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Late goals just don’t seem to stop haunting the Indian senior men’s hockey team. It does not really matter whether it’s the World Cup, Champions Trophy, Sultan Azlan Shah Cup or the Champions Challenge Tourney, India have, consistently, paid a heavy price for exuding unwanted sloppiness in defence in the dying moments of a game.
What could be the reason as to why the national team keep ‘pressing the panic button’ and refrain from showing nerves of steel in the closing stages of a game? It may not be an easy answer to find surely.
It is this ‘late goal syndrome’ that practically dashed India’s campaign in the ongoing 24th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup being played in Ipoh, Malaysia. Barring the opening 2-2 draw against Korea, India could have easily come off with draws against 7th ranked New Zealand and 12th ranked Malaysia, but their defence came apart in the dying moments, putting India’s final-reaching hopes up in smoke.
First, it was New Zealand’s Andy Hayward, whose 55th minute penalty corner goal left India wayward and groping for answers and a few days later, it was Shahrun Abdullah who did the same against India for Malaysia with a 58th minute goal.
Over the last twelve months or so, India have ruined their aspirations in major tournaments owing to their feeble defence, that comes a cropper on a regular basis in the closing stages of a game. What is alarming is that India have lost two games in their three recent tourneys due to their defensive frailties, leading to leaking late goals – 2015 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, 2014 Champions Trophy and 2014 World Cup.
India have a history of conceding crucial late goals
Rewind to the last December Champions Trophy in Bhubaneshwar, where the much-hyped India-Pakistan semi-final match in the 2014 Champions Trophy appeared intriguing, poised at 3-3 before Arslan Qadir sneaked in a 59th minute goal to drive despair in the Indian ranks. In the same tournament, India were on the verge of pulling off an honourable goalless draw against Olympic champions Germany, but Florian Fuchs’ final minute goal punctured our hopes with our opponents closing out a 1-0 win.
The 2014 World Cup in Hague saw India lose two crucial games due to this ‘late goal factor’. India were poised to settle for a 2-2 draw with 4th ranked Belgium, but the Red Panthers’ skipper John-John Dohmen killed off our hopes with a final minute. In the very next game, India looked like nailing a 1-1 draw against England, but Simon Mantell denied us that scoring a 70th minute goal.
How about Sardar Singh’s dreadful defensive lapse that allowed Thilo Stralkowski to score a 68th minute goal enabling Germany hold India to a 3-3 draw in the Hockey World League Final Round Event in New Delhi in January 2014? Or how can one forget the 2011 Champions Challenge final in Johannesburg, where India were tied 3-3 with Belgium before Tom Boon dished out a final minute goal to destroy the Blueshirts.
We may go on and one, but the moot point is have our team really learnt their lessons? Surely not, since this is the seventh time in the last fifteen months that India’s fortunes were decided courtesy a late goal.
Clearly, the new coach, team management and Hockey India must work out something ‘concrete’ to identify the reasons why the national team is repeatedly letting in goals in the final moments of play.
India’s Late Goal Blues in Recent Times:
- Shahrun Abdullah (Malaysia) 2014 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup – 58th minute Malaysia won 3-2
- Any Hayward (New Zealand) 2014 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup – 55th minute New Zealand won 2-1
- Arslan Qadir (Pakistan) 2014 Champions Trophy – 59th minute Pakistan won 4-3
- Florian Fuchs (Germany) 2014 Champions Trophy – 60th minute Germany won 1-0
- Simon Mantell (England) 2014 World Cup – 70th minute England won 2-1
- John-John Dohmen (Belgium) 2014 World Cup – 70th minute Belgium won 3-2
- Thilo Stralkowski (Germany) 2014 HWL Final Round – 68th minute Germany drew 3-3
- Tom Boon (Belgium) 2011 Champions Challenge – 70th minute Belgium won 4-3
