FIRST it was cricket. Now it is hockey. Following the footsteps of officials in Gaddafi Stadium, Pakistan’s hockey managers too are following the yellow-brick road to disaster. And judging from the recent decisions they took, they are already half-way through.
It all started with the sad demise of Shahid Jaffery, the manager of the national outfit. Immediately and most shockingly, coach Shahnaz Sheikh was elevated to the post of manager, while his deputy, Tahir Zaman was posted as coach. It is beyond one’s comprehension why Tahir Zaman has been installed as the coach, when he was actually demoted by the PHF following the team’s miserable run last year, under his supervision.
Not only was Pakistan hurled out of the medals bracket at Busan Asian Games, the country’s poorest ever performance in the event, the team also fared badly at the Manchester Commonwealth Games as well as in the Champions Trophy in Cologne. All these new lows were achieved under Tahir’s command.
The shocking 7-1 semifinal loss to minnows New Zealand in Manchester, and the 4-2 shootout loss against Malaysia in the Asian Games still haunt hockey lovers.
To rub salt to the wounds, PHF Secretary Musarrat Ullah Khan is on record having said Shahnaz had been given the charge of the team as coach because of “non-cooperation” by some senior players. Can he tell us if that was the case, then why has Tahir been given the hot seat once again? Why those senior players were not identified and punished for the misconduct?
Like it was mentioned before, hockey, like cricket, is also suffering from the player power disease.
It would also be interesting to watch Shahnaz restricted to the bench and his juniors coaching the players, as according to the new format, the manager cannot poke his nose in training affairs.
But Shahnaz too, it seems is fast learning the art of giving amusing statements that lack common sense. His recent statement that all team officials, are ‘coaches and managers’, is not only hilarious but also does not make much sense. One can expect such statements from PHF officials, who don’t know the basics of the sport. But it is amazing if such a statement comes from a technocrat like Shahnaz.
To manage a team is a job which needs administrative skills, while coaching is a different ball-game altogether. Coaching is a specialized field demanding experience and competence which can’t be expected from any Tom, Dick and Harry.
If anybody can manage or train the players, then team doctor should also be allowed to do the job. The presence of two, or at times, three coaches, has always proved to be the case of too many cooks spoil the broth.
PHF axed former captain Mohammad Nadeem for the coming Australian tour, as a disciplinary action for playing in a foreign league without informing the PHF. But renaming goalkeeper Ahmad Alam as captain is questionable.
Firstly, Ahmad should not have been recalled for last year’s tour to Spain, the Commonwealth Games and the Champions Trophy, given the fact that the custodian had already announced his retirement in 2001 after a poor performance at Azlan Shah Cup, where he conceded 25 goals.
It is a well-known fact that Ahmad literally begged the PHF officials and pleaded for another chance. The secretary PHF, who was furious why Ahmad did not intimate him before announcing retirement, finally accepted Ahmad’s apology, paving his way into the team.
Secondly, Ahmad’s call-up defies logic as goalkeeper Mohammad Qasim, in Ahmad’s absence, gave an excellent performance at Amstelveen Champions Trophy in 2001 and last year’s World Cup in Kuala Lumpur.
Ahmad’s failure against the Kiwis in the Games semifinal, where he conceded two goals in the opening three minutes, is still a mystery that has yet to be solved.
Not only has Ahmad been renamed captain, after Nadeem’s expulsion, Qasim has been overlooked, thanks to some conspiracy theories written in favour of Ahmad. In fact, Salman Akbar has replaced Qasim for the tour Down-Under. The tall keeper should have been brought in permanently when Ahmad quit. Instead, he was shown the door after Ahmad patched up with PHF.
Qasim has now been made the scapegoat to cement Ahmad under the bar until next year’s Athens Olympics, courtesy patronage by Shahnaz.
Ahmad also lacks discipline which was evident from his behaviour during the national championship in Karachi. The goalkeeper not only deliberately struck Sohail Abbas on the knee, in the semifinal, he also picked up a quarrel in a match against ABL with Mohammad Saqlain, another blue-eyed boy of Shahnaz.
While Ahmad was retained in the squad, Mohammad Sarwar has been sidelined, despite scoring 18 goals in the national championship.
Nadeem got what he deserved, but will the PHF treat the other three players the same way who have also gone abroad to play in leagues without PHF’s consent? Nadeem has been suspended for a tour, will PHF debar Sohail Abbas, Waseem Ahmad and Amir Saleem from appearing in the trials for August’s Champions Trophy in Amstelveen?
The inclusion of Ghazanfar Ali and Zeeshan Ashraf is also debatable. Ghazanfar has been included despite a disciplinary case pending against him. The midfielder had opted to play in the league in England without PHF approval. He neither bothered to appear in this year’s national championship in Karachi nor in the trials for Azlan Shah Cup.
Ghazanfar’s inclusion, however, is not that unexpected as the midfielder has better connections with the PHF with his uncle sitting in federation’s council.
Zeeshan, who has now been called up for upcoming tour, is the very same fullback who was rejected for Azlan Shah Cup by the whole selection committee and the team management. The question is if the defender was not good enough for the previous tour, why he has now been included in the squad?
Another astonishing fact is that Shakeel Abbasi has also been retained for the Australian tour, although the striker did not play a single game in the recent Azlan Shah Cup.
However, the biggest surprise came when PHF chief Aziz Khan, in a recent statement, said four players invited to join the team, are investment for the Athens Games.
If he considers Salman, Zeeshan or Tariq Aziz future investments, why did the PHF not call them after the debacle at World Cup where the team finished a poor fifth?
PHF never paid heed to the advice to infuse young blood into the squad and now takes pride in saying four youngsters are the future investment when Olympics are just months away.
Can the rudderless PHF tell how will it, and the team survive without the three senior and key players and why it did not draft youngsters when it was required?
