KUALA LUMPUR – The Netherlands is banking on conquering India to put an end to their drought in the FIH Men’s Junior World Cup.
As the quarterfinals play out on Tuesday, the Dutch team sees the Indian side as a formidable hurdle in achieving their long-awaited mission.
Jong Oranje has qualified for all 12 World Cups but have yet to lay their hands on the coveted trophy.
Head coach Jesse Mahiue has urged his players to improve their defensive inconsistencies to triumph against India.
“This is probably going to be our biggest game in the tournament. We have been watching India play in their group matches, and I must say they have improved a lot since the last World Cup.
“They are a tricky side, and defending their counter-attacks and penalty corners will be challenging.
“My boys lack the experience of playing against India, but we have played against Pakistan in our group, and based on my observation, they both have a similar style of gameplay.
“We have conceded seven goals so far, mainly in the first and second quarters. In the remaining days, we’ll work on our defensive flaws to ensure we don’t concede and secure a convincing victory against them,” said Mahiue.
Meanwhile, India’s head coach, C.R. Kumar, also acknowledges the defensive inconsistencies in his team but believes they have the quality to secure a spot in the semifinals.
“We have been performing well against smaller teams, but we tend to struggle against counter-attacking European teams.
“In our second group match, we were dominated by the Spaniards through counter-attacks and we failed to defend cautiously, which resulted in conceding four goals against them.
“Although we have qualified for the next round, we need to address the defensive aspects of our game to progress further in this tournament.
“The match against the Netherlands will be tough, but we won’t give up and will prove what we are capable of on the turf,” said Kumar.
Despite their defensive frailties, fans can expect a penalty corner masterclass from both sides, as they boast a 50% conversion rate from their drag flickers.
The Netherlands has scored 11 goals in the tournament, earning 10 penalty corners, with five resulting in goals.
India, having scored 15 goals, received 12 penalty corners and converted six.
Netherlands won Group D with seven points, while India defeated Canada 10-1 to finish second in Group C.
India has won the World Cup twice, in the 2001 and 2016 editions. – December 11 , 2023