IHF undecided on lights, Sail withdraw

Hyderabad, March 8: The stage is set for the 59th National Hockey Championship from March 10. Only a couple of days remain, but the decis...

Hyderabad, March 8: The stage is set for the 59th National Hockey Championship from March 10. Only a couple of days remain, but the decision to play a few matches under floodlights, precipitated by a tight schedule, is not final, according to Mohammed Ghouse, tournament director.

The IHF-appointed official from Tamil Nadu said: “The decision to hold matches under lights will be taken later in the day or tomorrow morning, after seeing the conditions of the Police Stadium at dusk. We have to judge whether teams playing under lights would be disadvantaged.”

Hyderabad Hockey Association (HHA) president HJ Dora, who was also present at the press meet, said: “This is the fourth time HHA is hosting the championship (the previous years being 1954, 1961 and 1979). Since IHF is contemplating a change in the format of the championship from next year, this would be the last opportunity for all teams to assemble at one place.”With Steel Authority of India Limited (Sail) pulling out at the eleventh hour, the 41teams have been divided into eight pools. The pool toppers in the league will qualify for the knockout quarter-finals.

The groupings
: Pool A: Railways, Punjab, Bihar, Andhra, Rajasthan. Pool B: Gujarat, Hyderabad, Uttar Pradesh, Nagaland, Postal, CISF. Pool C: Bombay, BSF, FCI, Vidharbha, (Sail withdraw). Pool D: Airlines, Orissa, Haryana, Maharashtra, Jammu & Kashmir. Pool G: Karnataka, Central Excise, Chandigarh, Delhi, Madhya Bharat, Tata Sports. Pool H: Services, CRPF, Bengal, Kerala, Assam. Pool I: Air India, Punjab & Sind Bank, Universities, Pondicherry, Madhya Pradesh. Pool J: Tamil Nadu, Patiala, Bhopal, Himachal Pradesh, Manipur.