Consistency is the keyword for coach Sjoerd Marijne

Feroz Khan / TIMESOFINDIA.COM / Dec 3, 2017, 18:49 IST

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The Indian hockey team lacked energy in the beginning of their second match of the Hockey World League Final against England on Saturday, says coach Sjoerd Marijne and he wants his wards to display the same level of discipline as against Australia.

Consistency is the keyword for coach Sjoerd Marijne

(PTI Photo)

Key Highlights

Chief coach Marijne wants his wards to display the same level of discipline as against Australia
"When a goal is scored against you then it's not just one person's mistake. It's team's," Marijne said
"We are creative and that's our quality. I believe we should focus on ourselves rather than the opponents," Marijne said

BHUBANESWAR: The Indian hockey team lacked energy in the beginning of their second match of the Hockey World League Final against England on Saturday, says coach Sjoerd Marijne and he wants his wards to display the same level of discipline as against Australia.
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"Against Australia, we were extremely disciplined. Against England, there was a little less energy and when you do that against these opponents in the beginning, it becomes difficult to create chances.That was one of the differences. We made more individual mistakes. The speed of the game against Australia was better. We kept the ball a little longer. We have to improve the marking," he said on Saturday.
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When asked whether the team management came out with a different strategy, Marjine said, "The strategy was same as against Australia. Like the first game, we had chances in the beginning, we made good interceptions. However, after making those interceptions, we kept the ball too long and too much at the back."
He said to win matches in the future the team has to exhibit with the same energy levels. "There are a lot of things that we can improve from yesterday's match. Germany is an opportunity to improve ourselves. During the fourth quarter, we were much better. We are here to win matches and for that we need to be more consistent," the 43-year-old observed.

Against England, there were few individual mistakes which cost India the game but the coach refused to put the blame on anyone. "When a goal is scored against you then it's not just one person's mistake. It's team's. And it starts from the front," he said.
He advised the team to keep the pace of the game high which will allow them to play to their strength. "We are creative and that's our quality. I believe we should focus on ourselves rather than the opponents. Things have to move faster. Failing that, we won't be able to play our best game," Marjine said.

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