Our players need proper shoes to play on old pitch in Japan, says Sarjit

National hockey coach Sarjit Singh has taken a grip on the condition of the pitch for the Olympic qualifying tournament in Kakamigahara, Japan, from April 5-13.

And he said that proper shoes were needed for players to perform well on an old pitch with lots of patches.

“There is less grip on the pitch and it is also bouncy. Players will find it difficult to play on the pitch,'' said Sarjit, who went to Japan last Saturday for three days to inspect the venue of competition.

He also had the opportunity to watch Japan play two friendly matches against Asia Cup champions South Korea on the pitch.

“The Koreans also said that it was a fast pitch and I have informed my boys to ensure that they have the proper pair of shoes for the qualifying tournament,” said Sarjit.

The Koreans, who will feature in the Beijing Olympics, won both the matches 2-0 and 4-0.

Sarjit, who returned home on Monday, added that the Japan team had retained almost all their players, who featured in the Asia Cup in Chennai last year.

“Japan have yet to name their final squad for the qualifiers. But three players from their Asia Cup side are injured and they are likely to be dropped,” he said.

Malaysia played against Japan twice in the Asia Cup and won both the matches – 2-0 in a group match and 5-3 in the playoff for third place.

Malaysia have 25 players in the training squad and the final squad of 18 will be named on Tuesday.

The team will leave for Japan on March 30.

Sarjit said that they would not have any friendly match in Japan before they open their campaign against Poland on April 5.

The other teams in the tournament are two-time world champions Germany, Italy, Switzerland and Japan.

Only the winners of the tournament will join 11 other teams in the Beijing Games in August.

Besides South Korea, the other teams who have qualified for the 12-nation Olympic tournament are Holland, Spain, Belgium, Canada, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Britain, Pakistan and China.