IOB want to learn from Murugappa failure

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IOB who were once a force to be reckoned with in Tamil Nadu hockey are no longer engendering the same kind of awe that they did in their opponents with such effortless ease in the years gone by.

Clearly the present team are struggling to replicate the highs they scaled when they virtually ruled the roost in tournaments such as Syed Ahmed memorial which they went on to win three times in a row starting from 2009-2011.

Their failure to progress beyond the group stages in the MCC-Murugappa gold cup hockey tournament only serves to provide further evidence of their steady decline.

Predicta-bly the manager of IOB, Arif Ahmed was downcast following his team’s early exit from the Murugappa tournament.

“We are disappointed at failing in our objective of reaching the semi-finals. The narrow loss against ONGC where we conceded a last-minute goal proved to be our undoing in the final analysis,” he said.

In spite of their form being on a downward spiral, Arif chose to keep his chin up and stressed on the positives that emerged from the tournament. “Towards the later stages of the league phase there was a definitive improvement in the players’ performance.

“To beat a strong team like Army XI, who had already beaten us twice in this year, reflected the confidence of the players,” he added.

One player in particular who left an indelible impression on Arif was Olympian and goalkeeper of the team P.R. Sreejesh.

“I have no words to praise Sreejesh. He did a remarkable job and came to the team’s rescue several times. His presence in the goal was very reassuring for us,” he said.

Meanwhile the pivot of the side and Olympian Adam Sinclair was brutally honest in his assessment of his own efforts in the tournament and said that he let IOB down when it came to the crunch. “I am not all satisfied with how I played. My performances could have been a lot better,” he said.

Sinclair was also of the view that the side are going through a rebuilding phase and it will take a few more months before they become a cohesive unit.

“There have been a lot of new faces. The more time that we spend together, the easier it will be for us get back to where we were,” he signed off.