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International : Asia

India: Rach steps down as hockey coach

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India

January 12, 2005

Mid-Day Mumbai, India
> Page Views 584

Under attack over a string of failures, India's chief hockey coach Gerhard Rach has quit his job.
The German-born Rach, whose future was hanging in balance following a string of poor performances by the team in various events including Olympics and Champions Trophy, has taken up a new assignment with the national team of Egypt, the Indian Hockey Federation said today.

IHF Secretary K Jothikumaran said Rach had telephoned IHF president KPS Gill last night to inform him about his decision.

"Rach called up Gill last night to tell him about his decision. IHF wished him all the best in his future endeavour," Jothikumaran told PTI.

Rach became the first foreign coach of the hockey team when he was appointed to the top job just a few days before the Olympics.

He would officially take over as the coach of Egypt on January 25.

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Comments on this article

Chennai hockey fan 01-12-2005 7:47 am	Report this post
`time to sensible now that gerhard rach has resigned, the hockey federation should be sensible in selecting our next coach. probably ric charlesworth will be a very good coach. he should be given time and only then the ihf should judge him. it is good that kps gill is having discussions with him.`

Hockey Fan 01-12-2005 10:12 am	Report this post
`Gill should go Now that Rach has resigned maybe Gill and Jothi (Bank Clerk) should be banished also with the lost tribes of the nicobar islands. Only problem is that the lost tribes will refuse to take them in. I think Gill and Jothi need to be held accountable and should be kicked out of Indian Hockey by our Government.`

J. Paul - From Chennai now in Texas 01-12-2005 11:31 am	Report this post
`Yes... Chennai Fan... You are right. Ric may be of better help. I really think they should try Inam-ur-Rehman ( 1968 Olympics). He might have been one of the best Inside-lefts of India. He was the coach of Argentina for some time...`

>??? 01-12-2005 6:08 pm	Report this post
`get charlesworth!!!`

nick from canada 01-12-2005 9:54 pm	Report this post
`coach why are we forgetting M K KAUSHIK ? he delivered the asian gold and is respected by the players. He should be brought in in some capacity. Let us not get carried away. Strange the Aussies never called Ric to coach their mens team !`

Chennai Hockey Fan 01-12-2005 10:26 pm	Report this post
`gill must leave i think that kps gill must be shown the door as soon as the phl is over. something new has been organised by him and let us not disturb that. sunil dutt must act immediately. the federation officials and state associations must revolt against him and send him out along with jothi. can anyone tell me how gill got into the ihf as i dont know. i was a kid then.`

Stanis from Chennai 01-12-2005 11:39 pm	Report this post
`Yes Nick Nick you are Gill should bring back Kaushik. He is the one(and only one) who brought out the best of pillay. He is the one with proven record.`

JJ 01-13-2005 6:54 am	Report this post
`? get wisdom!`

Aussie observer
01-13-2005 9:35 am Report this post

response to Nick from canada Charlesworth was offered the Aussie men's job before Walsh in 1996 and before Dancer in 2000. In 1996 he decided to stay with the women and in 2000 he said he needed a break. Had we not won in Athens he would have the job now! He's the only coach in the world in men's or women's to have won consecutive gold medals at the the Olympics and World Cup. And you can do better!! Even Kaushik recommended him recently!! I hope he stays here!

COOL
01-13-2005 12:43 pm Report this post

EXPECTED It does not matter if Rach declined to coach or he was given the boot. In anycase, Indian hockey has been spared the ultimate fiasco. Rach and Indian hockey are better off parting ways. In the past, I have been very critical of Rach and his ways. Now that he has left, I wish him all the best and hope he can do better with the Egyptians. In all fairness, Gills has in the past done some good for IHF. Build various level teams, starting PHL, tried various combinations of coaches etc. (maybe too many!), infused money in the sport - to mention a few. I really feel he has Indian hockey foremost in HIS mind but with a warped sense of loyalty towards it. But he's going too. His days are numbered. All the good he has done has been negated due to his vindictive, autocratic and egotistical approach to Indian hockey. Along with Gill, all his nefarious cronies should also be banished. IHF should start afresh. It should be professionally managed. I only hope that the future IHF has a clear mandate. Deliver or perish! It's about time the sports ministry acted with character and strength. It's about time that Indian hockey regains composure and respect. It's about time the players get their due and be allowed to play without fear of being in Gill's firing line. It's about time the best represent the nation. The new slogan for Indian hockey fans should be: Save Indian hockey Boot Gill & his lackey! //

SSC
01-13-2005 2:13 pm Report this post

Rach choosing to coach anohter country obviously means he was about to get the boot or maybe he genuinely left with his own choice, personally I dont think he was the right man for the job. He certainly didn't have many credentials other then those at domestic league. For once with the IHF maybe the right thing has happened. If they were going for a foriegn coach for me R. Charlesworth has to be the man, if you consider his ability and success - proven. Even if he does come to coach India, until the coach gets the final choice of what players he wants and a guranteed period of contract this job is going to prove difficult for anyone. Underlining all of this why are we still a complete mess although we probably have more hockey players then any other nation? IHF.

Sutar 01-13-2005 4:45 pm	Report this post
`Read this article http://www.indianexpress.com/full_story.php?content_id=62647 Does it get any uglier and funnier than this ?? my favorites :-) "IHF is a madhouse"-Rach Jothikumaran calls Gill a buddhah`

Dude
01-14-2005 4:18 am Report this post

Give the devil his due ! Cool, I agree with your analysis of Gill. No one can question his love and commitment for Indian Hockey. He has genuinely made some great contributions. However, yes he has been autocratic. Rach too, did make some real contributions. I felt that what he achieved in the short time was commendable. There was finally a team playing as a unit and there was a definite strategy in place in each match. Gill is not totally off target in being miffed with Gagan and Dhanraj. Gagan was a total flop in the olympics. I Fully support Gill in his decision to exclude Gagan. Gagan needs to work his way back into the team. He is a player of exceptional calibre but currently his game is crap and he is a liability. If he wants to get back to the team he should prove his worth ! Dhanraj. Great player, was our best forward at ATHENS. Great Individual, Look at all he has done for hockey vis-a-vis starting a hockey academy. But he is a team in himself and yes he is a star and he behaves like one so he's really tough to handle. Whatever Dhanraj does off pitch, he gives his 150% on the field. But, one has to agree with IHF that we have to look beyond Dhanraj now.

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