Women's domestic hockey league is the need of the hour, feels Sjoerd Marijne

The Indian women’s hockey team chief coach also felt that his team needs to play more matches in the Pro Leagues.

The Indian’s women’s team created history by reaching the semi-finals of the Tokyo Olympics and defeating Australia in that process. It was the first time the women's team advanced to the semi-final at the Olympic Games, which they achieved against all odds. Chief coach Sjoerd Marijne shared his experience regarding his team at the quadrennial event, following their defeat against Great Britain on Friday morning.

Although the semi-final and bronze medal match ended in heartbreak, the women played with tremendous spirit and determination and only narrowly lost out on what would have been an even bigger achievement. From a 12th placed finish at the Rio Olympics to the fourth spot in Tokyo, the women’s team have improved leaps and bounds and their campaign was evident to it.

Reflecting upon poor start

Sjoerd Marijne opened up about the discussions and reflections that took place in the Indian dressing room after the first three games.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j841ZxlXMqY

“In our first few matches, we did not try hard enough and that the team was not fulfilling their potential. Against the Netherlands, we played well but made a lot of mistakes. It was a good effort against Germany, but we gave away silly chances too. But against Great Britain, it was simply not good enough."

The tactician felt that the energy and spirit were not up to the mark. The Indian team were giving too much respect to their opponents. He also revealed that once these thoughts were conveyed to the squad, the mindset and performance shifted.

Coaching effect and strong mentality

The chief coach, Sjoerd Marijne and analytical coach, Janneke Schopman - have played a tremendous role in making India serious contenders again. Moreover, to have been able to make the sort of impact that the coaching team has on the team in the midst of a pandemic is extremely praiseworthy.

For Marijne, working upon physical and tactical strength is an important part of his regimen. However, the emphasis put upon the mental aspect by the entire coaching staff has truly reaped benefits at the Olympics.

“A key component of the women’s team’s success was self-belief," the 47-year- old said. “If you would have told the girls that they could have achieved something like this three-four years ago, they would not have believed it. However, this time they did and that made a massive difference,” he added.

Analytical Coach Janneke Schopman, a former Olympic gold medallist herself, also expressed the importance of mental abilities.

“During the match, your mind tries to play all sorts of games with you and after one mistake, you are gone. However, it is important to have the ability to bounce back from those mistakes and know that it is not your mind that is in charge, but it is you. Staying in the moment is important and not giving up when you are nervous or tired or scared is equally important," she opined.

Sjoerd Marijne responded to the discussion of podium pressure and added, “focusing on the task at hand is the most important when you are on the pitch. The girls must not think about all the what-ifs and focus on staying in the moment. Not get distracted and stay in your bubble.”

What lies ahead

After exceeding all expectations at the Tokyo Olympics, a lot of hope and pride has been instilled in the women's hockey team. This has been an extremely successful edition of the Olympics, with respect to recent performances and hockey has played a massive role in that process.

Sjoerd Marijne emphasised about the need for more high-pressure matches for the Indian women’s teams.

“The last high-stakes and pressurising match that the girls played was probably the Olympic qualifiers. The pandemic surely played a role in that but this is something that is absolutely unacceptable," he said.

“The need of the hour is a domestic hockey league in India for the women as they have shown that they are more than capable of playing at the top level. More tournaments should be organised within India, a Hockey India League should make its way again and our players should play more matches in pro leagues.”

The need for match experience is crucial, according to the Dutchman, as he felt that it could help India bridge the gap between them and the countries on the podium.

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