New Indian Express: Quarterfinals first step on Oltmans map of progress
By Vivek Phadnis
BENGALURU: The best thing to happen to Indian hockey in recent times is the appointment of Roelant Oltmans as coach. Originally appointed as high performance director, he has been in charge of the men’s team for about a year now. The biggest test he and the team will face is in the Rio Olympics. The Dutchman spoke to Express about his experience in India and how the team has progressed.
Excerpts:
How has your coaching journey in India been?
It is a great experience because these guys are talented and can become one of the better teams in the world again. I try to explain to them my philosophy of hockey which is perhaps a bit different from what they have done here. At the same time, I want to retain the strengths of Indian hockey. That is the combination we are looking for in the long run. We are getting better at executing plans.
India did not do well in London. How was it like to take charge keeping that in mind?
It was not a smooth journey. When I arrived, I was in a completely different role. I came here as high performance director. But for a year now, I have been coaching the national team and that was not planned upfront. But due to the fact that a couple of our coaches, three in fact in that period, did not stay until the end of their original agreement, there was a request from Hockey India that I took over.
Have you been able to implement what you wanted to?
We have been able to make a lot of progress structure-wise. Also in terms of facilities that we can work on which helps us get the best of our players.
How have the players responded? Are you happy with their progress?
I feel that the boys have made a lot of progress in this period.
In modern hockey, do you think the South Asian style can still be useful in certain situations?
Of course, it can be useful. But at the same time, that is not the only one they have to use. They need to learn modern skills. You can’t say we will play like we did in the late 60s and the beginning of the 70s. That is not possible anymore. That is where I see that the boys’ development is stuck a little bit. There is no adaptation to new circumstances.
How has the fitness improved since you took over?
We set targets for each and every boy. When I started last year, if you see the targets I set them and where they have reached now, they have even exceeded those targets. That is for all of them. That is a great effort and the team is very, very fit at the moment. I am really happy with their fitness.
What target have you set yourself for the Olympics?
I know that people always want hard targets like we need to win something. The first thing is that we want to reach the quarterfinal. If you reach the quarterfinals, the strange thing is you can’t talk about anything more than the top four. That is because 5, 6, 7, 8 is not what we play for. You can say top six which is a normal position, where we are at the moment. I think every team that goes to a major tournament wants to get the best out of the moment. The only problem is that only one team can win.
Was it initially difficult to get your ideas across because many of them may are not conversant in English?
It was a problem. But the good thing is that I have very good staff and they are able to translate the ideas properly, so that the players understand it. I agree that sometimes when I tell them something myself, everything is not clear. But nowadays, I feel they understand me much better than in the beginning because they are used to certain tactics or skills.