The Indian men's hockey team ended their Pro League campaign provisionally top of the table - after playing eight away matches in a span of two weeks against the likes of Great Britain, Belgium, the Netherlands and Argentina. New coach Craig Fulton's first spell in charge saw four wins, including a shootout victory and four outright defeats - a satisfactory 30 points from 16 matches overall putting India top, although six of the other eight teams can still overhaul that total.
Considering the opposition (Belgium, Netherlands and England are ranked above India), the fact that these were away matches and that the team was playing under the new coach Craig Fulton for the first time, the results (11 points from a possible 24) were not terrible. India outplayed Belgium in the one of the matches, winning 5-1, defeated Great Britain in a shootout and won twice against Argentina. These were not an easy set of matches, and plenty could've gone wrong... but it didn't. Overall, Fulton and the team ought to be satisfied.
India are the top of the league, although other teams have a lot of matches to play and it is very unlikely that India will hold on to their position. But these results away from home could help in a potential top-three finish.
Craig Fulton needs more time with the defence
'Defend to attack' is how Fulton described his philosophy, which is a change from India's previous all-out attacking approach under Graham Reid. In the eight matches they played, India showed signs of improved transitions, defending deep and soaking pressure before trying to make an impact on the counter. The style is not attractive per se, but it bore results.
Ahead of their match versus the Netherlands, Chief Coach Craig Fulton talks about his impressions of the team and Captain Harmanpreet Singh talks about his role as a leader going forward.#HockeyIndia #IndiaKaGame #FIHProLeague pic.twitter.com/1po8Wev6X0
- Hockey India (@TheHockeyIndia) June 7, 2023
The Belgium victory was a perfect example of their new way of playing, where India took their chances on the counter, won penalty corners and also scored goals. Even in their first win against Argentina, Abhishek scored one of their best counter-attacking goals in recent times to put the match to bed. This was when India were leading 2-0 and Argentina were in an all-out attacking mode. Vivek Sagar Prasad and Abhishek combined to take the ball out of their defence and score India's third.
But the defence, which Fulton wants to focus on, is still a work in progress. In eight away matches, they conceded 19 goals, including four goals twice against Great Britain and seven goals against the Netherlands in two matches. Both these teams, Great Britain especially, play a high intensity, attacking brand of hockey. Under pressure from better attacking teams, India are highly likely to succumb and concede. That India conceded just a goal more (20) in their eight away games during the 2021-22 Pro League campaign under Reid's attacking approach is a sobering statistic.
Manpreet Singh finds his defensive mojo
After the first two matches under Fulton, there was a big question mark around Manpreet's usefulness in defence. A pivotal presence in the middle of the pitch, Manpreet drove India to many victories over the past decade. Was there truly a need to make him play as the defender?
However, as he played more matches in the backline, he did adjust to his new position and made a decent impression as a defender. Manpreet was not a standout in terms of tackles but as a defender, he got his positioning right more often than not. What really stood out was the way he played out from the backline to start attacks. As a midfielder, he has the vision to find the right passes, which could be very useful in a counter-attacking style.
According to Fulton, Manpreet offers solidity in defence but even he's not sure yet if the former captain's national team future will be as a defender. Either way, Manpreet showed that he's dependable and versatile, and proved that he's still a vital player in this team.
Harmanpreet Singh repeats his Pro-League scoring heroics
Be it playing under a new coach or being involved in a new way of playing itself, Harmanpreet Singh is still the most important player in this team. In 14 Pro League matches this season, Harmanpreet scored 18 goals, which included 16 from penalty corners, equalling his tally from the previous season - where he finished as the top-scorer.
In the six away matches he played in the recent legs, Harmanpreet scored in all of them -- seven in total -- except one. When he was rested for the last two matches against the Dutch and Argentina, India failed to convert from their penalty corner chances. In fact, in their final game against Argentina, India did not even earn a single penalty corner.
Vivek Sagar Prasad shines, finally
While Harmanpreet provided the goals, Vivek Sagar Prasad made a significant impact in front of his new coach. He scored a superb field goal against Belgium, made assists, and seemed at ease with the team's new style, proving his effectiveness on the counters.
Vivek needed a personal win after a disappointing World Cup performance (returning to the squad after a bad knee injury). With Dilpreet Singh also playing as a midfielder and doing well, Vivek had a thing or two to prove. Although he's quick on the turnovers and reliable with the ball, he needed to find consistency. Having played well in all eight matches, it looks like Vivek did enough to win his new coach's confidence.
What's next?
India will travel to Spain in July to play in a friendly tournament against the host nation and Netherlands. There's the Asian Champions Trophy in August before they depart to China to participate at the Asian Games.