Hockey India will soon decide whether to retain the services of the men’s team’s head coach Sjoerd Marijne after a dismal performance at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
The hockey federation has scheduled a meeting in New Delhi on Saturday where officials will discuss Marijne’s future, according to reports. India failed to win a medal in hockey at the Commonwealth Games for the first time since 2010.
Hockey India officials had met several senior Indian players recently and sought their views on the team’s performance, according to The Hindu. Along with Marijne, the role of high performance director David John is also being scrutinised, according to a report in The Indian Express.
While the men’s hockey team began a camp in Bengaluru on Friday, where goalkeeper PR Sreejesh was handed the captaincy for the rest of the year, Marijne was absent and is reported to be on a break in his homeland, The Netherlands, after the CWG.
Marijne was scheduled to return to India in time for the camp but problems with his visa have delayed his arrival. “I am supposed to join next week,” the head coach told The Hindu. “I am waiting for my visa papers, I don’t know when it will come.” When asked about the uncertainty over his job, Marijne said, “I don’t know anything about this. Best you call up Dr Narinder Batra and ask.”
Batra, who was the former president of Hockey India, is currently heading the international hockey federation and holds no official position with the Indian body.
A senior Hockey India official told The Indian Express that the Indian team’s lacklustre performance at Gold Coast was a matter of grave concern. “They have been given world-class facilities to train and there have been no shortage of matches to prepare,” the official was quoted as saying.
“We have spoken to the players and changes are already made there. A decision on the coach should have been taken by now but we will make an announcement over the weekend,” the official added.
According to The Hindu, Marijne could be replaced by the Indian women’s team coach, Harendra Singh, who had applied for the job when former men’s team coach Roelant Oltmans was sacked last year. The Indian women’s team exceeded expectations by finishing fourth at Gold Coast. If Singh gets the job, he will become the first Indian to be head coach of the men’s team after Joaquim Carvalho in 2008.