Practice over, Amit Rohidas rolled down his socks, eliminated the shin guard to indicate the bruises and welts, the consequence of being the primary rusher in a decade-long profession for India. Unafraid of the ball travelling like a bullet in the direction of him throughout penalty corners (PC), the India vice-captain will proceed performing his position like different rushers everywhere in the world.
The price of penalty nook conversions has been declining over time in sharp distinction to the Nineties, 2000s and even early 2010s. Hockey has moved from when groups wishing to win tournaments had only one goal: convert one-third of your PCs and you’ll stand probability of profitable.
Improved tools is a part of the rationale. With cleats, shin, knee and mouth guards, gloves, groin cups and masks, runners now have the arrogance to hurry in the direction of the drag-flickers. “The difference now is the equipment is a lot better for defence. That gives more confidence to the first runner to be running in the line of the ball, minimising our angle to score,” stated drag-flick nice Gonzalo Peillat, who was the highest scorer when Argentina received the Rio 2016 gold. He performs for Germany now.
Improved health is one other. That means rushers are popping out sooner. The final decade has seen the duty of defending a PC shift from a goalkeeper to the primary rusher. In most circumstances, whereas the goalkeeper’s focus is to guard the precise facet, the left is guarded by rushers.
At the continuing World Cup, after 24 group stage matches, solely 43 of the 239 penalty corners have been transformed at a price of 17.99%. It is down from 23.9% on the similar stage through the 2018 World Cup when 40 of 167 resulted in objectives.
Not apprehensive
But drag-flickers and consultants are certain of discovering workarounds. “We need to study a lot more about defence, what the goalkeepers do, what the rushers do, what positions are made available to score, how to manipulate the opponent,” stated Peillat, the 2014 World Cup’s highest scorer.
Much more emphasis is given to knowledge and video evaluation in the present day to concentrate on the positions of the rushers and sparkles’ peripheral imaginative and prescient. “We study techniques, the running patterns of rushers, how they approach the ball and how to find the loopholes so when you drag you get more time,” stated Harmanpreet Singh, India skipper and in addition the crew’s main PC specialist.
Harmanpreet highlighted the significance of the accuracy and pace of the pusher earlier than it reaches the trapper. “The faster we approach the ball, the more time we will get. We try to learn how to do things around the rusher, how to beat the first rusher, find time and gap,” he stated.
Though nonetheless much less, the conversion price has seen a gradual enhance within the event: from 10.7% within the first two days to 17.99% after the group phases. “The share continues to be not as excessive as you’d anticipate but it surely’ll enhance. Normally for a event it is likely to be 15-20% however for the crew that wins it could possibly be as excessive as 30%,” said the great Ric Charlesworth, who coached Australia to 2010 and 2014 World Cup titles.
To counter the rushers, adjustments are made by teams. If a team has two or more world-class rushers, like Australia have Blake Govers and Jeremy Hayward and Belgium Alexander Hendrickx and Loick Luypaert, then teams can confuse the first rusher. While variations too come into play, it also helps if flickers take less time. “There are always solutions teams are working on. As the tournament goes on, we will see them doing better. Don’t forget it is still a good goalscoring chance,” said Charlesworth.
One of the pioneers and greatest exponents of the art, Bram Lomans was the lynchpin of the Dutch team that won the 1996 and 2000 Olympics. He also guided Netherlands to the World Cup crown in 1998. The 47-year-old worked with Indian PC specialists in December, helping Harmanpreet and Co devise ways to get around the rushers.
“I tried to increase their speed. We were trying to make them work better against defenders. We identified which player is good at what kind of flick. There are a few different techniques with which you can do different things,” said Lomans, who also coached India’s drag-flickers online during Covid-19.
The Dutchman said the declining conversion rate will go up as drag-flickers will find “different holes, different ways or play with more variations.” It doesn’t happen automatically, said Lomans who won Champions Trophy in 2002 and 2003. “There has to be very good analysis from coaching staff and players need to be aware where the chances are.”
Usually, during a penalty corner, four rushers and a goalkeeper work together to halt the ball. While two rushers aim to run as fast as possible to the one likely to take the flick – there are normally two standing at the top of the striking circle – two remain behind to assist the goalie.
“If you have two guys running full on, one staying close to goalkeeper, meaning you have only one defender to evade. And you always have seven attackers. If you can outplay the two rushers, you have a very good chance of scoring and that could be via deflection or passing the ball to someone else who can flick it. It is like a chess game – if they do this, you can do this,” stated Lomans.
Lomans was not apprehensive concerning the conversion price both. “It shouldn’t be crucial factor. It is extra about being good on the proper second than getting the precise share. I used to be by no means too apprehensive concerning the conversion price however extra concerning the moments you rating,” he stated.
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