Being explosive is critical for a goalkeeper: Dennis

Bengaluru: There were 6.8 seconds left for the final hooter to go with India leading 5-4, when Germany were awarded a penalty corner in the bronze-medal match at the Tokyo Olympics three years ago. 

Goalkeeper PR Sreejesh saved that strike in the dying moments to avoid a shootout and earn an Olympic medal for India in hockey after 41 long years. 

Guarding the goalposts is a thankless job, until such moments of brilliance catapult them to the centrestage. With the Paris Olympics a few months away, Hockey India roped in specialist Dennis van de Pol of the Netherlands to further strengthen the goalkeeping department manned by Sreejesh, Krishnan Pathak and Suraj Karera. 

Dennis, whose first stint with the Indian team was in 2019, was here for a 10-day camp in Bhubaneswar before the team leaves for the Australia tour in a few days. 

The Dutchman spoke to DH about the preparatory camp, innovations in goalkeeping and more. Excerpts…

What were the things that you focussed on in the 10-day camp? 

I was following all the games India played during the Pro League and observed a couple of things that could still improve. Some of them included working on balance, PCs, shootouts, nine-yard defence and decision making. So, it was all about improving on the things that we have already been focussing on. 

How different are the playing styles of Sreejesh, Pathak and Karera? 

Each one of their basic set positions are a little bit different. The length, explosiveness and their style to save balls are all distinct. It is okay to have different styles as long as the outcome is the same. I gave them a few pointers to work on. For example, Pathak is really good around his legs but he needs to keep his hands more upright when he goes to guard towards the corners. Sree is sometimes a little bit nervous, you can tell. He predicts well, where the ball is coming but therefore he doesn’t have a perfect touch. So that’s something for him to work on. 

What is the most important physical quality for a GK? 

Being explosive is the most important. In Holland they got a number on how fast the ball travels towards a goalie. Let’s say a ball travels 100kms/hr (or more) but a ‘keepers reaction time is 0.283 seconds when it’s hit from inside the ‘D’. If the ball goes into the corner, well you are smoked! So a keeper needs to be good at explosiveness to go to the corners.

How has PC defence becoming stronger helped goalkeepers? 

It made it easier for GKs. Since the focus is also on the first rusher, the postman and the other two players for preventing opponents from scoring.  ‘Keepers have to cover less of the goal, because if the first runner runs a good line and the GK trusts the postman fully, he/ she doesn’t have to defend the last 30-40 cms on their left and so the keeper can take a step to the right. I focus on having them save the strikes in the middle, because these are the hard balls that travel so fast. 

How has goalkeeping evolved over the years? 

The materials used in making goalkeeping gear have seen a big change. They not only help save the ball from penetrating into the goal but they also made it difficult for a second ball or a rebound from getting into the hands of an attacker, which is insane. In the sense, earlier it was more about protection and now it’s a lot of rebound generation. The ball flies off the guards very very fast. The takers don’t stand a chance in getting the ball on target in the second try. 

You have had many stints with the Indian team. Do we see you come back here for more such camps? 

Yes. It is with the idea of preparing for the Olympics. I made an agreement with HI and coach Craig Fulton about how much time I will be able to dedicate here. I will join the the Indian men’s team for 15 days when they travel to Europe for the Pro League (May 22 onwards). And from July 1, I will be there with the team until the end of the Olympics. That’s really good and all of us are very happy about getting so much time to work with the goalies as compared to a couple of years ago.