NEW DELHI: India women’s hockey team coach Sjoerd Marijne admitted nerves got the better of his side in their crucial 0-0 draw against Australia, as a lack of rhythm, unforced errors and missed opportunities ended their hopes of reaching the World Cup semifinals.India needed a win against Australia on Sunday to stay alive in the semifinal race but were held to a goalless draw. The result sent them into the fifth-sixth place classification match instead, leaving Marijne disappointed with a performance he felt fell short of the team’s capabilities.“It looked like there were nerves. We didn’t play the game we wanted to play. It was not fluent, there was no rhythm in the passing and receiving and there were a lot of unforced errors,” Marijne told PTI after the draw.“It’s not that we can’t do it, but I don’t know why we couldn’t do it. We know we can do much better than this. Everyone is very disappointed.”
Missed chances prove costly
India’s inability to convert their opportunities ultimately proved decisive in a match where nothing short of victory would have kept their semifinal hopes alive.Marijne felt the draw itself was a positive result against Australia, but acknowledged that India could not afford to waste the chances that came their way.“This was our first setback. We didn’t lose and holding Australia to a draw is also a positive, although we needed to win this. In these kinds of matches you have to be there and avail the chances you get.“You need to score goals to win matches, which didn’t happen against Australia,” he said.The Dutchman identified penalty-corner conversion and composure inside the shooting circle as the biggest areas for improvement. India were defensively disciplined but struggled to turn their attacking moments into goals.“Defensively, we were very well structured and organised. The team was very disciplined and stayed on task. The major takeaway from the tournament is converting PCs and the opportunities we get. We need to be a little more calm in scoring positions around the goalkeeper,” he said.
‘We win together, we lose together’
Despite the disappointment, Marijne urged his players to recognise how far they have come in recent months. India will now contest the fifth-sixth place playoff, a position the coach believes would have seemed unlikely just five or six months ago.“But if you had said five or six months ago that we were going to play the fifth-sixth position match, nobody would believe us. I also told the girls that we really need to learn from this,” he said.India’s best-ever Women’s World Cup finish remains fourth place in 1974. Marijne believes reaching the fifth-sixth playoff represents another significant landmark.“I told the girls that we are all disappointed, but we are going to play the fifth-sixth position match, which is also historical. We have reached this position after many decades. We also need to find out why we couldn’t do it today.”Marijne also recalled India’s quarterfinal defeat to Ireland at the 2018 World Cup, saying the experience eventually helped the side overcome Ireland at the Tokyo Olympics three years later.“I remember that we lost the quarterfinal in 2018 against Ireland in London, but we learnt a lot from that match. In Tokyo 2021, we played against them and won. So the learnings will be useful for the future.“We can’t change the result, but I am still very proud of the girls. We win together, we lose together and we draw together. Everyone gave their best. I am always proud of them,” said Marijne.
