Indian junior hockey team begins Sultan of Johor Cup preparatory camp in New Delhi
FILE PHOTO: Manpreet Singh will be leading the side in the tournament
The preparatory camp of the Indian junior men’s hockey team for the upcoming 3rd Sultan of Johor Cup hockey tournament got under way at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium in New Delhi on Monday.
The 3rd Sultan of Johor Cup hockey tournament will be held at Ipoh, Malaysia from September 22-29.
The Manpreet Singh-led 18-member side is going through the training drills under the watchful eyes of South African head coach Gregg Clark and assistance coach and former Indian defender/midfielder Baljit Singh Saini.
Midfielder Manpreet was part of the senior team in the recent 9th Asia Cup, where India finished runners-up, losing 3-4 to Korea in the final.
Striker Affan Yousuf will be the vice-captain of the side.
The squad will feature a slew of junior players who were part of the senior team that took part in the 9th Asia Cup in Ipoh.
Besides skipper Manpreet Singh, the team will have the services of fullback Amit Rohidas, midfielder Kothajit Singh, midfielder Satbir Singh and nippy striker Mandeep Singh, who featured in the 2013 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, but was not part of the Ipoh event.
It is pertinent to mention that the national hockey selectors have picked four players from the 9th Asia Cup senior team as standbys – they are SK Uthappa, Gurmail Singh, Malak Singh and Ramandeep Singh, who recently made his senior international debut in Ipoh.
The 18-member squad was picked following a two-day selection trials held at Major Dhyanchand National Stadium in New Delhi on August 28 and 29.
At the 2013 Sultan of Johor Cup, India will be pitted against the likes of Argentina, England, Korea, Pakistan and hosts Malaysia.
India will kickstart their campaign against England on September 22, followed by a game against Argentina the next day.
The Blueshirts will lock horns with arch-rivals Pakistan on September 25 before facing Korea the next day.
India will wrap up their league engagements against Malaysia on September 28.
The camp will conclude on September 17.
The squad:
Goalkeepers: Harjot Singh, Sushant Tirkey
Defenders: Amit Rohidas, Jarmanpreet Singh, Kothajit Singh, Surender Kumar, Sukhmanjit Singh, Pardeep Mor
Midfielders: Manpreet Singh (captain), Prabhdeep Singh, Harjit Singh, Satbir Singh, Imran Khan
Forwards: Mandeep Singh, Amon Mirash Tirkey, Mohammad Amir Khan, Talwinder Singh, Affan Yousuf (vice-captain)
Standbys: Jagdeep Dayal (goalkeeper), Dipsan Tirkey (defender), Gurmail Singh (defender), Stanli Minz (midfielder), Lalit Upadhayay (midfielder), S K Uthappa (midfielder), P L Thimmanna (forward), Ramandeep Singh (forward), Malak Singh (forward).