No exposure for hockey in Tamil Nadu

Hockey is the national game of India but how many youngsters actually know that? If you look at any street or park in our city, you will find youngsters playing cricket or football. Why has hockey as a sport not found any takers, especially among the youth here?
Lack of matches is one of the main reasons for this negative impact on the game say players, and it looks as if the sport has almost fallen into a slumber in Tamil Nadu."The hockey scene here is getting worse day-by-day. The main reason is the fight between Hockey India and the Indian Hockey Federation. And the Tamil Nadu team, especially, is affected by this. A few years back, when IHF was in power, there used to be tournaments in Chennai. Now, as there are no tournaments happening, it has affected the stature of the sport in the state," laments Adam Sinclair, a former member of the Indian hockey team.
The Indian national hockey team's recent bad performances, including the debacle at the London Olympics last year, has affected the spirit of the game among many youngsters. "The national team's performance is very important for people to take note of the sport. And parents look up to the performance of the national team before they allow their children to enroll in school sports teams," says Adam.
But players and those in the sport, say that's it's the need of the hour to take immediate steps to bring back the game to the fore. One of the main concerns is lack of facilities for players in Chennai.
"Players should get to play more on artificial turf surface, which improves their confidence levels and also be provided with the best hockey equipment," says Vasudevan Baskaran, former Indian hockey team captain. Baskaran is also of the opinion that many coaches in the state fail to get enough opportunities to fine-tune the skills of youngsters.
Some people say that a love for the sport should be inculcated at a young age itself. And that can happen only if there are plenty of hockey tournaments and opportunities for youngsters to play.
"There should be more number of hockey tourneys happening at the school level. Hockey clubs in schools must conduct training sessions frequently. Children should also be made aware of the laurels India had in the past in hockey and encourage them to build a better future for the national sport in the years to come," says R Senthil, a hockey enthusiast in the city.