‘Boys are now ready to take the load’

Nandakumar Marar

PUNE: Jose Brasa is shouldering the responsibility of making up for the training hours lost due to the agitation over incentives.

“We have to move forward. Training will be high intensity two weeks before the 2010 World Cup,” said the Indian chief coach for whom the strike days were tough as an outsider.

He could not take part in negotiations on players’ behalf, nor order them to return to the ground. For six days, the Spaniard watched his boys engaged in team meetings at the Balewadi boys hostel, negotiating with Hockey India officials and tackling questions from the media.

The link between teacher and pupil had almost snapped on Tuesday when HI threatened to close the camp if the defiant players did not resume training without pre-conditions.

Within 24 hours, the payment issue had been solved and the chief coach returned to the turf with a high-spirited, united bunch of players eager to work harder on Thursday over two sessions.

Training discipline had been restored by the evening, probables divided into groups based on positions and doing match simulation routines.

Revised schedule

Training as per a revised schedule will take some effort from the players, but Brasa says the boys are now ready to take the load.

“We were fortunate that this (strike) happened during a recovery week as we had come back from a tournament (Champions Challenge in Argentina. Maybe they recovered just too much,” he said, in jest.

Establishing a working relationship with players from different regions of India was the initial hurdle for the foreign coach, who tried to dismantle regional groups at the camp and enhance the players understanding and tolerance.

He said: “Each player thinks differently. Maybe it is due to different cultures. Players from one area would huddle together. We started by breaking up groups and worked out ways to mix players during training sessions and in choice of roommates. The Indian coaches help me at the start to pick out the couples (roommates). One way was to get a leader from north India to stay with a south player able to get along with others. Friends of roommates would drop in, leading to more mixing in rooms and during training.”

Regional barriers lower than before and with better interaction, the Indian men’s hockey campers are one large group of friends now and choose roommate of their choice. “The focus is on matches and results now, so players have the freedom to decide room partners.”

The standoff against HI at Balewadi was a test of character the players came through with honours. Brasa and his coaching staff have an assertive, eager bunch to work with.