Seniors are still game-changers for Pakistan: chief selector

Hockey officials, players satisfied despite team’s poor show in Europe.

KARACHI:


Pakistan hockey’s chief selector Hanif Khan has urged the importance of senior players in the squad for the Champions Trophy and Olympics 2012 following the team’s below-par performance on the recently-concluded European Tour.


Of the 12 matches played on the tour, Pakistan lost five, drew two and won five despite taking on minnows China and France. The team also lost to Germany and the Netherlands but Khan believed that losing to better sides would help them learn from their mistakes.

“The seniors will be the game changers for us and Pakistan hockey can’t survive without them,” Khan told The Express Tribune. “We had five seniors and 13 new players in the squad. I don’t think this tour was a bad show but I strongly believe that the matches we won were because we had Sohail Abbas, Rehan Butt and Shakeel Abbasi in the team as we didn’t have anyone else who could’ve scored.”

Fitness still the key


According to the chief selector, his team will be stressing on the fitness of the players but will not be underestimating the need of experience for the London Olympics. While there was not much time for the Pakistan Hockey Federation to groom youngsters for the mega event, the players, according to Khan, still had to work hard on their defense and goal-scoring skills.

‘Ashraf’s absence felt’

Meanwhile, forward Abbasi rued the absence of former captain Zeeshan Ashraf in defence and while he thought the team could not have performed better than what it did, his only regret was the defeat against France.

The team had a disappointing start when they lost to France 4-2 in the four-nation tournament in Ireland and faced defeats against Germany and Netherlands in the Rabo four-nation tournament, finishing the event at the bottom following a draw against England.

They leveled the two-match series against Belgium but lost to the Netherlands again in the final series of the tour. The only success for the Greenshirts was against New Zealand who they beat 4-1.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 21st, 2011.
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