Pool A : Netherlands, West Germany, South Korea, India, New Zealand, Canada
Pool B : Pakistan, Australia, Spain, England, Malaysia, Poland

India's Match Results :

• For a change, India did not have to qualify for the Utrecht World Cup, having earned an automatic entry based on their 5th place finish in the 1994 World Cup at Sydney.
  
  
• The IHF made the controversial decision of dropping experienced goalkeeper A. B. Subbaiah (268 internationals) in the team. Instead, they picked two goalkeepers (Jude Menezes and Jagdish Ponappa) with less than 10 big matches between them. While Subbaiah was the Man of the Match in two tests in the Indo-Pak series, held only a couple of months before the World Cup, Jagdish Ponnappa was not even played in that 8-match series against Pakistan. Subbaiah's only crime was that he asked for money due to the players. The IHF, not being democratic, crushed the dissent by dropping Subbaiah.
  
  
• Another poor decision of the IHF was in selecting injured and unfit players for the World Cup - specifically skipper Dhanraj Pillai, forwards Rajeev Mishra and Sameer Dad, halves Baljeet Singh Saini and Mohammed Riaz, and full-back Anil Aldrin. Most of these players were just passengers in the World Cup matches, and contributed in no small way to India's dismal finish. It is time that the doctors who provide fake fitness certificates are held accountable, as does the IHF for being an accomplice in this charade.
  
  
• The IHF showed an apathy in communicating with the World Cup organisers, with numerous fax messages going unanswered. So when the Indian team finally in Utrecht, the Royal Netherlands Hockey Association was totally in the dark about their arrival, and there was no accommodation arranged for the team. Foolish, uneducated and unprofessional Indian hockey officials! All they know is how to make easy money.
  
  
• India was in Pool A -  the Pool of Death - with its first 3 matches against Champions Trophy holders Germany, Olympic champion Netherlands, and Asian Games and Asia Cup holders South Korea. The other teams in its pool were New Zealand and Canada.
  
  
• India lost its first 3 matches, losing 1-4 to Germany, 0-5 to Netherlands and 3-4 to South Korea to make a quick and undignified exit from the tournament. After winning 1-0 against New Zealand, it was back to misery trail for India, losing 1-4 to Canada. A win against Canada would have put India in the playoffs for the 5th - 8th positions, and a possible chance for the Champions Trophy. Instead, this humiliating loss to Canada relegated India to the playoffs for the 9th - 12th positions.
  
  
• It was indeed a disastrous World Cup for India by the end of the league stage. India lost 4 of its 5 matches, came last in its pool, had the least number of Goals For (6), and the maximum number of Goals Against (17). Individual players like Australia's Jay Stacy (11 goals) and Germany's Oliver Domke (7 goals) scored more than the entire Indian team (6 goals).
  
  

• Canadian midfielder Alan Brahmst was suspended for swearing and making obscene gestures at the Indians following their match. "F*** you for Barcelona!" Brahmst screamed at Anil Aldrin, one of the Indians who had played in Barcelona. Brahmst raised his finger and made obscene gestures at the Indians, rather than join his teammates in a deserved lap of honour. The fitting punishment for Brahmst's uncivilized, boorish and uncouth behaviour was that Canada lost all its matches after his suspension, and went from being a semi-final contender to finishing 8th.
  
  

• In the playoffs for the minor placings (9 - 12), India beat Poland 6-2 and New Zealand 1-0 to finish 9th. This was a big letdown from the 5th place finish in the previous edition of the World Cup at Sydney.
  
  

• No Asian country made it to the semi-finals, with Pakistan finishing 5th, South Korea 7th, India 9th and Malaysia 11th. In contrast, 3 of the 4 semi-finalists were European, with Netherlands winning the gold, Spain the silver and Germany the bronze. Germany's Oliver Domke was declared the Player of the Tournament.
  
  

• The dual men's and women's World Cup held at Utrecht resulted in 260 journalists and photographers worldwide being present, making it the largest gathering of media at a hockey event. However, the FIH failed miserably in marketing the World Cup on the medium of television. Out of 16 competing nations, only 5 countries had live or tape-delayed television coverage - Argentina, India, Australia, Netherlands and Spain. What is the point in calling it a "World Cup" when there is no television coverage in Africa, North America, and single country coverage in South America and Asia.
  
  

• A final note about the Germans. Except for the first World Cup in Barcelona, they have faltered at the semi-final stage of most World Cups. In the 1973 World Cup, Germany lost to Holland 2-4 in the semi-final. In the 1975 World Cup, Germany was drubbed 1-5 by Pakistan in the semi-final. In the 1978 World Cup, Germany lost to Pakistan 0-1 in the semi-final. In the 1986 World Cup, Germany lost 2-3 to England in the semi-final. In the 1990 World Cup, Germany lost 1-2 to Holland in the semi-final. In the 1994 World Cup, Germany lost to Pakistan 4-6 in the semi-final. In the 1998 World Cup, Germany lost to Spain in the semi-final. The only time Germany did not lose at the semi-final stage, they lost in the final (1982 - Mumbai).

Final Standings :

Indian Team :

Goalkeepers: Jude Menezes, Jagdish Ponnappa

Full-backs: Dileep Tirkey, Lajarus Barla, Anil Aldrin

Half-backs: Baljeet Singh Saini, Mohammed Riaz, Ramandeep Singh, Thirumala Valavan

Forwards: Mukesh Kumar, Sabu Varkey, Dhanraj Pillai (captain), Rajesh Chauhan, Sameer Dad, Rajeev Mishra, Harbhajan Singh

Officials: Chief Coach: V. Bhaskaran; Assistant Coaches: C. R. Kumar, Ramesh Parameshwaran; Team Doctor: Dr. S. A. Cruz; Trainer: G. Gunasekharan