World Series Hockey: Need for Michael Nobbs to tread a middle path

They get ready for dinner. Someone stops them and order: ‘Don’t take dinner today. We are going to give a feast next year’.

What is better? A bird in the hand or two in the bush.

Why have I to go to bed empty stomach today and enforce a dream that may or may not materialize in future.

This portrays the plight of the current Indian hockey players who seem to be caught in the ‘divide and rule’ policy of some super power.

Majority of Indian players want to play the forthcoming World Series Hockey – there is no doubt about it. It is fast becoming Wish Series Hockey for them. As each day passes by, as prize or purse money catches the public imagination, the playing community is extraordinarily excited. But, Hockey India, the Feast Assurer, does everything to stop, stymie and stigmatize their dream.

The Indian hockey players, for once, are in great demand. They are condemned to cris-cross the country by train in the never-ending season especially in the year end. The bonanza the WSH assures, therefore, is once-in-lifetime opportunity. A game changer. It is hard for them to miss out.

Hockey India and Federation Internationale de Hockey (FIH) are opposed to the WSH. We understand the allergy and apathy of Hockey India to WSH. After all, it is patronized by a rival faction. Success of WSH will hurt Hockey India’s ego.

However, it is really unbathomable why the FIH has to get involved in this purely domestic affair, which will have short shelf life, say a month. The FIH can always have its own league or leagues – if hockey is a global sport its canvass must have space for any number of leagues.
(Even we have two National Championships, so what)

We are not here to deal the HI-FIH-IHF issue for the fear of repetition. But what concern us, which should not be lost sight of, is the path to be taken — or has been taken – by Michael Nobbs.

Michael Nobbs is here to coach our national team and also our coaches. His job is purely technical. Everyone here wants him for longer duration and therefore what is expected of him is to do things that will leave positive bearing on the long term interest of his team.

Unfortunately, Nobbs has failed us. He terms WSH a veteran series, and goes to the extent of telling a newspaper that he will drop players from the OQ team if he happens to be part of WSH. He has crossed the laxman rekha meant for a technical person. He speaks like a peeved administrator, which is again unfortunate. He also gives us an impression — which is false – that he is in-charge of team selection!

Nobbs articulate that the 40-day WSH upsets his training schedule. May be. He perhaps more concerned about players’ fitness. Coaches never say they have got got ample time to prepare team. However, one reality has to be understood. World over players are available limited time for common training. Plenty of players are made available round the year only in some select countries, India is one such.

This is a luxury for Nobbs, not a mandatory for any competent coach. If this luxury is not there, as a competent coach he should have crisis modules to see through the target.

Three years ago, his colleague in India, Joaquim Carvalho, who on paper has equal coaching credential – both are one-time Olympian, coached a foreign country either Oman or Japan – had everything in his favour. He even trained the team in Australia, yet Chile happened. India missed the Beijing Olympics. This may be history but very recent, whose portends cannot be overlooked.

The point is, mere training for more number of days doesn’t guarantee for sporting success. Coaches are cautious, and don’t take chances, that’s all. Coaches should not be selfish, they should also understand the circumstances under which players survive and their career prosper.

The point of argument the most current Indian team members put forth needs to be understood at this juncture.

“We are in the camps almost whole year. Why can’t give us some break, the WSH, we will any case play and keep fit, and will also earn”.

Administrators don’t see reason in this plea — and they have reasons to be so. Why then a paid coach need to look the other way?

Unfortunately, Nobbs prove to be opposite of Brasa, his predecessor. It is amazing the Spaniard still count hugely with them. Most of them still respect and recollect Brasa. Everyone is fond of him. Most of them feel he should have been continued. I don’t think they were nostalgic. They surely hold grudge against Nobbs. I gauged the players mood comprehensively during my recent Australia trip.

It will take long time for Nobbs to scale upto Brasa in terms of earning goodwill of players. For that, he has to understand the sensibilities of every member of the team.

If Nobbs is interested in his target delivery, first thing he ought to do is to earn the goodwill of players. A master coach has to master his pupils mind first. For that, coach has to understand the psyche of majority players.

Threatening players like useless officials used to, will not do. Only recently, we saw a classic case transpire in front of our eyes. A former player was in a hurry to suspend players for spending a day at Mumbai. The neo avtar of disciplinarian’ is already shunted out of HI. Speaking His Masters Voice doesn’t offer any guarantee for anybody. Dynamics of politics changes quickly in India.

It is most unfortunate if anti-WSH posture of Nobbs is a strategy to firm up his position as a coach. It comes at a huge cost of players’ faith.

Now almost anybody who knows hockey – from Yuvraj Walmiki to Dhanraj Pillay — have signed up for the WSH. The event is going to take place with everyone of them in its fold. Why then, of all the persons, the coach — who has to interact with players each day and is duty-bound to get the result from them — has to wage a tirade, and get into the politics. There was no need for him to assume the role of unofficial spokesperson of Hockey India, which he is now insofar as WSH is concerned.

Even if HI stops the signed-players from WSH, Nobbs will not gain much. The players will not be motivated to give their best under him; they will perceive him as a villain.

Nobbs’ oft-repeated quote – WSH is a Veteran Series – too falls flat.

If the WSH is a veteran series why are then the HI and FIH so nervous? Don’t really the Nimbus want current players? It was not their making if foreign players are not available. They wanted but were denied against the wishes of the players. Like what’s happening with respect to Pakistan players. The WSH oganizers have have won global player’s sympathy and this aspect should not be lost sight of.

In many ways, its always Indian officials who resurrect veterans.

Take for instance the foreign coaches we had so far. None of them — Gerrard Rach, Jose Brasa or Nobbs — were coaching national sides when got the Indian call. They were not even coaching a Provincial or leading clubs, say Western Australia or Barcelona Athletic Club when they got the Indian lottery. Its true even if Roelant Oltmans would have been the choice whom Nobbs tipped.

Michael Nobbs has certainly failed us in his moments of fury against WSH. We really worry he loses players confidence each day.

We wish Nobss act as a mediator between the players and the Federation, and see how much he can contribute to mitigate the crisis.

It is necessary for him to tread a middle path.

Because we want him; we want him as a successful Indian coach.

We expect him to be a befitting elderly statesman, not any role less than that, not at least a cheap chamchha.