It might be the players who hog the limelight if the team does well in any sport. But it will be naive to turn a blind eye towards the hard work that a coach puts in to get the team in shape.

 Jude Felix, coach of the Indian hockey team, is no different, contributing in Indian men’s hockey team’s Asiad gold winning effort from the dug out.In a chat with Deccan Herald, the former Indian captain describes his experience at the Asiad.

Experts:

On the gold medal at the 17th Asian Games: Its a great feeling to be a part of the winning team. Beat Pakistan in the final is something I cannot put in words. We were determined to win the gold and that reflected in the way we played the final.

 Even after going a goal down in the third minute, the team did not lose focus and played on with the winning intention. Its was the sheer determination to win drove us throughout the 60 minutes and beyond into the shootout.

On being named as the coach of the national team: I have always enjoyed my job. I was delighted to know that the association had zeroed in on my name to take over from Baskaran. It has been good so far. We have tried to bring in few changes to improve the quality of the game we play and the result is there for you to see.

On the future plans with the national team: The team has taken huge strides recently. Now, we have a set gameplan that we can bank upon. But I still believe the work is half done. We need more consistency in our performance and have to produce results day in and day out to be a real threat to the ‘power houses’ of hockey.

On direct qualification to Rio Olympics 2016: A direct qualification for the Olympics is the biggest incentive of winning a gold at the Asiad. We now have two years to concentrate on Rio 2016 and I assure you that this team will reap the benefits of the hard work. 

On preparations for the Olympics: According to me, this team is a ‘work in progress’ and we will have to bring in a lot of professionalism in our approach towards the game. Players will have to shoulder individual responsibilities and consistency will have to be the a integral part of our performance. At the Olympics or at the Champions Trophy, there is no room for complacency. 

On expectations from the team at Rio 2016: It’s too early to say where the team will finish at the Olympics. We, as a team, are looking at stage-by-stage development, but are determined to better our performance as compared to London 2012.