9 Things That Made India The Junior Hockey Champions

Congratulations, Team Hockey India Juniors at becoming the world Junior Hockey Champions. What an absolutely stupendous tournament the team has had, winning all their pool matches, topping their group.

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Below is a very quick analysis of what went right for the team, and what didnĄ¯t.

What went right:

1. Confidence

They ooze confidence. Seemingly in full control during crunch situations.

2. Fitness

These boys can last the entire duration of the game, match any other team, even outrun them. In size also, we once were puny compared to others. DoesnĄ¯t seem to be the case any longer. We even have that in the seniors where Raghunath and Rupinder are often referred to as the Twin Towers of defence.

3. Mental toughness

It was evident the way we took the shootout against the Aussies in the semi-finals. Those who took the strikes seemed seasoned. Would have done every senior player, all of who support them dearly and take a lot of pride in them.

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4. Not conceding early goals

This has been a bugbear of Indian teams. Take time to settle down and by then, some of the real good teams have already scored against us, leaving us shell-shocked.

5. Not allow shoulders to droop if trailing, even close to finish time.

In fact, in this matter, I find them even better than the seniors, who seem to crack in the final minutes and have often lost from a position where they were leading till the final minute.

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6. Close-knit team

It is amazing how they all seem to gel with each other. They like each other, genuinely feel for the other and are selfless.

7. Not averse to taking shots at goal

That too when reverse shots are coming at lightning pace. The number of field goals scored by India is testimony to that. The first goal by Gurjant in the final is among the best goals from almost zero angle I have seen.

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8. Great coaching

Kudos to the support staff that has drilled into this team the strategy and tactical play that was missing even from the seniors till recently.

9. Mentoring from the senior team players

Sreejesh even parked himself there to be with the team at all times and goalkeeper Dahiya benefitted a lot from it, as was evident from some of his saves during the tournament.

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The obvious deficiencies

1. Some of the basics are still lacking, prime among them being Trapping. Compared to the Europeans and Oz, we are a generation behind.

2. Penalty Corners. ItĄ¯s a surprise, because Harmanpreet, who demonstrates confidence and calmness way beyond his age, is actually considered good enough for the seniors too.

3. Although as a team we are great, I, for one, miss the ball players that India is famous for. Am reminded of the great Late Mohd. Shahid, who honed his skills in the city where the Juniors won the championship, Lucknow.