In a recent correspondence to all Hockey India member units, Dr. Dilip Tirkey, President, Hockey India on Monday stressed the importance of specialist drag-flickers and goalkeepers in modern hockey and asked academies to focus on improving these two aspects of the game.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Dr. Tirkey also highlighted the need to develop a talent pool of young athletes specialised in these two skills.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
He stated, "The drag-flicking technique has become one of the most thrilling aspects of modern hockey. The joy of a well-coordinated penalty corner with the ball being dragged at the speed of a bullet going past the wall of defenders always emerges as one of the most exciting aspects of the sport.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"Similarly, there is a growing importance of having a well-trained and agile goalkeeper. India's recent success in major international tournaments can be attributed to PR Sreejesh<\/strong> and Savita Punia<\/strong> who have played their roles with the utmost professionalism," Dr. Tirkey was quoted as saying in a release on Monday.<\/p>\r\n\r\n He further added, "Drag-flickers and goalkeepers at the junior level still need vast improvement in their game skills. Hence, there is a growing need for specialised coaching across these disciplines at the academies."<\/p>\r\n\r\n In light of this need for enhancing our pool of talent across these aspects, Hockey India has initiated a process of scouting talent from a young age and with the support of the hockey academies and sports hostels, support the training and selection of these athletes for national programs.<\/p>\r\n\r\n Additionally, to develop better young talent across these two critical domains, Hockey India has urged the member units to initiate specialised coaching across the hockey academies and sports hostels.<\/p>\r\n\r\n The coaches engaged for this will train Zonal teams selected during inter-zonal tournaments. These coaches, who are as essential to the ecosystem as all other coaches, will also get a chance to enhance their skills as part of this programme, Hockey India said in the release.<\/p>\r\n\r\n