There was little doubt about Pakistan qualifying for the hockey contest in this year's Athens' Olympiad from among the 12 competitors at Madrid. The speculators, the jeremiahs excluded, had also tipped the national formation to get a ticket for Greece via the Madrid test of strength.
However, the Pakistan bunch's professional approach, their efficient fare and well-organised sallies, especially against India, the main foe, earned it the approbation of the experts. No supporter of this pacy field game had thought in his wildest dream that the neighbouring country would twice touch the dust at Madrid's Club de Campa against Pakistan.
The team's verve and vigour in their workouts were laudable, considering that Pakistan went down fighting only to a resurgent Spain by 3-2 and were held to a draw by Malaysia, whose tactics appeared to be a stout defence. The latter failed to find the net but Pakistan, regretfully, were pathetically inhibited inside the circle, despite the presence of Sohail Abbas, lethal penalty corner striker, among its fold.
The Malaysian defensive mode proved of no avail for in the whole schedule of the competition seldom their attack came in tandem to cause discomfort to the other participating sides and they finished 10th at the end of the qualifier. Thus they were knocked out of reckoning for the Athens skirmishes, beaten by India, New Zealand, Poland and Belgium. They also fired their experienced German coach.
Pakistan's first duel against India was a thriller. It was pleasing to see the vibrancy of the front runners with the aid and abetment of the intermediate line, which for the first time was found to be nippy and hardly wasted time in keeping the ball for longer than the required period.
Pakistan had anxious moments when Gagan Ajit Singh twice showed his striking power in a style of some of the famed forwards of yore. The score was 4-3 when Gagan's second goal came. However, Sohail Abbas settled the issue later with a stunner.
A margin of 5-3 in Pakistan's triumph does not appear to be large but Pakistan were usually the front-runners in this needle match. In full flow the forwards could not be checked by the Indian middlers or the deep defence. Certainly the squad had received good training and pep talk from the Dutch coach, Roelant Oltmans, who should be given the credit that rightly belongs to him.
The crafty dribbles, the short and long passes delighted the onlookers, who were of the opinion that India, on previous record, was the better combination.
In the playoff for the bronze after the agonising and traumatic series of blasts in Madrid the atmosphere at Club de Campa was gloomy and sombre, the cheering had a low pitch but the Pakistan pack had always the edge and their raiders set a pulsating tone to keep the Indians on the defensive. Sohail Abbas struck only once but the field goals, especially the one from an acute angle by Kashif Jawwad, almost 13 metres from the bar, were worth going miles to see.
Pakistan got the Olympic berth with a display that deserves accolades. The critics would point to the lapses against Spain but the European side was a comparatively more nifty and swift side. Though Pakistan had brought them down in the Azlan Shah invitational at Kuala Lumpur last January by a scoreline of 4-2, this time in the pre-Olympic tussles they had come to the field with better paper work and even had held the Netherlands, the ultimate winners, to a draw in the pool tie. The final proved two straining for them and Holland, the Olympic champion, was seen to be in a higher plane. Still they fought hard and were only beaten at the end by golden goals of Dutch striker Ronald Brouwer. Yet in the match the Spainiads, time and again, cut the raids of the Dutch and at the regulation time the score was tied at 1-1.
Holland had given exciting displays in Madrid with their ascendancy in all departments of the game. Some of their old masters have left the stage but they built up a good outfit to comfortably win this qualifying tournament with the expected measure of competency and maintaining a quick tempo in all the matches.
For Pakistan the tactics employed was the Oriental one but this time one was happy to see a fine use of the flanks. The inners too were speedy, showing co-ordination and rhythm that was praiseworthy.
If the half-line performed its dual role well, the deep defenders also were impressive in smothering the pressure applied by Spain and India.
More arduous work and training are needed for the Olympics as that is the major test. The lineup has not to depend only on the booming drives of Sohail, who was in the fulness of form at Madrid. The Indians were usually fearful of him. He is expected to show his power of hits at next tournamental fixtures. But the whole raiders should show mobility and vibrancy.
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