The junior women's hockey team strengthens their defence ahead of Asia Cup

The Indian junior hockey team departs for the 7th Junior Asia Cup

The Indian junior Women’s hockey team are working hard on their defensive structures ahead of the 7th Junior Women’s Asia Cup scheduled to be played in the Changzhou province of China. The tournament will commence from 5th September 2015 and the winners will qualify directly for the 2016 Junior Hockey World Cup.

The Indian squad is drawn in Pool A with the likes of China, Malaysia, Singapore and the Democratic Public’s Republic of Korea, while Pool B comprises of Thailand, Chinese-Taipei, South Korea and Japan.

The chief coach of the Indian women’s team, Mathias Ahrens, was very optimistic of India’s chances at the Junior Asia Cup following a satisfying performance at the recently concluded U-21 Volvo Invitational Tournament. He said, “”We have a very good team for this tournament. After having long preparation camp, players are now confident that we can overcome obstacles and come home successfully as a Junior World Cup qualified team”, as reported by Hockey India.

The 52-year old Dutchman comprehends the toughness and competitiveness that lies in the Pool and is well aware of the tough path to secure the qualification to the 2016 Junior World Cup. He added, “We will face tough teams like China, Korea and Japan as all are preparing like us to qualify for the World Cup. The tournament will be very competitive with these top teams and a new entrant in DPR Korea. We have to see how these teams perform in the tournament.”

“We have to close down the gaps on time”

The young and vibrant junior team custodian, Inderpreet Kaur has ensured that the team is working hard on closing down the gaps and doesn’t allow the opponents to score easy goals. She insisted that there is very less scope of mistakes and the team is working hard with the head coach to strengthen their defensive structures.

She said, “The team is upbeat and we are confident of showcasing a strong performance in the pool phase. We along with Women’s Chief Coach Mathias Ahrens are working on the defence structure of the team. We have to ensure that we close the gaps on time by ensuring that we cover each other. Also taking possession and going on the counter attack will be the key and each one of us is ready for the test ahead”, as reported by Hockey India.

The Indian junior women’s team will take on the Democratic Public’s Republic of Korea in their first tie on 5th September 2015 at 12:30 IST.