ERROL D’CRUZ

Australia’s last Olympic defeat to India (1-3) was way back at Munich 1972. Their last World Cup loss to the same nation was  Buenos Aires 1978 (0-2). The last time that India avoided defeat against Australia was at Sydney 2000 where they drew 2-2. And, at the last Olympics in Tokyo in 2020, the Kookaburras scored a crushing 7-1 win. All this doesn’t make comfortable reading for an Indian fan ahead of the match between the two nations on Friday at the Stade Yves-du-Manoir in Pool B of the 2024 Paris Olympic men’s hockey competition.

The intensity of the clash will have lowered a miniscule since both nations have qualified for the quarterfinals, but this could help India buck the depressing trend in the Olympics and World Cup against their free-wheeling opponents.

Australian hockey, despite often riding roughshod over India ever since their 6-1 victory at the 1976 Montreal Olympics, revere Indian hockey. With good reason.

In 1947, India gained Independence from Britain. The development caused anxiety in the Anglo-Indian community who feared social dislocation. It caused them to leave the country in droves. The exodus mainly occurred from the southern port city of Madras, now Chennai, and the first port of call, as destiny would have it, was Fremantle, Western Australia, near Perth.

The Anglo-Indians were steeped in sporting culture and hockey, in particular, was a sport identified with the minority in the country. When they left en masse they took with their sticks and sublime skills that contributed to the indomitable Indian teams in three Olympics from 1928 to 1936. The beneficiary was Australian hockey, and, for starters, Western Australia which dominated the game Down Under for a few decades after.

The list of Anglo-Indians infusing Australian hockey with all the ingredients of sub-continental skills, and given the natural power, speed and stamina of the players of the land an awesome blend of both styles was to make for the Kookaburras’ eminence of today.

A glittering example of the Anglo-Indian’s contribution to Australian hockey is the case of the Pearce brothers – Eric, Cec, Mel, Gordon, and Julian who donned the green and gold with aplomb.

Equally enriching was the coaching efforts of the Anglo-Indians. Merv Adams, a policeman from Mumbai, moulded and shaped Australia’s challenge in world hockey.

Ironically, it was an Australian Graham Reid who coached India – a reversal from the days when Adams guided the Kookaburras. He was by no means the first, with Michael Nobbs and Terry Walsh having stints in the hot seat years earlier.

Adams influence and tutelage brought his adopted country a silver medal at the Mexico Olympics and another of the same colour at Montreal 1976 but heartbreakingly the gold medal in a tournament never came under his tutelage.

The honour fell to Ric Aggiss who guided Australia to first position in a four-nation tournament in Amsterdam in 1981. But, after emerging as hot favourites for the gold medal at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, Australia were upstaged by Pakistan in the semi-finals 0-1 to extend the wait for a gold medal at a global major.

The players under Aggiss’ tutelage included all-time greats such as Ric Charlesworth who exuded all the skills and styles of the indomitable Indians from the days of yore, Terry Walsh a forward with the scoring touch, Colin Batch, a right-winger with the ebullient flowing run on the right flank, Peter Hazlehurst with the close skills that matched any of the Indian and Pakistani, centre-half David Bell and defenders of class Craig Davies and Jim Irvine.

It all came together for the Aussies at the 1986 World Cup in London where they lifted the coveted trophy after beating England 2-1 in the final and broke their duck when it came to FIH major silverware. Ironically, they gave the country that inspired a change of character and technique of Australian hockey a 6-0 hiding in a pool match.

Australia were due to outplay the other Asian exponent Pakistan at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, winning a pool match 4-0 but the long-cherished dream of clinching gold was to endure an agonizing wait. Great Britain spearheaded by their amazing forward Sean Kerly scored a hat-trick in a thrilling 3-2 semi-final win over Australia before going on to beat West Germany 3-1 in the final.

A defeat in the final at Barcelona 1992, this time to Germany, 1-2, meant three defeats in Olympic finals and the failure to win the ultimate prize was fast becoming a monkey on the back of Australian hockey.

Only bronze medals accrued at Atlanta 1996 and Sydney 2000 where Australia had every credential to win gold but were stopped by The Netherlands in a semi-final penalty shootout.

A player arrived on the scene who bid fair to be an all-time great. His name is Jamie Dwyer, a forward of breathtaking pace and finishing skills. Befittingly Dwyer, an FIH Player of the Year, befittingly scored a golden goal in the 2004 Athens Olympic final to deny The Netherlands a hat-trick of gold medals.

That it remains the sole gold medal in the Australian trophy showcase often suggests that Australia, for all their power and panache, are underachievers. Two more World Cup titles followed (2010 Delhi and 2014 The Hague), umpteen Champions Trophy titles and all seven Commonwealth Games gold medals but the Olympic gold appears to be the yardstick applied in Australia as a measure of sporting success and wait since 2004 continues.

At Rio 2016, Australia missed the semi-finals of the Olympics or World Cup for the first time since 1975 when they were eliminated in the quarterfinals by The Netherlands by an astonishing 4-0 scoreline but the Kookaburras were to bounce back strongly at the postponed Covid-ravaged 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

For all their exploits in Tokyo, Australia facing World Cup champions Belgium in the final went toe-to-toe with their adversaries only to come to grief in a shootout.

It’s been a chequered three years since and Australian hockey has had to cope with the ramifications of the pandemic and the adverse effect on coaching and competition.

Australia won the first FIH Pro League in 2019 and regained the title in 2023-24 after missing the league in 2021-22 owing to pandemic-related issues that included travel restrictions.

The Kookaburras scintillated at times in the Pro League, the state of flux in the top European sides committed to club obligations notwithstanding and were pre-tournament favourites for the gold medal in Paris.

But results so far have raised question marks on the Aussies’ propensity to go all the way to the top podium, especially after a 2-6 scoreline to Belgium. A 5-0 win over New Zealand, however, has provided soothing balm to that bruising defeat in time for the clash against India.

The teams had a rousing face-off in the latest edition of the FIH Pro League. Australia bounced back from 2-4 at half-time down to win the first match in Bhubaneswar 6-4 and take a bonus point via the shootout after a 2-2 draw in the second in Rourkela.

India, who lost the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games final 0-7 to the Australians, and two series in Australia since then 1-4 and 0-5, know what their opponents are capable of.

Colin Batch, a member of the illustrious team in the 1980s, is head coach of the Kookaburras. He knows everything about the rough-and-tumble at the top level. His sights will be firmly fixed on victory and second spot in the pool to avoid a likely clash with Euro powerhouses Germany and The Netherlands.

In the early 1980s, the Australian Institute of Sports took hockey under its wings. A centralized program in its centre in Perth, Western Australia, has strengthened and shaped the country’s challenge internationally.

Australia first participated in Olympic hockey at Melbourne 1956 finishing a creditable fifth. They won their first Olympic hockey medal — a bronze — at Tokyo 1964.

A gold, four silver and five bronze Olympic medal victories have drawn the admiration of the nation and the Kookaburras are a much-loved national team back home. But apart from the Olympics, they disappear from the limelight. This is a sad fact despite the some 200,000 playing the sport at all levels in the country and international success achieved by both the Kookaburras and their women’s team the Hockeyroos who have won three Olympic gold medals.

What the Olympics mean to a Kookaburra can be gauged by Matthew Dawson having his broken ring finger amputated to be declared fit for the Paris Olympics. Will his sacrifice be rewarded with a gold medal?

Photo: Hockey India