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Hockey India plays musical chairs with coach appointment

Indian women’s coach Marijne gets charge of men’s side while Harendra will take over former’s job

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Indian senior women’s coach Sjoerd Marijne (Centre) was on Friday asked to take over the reins of senior national men’s team
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It's literally a game of musical chairs, and one that Hockey India (HI) seems to have played completely wrong.

Less than a week after unceremoniously sacking Indian senior men's hockey coach Roelant Oltmans, HI has disturbed two teams in trying to fill up that vacant post.

Indian senior women's coach Sjoerd Marijne was on Friday given the task of taking over the reins of the men's side, while Junior World Cup-winning coach Harendra Singh, who was eyeing the men's role, was appointed as the chief coach of the women's team.

Marijne, who was in charge of the women's team since February, is presently in The Netherlands with the eves on a four-match Europe tour that will end on September 18. He will take charge of the boys in the national camp in Bengaluru upon his return.

The Dutchman has been involved in several coaching roles in the past, albeit most of them with women. The 43-year-old's credentials involve tasting a World Cup victory with the Dutch Under-21 women's team, while taking the senior women's side to a gold at the Hockey World League Semi-Finals in 2015.

He has never coached a senior men's national team, and that's why this appointment has come as a huge jolt to some even in HI.

"I don't know what the thinking is, honestly," a HI official said on condition of anonymity. "It is a risk, but it's also not fair to write him off without giving a chance."

In what is a reflection of the confusion within Indian hockey, the appointment comes days after HI decided to advertise for Oltmans's successor on its website.

The advertisement, which gave aspiring applicants a deadline of September 15 to send in their CVs, was taken down on Thursday when the decision was made by HI and Sports Authority of India (SAI) officials to go ahead with Marijne.

Interestingly, the advertisement stated that the applicant must possess "experience of successful achievements at the international level in a coaching capacity". Although Marijne has some feats to boast with women teams, he has none with any men's side.

But while the move defies conventional wisdom and logic, the HI official highlighted two major aspects that work in Marijne's favour.

"Firstly, he has been in India since February, and knows how the Indian system as well as players work by now. Any other foreign coach would've taken time to just get used to the culture. Secondly, Oltmans has imbibed the Dutch style of hockey into the players, which has worked well to an extent. Marijne can carry that forward, being from the same country," the official said.

Whatever the reasoning, one thing's for sure: Marijne has to deliver results, and soon, starting with the Asia Cup next month till the 2018 FIH World Cup in December.

Bittersweet pill for Harendra

Marijne's appointment leaves Harendra with a bittersweet pill to swallow. Having made his desire to bag the top job in Indian hockey loud and clear publicly, getting the charge of the women's team would certainly be a case of settling for the next best thing for him.

The Indian was touted as one of the favourites to replace Oltmans, having given the country a historic Junior World Cup title last year and being looked upon as one of the best coaches around in the country.

What's more, a number of players – especially the juniors – in the current core group have grown under him, and would've shared a great rapport with their 'Harendra sir'. And despite being associated with the senior men's national team from 2009 to 2011, Harendra was overlooked.       

"Look, Harendra is good but we couldn't suddenly get an Indian coach after sticking to foreigners for so many years. But we didn't want to sideline him completely, and that's why we gave him the responsibility of the women's team, who will believe can improve leaps and bounds under him," the HI official said.

DID YOU KNOW?

In a significant first, the announcement of the coaches’ appointment was made by new sports minister Rajyavardhan Rathore on Twitter, unlike in the past where the process of appointing coaches would be made by Hockey India after the nod from Sports Authority of India

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