Let146;s have the third umpire

Our team played really well, especially the defence. I think Adrian D8217;Souza did an excellent job in blocking several shots, as well as Dilip Tirkey who was very solid in keeping out the Pakistani attackers. Vikram Pillay also made some good moves, but failed to finish them properly.

Our midfield continues to have some loopholes. We again gave away space to the Pakistani forwards to penetrate our defence, even if only up to the 8216;D8217;. But this is one area of concern for us, and we hope to solve it soon.

I admit that the Pakistani forwards had more constructive attacks at our goal than we could have at their8217;s; they had more opportunities and chances to score. But we did well to restrict them, and this is the way we have been playing throughout the tournament. We have relied more on counter attacks, and the strategy has worked well so far. Even today, we managed to hold them to a 1-1 draw almost till the end.

But the doubtful decisions affected the game a lot. Almost all the coaches and team mangers have been asking for the introduction of a third umpire in hockey for some time now. Though it may not be a big issue for the FIH, it matters a lot for the team when the issue is to be decided by one point or one goal. The decision to introduce third umpires in doubtful cases will play a major role in a team8217;s future in any major event at this level, especially when the future hangs in balance on one umpiring decision 8212; unintentional or deliberate.

Such results demoralise the team to a great extent of course. It forces the team to think that it is difficult to play against the local sides, and that the results are not always dependent on the performances.

Hopefully the team will get over it and get back on field with a fresh mind. The boys now have to forget what happened today and concentrate only on the next match against New Zealand. But what is most important is to continue with the game we have played so far and bring in consistency.