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4 Nations tournament: Indian men's hockey team takes on Japan in last pool stage match

The Indian men's hockey team will take on Japan in the last pool stage match at the second-leg of the Four Nations Invitational Tournament in Hamilton on Saturday.

By Aravind
India's Harmanpreet Singh duing a training session

Hamilton (New Zealand), January 26: After a nine-goal thriller on Thursday that saw India beat Belgium 5-4, the Men in Blue will take on Japan in the last pool stage match at the second-leg of the Four Nations Invitational Tournament here at the Gallagher Hockey Stadium in Hamilton on Saturday (January 27). India had previously defeated Japan 6-0 in the first leg at Tauranga.

India will look to clinch a third-straight win after beating hosts New Zealand 3-2 in the first match, followed by a stunning win against Belgium.

Chief coach Sjoerd Marijne wants his team to work on their short comings. "We would like to improve our ball possession and we can train on this aspect against Japan. Our 75-yard press needs to improve as well and that is also something we want to work on when we play against Japan," expressed the 43-year-old Dutchman.

In their emphatic victory against the World No 3 Belgium on Thursday, India led twice (1-0, 4-3) before Belgium fought back and snatched the lead twice (2-1, 3-2). But it was a fantastic finish that saw Ramandeep Singh assist India colt Dilpreet Singh to score a winner in the 59th minute.

For a team that was earlier bogged down by conceding last-minute goals, India made amends in the high-stakes match. "The game plan was the same against Belgium but this time we were more effective. We wanted to press hard, we didn't allow too much space and we wanted to improve our scoring, and finish well which we were successful," he added.

The team went into the Belgium match minus skipper Manpreet Singh, who was rested. Marijne said it was a calculated risk the team took to ensure other young midfielders came to the fore and under Chinglensana Kangujam, midfielders Vivek Sagar Prasad, Nilakanta Sharma and Harjeet Singh held their own sway.

"We are here to develop players and if Manpreet wasn't playing then the other players can show what they've got. If you have taken players with you, you need to allow them to play big matches and only then can you see if they are good enough," Marijne opined.

With another day's play remaining ahead of the final on Sunday, India currently lead the pool table with six points followed by hosts New Zealand and Belgium.

It's only after the New Zealand Vs Belgium match on Saturday that will decide who India will play in knock outs on January 28. For India though, another match against Belgium will mean another litmus test ahead of this crucial year that features the Hockey Men's World Cup in Bhubaneswar, where Belgium are grouped with India. "I hope we play Belgium again but it will certainly be a tough match because Belgium is one side who are not used to losing twice. This means we need to bring our A game and show consistency," Marijne concluded.


India vs Japan

Four Nations Invitation Tournament

Live on Facebook (www.facebook.com/nzblacksticks)

at 6.45 am (Saturday, January 27)


Source: Hockey India

Story first published: Friday, January 26, 2018, 14:51 [IST]
Other articles published on Jan 26, 2018