ISLAMABAD, Oct 15 The director general of the Pakistan Sports Board on Friday said that Pakistan's foreign hockey coach should remain with the side until 2012 London Olympics and local coaches should also benefit from his training.

“Dutch coach Michel van den Heuvel should stay with the squad until 2012 London Olympics to engineer a long-term strategy besides shaping Pakistan's hockey on scientific lines,” Amir Hamza Gilani, also a former national shot-put athlete, told Dawn.

Pakistan's hockey could not place itself better on the international map for last several years, however, it had a history of winning the World Cup in 1994 and a Champions Trophy under Dutch penalty-corner specialist coach Hans Jorritsma.

The squad also finished at a respectable level when Dutchman Oltmans took charge of the squad during 2004, though he could not click to make Pakistan win any international event.

Amir Hamza insisted “The Dutch coach has just taken over the tough job of coaching some two months back and calls from Olympians to send him back with a single result [Commonwealth Games] is unfair.”

Pakistan hockey players, he said, were good at dribbling, body dodges and short passes but this was changed a lot so “you must be at least equal to Europeans in the art of converting a goal during a penalty-corner chance”.

He asserted that the artistry of converting into the European style would take time but Pakistan players were capable of learning it.

He further said “The PHF should explore the aspect of training local coaches from the Dutch coach. This will help the federation groom new talent at local academies.”

The federation, he said, should strengthen and expand the club hockey base which “is ultimate source for new talent while the government is already assisting PHF's initiative.”

Asked about the transparency of PHF financial details, he claimed

“We have complete trust in Qasim Zia and his men, however, the government has all the power to check the financial spending of the federation.

“We also have copies of the previous audit reports of the federation.”