News for 11 June 2020
All the news for Thursday 11 June 2020
Santisers, change of stick grip - Indian hockey teams adapt to new normal
File photo of Indian men's hockey team during a training session in Bhubaneswar. - Biswaranjan Rout
Back on the turf after more than two-month lockdown, Indian men’s hockey captain Manpreet Singh and his men are slowly adapting to the new normal in times of COVID-19 pandemic, which includes using sanitisers during every break and drinking water from individual bottles.
After being confined to their hostel rooms at the SAI Centre here for over two months, the core probables of men and women teams started outdoor training 10 days ago after following strict guidelines and Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) of Hockey India and Sports Authority of India.
“Since all of us had been doing some basic fitness exercises in our hostel rooms in these two months, we were not stiff when we returned to the pitch but we are taking it slow and steady. We are going about a very simple routine without putting too much pressure on our bodies,” said Manpreet.
“Our sessions are conducted in small groups to ensure social distancing. Earlier, we never used hand sanitisers in between sessions and we would use the same tumbler to drink water.
“But all that has changed now with players consciously rubbing their hands with sanitisers, not just before entering the ground, but also every-time there is a break and each one of us carry our own bottles and ensure we don’t share.”
As per safety norms, they are also changing the grip of their sticks regularly while there is a temperature check every day.
“We also change the grip on our stick regularly and our temperature is recorded after the session as well and it is monitored closely everyday to check for any irregularities. This is the ‘new normal’ for us and we need to follow it,” he added.
Manpreet, however, said their goal remains intact -- to do well at the Tokyo Olympics.
“Over the next few months, each of us have a plan and a target to improve on our individual game. Internally, we are focusing on little things that we need to do to be as good as possible for the Olympics next year,” he said.
Indian women’s hockey team skipper Rani Rampal, meanwhile, said the coaches have been regularly in touch with the players as they resumed on-field activities.
“After we began basic activities on the pitch last week, the coaches discussed with us individually how we are feeling both mentally and physically. All players are urged to express any issues they are facing and coaching staff check with us about the well-being of our families,” she said.
“We are back to basics right now with simple activities such as passing, trapping and shooting. Personally, I am taking it slow too and not stressing my back or shoulder too much.
“All of us realise it is important to start slow in order to avoid any kind of injury and we just want to enjoy being back on the field again,” Rani added.
Sportstar
Kazakhstan embraces hockey’s return as COVID-19 grip lessens
In some countries, slowly but surely, the tight grip of COVID-19 on sporting activities is gradually relaxing and the return to hockey is being carefully trialled and monitored. In the latest of our ‘Play Hockey Stay Healthy’ feature stories, Kazakhstan Field Hockey Association Secretary General Serik Kalimbaev tells us about how hockey is resuming in his country.
Hi Serik, thank you for talking to us. The COVID-19 global health pandemic has had a huge impact on all aspects of life, with the inability to play sports such as hockey being just one of many things affected by this crisis. We understand that Kazakhstan is one of the countries in which hockey is slowly returning. Could you tell us what stage you are at regarding the return to action, and how things are coming together
Serik Kalimbaev: “Yes, you are right, the global health pandemic has affected all aspects of our lives, including field hockey. But we do not give up and are not going to give up so easily, since active life and playing sport is an indispensable tool against the struggle of any disease. In this regard, positive moves have been made in Kazakhstan in relation to field hockey. We are now preparing for the championship in the region, which will be held in June in Taraz city. Therefore, I can say with confidence that we are making every effort to return all types of active training, but we always remember all the preventive measures to protect the health of our children and carefully follow all the rules of hygiene.”
After a long period of lockdown, there must be a real sense of excitement about the return to action. What has been the reaction from your respective hockey communities?
Serik Kalimbaev: “Of course, there was anxiety and fear for the health of our children, as they are our future. In the beginning there was a stiffness in movements, difficulties in accepting this fact. But thanks to our President and the Ministry of Health, as well as the timely quarantine measures in our country, this situation has not affected the spirit and positive of citizens too deeply. Therefore, according to the measures and prohibitions adopted, the hockey community in Kazakhstan adequately responded to the whole situation, understanding that the most important thing was to wait and be patient at this stage as the health and safety of our pupils comes first.”
Are there any special measures in place regarding social distancing? What is currently allowed in terms of training and interaction between the players and coaches?
Serik Kalimbaev: “Yes, we comply with all distance measures. Representatives of the SES [Sanitary Epidemiological Service] allowed up to ten people to engage in one place. Although hockey is a team game, when training the children have been positions seven or eight steps away from each other, thereby observing safety precautions. Also, in training, we do not allow close contact with each other, we work out methods for giving passes, we support general physical preparation. We also practice online training with guiding instructions from a trainer.”
Everyone recognises the devastating impact that the coronavirus has had on the world. However, sport often proves to be a powerful and positive force during difficult times. How important is the return of our sport to the hockey family in Kazakhstan?
Serik Kalimbaev: “As they say, whoever is devoted to sport cannot be intimidated by coronavirus. This force majeure situation has unsettled people, moreover, an information attack from various channels disorientates people and makes them afraid for the future. With the correct presentation of information and the observance of security measures, people should understand that life has not ended, and everything continues. I hope that the fear of getting infected will leave us and we will be able, like in the old days, not to be afraid of each other. This is proved by the fact that our children are active, optimistic, looking to the positive future and practicing online.”
#PlayHockeyStayHealthy
FIH site
Hockey Victoria to make amendments to penalty corner
Kyle Evans
UNMASKED: New rules might see penalty corners modified to prevent players from wearing masks during hockey matches. Picture: Kate Healy
Ballarat's representative hockey teams might undergo significant changes when it returns to action following the COVID-19 shutdown.
President of WestVic Hockey Mark Churcher said Hockey Victoria was looking at modifying rules around the penalty corner if a season gets up and running.
The amendments would restrict defending players from wearing protective face masks while an attacking player took a power shot on goal.
Churcher said the rule would likely be modified to contain the spread of germs between players.
"The protective gear they wear when we have a penalty corner are communal and now they can't be," he said.
"Those masks will need to be sanitised and I believe Hockey Victoria is looking at modifying the rules to take that process out."
Last week the club resumed training at the Ballarat Hockey Centre under strict government guidelines.
Squads came onto the pitch at staggered times and were split at either end of the field. A barrier was erected so players couldn't cross over and a volunteer was appointed to handle all equipment.
Churcher said the guidelines had been an added challenge.
"Theoretically hockey is a non-contact sport," he said.
"But there is body-to-body contact and it's a seriously aerobically demanding sport.
"They run around and sweat, so I'm not sure what restrictions will be in place around that when play starts up."
SWEEP: WestVic senior men's player Michael Churcher during the 2019 VIC League One season. Picture: Kate Healy
Churcher said rules around team travel presented another issue. He said players might be forced to drive to away games if restrictions around travel aren't lifted.
"Most of our matches are in Melbourne and if we put 20 players on a 20-seater bus we would breach social distancing laws," he said.
Adding to the difficulty, a lack of crowds might see the club lose up to 10 per cent of its annual revenue. However because hockey is an amateur sport, it doesn't have to pay players.
"We run a canteen, barbecue and often a function afterwards," Churcher said.
"All that could be dead in the water and that's a modest chunk of our annual income."
Churcher said Hockey Victoria would look to recommence competition sometime in June or July depending on government restrictions.
The Courier
Perhaps a better solution would be the one put in place by Hockey New Zealand
'Baby Giraffe' who grew into Black Sticks star
Suzanne McFadden
Brooke Neal in action for the Black Sticks during a 2019 Hockey Pro League game against China in Christchurch. Kai Schwoerer/Getty-Images
Walking off the international field for the final time, Black Sticks defensive rock Brooke Neal is pouring her energy into helping young female athletes develop the mental skills she wishes she'd had as a teen.
At high school, Brooke Neal was called ‘Baby Giraffe’.
It wasn’t a nickname she liked. At 15, she was already 1.8m tall and conscious of it. And on the hockey field, she was unusually uncoordinated.
“I was also a dancer where I was coordinated, but I couldn’t put that into my hockey,” the 176-test Black Stick admits.
“But I decided to embrace ‘Baby Giraffe’, because I knew I was tall and lanky, and uncoordinated on the field.”
While she loved high school at Whangarei Girls’, she also struggled internally.
Black Sticks Brooke Neal (L), Gemma McCaw and Olivia Merry of New Zealand (L-R) line up for their national anthem before a Women's Pro League match against Argentina in Christchurch in 2020. Kai Schwoerer/Getty-Images
“I was very much an overwhelmed, highly-strung, over-achieving perfectionist, who also pretended that everything was good,” she says.
“I had none of the tools that I’ve learned in my last 10 years of elite sport. I’ve done a lot of research on mental well-being and put it into practice.
“Then I thought, ‘What if I could help girls to learn those skills when they’re 14, so they don’t have to go through some of the stuff that I did?’”
That’s become the premise for Neal’s professional venture off the hockey field, now she’s retired from international hockey after eight years at the top.
Like many athletes, Neal spent lockdown contemplating her future.
She was struggling with a back injury – an on-going problem since hurting herself in London last year, sweeping the ball on the artificial pitch laid over the Twickenham rugby turf.
Her plans to spend the rest of the year in Europe were suddenly shelved. She was ready to play out the Pro League season with the Black Sticks, while her fiancé, Cam Hayde, was going to play hockey in Switzerland. Before coronavirus arrived, they'd moved out of their house, he'd left his job, and they were ready to travel.
Then when the 2020 Tokyo Olympics were put on hold for 12 months, the 27-year-old defender decided it was time to call it quits. It wasn’t a simple decision for a player still at the top of her game - her Black Ferns team-mates hailing her as a world-class defender and an unsung hero. But Neal says it's one of her proudest decisions: "Because I made it for me."
“One of the biggest things I considered was the team, knowing I could have an impact in my position," she says. "That was the thing I kept coming back to. When my team-mates reached out afterwards, all of them told me they were proud I’d made the decision for me.”
New Zealand's Brooke Neal in action against Canada on the way to a Commonwealth Games hockey gold medal on the Gold Coast in 2018. Jason O'Brien/Getty-Images
Neal wants to still "be there for them with advice", because her own Black Sticks journey wasn't a painless one.
“Over the last couple of years, I've transitioned from being a battler - starting on the bench, making lots of mistakes, always battling injury and trying to get fitter, finding my voice and my place in the team - to get to a stage where I could perform at the Olympics,” she says.
She got there in 2016, playing at the Rio Olympic Games - where New Zealand made the semifinals - while her elder brother, Shay, turned out for the men’s Black Sticks.
But winning Commonwealth Games gold two years later became the highlight of her eight-year international career. (She laughs recalling how she came off the field after that gold medal match and gave Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern a sweaty hug).
“During that time in the Black Sticks, my focus changed from me trying to be the best athlete I could be, to trying to help the younger girls in the team. Building up the confidence of those girls has been the biggest thing for me in the last two years," she says.
“It's meant always checking up on them, making sure they have a voice. If they want to raise something, I’ll be a platform for them. It can be hard in a group environment to speak out, but I’ve got a big mouth and I don’t mind talking up."
Which has all segued nicely into her job off the field. For the last three years, Neal has been developing her business, All About Balance. Its maxim is: ‘Empowering young female athletes to find balance in their mental, social and physical well-being’.
“It’s about trying to empower them, and get them to learn earlier than I did, so they can get to that stage quicker,” she says.
Neal remembers all too well being the youngster in a hockey team. In her first year at Whangarei Girls’, she was chosen in the 1st XI.
“My first high school coach was Angeline Waetford - who coached my Northland NHL team last year too," Neal says. "There were a few complaints, that she’d picked me as a Year 9 because I definitely wasn’t a standout.
“I wasn’t fit and I was very uncoordinated. But somehow, I managed to make these really unorthodox tackles because of my arm length. Even now people think they have got past me, and then I yank the ball away.”
She had to bide her time on the bench, watching and learning, as her team won the national secondary schools Federation Cup that year. But even as she improved, and made New Zealand age-group teams, Neal wasn’t convinced hockey would be her future.
“I was very much a go-getter and I wanted to do a lot of different things. I almost decided to pursue a career in dance when I was in Year 13,” she says.
Her mum, Leone, a teacher at Whangarei Girls', remembers a "driven, determined, over-motivated girl" who wanted to win in sport, and excel in dance and in the classroom. "It was like we couldn't stop you," she told her daughter in a video blog, "and that determination and motivation and stubbornness and pigheadedness has got you a long way in sport".
The moment that swerved Neal towards hockey was when her brother first made the Black Sticks in 2009.
“Shay was always the one I was trying to beat,” she admits. “Even though he beat me at everything - although I am taller than him. Just seeing him doing what I wanted to, made me decide to follow in his footsteps and see how far I could go.”
Sam Harrison, Brooke Neal and Stacy Michelson arrive at a welcome home ceremony in Whangarie after their 2018 Commonwealth Games hockey gold medal triumph. Stuff
Following up her academic dreams, Neal went to the University of Waikato and got a degree in communications. For the past few years, she’s been working in high schools, helping young female athletes develop their mental skills.
“You can’t force anyone to do anything. But the biggest thing is to put it all out there. I’m not trained in psychology, but here’s my experience and if you can learn from that, great,” Neal says.
It’s not only aspiring hockey players she works with. After we sit down to chat, she’s off to Kristin College to help a group of 25 netballers.
Envisaging she would be going to Tokyo this year, Neal created a four-week course that girls could do online. It turned out to be perfect timing for athletes in lockdown.
“The first part is discovering more of what makes you tick," Neal explains. "Then mastering the negative self-talk. The third part is how to deal with pressure in competition, how to perform consistently. And the last is rebounding from injuries, where I bring yoga in.” Neal trained as a yoga teacher last year.
Negative self-talk is a “massive” part of her teaching. “If only I’d had that at high school,” she says.
“When you first address it, it can be quite confronting for the girls, because it’s the first time they’re aware there’s an inner critic. We have 50,000 to 70,000 thoughts a day - how many of those are negative?
“You can help that with something as simple as getting them to sit in silence, listen to the voice, then keep focusing back on the breath. It’s about giving them really practical tools to make that voice quieter.”
Stuff
Leaving hockey entirely is not an option for me, says Alex Danson
By The Hockey Paper 
England and GB great Alex Danson-Bennett has admitted that leaving hockey “is not really an option” and hinted at a future coaching role in domestic or international hockey.
Speaking from her home in Hampshire, Danson-Bennett said that retirement from elite sport would also mean spending more time with Claire, her triathlete sister, who was paralysed from the waist down last August after colliding with a tractor.
Danson-Bennett retired in February following her mild traumatic brain injury in 2018 while on holiday with her now husband Alex and said the “risk is too high” to continue a comeback in the game.
She now admits that she won’t return to the pitch in a competitive match. “I won’t play again as I can’t risk getting hit or just the way I play,” she admitted.
Instead she will focus on her Alex Danson Hockey Academy, which launched in 2017 and aims to introduce 10,000 primary-school-aged kids to the sport and encourages children to get active.
“My academy is where my heart is,” she told The Hockey Paper for our special edition March issue, “the inclusion and trying to get as many young people involved in the game and grow from the grass roots level.
“Leaving hockey entirely is not really an option. The reason why I’ve had a long career was because I didn’t play club. I was looking after my body and I was out of the domestic set up but I’d love to get back involved and do some coaching.”
Several leading figures – including Scotland’s Jen Wilson and Hampstead coaches Sarah Kelleher and Kate Richardson-Walsh – have spoken up about the lack of female coaches in hockey and the need to get women involved.
And Danson concurs. “There aren’t enough females coaches and there is an enormous descrepancy,” she said. “I can’t answer why but it’s a fact.”
As far as Danson is concerned, one possible entry into coaching, be it at club or national level, would be in the junior game.
She added: “If there was the opportunity to go back to do some junior coaching, yes I would love to. Because I was so influenced as a junior, I feel like you are a sponge at that age because it had such an impact at my age. It’s the age group I feel most drawn towards.”
For more information on Alex Danson Hockey Academy go to www.everyoneactive.com/alexdanson
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The Hockey Paper
Sam's debut finds the target
The latest in the series of FIH Academy webinars focused on the fascinating and complex area of goal-scoring. It turned out to be a topic that raised a serious amount of discussion and debate among the 16 participants – much to the delight of the presenters, Sam Rowe and Tsonaelo Pholo.
“We could still be having discussions about goal-scoring now,” says one of the course hosts, Sam Rowe, who was making his debut as a webinar host. One particular goal [Netherlands forward Kim Lammers scoring against New Zealand in the 2014 Women’s World Cup], caused a “furore” as the candidates debated whether the goal – a cheeky deflection through the player’s legs into the top corner - was outrageous skill or pure luck.
Rowe, who is Performance Analyst for Hockey Wales and top Belgium club Royal Antwerp, as well as hockey professional at Framingham College and a FIH Academy L2 Coach, presented the four hour long course alongside South African Tsoanelo Pholo, a FIH Academy Level 4 coach and FIH Academy Educator. He thoroughly enjoyed his first foray into webinar hosting and sees online courses as a natural partner to physical training in the future.
“I was blown away by the quality of the presentations [by the candidates],” says Rowe. “There was some really good detail, we challenged them, they challenged each other. It really was one of the best interactions I have seen on a webinar to date – and I have seen quite a few recently,” he adds wryly.
For Rowe, being asked to co-host the webinar was another step along his own coaching journey. He is keen to widen his reputation within the sport beyond the video tower and being asked to share his knowledge on this platform has provided an opportunity to do just that: “To suddenly realise you are reaching so many corners of the globe, with participants from four continents represented, that is such an experience,” he says.
The webinar followed a pattern set by previous FIH Academy events. Coach Pholo and Rowe presented for the first 45 minutes and then the group was split into four sub-groups and set a task, centred on a goal-scoring video clip. The groups reported back and then it was an in-depth, open discussion.
“Time flew by,” says Rowe. “Goal-scoring is such a tough topic, it is so broad and so detailed. We looked at trends; what is happening on the international scene; the technical skills involved; how to be effective in the circle; and how what is happening at international level, can be trickled down.”
That final point was an important one for the hosts to consider. Course participants ranged from people who coached junior teams, to international coaches to players contemplating a coaching career. Making sure that the information was relevant for all levels of performance was key to the course’s success. The two hosts spent many hours prior to the course discussing the content and choosing relevant clips that would best spark debate and discussion.
The importance of being effective in the circle is something that Rowe’s own video analysis is highlighting. He has identified a trend towards more goals being scored from open play than penalty corners, particularly in the men’s game. And most of the goals from open play come when the attack is outnumbered by defence. “It is why coaching players to be effective in the circle is so key,” he says.
Reflecting back on the course, Rowe is delighted with the way that all the participants were engaged in the process. He sees the fact that six women were on the course as evidence that online courses are a way of increasing accessibility to a career in coaching.
“You can’t learn everything from a screen,” he says, “but this has been an incredible revolution in a short space of time. To be able to have this incredible menu of opportunity to discuss, challenge and learn from all parts of the world, it is fascinating and something that would be impossible to do face-to-face with the same reach. I am really grateful for Coach Pholo and Mike Joyce [Director of FIH Academy] for inviting me to take part.
"When Corona virus has passed it will be incredible to have this blend of face-to-face coaching and online courses.”
You can register for the FIH Academy's goalscoring workshop on 11th June 2020 by clicking here.
FIH site
The story of India’s last hockey gold at the 1980 Olympics
A relatively inexperienced team were moulded into winners by champion ex-players and an army chief.
By Rahul Venkat
Action shot from the Moscow 1980 men's hockey final
The Indian hockey team has won eight gold medals at the Olympics, the last of which came at Moscow 1980.
Going into the event though, expectations were not too high. The Indian hockey team had last won gold at Tokyo 1964, managed bronze in both 1968 and 1972, and recorded their then lowest finish (seventh) in the 1976 edition.
Moreover, the Indian hockey team collectively did not have too much international exposure under their belt, with only Zafar Iqbal, Merwyn Fernandes, MM Somaya and skipper Vasudevan Baskaran having played against international opposition.
Vasudevan Baskaran with Indian Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju. Source: Twitter
The first inspirational talk for the inexperienced side happened at a pre-Olympic national camp in Bengaluru.
“This bunch was lucky to have been spoken to by field marshal Sam Manekshaw,” said captain Vasudevan Baskaran on the Sony Sports show Medal of Glory. “He visited us twice and talked about the target at the Olympics. That’s how it began.”
Having seen the effect it had, the Indian hockey team captain also requested former gold medallists and selectors, Leslie Claudius and Muniswamy Rajagopal to talk about their Olympic triumphs.
It would soon pay off.
Confidence-boosting semis
In its first game, the Indian hockey team comprehensively beat Tanzania 18-0 and recorded 2-2 draws with both Spain and Poland before blanking the unfancied Cuba 13-0 to go through to the semi-final.
They had struggled to put it past the tougher opponents and with hosts Russia up next in the semi-final, the Indian hockey team realized that they had to change their tactics up a little.
“For that game, we decided to go for indirect penalty corners. We studied a lot of video footage in the lead-up to the semi-final to figure out a way to execute it,” revealed Vasudevan Baskaran.
“It was a full stadium with a raucous home crowd and some teams may have been intimidated. But our players were so confident that they were constantly asking for the ball.
“Zafar Iqbal actually yelled at me a couple of times because I was looking for alternate options on the opposite flank,” laughed the former captain and coach of the Indian hockey team.
The approach worked as they got past Russia 4-2 to go into the final brimming with confidence.
A thrilling final
The final against Spain, a team that drew with them in the group-stages, started very well for the Indian hockey team as Surinder Singh Sodhi, playing as an advanced midfielder, scored twice before half-time to give them a comfortable 2-0 cushion.
MK Kaushik scored soon into the second half, but this was when the match turned on its head. Spain captain Juan Amat scored twice in two minutes to get the Spaniards right back into the game at 3-2.
Juan Amat celebrates scoring for Spain
This was where another innovative tactic of the Indian hockey team paid off, that of playing the late Mohammad Shahid as a centre-forward.
“He had not scored many goals till then because his skills meant that we stuck him on the inside flanks, from where he would set-up a lot of goals,” recalled Baskaran.
“But we knew we needed someone like him up-front in the final and so, told him to not track back too much.” Mohammad Shahid did score the Indian hockey team’s fourth goal and it turned out to be the most important goal of the campaign.
Juan Amat completed his hat-trick a few minutes later to set-up a tense finish, and Spain got two penalty corners in the dying seconds of the game.
“For the first one, I positioned myself on the right because I felt Amat would hit it there. I managed to block it and quickly moved to the left for the next one, and just as the ball touched my stick, the whistle blew,” recounted Baskaran.
As a result, the Indian hockey team had managed to break their gold drought and further consolidate their status as the most successful hockey side at the Olympics.
The Olympic Channel
