In hockeys tug-of-war,a competition stretched,distorted

With 38 teams taking part in the third Hockey India national championships,the tournament no doubt is high on quantity,perhaps the most in any edition of the tournament. From Jammu & Kashmir to Andaman and Nicobar,every state and union territory is represented in the tournament. But the bloated programme has resulted in heavy compromise on quality resulting in the competition turning out to be a perfect prescription for an insomniac.

Scorelines such as 10-0,15-0 have become a norm while a couple of matches have ended in the final tally reading 30-0 (Punjab,vs Gujarat) and 28-0 (Services,vs Goa). Seventy nine goals were scored in the seven matches played on Friday whereas there was a marginal drop on Saturday,with 71 goals being scored. Its too big a number,theres no doubt about it, Hockey India high performance director Roelant Oltmans,who was here for the first two days of the tournament,said. We realise that with so many lopsided matches,it has been a turn off for those watching.

Organising a tournament with 38 teams too has been a logistical nightmare. It is learnt that roughly Rs30 lakh have been spent on food and lodging alone,with travel and other basic expenses being excluded from this total.

There have been suggestions that the decision to include these many teams is a conscious one,with an intention to undermine the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF). IHF,which is Hockey Indias rival faction,too conducts its national championships. By inviting all the member units to take part,Hockey India is trying to ensure they remain loyal to them. The unwritten rule is once you are a part of Hockey India events,which have official recognition from IOA and FIH,you cannot go back to IHF. So by ensuring participation of 38 teams,Hockey India has indirectly landed a big blow to IHFs ambitions of hosting a large-scale national championship, says an official.

That explains the participation of teams such as Namdhari,Sashastra Seema Bal,CAG,Universities,etc. These teams are a part of the event despite the fact that it is predominantly meant for state units.

The selectors too are crying foul. It becomes tough to judge genuine talents for us. How do we distinguish between a player who has scored seven goals in one match and a goalkeeper who has kept clean sheet in three matches only because his opposition was weak? asked a selector.

Format change

Oltmans said they will be reviewing the current format after the nationals when the high performance committee meets in the last week of June. Hockey India secretary general Narinder Batra,who had announced a two-tier system for the nationals last year,said the format would be in place for 2014. We did not have enough time to introduce the new format this year. Its a very busy year for us with the our teams taking part in several tournaments so this was the only period we could have had the national championships. Hence,we decided to continue with the same set-up this year as well, Batra said.

We realise having so many teams affects the quality and defeats the purpose but theres little we could do this time.

Railways beat Namdhari,Namdhari beat up Railways

Five Namdhari XI players reportedly thrashed a Railways team member at the Balewadi Sports Hostel after their hotly contested match at the Hockey India Senior National Championships which the latter team won 5-2.

The five players Sher Singh Shera,Harpreet Singh Nagra,Gurpeet Singh,Gurwinder Singh Kala and Deedar Singh Dara face a ban of up to three years for attacking Railways Narad Bahadir. The team has been fined Rs 25,000, said Manoj Bhore,an organising committee member and Hockey Maharashtra official.

The two teams squared off for a crucial Group F encounter,with a quarterfinal spot up for grabs. Players from both sides were frequently involved in scuffles but the situation never got out of hand.

However,tempers flared after the match. The five players singled out Bahadur and beat him up at the hostel,where all players are put up. Bahadur suffered minor injuries.

This isnt the first time Namdhari have been involved in a ruckus. In an infamous incident,Namdhari players and supporters beat up Indian Oil players after losing a Nehru Cup match in 2006.

Earlier,Air India and Haryana also advanced to the quarterfinals after scoring comfortable victories over their respective rivals. In a Pool B match,Air India trounced Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy 10-1 while Haryana thrashed Hockey Maharashtra 6-1 in Pool D.