LAHORE, Aug 23: Two former Olympians on Monday criticised poor performance by the Pakistan hockey team at Athens Olympics, especially against Spain. Pakistan's hopes of reaching the semifinals were dashed after a 4-0 thrashing by Spain in a crucial match.

Khawaja Zakauddin, a former manager, said it was disappointing performance against Spain who beat Pakistan by such a big margin. He said team lacked strategy to mark Eduardo Tubau which allowed him to score thrice.

"Tubau should have been marked but our defenders gave him space and he exploited the situation," he said. He said the Spanish team outclassed Pakistan with fine stick work and accurate passing.

"Sohail Abbas is a strong weapon as far as short corner is concerned but there was no planning to utilise him." Pakistan got only one short corner against Spain and that too in the dying minutes.

He did not agree with the Spanish coach Maurits Hendricks that the Pakistani boys were not physically fit. "Our boys played around 150 matches before Olympics without any major fitness problems which proves they are fit. The main thing is that they did not use their skills."

Munir Dar said there was no plan to check Tubau which showed lack of preparation. "The 3-0 win against South Korea made our boys overconfident and they took Spain lightly."

He said future of Pakistan hockey was bleak and urged the higher authorities to take notice of the poor performance of the team and Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF). He said forward-line failed to live up to expectations because of which Pakistan could not force penalty corners against Spain.