2015 Sultan of Johor Cup: Maximising scoring chances main focus of Indian junior team

The India Junior team with the Sultan of Johor Cup in 2013

The tag of ‘defending champions’ may sometimes sit comfortably on most teams but the Indian junior men’s hockey team will be leaving no room for ‘complacency’ as they brace up to defend the title in the 5th Sultan of Johor Cup which will be played in Johor Bahru, Malaysia from October 11.

The Harjeet Singh-led side is in Malaysia, armed with loads of confidence having won back-to-back titles in 2014 and 2013. The team’s head coach Harendra Singh is only looking to raise the improvement bar. “The boys have worked hard for this tournament and this is a new event for us and what we did a year ago hardly matters now. The boys are looking to put their best foot forward,” Harendra says.

Tipped to be one of the best domestic coaches around, Harendra believes in the team giving their hundred percent. “Results are not in our hand, the boys will strive to give their best and deliver, that’s what matters,” he quips.

India has the advantage of having a plethora of players, who were part of the team that cornered glory in the 2014 edition. “Obviously it is an advantage for us – skipper Harjeet Singh and the likes of Parvinder, Varun, Armaan, and Dipsan bring a lot of skills to the side. We need to make it count,” he observes.

On the improvement areas, Harendra’s key focus is to improve the rate of conversion from scoring chances. “We create a lot of scoring opportunities but quite often what we convert them into goals leaves us disappointing. We are working to rectify this and hopefully the 2015 Sultan of Johor Cup will massive improvement in this aspect of the game.”

The Indian team posses a lethal weapon in drag-flicker Harmanpreet Singh, who was quite influential in India winning the 2014 edition, not only scoring twice in the final against Great Britain but also slamming a whopping eight goals. “Look, Harmanpreet is a talented player. I do not believe that one or two player can make a difference to a side’s fortunes. There are no star players in my side, all eighteen members of the side are stats for me,” he puts his perspective.

On potential threats to India’s title-winning aspirations, Harendra says, “We will look to give our best in each game and not bother much about the results,” he signs off.

The Indians will open their campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan on October 11 and will face Britain the next day. They face Argentina on October 14, Malaysia on October 15 and Australia on October 17.

One hopes India will cap off a hat-trick of title wins in the 2015 edition.