons and players. Coach Ric Charlesworth is delivering the results for Australia.

They have won the Hero Honda World Cup, the Champions Trophy and the 2010 Commonwealth Games. For the Kookaburras, it was their fourth successive triumph in the Commonwealth Games since introduction of hockey in 1998 in Kuala Lumpur.