<p>During the Asian Champions Trophy selection trials, custodians Bharat Chetri, Adrian D’Souza, PR Sreejesh and Kamaldeep Singh leaked a number of goals, especially from penalty corners, and their display was even criticised by Col Balbir Singh, one of the selectors. While Chetri and Sreejesh got the nod from the wise men, Kamaldeep and the vastly experienced Adrian missed the bus for the Ordos meet.<br /><br />“There is a concern with the goalkeepers,” said Nobbs during a training session at the Sports Authority of India campus on Friday. “In the four weeks I’ve seen them, I don’t think they are as good as the Australian goalkeepers. We need to spend more time training them in order to get them to the standard we need.”<br /><br />Blaming it on their technique, the Australian said their ’keeping against penalty corners was bad. “Penalty corner defence is clearly a problem with all of them. All four let in a lot of goals. While it shows that our strikers have improved, our defence hasn’t,” he laughed.<br /><br /> “But we won’t really know their strength until we play some games. We need to train them in some of the techniques. We have to play enough practice matches and see whether there is a fundamental fault in their gameplay.”<br /><br />Rating the performance of all the goalkeepers as similar, Nobbs felt the absence of a stand-out performer could be the reason behind the average show. “None of them stood out during the trials. If you look at the goalkeepers for Australia, they stand out; they’re world class. That’s what we’re looking for in India. It’s a long-term thing. I’m sure we’ve got other ’keepers in this country. But with the ’keepers we’ve got at the moment, we just need to have patience. They will improve.”<br /><br />Nobbs also ruled out hiring a foreign expert to train the goalkeepers. “There’s enough hockey knowledge in this country. We may need to do that if we can’t solve the problem internally. At this stage, let’s work with what we’ve got.”<br /><br />The Australian said he was yet to decide the fate of the 12 players who were asked to vacate SAI on Thursday after not being picked in the Asian Champions Trophy squad, the stand-bys or the pruned core group. “I haven’t decided on the status of the 12 yet,” he admitted. “I’ve got to spend enough time with the 30 we have. I don’t want to be distracted until the end of the Champions Trophy. We’ll think about it after that. “If they’re keen on coming back, they can do the work themselves.<br /><br /> They’ve spent three or four weeks with us. They know the fitness levels and skills that are required. If they don’t want to do it, it’s their choice. If they do, then fantastic. It’s really hard for a senior player when you’re not in it but things that are worthwhile in life are always difficult.”<br /></p>
<p>During the Asian Champions Trophy selection trials, custodians Bharat Chetri, Adrian D’Souza, PR Sreejesh and Kamaldeep Singh leaked a number of goals, especially from penalty corners, and their display was even criticised by Col Balbir Singh, one of the selectors. While Chetri and Sreejesh got the nod from the wise men, Kamaldeep and the vastly experienced Adrian missed the bus for the Ordos meet.<br /><br />“There is a concern with the goalkeepers,” said Nobbs during a training session at the Sports Authority of India campus on Friday. “In the four weeks I’ve seen them, I don’t think they are as good as the Australian goalkeepers. We need to spend more time training them in order to get them to the standard we need.”<br /><br />Blaming it on their technique, the Australian said their ’keeping against penalty corners was bad. “Penalty corner defence is clearly a problem with all of them. All four let in a lot of goals. While it shows that our strikers have improved, our defence hasn’t,” he laughed.<br /><br /> “But we won’t really know their strength until we play some games. We need to train them in some of the techniques. We have to play enough practice matches and see whether there is a fundamental fault in their gameplay.”<br /><br />Rating the performance of all the goalkeepers as similar, Nobbs felt the absence of a stand-out performer could be the reason behind the average show. “None of them stood out during the trials. If you look at the goalkeepers for Australia, they stand out; they’re world class. That’s what we’re looking for in India. It’s a long-term thing. I’m sure we’ve got other ’keepers in this country. But with the ’keepers we’ve got at the moment, we just need to have patience. They will improve.”<br /><br />Nobbs also ruled out hiring a foreign expert to train the goalkeepers. “There’s enough hockey knowledge in this country. We may need to do that if we can’t solve the problem internally. At this stage, let’s work with what we’ve got.”<br /><br />The Australian said he was yet to decide the fate of the 12 players who were asked to vacate SAI on Thursday after not being picked in the Asian Champions Trophy squad, the stand-bys or the pruned core group. “I haven’t decided on the status of the 12 yet,” he admitted. “I’ve got to spend enough time with the 30 we have. I don’t want to be distracted until the end of the Champions Trophy. We’ll think about it after that. “If they’re keen on coming back, they can do the work themselves.<br /><br /> They’ve spent three or four weeks with us. They know the fitness levels and skills that are required. If they don’t want to do it, it’s their choice. If they do, then fantastic. It’s really hard for a senior player when you’re not in it but things that are worthwhile in life are always difficult.”<br /></p>
