Germany favourites to win the Cup

kuala lumpur: come saturday night, the world champions in hockey would be established. and by the looks of it, a new champion could well emerge here from the 10th edition of the men’s world cup hockey tournament. yes, germany, which reached the semifinals in all but the inaugural championships but have yet to win it, have a realistic chance of making that dream come true.right through the ten days and seven matches of the league stage, they have proved to be the most competent and composed side. the 2-3 defeat to spain in the third match was the only aberration, a hiccup that was quickly brought under control. they went on to systematically subdue all opposition, including defending champions holland, and four-time champions pakistan. the germans have adapted and adjusted well to the conditions, their rivals as well as their own strengths and weaknesses and, in the process, quite often deceived the opposition. for instance, when skipper florian kunz, their penalty corner specialist, was going through a horrendous run - he went the first six games without a goal - coach bernhard peters, immediately put bjorn michel on the job. and michel got them the goals. then in the crucial and concluding match against pakistan, peters altered his strategy. michel was there at the fringe of the circle for the penalty corners. but it was kunz who was entrusted the job. not only must it have surprised the pakistanis but kunz had also regained his scoring touch. and that is just one of the many virtues of this german side, whose best performance in the world cup has been a silver medal at the mumbai world cup in 1982. their all-round play, too, has been solid and sure. true, it may be devoid of the artistry one gets to see from the asians. the long hitting - parallel and diagonal - may not be a visual delight. but it is extremely effective. they have been sharp, sensitive and speedy in attack, canny, creative and commanding in midfield and well organised in defence. the germans take on sydney olympic silver medallists south korea in the first semi-final on thursday. the germans should skim this hurdle without much ado. however, it certainly won’t be a leisurely stroll, for at this stage of a major tournament like the world cup, nothing ever can be. the koreans have been far from impressive in the league stage. they are without some of the stars who guided them to the silver in sydney. and they not only lost to eventual group winners australia as well as england, but also struggled initially against cuba and were quite fortunate to beat india as well as hosts malaysia. germany’s opponent in the final, if they do make it, could be australia and not defending champions holland. and this is not built purely on the fact that they came through the grind of the league with a cent per cent record. they were, as usual, given a scare by a resurgent india and also defeated england narrowly. but they play the open game which is not only pleasing to watch but they are capable of making it very effective. moreover, they do not have any specialists when it comes to penalty corners. therein, lies an advantage. the opposition is generally unsure whom to mark unlike when it comes to teams like holland (bram lomans), pakistan (sohail abbas) and argentina (jorge lombi). but there is plenty of versatility on view in this aussie side. quick switching of positions, hard off-the-ball running and maximum usage of the ''no off-side'' rule have been trademarked. the dutch, meanwhile, have not really strutted the field like world champions. for one, lomans has not at all been effective at penalty corner conversions, a way of goal-getting that european teams depend so much on. he has just one goal to his credit from seven league matches and, that too, from a penalty stroke. even teun de nooijer, the hero of the tangerine tribe triumph four years ago, and remco van wijk have not done anything worthy of mention. thus, the aussies will start as favourites against holland. and, in the event of a germany-australia title contest, then the germans might just pull it off this time to take home the only major world title that has eluded them.