Stylistic change that paved way for India's hockey glory at Paris Games

AFTER that utterly chaotic and ultimately fateful loss to New Zealand on penalties at the World Cup in India last year (3-3 after regulation time), something had to change.

- SWAROOP SWAMINATHAN

Sure, under Graham Reid, the side had broken a four-decades long Olympic drought but playing an ultra-fast, attacking brand of hockey added an additional layer of jeopardy.

While that sort of attacking DNA suited India, they needed more security at the back.

Hockey, unlike football, sees a lot of goals scored. However, like football, most champions share one common trait. The most successful nations are teams who concede the least number of goals. In recent times in men's hockey, the likes of Belgium and Germany have comfortably won global titles while keeping average goals conceded to below 2.

In Craig Fulton's first press conference after he was appointed as coach of the men's team, he shocked the watching journalists when he described his coaching philosophy as 'defend to win'. "I would like to have our defensive structures in place because that's the first step of attacking."