LAHORE, Oct 7: The national hockey training camp for Champions Trophy hockey will commence from Nov 8 at National Stadium. “The camp will be attended by nearly 35 players who have participated in different national senior and junior tournaments besides hockey league,” said a Pakistan Hockey Federation official on Friday.

India will host the Champions Trophy in Chennai from Dec 10-18. PHF secretary Brig Musarrat Ullah Khan (retd) said victory in an eight-nation tournament in the Netherlands in August did not mean that PHF had achieved its target.

“We have still to go a long way and success should not be taken in a way which could hamper our prospects in the Champions Trophy.

“Our focus should be to rectify our mistakes and to prepare the players under a plan to overcome pressure situations in which in the past usually they faltered, ruining our chances in the important matches,” he said.

The official said objective of inviting about 35 players was to create ample opportunity for each player to give his best.

Pakistan took the bronze at home in the last Champions Trophy at Lahore, beating arch-rivals India in a classification tie.

The official said efforts would be made to blend youth with experience in the camp to form a side which was capable of producing encouraging results to keep the winning run of the team intact.—APP