The highs and lows of the Indian men’s hockey team may be a bittersweet experience for hockey fans across the country. The national team touched its nadir, scripting a forgettable wooden spoon finish at the 2012 London Olympics.
The lows were replaced by renewed optimism after the men in blue reached the premier 34th FIH Champions Trophy semifinals last year in Melbourne, before going on to take the fourth spot after losing to arch-rivals Pakistan in the bronze medal play-off tie.
Win or lose, hockey continues to attract youngsters, especially in Punjab, where the urge to take up hockey is much more than probably anywhere else. Youngsters in this neck of the woods have an unbridled passion for hockey.
This was amply evident when over 550 under-15 boys turned up for the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) conducted selection trials at the astroturf stadium of the Guru Nanak Dev University (GNDU) in Amritsar on Thursday to showcase their skills.
The trials are being organized by SGPC to build its team for the future.
According to SGPC sources, save for a few, most of the youngsters were from rural areas of the Majha belt.
SGPC has formed a selection committee comprising of celebrated former Indian captain of the 1975 World Cup winning team, Ajitpal Singh, his team-mate, Brig Harcharan Singh (retd.) – the man who scored the extra time goal to take India into the final, former captain, fullback and MLA Pargat Singh, internationals Surjit Singh Sodhi and Rajpal Singh.
The Amritsar trials were the third selection trials organized by SGPC. Earlier, SGPC conducted the first trials at NIS, Patiala on April 16 before holding the second trials at Olympian Surjit Singh Hockey Stadium in Jalandhar on April 17.
Youngsters who clear the selection trials will be enrolled in an SGPC-run educational institution. They would be provided free education & accommodation, free books, free sports kits and free food.
It is learnt that youngsters would be required to study in this institution till Class 12, and will be groomed to represent the SGPC team in tournaments.
The sheer excitement of getting an opportunity to show their wares in front of some of the legends was seen in the way these youngsters resorted to elaborate dribbling in their efforts to clear the trials.
The selected boys would be absorbed in various SGPC hockey academies, which would be set up at Amritsar, Patiala, Faridkot and Ludhiana.
Going forward, SGPC wants to build its own hockey teams for participation in state and national tournaments.
These three selection trials would help SGPC to set up their under-15 side before they can have their teams in other age-groups.