Mathias Ahrens: Preparation Camp is yielding good results for the Junior Players

As the AHF Women’s Junior Asia Cup 2015 is approaching fast, the Indian Junior Women Team is working on their final game-plans at their ongoing preparation camp in New Delhi. The month-long camp has helped all the players to rectify their mistakes and improve their skills for the upcoming tournament. The 7th AHF Women’s Junior Asia Cup is also a qualification tournament for the FIH Junior Hockey World Cup (Women) 2016, which makes the tournament more important for the eves.

Women Team Chief Coach, Mathias Ahrens stated,“The Junior Team performed well at the recently concluded Volvo Invitational U-21 Tournament where they played against the top European teams. It was an exceptional experience, which we can use for the upcoming 7th Junior Asia Cup. Few players, who had some injury issues, have recovered well and are ready to go for the tournament. The young players are ready to learn new strategies and perform well at the international-level tournaments. There are some grey patches, which we have marked during the practice. We are working hard to rectify these short comings. We need more matches with some top class teams to help us improve our game.”

Junior Women Team Vice-Captain Navjot Kaur added, “Currently we are working on our physical fitness and stamina. There is a huge gap between us and the European players fitness, we are putting efforts to fill that gap. The 15-minute format requires more speed and fitness, and we are working harder to take our level up in this format. For the last few weeks, we have been practicing with the Senior core probables and their Coaching Staff. It’s been a pleasure to train alongside senior players like Ritu Rani and Rani Rampal. Players have improved a lot during this Preparatory Camp and we are confident for the upcoming 7th Junior Asia Cup.”

The 7th AHF Women’s Junior Asia Cup will be played from 5th September to 13th September 2015 in Changzhou, China. A total of nine Junior Asian teams will participate in this prominent tournament.