A mid-summer's nightmare?

It had unearthed a clutch of young and exuberant players who had the courage to look straight into the shimmering eyes of the God of Victory. A couple of hungry strikers, a competent penalty-corner flicker, a brave goalkeeper and a resurgent Dhanraj Pillay added up to a perfect team to script a new Olympic dream.
Yet, in the blink of an eye, everything went burst. First, the inspirational Dhanraj became an object of envy and it disrupted team harmony and vision; next, Jugraj Singh succumbed to his youthfulness and was ruled out for a few months; and finally, the federation went on a mindless experimental streak.
Amidst all the madness, however, a bigger story was quietly unfolding in the background. K P S Gill, pushed to the brink of a deep crevice, switched to fast-forward mode: he unveiled a long fitness camp in the US and inducted a string of foreign experts to give the team a modern outlook and to plug holes in its strategies.
In normal circumstances, the two moves would have been hailed as masterstrokes. But with the Olympic Games round the corner they looked like desperate measures.
Can the players cope with the inputs of the foreign experts? Can they forsake their natural instincts and mix caution with aggression? Most importantly, do they have the time to imbibe the lessons and transform overnight? Probably not.
Yet, one believes that this extraordinary set of incidents, including the exit of chief coach Rajinder Singh, might present India the best opportunity to surpass itself. After all, despite all the talk of old-world charm and attacking hockey, it was becoming more and more apparent that the Indian brand was getting outdated.
It was time to move on. The world''s best coaches might still love and admire the way we play; but they had found more than a handful of ways to outwit us. Our coaches refused to rise above their one-dimensional tactics, believing that their sublime skills would take care of everything else.
Now, of course, we have two Germans preparing a blueprint for an assault on Athens. The next few days are obviously going to be crucial. What areas are they working on? What are they teaching the boys? What exactly are they all doing right now? The answers to these three questions will probably give a good indication of how the team will fare.
According to information reaching here, the players are more than impressed with Gerhard Rach and Oliver Kurtz inputs.
Apparently, they pinpoint mistakes during the game itself and recommend remedies instantly. Gill even claimed that the team looker sharper and much better after just a few interactions.
We will know very soon if it was just another move to quell any criticism before a storm breaks out. Or will the dream finally come true?