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| Irish Hockey |
July 29, 2004
Belfast Telegraph, UK
> Page Views 3010
By Graham Hamilton
Ask anyone which is the greatest international football nation down through the years and the chances are they'll say Brazil.
The answer in cricket would probably be West Indies or perhaps Australia; and the All Blacks from New Zealand might get the vote in rugby, again closely followed by Australia.
In hockey terms, it's maybe not so clear cut, but up until the last few decades most fans would almost certainly have chosen India.
Eight Olympic gold medals - six of them consecutively - marked them down as a truly great nation and although other countries like Australia, Holland and Germany have been more consistent in recent years, there's still an aura surrounding India.
So you can imagine the excitement mounting as 20 lucky Irish lads head off to Germany this weekend to help India prepare for the Athens Olympics at a special training camp in Bayer Leverkausen.
It's not often countries outside the world's top dozen get a call to assist, but when the invitation arrived on the Irish Hockey Association's desk in Dublin it was too hard to resist.
The outcome is that the Irish squad will take in three games against the Indians, games which will help David Scott's lads immensely as they start thinking about next year's European Nations Cup Division B campaign in Rome.
But how good are the Indians at the moment?
Most pundits feel they'll miss out on the medals ... but you write them off at your own peril.
Results haven't been going the best this year, and indeed they have axed two of their coaches in recent months.
They've gone through extensive physical conditioning in Arizona and have now switched to their base in Germany to fine-hone their preparations.
They have sought the help of two German coaches - Oliver Kurtz and Gerhard Rach - and are banking on star performer Jugrai Singh to make an impact despite being missing from the scene for more than nine months after an horrific car accident.
He remains well short of match practice, so expect him to feature highly against the Irish during the final build-up.
"It's a great opportunity to play one of the top nations," said Irish defender Patrick Brown, who is again vice-captain of the squad and one of eight Ulstermen in the 20.
"I've never had the pleasure of playing against India before, and it's something I'm looking forwad to.
"It will surely be of benefit to us, and in particular to the younger members of the squad."
The Irish fly out on Saturday morning via London and Dusseldorf and play the games on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.
IRELAND: N Henderson (Pembroke), W Bateman (Cork Harlequins), B Waring (Lisnagarvey), P Brown (Instonians), S Nicholson (Cork Harlequins), P Smith (Cork C of I), J Black (Cork Harlequins), S Butler (Glenanne), M Black (Cork Harlequins), J Quigley (Annadale), T Cockram (Lisnagarvey), I Lewers (Annadale), G Shaw (Glenanne), R Gormley (Pembroke), A Barbour (Cookstown), M Irwin (Instonians), D Eakins (Cork Harelquins), G Elliott (Pembroke), J Sherriff (Pembroke), M Gleghorne (Instonians).
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Comments on this article
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Gurinder
07-30-2004 8:05 am
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Jugraj..???????????
Is he going to Athens?????????????????
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Dude
07-30-2004 11:55 am
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No Jugraj
Gurinder, jugraj is not going to athens. The irish correpsondant is not fully upto date with things happening in the Indian camp. Anyway, its nice to see the admiration they have for us. I hope that Ireland gains something as well in the process and India will benifit equally from the experience. ireland are no pushovers and they are a very good side , particularly in defence.
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Sukh
07-30-2004 12:34 pm
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Hehehehe
This reporter has mistaken Jagbir Singh (the assistant coach) for Jugraj!!
No Jugraj has not recovered from his injuries yet.
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Sacrastic
07-30-2004 1:35 pm
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Yikes! This is a bad one!
Oh, Jugraj...! I wish it's true but know not. So, it is not only the Indian reporters of fieldhockey.but...........???!!!!!!!!!
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HockeyLuvr
08-02-2004 2:07 am
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Jugraj...
Folks,
Sure, Jugraj is not going to Athens, but he has
indeed recovered from his horrible injuries.
I saw him in Moorpark, Calif. (and spoke to him
as well) in June while he was accompanying the
Indian team for the friendly's w/ the US team. I
didn't see any visible signs of any injuries at all
and it appeared like a miracle. God has been
kind to him. While he has recovered from his injuries,
he is not OLYMPIC match-fit. He has several metal
parts in his body to mend the broken bones, etc.
It will take him another 6 mo. to a year for him to
start playing competitive games at the international
level. I only hope he gets back to his past best.
HockeyLuvr
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XXX
08-02-2004 8:48 am
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What's going on with the match scores?
Hi Guys,
Anybody with the scores for India-Ireland matches? Apparently, two matches took place already (the three matches are supposed to take place on Aug 1, 2 and 3) but didn't see the scores anywhere yet. So, please post it here if anyone has any idea of the scores of the matches.
Thanks in advance.
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Ashley ELDER brother of ADRIAN D'souza
08-02-2004 11:02 am
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INDIA will do well
Yeps even i was caught unawares by tht correspondent....hehe...neways guys...my BRO is confident and tells me prayers and blessings and their HARDWORK will do the TRICK.Dont write tham off ppl....they will def SURPRISE U....
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Sacrastic
08-02-2004 3:17 pm
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India won the first by 2-0
Not a great result for the Indians - they won the first match only by 2-0. Gagan scored both goals. Detailed report not available yet. (This info is obtained from the Irish Hockey site).
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Maddness
08-03-2004 5:12 am
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Ireland 3 India 2
Looks like the boys in green kicked some ass in the second test !!!
Well done, great victory
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Irish Fan
08-03-2004 5:34 am
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Ireland 3 - India 2
Taken from the Irish Hockey Website
India opened the scoring in the 8 minute from a penalty corner by Prabhjot. Irerland equalised in the 34 minute following good work by Graham Shaw for Gordon Elliott to equalise and send the teams in level at the break. India again took the lead in the 56 minute when Adam scored from play. Good defence by Waring saw Ireland counter attack and neat play between front runners Irwin and Sherriff saw Sherrif notch his 34th goal for his country. In the 65th minutue Mark Irwin turned tightly in the Indian circle to score a cracking goal to give Ireland a famous victory against one of the elite hockey nations of the World as they prepare for the Olympic games in Athens.
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Dude
08-03-2004 5:49 am
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Pathetic display by India against Ireland !
India lost the second game 2-3 and drew the third 0-0. So what next Mr Gill ? Dump Rach & make Jagbir as chief coach ? No maybe bring back Rajinder because he has not been sacked ...only removed !!! NOOOO I got an even better Idea, Let GILL be chief coach !!!! If this is what they can do against Ireland two weeks before the olympics ...Indian hockey players need too pray and hope for divine intervention !!!!
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pathetic!
08-03-2004 7:13 am
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IRELAND 3 INDIA 2
Ireland 3-2 India
India opened the scoring in the 8 minute from a penalty corner by Prabhjot. Irerland equalised in the 34 minute following good work by Graham Shaw for Gordon Elliott to equalise and send the teams in level at the break. India again took the lead in the 56 minute when Adam scored from play. Good defence by Waring saw Ireland counter attack and neat play between front runners Irwin and Sherriff saw Sherrif notch his 34th goal for his country. In the 65th minutue Mark Irwin turned tightly in the Indian circle to score a cracking goal to give Ireland a famous victory against one of the elite hockey nations of the World as they prepare for the Olympic games in Athens.
Ireland XI: Bateman, Waring, Brown, Nicholson J Black, Shaw, Butler, M Black, Irwin, Barbour, Elliott:
Rolling subs: Quigley, Lewers, Cockram, Sherriff
Subs Not used: Gleghorne, Gormley, Henderson, Smith, Eakins
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Dude
08-03-2004 8:19 am
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India 6 Ireland 2
India Beat Ireland 6 - 2 in the final test. Ireland took the lead 2 -0. And then India fought back. Gagan 3, Sandeep 2, Pillay 1.
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DesiJatt, Germany
08-03-2004 8:21 am
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Dont Worry Be Happy
Hey Dudes
Simply loosing a friendly doesnt mean the end of the world. Maybe the Indians experimented too much and lost against the Irish team. But they did win the next game 6-2. Germans lost too against NZ 3-1 the other day just one day after thrashing them 7-0. Pakistan lost to GB and then beat them in next game. So wheres the point to yell for coach's head. Save all these poisionus attacks and critics for the Olympics. Theres where the team is required to shows its form and win. If they loose there, then guys- just kick the shi.. out of them with your deadly comments.In that case I recommend nothing less than a DANADA PARADE for Mr.GILL & co.
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Sukh
08-03-2004 11:43 am
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DesiJatt
You are right. Don't worry be happy.
Don't expect anything from India and you'll be happy!!
India have no hope if they continue to play so pathetically. They will struggle against all their group opponents.
By the way, DesiJatt, the Germany v. NZ results you mention are women's games.
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Sacrastic
08-03-2004 3:54 pm
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Sukh, don't be too harsh - cheer up my friend
As I just posted in the other thread, I won't be as pessimistic as you with the result of the whole 3-match series. (And, trust me, I am one of the most hopeless pessimists you would find in nature!)
In the third match things apparently went much better (no match report available yet). Scorers for India were Gagan (3), Sandeep (2) and Pillay. It is nice to see our main scorers Gagan and Sandeep are getting sharper. And, of course, it is great to see old man Pillay getting one in - after becoming the schemer, he rarely scores these days.
Like you, I am deeply bothered by the lack of consistency - that is really our Achiles heal. Sure, we cannot afford to play lousy in a few matches because, in the Olympics, there won't be any second chance after a bad match.
Yet, on an optimistic note, the good results from the last match is probably more relevant than that of the previous. It indicates that the team is improving with time and sorting out its weaknesses. Also, they might have figured out the right (or, close to the best) combinations and the strategies. Therefore, the result of the last match is possibly a better indicator of the team's potential in the Olympics proper. So, I am not writing off our chances. I am really hopeful because, based on one-on-one skills, this is the best India team in three decades and also is one among the top three sides of this competition (I know you'll laugh at this!). Although Hockey is a team game, individual merit counts a lot - particularly under the neck-to-neck competition that is expected this time. Therefore, don't be too harsh on the boys. Still, there is much to cheer for - mark my words.
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IndianFan
08-03-2004 4:58 pm
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Looking for Mr. Yogi - we need your match reports
Dear Mr. Yogi, I am waiting for the match reports that you promised us - for the recently concluded India-Ireland series. Please let us know regarding how the games actually went. Please also state your overall opinion about the Indian team's performance, as well as its chances in the upcoming Olympics. Thank you very much (in advance).
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DesiJatt, Germany
08-03-2004 6:05 pm
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Sukh
I didnt say either that Germany-Nz match was a mens affair or did I? I just wanted to point out how a good team as Germany can also have a day off and loose a match against a weaker opponent and win another day handsomely- whetehrr its amens game or women. Or do you think women in sport are inferior and dont need to be mentioned? As to being happy - as long as Indian Hockey Federation has the same croocked bosses you as a fan can boil your blood as much as you would like to it doesnt matter any one at the top there a cent. They'll play their own murky game. So you have no choice but to be happy while weeping doesnt bring anything!!! Or can you change the old guard?
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Sukh
08-04-2004 2:12 am
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Point taken DesiJatt.
No, I don't think women in sport are inferior to men, but the relative world standing of Germany's men to their women's team is much greater. NZ's women are probably slightly better rated than their women.
But as I said earlier, I take your point.
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DesiJatt, Germany
08-04-2004 8:47 am
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Sukh
Thanx buddy. I agree with you also that such lapses (defeat against Irish team) doesnt do any good to the moral of the team (either fans) but so is the game today and add to that unpredictable Indian teams(Cricket team included). For now I'll keep my fingers crossed and vent my fury after the Olympics if necessary (but on whom...?* :-)) All I can say now as a avid fan is "C'mon India-Chakk de Phatte!! "
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