The Indian men’s hockey team needs to work on its defence, said coach Graham Reid. Reid said that the biggest learning he took from their recently concluded tour of Europe was that the team allows the opposition to come back into the game in the middle periods of matches too often.
“We will go over the data from this tour once we return to SAI, Bengaluru but the first things that requires attention is making sure we tighten our defence. We allow them (opponents) to come back in the middle (of the game) a bit too much. The last match was a little bit better. We are starting to make some ground on that,” said Reid in a release from Hockey India.
“We go back to Bengaluru from here and will be training there for a few weeks before we set out on another tour of our FIH Pro League matches in Argentina. I believe the next few months leading up to Tokyo (2020 Tokyo Olympics) are going to be busy for us with competition and some training in between where we will work on the things we need to. The Olympic year has well and truly started now for us and we need to accelerate our learnings,” he said.
India secured a 6-1 win and 1-1 draw against Germany in Krefeld, Germany. They followed this up with a 1-1 draw and 3-2 win against Great Britain in Antwerp, Belgium.
“Our performances against Germany were mixed. It was pretty good beating them 6-1, we took them by surprise and made good use of the opportunities, but we let too many PCs in,” said Reid.
“The second game saw better defensive efforts from us. The third against GB was OK. It was a bit colder in Antwerp, different pitch and perhaps we didn’t play as well as we should have. But the last game (where India beat GB 3-2) was first-class. We led most of the game, came back twice from a stalemate, scored in the last few minutes which is a really important thing to get over,” he further said.
India’s Pro League tie against Argentina will be held in Buenos Aires on April 10 and 11.
The Indian men’s hockey team played out two draws and got two victories in their four games on their tour of Europe with matches against Germany and Great Britain.
The games were planned to help the Indian men’s hockey team prepare well for the postponed Tokyo Olympics, with almost no match practise due to the coronavirus pandemic. The last played India were on the field was back in the FIH Hockey Pro League in January and February last year where the team took on the Netherlands, Belgium and Australia in Bhubaneswar.
Tour captain PR Sreejesh had stressed on the importance of the matches against top European sides and how it would help the world no. 4 team in preparations for the delayed Summer Games.
“These matches against Germany and Great Britain are super important for our preparations. It is an opportunity to test ourselves tactically, physically and mentally,”
GERMANY 1-6 INDIA
In their first international match in over 12 months, the Indian men’s hockey team outclassed hosts Germany 6-1 on February 28.
Nilakanta Sharma (13′), Vivek Sagar Prasad (27′, 28′), Lalit Kumar Upadhyay (41′), Akashdeep Singh (42′) and Harmanpreet Singh (47′) were goalscorers for India as they dominated hosts Germany, who got their only goal from Constantin Staib in the 14th minute.
GERMANY 1-1 INDIA
In their next match, on March 3, the Indian men’s hockey team drew 1-1 with Germany. Jarmanpreet Singh opened the score for India in the 4th minute as Martin Haner scored for Germany minutes from the end of the 2nd quarter.
India’s head coach Graham Reid was a happy man with him stressing on the learnings from the games played at Krefeld.
“This match was a good experience for our players. It was a tough match and the team worked hard. Both teams created opportunities and I believe we will learn a lot from this game,” Ried told Hockey India.
GREAT BRITAIN 1-1 INDIA
The Indian men’s hockey team took on Great Britain in their third and fourth games in Antwerp.
In the first game, on March 6, against Great Britain, India salvaged a 1-1 draw as Simranjeet Singh’s late equaliser in the 57th minute cancelled out Great Britain’s Alan Forsyth opener late in the second quarter.
GREAT BRITAIN 2-3 INDIA
India put up a splendid performance in their last game on the Tour of Europe as they beat Great Britain 3-2 on March 8. Harmanpreet Singh’s goal in the very first minute and double goals by Mandeep Singh in the 28th and 59th minute helped India remain undefeated as James Gall (20′) and striker Adam Forsyth (55′) scored for Great Britain.
CAPTAIN SPEAK
PR Sreejesh, who was leading the team on tour in the absence of regular skipper Manpreet Singh, stressed again the importance of the matches.
“Getting enough international matches is more important for us at this moment. We are focussing on performing better than before. We want to get back into the normal rhythm, where we left last time. From there, we need to start and improve,” Sreejesh told TOI.
“About Germany, we started on a good note. [In the] Second match they played a bit differently, but still we managed to hold them, ” said Sreejesh about the two games played in Germany.
“They have a very good defensive structure. In the first match, we punished them for their mistakes. In the second game, they played more carefully, more defensive hockey, and managed to stop our forwards from scoring,” he added.
COACH SPEAK
Head coach Graham Reid told TOI that he was ‘happy’ with performances in the matches and it provided an indication to plans which can be in place for Pro League and the Olympics.
“I was really happy with the German part of the tour. The team we played [against] is pretty much the team they [Germany) fielded against the Dutch yesterday [on Sunday in the Pro League match]. I think we would have warmed them up,” Reid told TOI.
“I am very happy the way it [matches against Germany] went. Competition was very strong and we played such a different game of hockey, different styles. Our guys experienced that and now we have videos to analyse, work to do,” Reid added.
India’s defence, led by Sreejesh in goal, conceded just 5 goals in their four games.
Mandeep Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad, Harmanpreet Singh all scored two goals overthe four goals. The constant pressure of the mid-field in covering their defence in foiling attacks and helping out in the attacking third.
UP NEXT
The Indian men’s hockey team will return to India on March 10 after the completion of the European tour. Their next outing will on the road again with their first away Pro League fixture in Argentina on April 9 and 10.
Indian men’s hockey team’s second of their four-match tour of Europe ended in a 1-1 draw with both the teams living up to their billing on Tuesday. Jarmanpreet Singh of India opened the score board for India in the fourth minute while Martin Haner scored for Germany.
Riding high on confidence after a dominating 6-1 win in their first international match of 2021, the world No.4 India started on an attacking note against host Germany and earned a penalty corner in the fourth minute, which was converted by defender Jarmanpreet Singh with a classic slap shot.
Within the following two minutes, the hosts also bounced back and got their chance to score an equaliser with a penalty corner but could not capitalise.
The visitors continued to dominant in the second quarter, with better ball possession, creating potential opportunities with intent to capitalise on the early lead. However, the quarter ended with the hosts putting pressure on the Indian men with strong man-to-man tackle.
The hosts backed their tactical play with some quick forays into the striking circle, resulting in them earning back-to-back penalty corners. It was in their second attempt when the experienced Martin Häner levelled the score 1-1 minutes ahead of the half-time break.
Continuing the momentum, the third quarter saw Germany keeping the ball in the Indian half to create scoring opportunities but, Indian defenders remained composed and set-up a well-structured defence that kept the German forward line from converting. A solid block from Surender Kumar at the very last minute saw the third quarter ending in a 1-1 stalemate.
The final quarter saw some nail-biting moments, with both the teams upping the ante but neither allowed a goal with the match ending in a 1-1 deadlock.
“This match was a good experience for our players. It was a tough match and the team worked hard. Both teams created opportunities and I believe we will learn a lot from this game,” said India’s chief coach Graham Reid.
Young Vivek Sagar Prasad scored a brace as the Indian men’s hockey team outclassed Germany 6-1 in its Europe tour opener to make an impressive return to international circuit following coronavirus-forced break.
Vivek (27th, 28th minutes), Nilakanta Sharma (13th), Lalit Kumar Upadhyay (41st), Akashdeep Singh (42nd) and Harmanpreet Singh (47th) were the goal scorers for India.
Hungry to perform, India played with an intent to win. They went on an attacking mode right from the start, putting pressure on the German line-up.
After creating potential opportunities in the striking circle, India earned a penalty corner in the 13th minute of the first quarter, which saw midfielder Nilakanta breaking the deadlock for the visitors.
However, in the next minute, forward Constantin Staib scored an equaliser for Germany. The second quarter started with the hosts putting pressure on India and earned themselves two back-to-back penalty corners in the initial minutes.
The Indian side made brilliant saves and created quick counter-attacks which led to midfielder Vivek scoring two back-to-back goals in the 27th and 28th minutes.
In the third quarter, the hosts started off on the front foot again and earned as many as six penalty corners. However, skipper PR Sreejesh stood firm in front of the goal to keep the Germans at bay.
Soon after a solid defensive display, Indian forwards Lalit and Akashdeep netted brilliant goals in the 41st and 42nd minute, respectively to put the world no. 4 Indian team in the driver’s seat.
Another glorious opportunity came for the Indian men at the 47th minute in the form of a penalty corner, and Harmanpreet extended India’s lead with a fierce flick. Playing under pressure, the hosts did try hard to make a comeback and even pulled out their goalkeeper to put an extra attacker in the team but a great overall performance from the Indian side ensured a 6-1 victory.
“It was absolutely thrilling to play after so long and coach’s advice to us was ‘go and enjoy the game’ and so we did. This was the same German side who are playing the FIH Hockey Pro League matches, and I feel we did well against this squad, considering we were playing after a year.
“We had worked a lot on individual skills and had planned tactical play against Germany back in the camp. We just had to execute it today and it was really exciting to be back with a win,” said Sreejesh.
After a day’s break, India will again take on Germany on March 2.
The Indian women’s hockey team lost 0-1 to Germany in their second tour game, putting a much-improved show from their 0-5 thrashing in the opening match. Amelie Wortmann (24th minute) scored the only goal of the game as the Germans held on to their slender advantage to take a 2-0 lead in the four-match series.
Midfielder Wortmann put her side in the lead six minutes before the end of the second quarter. The Indian side responded quickly, earning a penalty corner just three minutes after going behind, but were unable to breach past the German backline.
The Germans had the chance to double their lead early into the third quarter after being awarded another penalty corner, but yet again, the resolute Indian defence kept them at bay.
The Indian side continued to frustrate the Germans, this time in the fourth quarter, as they kept out a penalty corner for the third time in the match. But Germany protected their lead to earn a hard-fought win.
The Indians will take on Germany in their third match on March 2.
World No.3 Germany side thrashed world No.9 Indian women’s hockey team 5-0 in the first match of the four-match series on Saturday.
Pia Maertens (10th minute, 14th), Lena Micheel (20th), Pauline Heinz (28th) and Lisa Altenburg (41th) found the back of the net for the hosts.
The Indian team got off to a great start early in the first quarter by earning a penalty corner only in the second minute. However, the German defensive line stepped up and saved India’s shot at the goal. Thereafter, the hosts upped their ante and put extensive pressure on the Indian defence.
They got into great positions and created multiple goal-scoring opportunities. Germany’s Forward Pia Maertens put the hosts in the lead with a goal in the 10th minute and then found the back of the net once again in the 14th minute. The teams went into the first quarter break with Germany leading at 2-0.
In the second quarter, the hosts continued to put pressure on the Indian defence line and earned a penalty corner in the 17th minute. The Indian side saved the penalty corner and counter-attacked immediately. India earned a penalty corner in the very next minute. However, the Germans stood tall and saved India’s shot at the goal once again.
The world No. 3 side rode on the momentum and took a 3-0 lead in the 20th minute when German forward Lena Micheel found an opening and converted it brilliantly. Eight minutes later, the hosts extended their lead to 4-0 after midfielder Pauline Heinz found the back of the net just before half-time.
The Indian team fought hard and tried to make inroads into the German half in the third quarter. However, the hosts fought back and earned a penalty corner in the 40th minute. The Indian defence line stood tall and found a way to ward off the Germans’ shot at the goal. However, the hosts continued to put pressure on India relentlessly and Germany took a 5-0 lead after forward Lisa Altenburg struck a goal in the 41st minute.
At the start of the final quarter, the Indian team showed fantastic character and put Germany on the back-foot straight away. They earned a penalty corner in the 47th and the 50th minutes. However, the German defence line stood tall and saved India’s strikes on their goal. The Indian team fought hard until the last minute, but the hosts ensured that they didn’t concede a goal and won the match 5-0.
The Indian men’s hockey team, ranked No.4 in the world, is ready to face world No.6 Germany in the first of the four-match tour of Europe beginning on Sunday, said an upbeat captain PR Sreejesh.
“The entire team is very excited and eager to get on with the first match. It’s been more than a year since we played a competitive match, and we are prepared for the challenge,” said Sreejesh, also the team’s goalkeeper.
“It’s been about five days since we arrived in Krefeld and the weather too has not been too cold. It was about 16-18 degrees when we practiced yesterday [Friday], and we are quite comfortable playing in this weather,” he said.
Sreejesh pointed out that the team was getting to play a competitive match after one year due to Covid-19.
India last played in the FIH Hockey Pro League held in January and February last year where the team took on the Netherlands, Belgium and Australia on home ground in Bhubaneswar.
“Not playing competitive matches in over a year has been very difficult, mostly mentally than physically. But the coaching staff ensured the sessions during the national camp were planned in such a way that it would excite us players and they tried to create an environment of competition in the group. Though we played a lot of matches internally over the past few months in SAI [Sports Authority of India], the next few weeks in Europe will show exactly where we are at in terms of performance,” Sreejesh said.
The captain emphasised that this tour would help the team set the parameters for preparation for this year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo.
“These matches against Germany and Great Britain are super important for our preparations. It is an opportunity to test ourselves tactically, physically and mentally. We are very lucky to be able to play against quality teams, despite the ongoing pandemic. This outing will help us set the parameter and enable us to plan our months leading up to the Olympics,” he said.
In the context of playing Germany, Sreejesh said: “We have watched this team closely, analyzed their game and replicated how we must play against them during the past few weeks in camp. They play man-to-man and our style of play will be slightly tweaked in order to succeed against them. The whole idea is to implement what we have been doing in camp these past few months and the focus will be on ourselves.”
Sreejesh also spoke about the supposed challenges of playing in a bio-bubble.
“There are no challenges in this regard. We are very used to being in a bio-bubble and also understand very well that the pandemic is still not over, and that we need to be responsible. We have received very strict SOP for this tour, and we are following it to the T,” he said.
