he Indian Hockey Federation dropped a bombshell by omitting seasoned goalkeeper A.B. Subbaiah but including three injured stars in the team named for the 1998 World Cup Hockey. Dhanraj Pillai has been retained as captain.

The three injured players are Dhanraj Pillai, Rajeev Mishra and Baljit Singh Saini. Dhanraj Pillay is nursing a hairline fracture on his right foot, Rajeev Mishra has an injury on his left foot and Saini is nursing a cheek-bone fracture. Fresh trials would be held on May 12 and 13 during the final camp at NIS, Patiala to decide on the fitness of the trio, before the actual team to Holland is 'reannounced.'

The 16-member Indian squad is as follows:

• Goalkeepers: Jude Menezes, Jagdish Ponnappa
  
• Full-backs: Dilip Tirkey, Lazarus Barla, Anil Aldrin
  
• Half-backs: Baljit Singh Saini, Mohd Riaz, Ramandeep Singh, Thirumalvalavan
  
• Forwards: Mukesh Kumar, Sabu Varkey, Dhanraj Pillay, Rajesh Chauhan, Samir Dad, Rajiv Mishra, Harbhajan Singh
  
• Stand-byes: Poonacha, Dinesh Naik, S. S. Gill, Kamal Horo, Virender Singh, Baljit Singh Chandi, Devinder Kumar, Senthil
  
• Officials: Chief Coach: V. Bhaskaran; Assistant Coaches: C. R. Kumar, Ramesh Parameswaran; Team Doctor: Dr. S. A. Cruz; Trainer: G. Gunasekharan
  
  

njaparavanda Boppaiah Subbaiah announced his retirement from international hockey, as soon as he came to know of his omission from the squad for the Utrecht World Cup. A daredevil goalkeeper who is reckoned as a specialist in anticipating penalty strokes, Subbaiah has had a steady run and was widely believed a certainty for the World Cup.

The goalkeeper from Coorg has played for the country 268 times. The Indian Airlines officer has been a member of the Indian team for 10 years, making his debut in the 1988 Indira Gandhi Hockey Gold Cup. He had played in two Olympics (Barcelona-1992 and Atlanta-1996), one World Cup (Sydney-1994), three Champions Trophies (Berlin-1989, 1995 and Chennai-1996), and in two Asian Games (Beijing-1990 and Hiroshima-1994).

Subbaiah, who refused to believe that his form was downhill, said he was at his peak. "The fact that I have been named Man of the Match twice in the recent series against Pakistan bears me out. After all my years of international hockey, the least I expected from the Federation was to inform me that I am being dropped, instead of being told so by mediapersons."

lmost all seniors, including injured forward Dhanraj Pillai and mercurial winger Mukesh Kumar, were 'rested' from the 16-member Indian hockey team for the Colorado Cup in Australia. This 4-nation tournament was held from April 9 to 19, and was the final tournament preparation for the Utrecht World Cup in May. Apart from the two senior forwards, the rested player list included Lazarus Barla, Gavin Fereira, Mohammed Riaz, Anwar Khan, A. B. Subbaiah and young forward Rajeev Mishra, who is recovering after a knee orthroscopy. Some build-up to next month's World Cup!

Initially the IHF office made it known that the captain would be Baljit Singh Saini. By late evening, the choice fell on Ramandeep Singh. Another change of mind reinstated Baljit Singh Saini as the captain. The IHF had not even spared the manager, replacing M. M. Sommayya with G. A. Siddiqui. Former coach Cedric D' Souza was brought back as an 'expert'.

The team: Goal-keepers: Jagdish Poonappa, Jude Menezes (Mumbai); Full backs: Dilip Tirkey (IA), Anil Aldrin (AI), Dinesh Naik (TN); Halves: Baljit Singh Saini (captain-PSB), Thirumal Valvan (TN), Ramandeep Singh (Punjab), S. S. Gill (Chandigarh); Forwards: M. Senthil (TN), Sabu Varkey (Mumbai), Devinder Kumar, Rajesh Chauhan (AI), Sameer Dad, Virender Singh, Baljit Singh Chandi (IA).

Coaches: V. Bhaskaran, C. R. Kumar; Manager: Col. G. A. Siddiqui; Umpire: K. Krishnamurthy; Doctor: Dr. S. A. Cruz; Expert: Cedric D'Souza

he Indian hockey team arrived in Sydney to a rude shock when they were told that the hospitality extended to them was confined to only breakfast and they would have to pay for the rest of their meals.

This forced the team manager Col. Siddiqui to send an urgent message to the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) asking for $ 8,000-$9,000 to be sent to them urgently to take care of their needs for the next 13 days.

Meanwhile in New Delhi, IHf chief K. P. S. Gill said he was not not aware of any such happening. "This is not a big issue, rather it is no issue. If the team needs money, we will send it,'' he added, neatly dodging the issue of why such an embarassing situation had to occur in the first place.

In the end, to prevent a food fiasco from taking place, the Australian Hockey Association (AHA) decided to bear half the local hospitality costs for the Indian team in the Colorado Cup. The AHA executive director Landen Adamson said that the decision was taken to "protect the goodwill that exists between the Australian and Indian Hockey Federations."

e finally come to the tournament at hand - the four-nation, two-venue, double leg Colorado Cup. The tournament pitted hosts Australia against India, Argentina and New Zealand, where each team played seven times in 11 days, like a World Cup program.

Sydney Leg	Date	Result	Scorers for India
	Apr 9	India beat New Zealand 2-1	Devinder Kumar - both
	Apr 11	Argentina beat India 2-0
	Apr 12	Australia beat India 5-2	Virinder Singh, Devinder Kumar
Melbourne Leg	Date	Result	Scorers for India
	Apr 15	India beat Argentina 2-1	Anil Aldrin, Rajesh Chauhan
	Apr 16	India 2 New Zealand 2	Rajesh Chauhan, Sabu Varkey
	Apr 18	Australia beat India 2-1	Rajesh Chauhan
Classification	Date	Result	Scorers for India
	Apr 19	New Zealand beat  India 2-1	Rajesh Chauhan
India come a humiliating last in the 4-nation tournament

The calibre of the opposition was as follows: New Zealand will be taking part in the World Cup after a gap of 12 years. Their team arrived for the four-nation tournament with most of the squad struggling from food poisoning contracted in Malaysia in March.

Argentina has not even qualified for the World Cup. India won only twice in 7 games, losing four times and drawing once. For New Zealand, their only victory of the tournament came at the expense of India.

Ricky Francisco, a great admirer of the classical style of Indian hockey and coach of St. George Arncliffe Scots Hockey Club of Sydney, said that the fitness level of the Indians was not satisfactory, and going by Australian standards, would not even match the Sydney Grade-I level.

anjinder Kaur led a 16-member Indian women's team on its twin tours of Germany and the United States. The tour was part of the team's preparations for the Women's World Cup Hockey in Utrecht, Netherlands.

The team, which underwent a camp at the NIS Patiala, played test matches in Germany from April 15 to 19. They lost 0-2. They then proceeded to the United States to take part in a four-nation tournament there. England, Canada and USA were the other participating nations in the tournament held at Springfield, Massachusetts, from April 22 to 26. India did not score a single goal during the tournament - losing 0-6 to England, 0-2 to USA, 0-3 to Canada, and drawing 0-0 with Canada to come last in the four-nation tournament.

The team was as follows:

Goalkeepers: Tingonglaima Chanu, Helen Mary
Full-backs: Sandeep Kaur, Shashi Bala, Renu Bala
Half-backs: Mukta Xalxo, Sita Gussain, Sumrai Tete, Sunita Dalal
Forwards: Manjinder Kaur (captain), Kamala Dalal, Pritam Rani, Sanggai Ibemhal Chanu, Jyoti Sunita Kullu, Nidhi Khullar, Suraj Lata Devi
Officials - Chief Coach: Balbir Singh; Assistant Coach: C. A. Poonacha; Manager: Rupa Saini; Umpire: Madhu Yadav

he death occurred on February 21, 1998 of Baburao Nimal, the last surviving member of the 1936 Berlin Olympics team that won the gold medal beating Germany in the final. Nimal played as a right-half.

Baburao Nimal was born in Khadki in 1905. His playing career started with Khadki United, who with Nimal in their team, won the Aga Khan Gold Cup in Mumbai. Popularly known as Dada, Nimal worked in the Ammunition Factory till 1963. As a player, Nimal retired in 1953 at the age of 48.

When asked how it was playing with the likes of Dhyan Chand and Roop Singh, he replied, "It was an honour to play in that team. After all, that was the last team from undivided India. For every position, there were 3-4 players ready to join the team if you failed."

Baburao Nimal has said goodbye to earth to rejoin his 1936 teammates in heaven. May his soul rest in peace.

(Jan - Feb 1998)

Issue 1 : The inaugural issue is a collector's item, with Ashok Kumar's wonderfully nostalgic article of his Top 10 all-time favourites. It also features an interview with FIH President Juan Angel Calzado. Other articles include profiles on India's rising stars Rajeev Misra and Gagan Ajit Singh, Horst Wein's clinic for coaches and players during the Federation Cup (Deutschland Diary) and coverage on Punjab's first Champion Colleges hockey tournament. The non-hockey articles include The Sachin Tendulkar Story (on his sacking as India captain and one on FC Kochin and its star I. M. Vijayan.

(March - April 1998)

Issue 2 : A worthy successor to the inaugural issue is the Indo-Pak Special, complete with statistics on all Indo-Pak matches by Shanti Arumugam, an exclusive article by Sardar Khan on the Pakistan team, interview with Joaquim Carvalho on the Indo-Pak rivalry, and photographs and match highlights of the just-concluded Indo-Pak hockey series Other articles include tips on coaching by Shiv Jagde (US Field Hockey Coach), how to play cool by Dr. Saul Miller (Canadian Field Hockey Sports Pyschologist), a feature on Udham Singh entitled - 'A Passion that is yet to Diminish', and a article on the 1928 Indian Olympic hockey team which brought India the first of her eight gold medals. The non-hockey articles include The Business of Football and 'Sachin signs Adidas.'

n a bonanza for sports lovers in the subcontinent, broadcasting giant ESPN will telecast live the men's and women's hockey World Cup matches scheduled for this month, according to a press release from ESPN. The men's tournament gets underway on May 21, while the Women's World Cup featuring 12 teams -six each in two groups - is scheduled to start on May 20. This will be the first time that ESPN would be broadcasting World Cup Hockey matches live. During the last World Cup held in Sydney in 1994, ESPN Asia did not even exist.

Also, Hockey Week made its debut on ESPN in April. This is a 4-minute hockey magazine show which is a welcome start to raise the profile of the game. Hockey Week is researched, written and presented by John Faulkner. It is being beamed on both Star and ESPN, and that means four satellites covering several countries in Asia. This could be the beginning of a wonderful relationship between ESPN-Star Sports and the game of hockey.

ver wonder why there are so many 4-nation tournaments being played around the world. Every FIH sanctioned tournament carries a fee, which is supposed to go towards the FIH development fund for funding hockey in countries that cannot afford the international class facilities. The cost of staging tournaments, (info courtesy FieldHockey.com),  is as follows:

4-nations tournament - $40 000
6 nations tournament - $100 000
Champions Trophy, World Cup Qualifier - $100,000 to $150,000
World Cup - $150 000

he 103rd edition of the Beighton Cup, the oldest hockey tournament in the world, was held in Calcutta from April 1 to April 15. Indian Oil Corporation was the title sponsor. The standard of the competition was quite high this time, with the BHA (Bengal Hockey Association) having to say sorry to teams like Sikh Regimental Centre (Pathankot), EME (Jalandhar), DLW (Varanasi), Southern Railway and CISF. Bangladesh XI was the sole foreign entry.

Defending champions Punjab Police were ousted in the semifinals by BSF to whom they lost 0-1. The other semifinal contest was between Rail Coach Factory (RCF), Kapurthala and Army XI, which the latter 3-2. The stage was set for the finals between Army XI and BSF.

Army XI had last won the tournament in 1994, the third of a hat-trick of wins. Army XI had three former internationals in their ranks - defender K. K. Poonacha, half back B. J. Kariappa and forward Cyprin Aind. BSF had won thrice in 1971 (jointly with Mohun Bagan), 1972 and 1996.

In a fast-paced final at the Mohun Bagan ground, Border Security Force, Jalandhar annexed the 103rd Beighton Cup, scraping past Army XI 1-0. Habil Topno scored the winning goal following a penalty corner in the 40th minute. This was BSF's fourth triumph in five summit appearances in the Beighton Cup. The victors were rewarded with Rs 1 lakh, while the losing finalist Army XI had to be content with Rs. 50,000. The Man of the Final was Harbhajan Singh of BSF.

his edition's Visitor of the Month features Deepak Khanolkar, director of Apekasha Cultural Organisation and Sports Association (ACOSA), a Mumbai-based consultancy and management firm working closely with the FIH and the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF). He lived 8 years in Holland, and has a good rapport with former and present Dutch hockey stars. He has been responsible for bringing Dutch hockey stars for clinics in India. He also arranged Floris Jan Bovelander's visit to India to hone the penalty corner skills of the Indians in time for the World Cup (the IHF shot down the proposal at the last minute). He writes

I have been invited to attend the FIH Congress Marketing and Promotion Seminar at Utrecht on May 30, 1998, to put forth hockey development ideas for India and Asia. It is probably after a decade that any one from India has been invited to attend the FIH Congress.

This is also to inform India Field Hockey readers of the Golden Tulip Hockey Tour to Europe to coincide with the Hockey World Cup in May 1998. If you have friends who would like to travel on the tour, they are most welcome to join in. Twelve persons have signed up till date to cheer our men's & women's teams to success in the World Cup.

he elections of the office bearers of Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) will be held at Hyderabad on May 10, 1998. In a notification issued by IHF secretary Jyothikumaran, it was stated that the elections will be preceded by the annual general meeting. There are 35 state associations and institutions affiliated to the IHF with a voting right.

Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) president KPS Gill announced he would be standing for a second term in the May 10 IHF elections. The present set of officials was elected in the last elections held at Bhopal in June, 1994. Challenging Gill would be the politician son of Prakash Singh Badal - Sukhbir Singh Badal, who is also the union minister of state for industries.

andra is the hub of hockey in the city of Mumbai. The Saint Peters Youth Center (SPYC) hockey tournament, played in front of large, enthusiastic crowds at the St Stanislaus High School Ground, has acquired a special image for the past three decades. That is, until this year.

In stepped K. L. Passi, an aging hockey 'administrator', who is the honorary secretary of the Bombay Hockey Association. He is best known for giving tall promises about the astro-turf which is still to be replaced at the Mahindra Stadium. In an inspired move, he debarred BHA-affiliated clubs from participating in the SPYC tournament, because some non-affiliated clubs were taking part in the same. The penalty for their participation would be suspension. The same would apply to umpires who officiated in the event.

Khar Gymkhana, Orlem XI, Mumbai Schools XI, Western Railway and Ave Maria were the five teams not affiliated to the BHA but among the participants in the SPYC tourney. Finally, five BHA-affiliated clubs, Mumbai Customs, Central Railway, Union Bank of India, Khalsa Gymkhana and Tata Electric, withdrew from the SPYC tournament.

Narrow-minded officials are the bane of Indian hockey, at all levels of the game. Amen. On to World Cup 1998.