After arriving at the Sports Authority of India in Bengaluru following their bronze-medal success at the Sultan of Johor Cup in Malaysia, the Indian Junior Men’s Hockey Team has had time to assess their performance. They secured the Bronze with a gripping win over New Zealand in the play-off.
Sharing the team’s thoughts, Captain Amir Ali expressed, “We were deeply disappointed at not making the final due to goal difference. But we quickly decided there was no point dwelling on what could have been. Instead, we focused on the bronze medal match, knowing we couldn’t return home empty-handed.”
Throughout the tournament, India held a strong lead on the points table with victories over Japan (4-2), Great Britain (6-4), Malaysia (4-2), and a draw with New Zealand (3-3). However, a 0-4 loss to Australia, the eventual tournament champions, knocked India out of the final by just one goal difference, allowing Great Britain to advance.
The team’s resilience, sparked by their new coach, the legendary PR Sreejesh, helped them face high-pressure moments.
“For at least 12 of us, this was our first major tournament. Although we’d played in test series before, a tournament like this was new. Sree bhai (Sreejesh) has been the perfect mentor, encouraging us to enjoy each game without pressure. His guidance was a big reason we could bounce back even after conceding goals,” said Ali, who was part of the India Colts team that won the Sultan of Johor Cup in 2022.
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“He would advise us to take each match step-by-step, and even during half-time when we were behind, he’d remind us to play without pressure. Only the big loss to Australia hurt us. Now, the team understands the importance of each goal in a round-robin format,” Ali added.
Back in training at SAI, Bengaluru, the team is now fully focused on winning the Men’s Junior Asia Cup, which also serves as a qualifying event for the FIH Junior World Cup starting on 26 November in Muscat, Oman. “We’re back to training for the Junior Asia Cup, and these next few months are critical as we gear up for the Junior World Cup on home ground.”
He noted how training alongside the Senior team is beneficial, “Playing with the senior team has taught me a lot, which helps in guiding the newer players on the Junior side. I’ve learned so much from Harmanpreet Singh and Manpreet.”
When asked how they address their new coach, Amir laughed and shared, “We all asked if we should call him ‘Sir’ now that he’s our coach. He told us to choose whatever we felt comfortable with, so we decided on ‘Sree Bhai,'” he concluded.
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