It will be a new experience and a first for the Indian hockey team. After meeting with considerable success of late in the outdoor version of the game, the Indians are now getting ready to pit their skills in the slam-bang version.
Indoor hockey is extremely popular in Europe and was developed so that hockey could be played during the winter months. It is fast, exciting, spectator friendly and visually appealing. It is with the idea of popularising the game that this has been included in the Asian Indoor Games in Macau this month.

And who else to coach the Indian team but Olympian and former forward Gavin Ferreira, who has played rink and indoor hockey abroad. He still plays in local tournaments in Mumbai, where he resides. Twelve players have been sweating it out at the Sports Authority of India Southern Centre at the outskirts of the city to learn the tricks of this exciting version of hockey.

“The boys have adapted well to this new six-a-side, indoor hockey concept. They have seen videos and got the basic sense of the game,” Ferreria said. “They have to translate whatever they have learnt on the pitch. The players are always thinking and reciprocating and that is a nice thing to see. Most of the countries will be new to this. It could be anybody's game.”

At SAI, the Indians are training on a wooden floor. But in Macau, it will be a teflon surface, which will be easier to play on. The ball and stick are lighter and thinner respectively as compared to regular equipment. The ball can't be hit and only pushing is allowed. The ball can't evens be lifted. Penalty corners and drag-flicking in a small area only adds to the thrill. When defending a corner, all five players have to stand outside the goal on the other side from where the push is being taken. The pitch area is small and “there is more focus on the pitch” as Ferreria puts it. The most interesting aspect is that there are sideboards at the side boundary.

“The sideboards can be used for foxing opponents and making passes. It is like carom where you use the edges. However, there should be good understanding between the one who passes and the one who receives. It is all about how you visualise. Positioning is also vital,” the Air India player, for whom this will be the first major coaching assignment, added.

“One can't hold on to the ball for long. Good passing is also vital. When it comes to a one-to-one between a player and the goalkeeper, we may have a slight edge. But it's all very situational and one needs to be very calm. The players are grasping the tricks well,” he said.

The concept of rink or indoor hockey is likely to thrill Indian audiences as well, thanks to the fast nature of the game. Countries like Germany have many players from the outdoor team playing in the indoor national team also. That only shows how serious it is in Europe. This could perhaps be adapted and popularised in India too.
“We could develop it gradually for the senior team. There could be tournaments for clubs, some sort of a league for starters. In the future, there should be a National team. Players for the National team can be picked from some sort of a National-level tournament,” Ferreira felt.

With audiences looking for shorter and more interesting versions of sport, indoor hockey could prove to be a hit in India. And this could even help in popularising outdoor hockey too.