Tamil Nadu's rich history in, and love for hockey is well known in the sport's circles. The allegiance will only get stronger when the Tamil Nadu Dragons take the field for the much-awaited Hockey India League 2024-25 edition, starting December 29 against the Soorma Hockey Club. (More Hockey News)
Though all the games this season are in Rourkela and Ranchi, the TN fanbase will more than play its part in propping up the Dragons, and the team's Dutch head coach Rein van Eijk unequivocally agrees that the local connect was a big factor in the choice of players snapped up at the auction.
"Yes, it was a deliberate decision to go for local players. Our coaching staff had a good eye on the state's talent, and we know them a little bit better than the people who are not from Tamil Nadu," van Eijk tells 바카라 in an exclusive interaction.
He adds: "A connect with the region is very important, if you want to build a fan base, grow the game and get excitement going on a long-term basis." Someone who can definitely help in doing that is the 23-year-old forward Selvam Karthi.
The most sought-after player from the state and a fan favourite, Karthi was roped in by the Dragons for INR 24 lakh. Born to watchman Selvam and domestic help Valarmathi, the youngster from Ariyalu has made his mark with the Indian team and the home crowd's love for him was evident during the 2023 Asian Champions Trophy in Chennai.
"Obviously, I am excited about Selvam Karthi, which is a no-brainer as he is on the verge of making it into the Indian team's core group. But also, local heroes like our goalie S. Senthamizh Arasu, (midfielder) Arun J, (defender) Anand Y are all players that have a big upside and can make it to the next level," van Eijk says.
The local players are currently gelling with the rest of the squad at their training base in Chennai, where overseas stars like Netherlands drag-flick specialist Jip Janssen have arrived, just in time for the start of the league.
It is part and parcel of a coach's job to foster team bonding and get the best out of player combinations, despite the individuals' diverse backgrounds. But van Eijk is especially attuned to it, as he possesses a master's degree in communication science.
"During my studies I have looked a lot into how groups work together. In newsrooms, for example, how meetings function. And that definitely helps me in understanding group dynamics and building communication structures and cultures where everyone is heard, and where everyone is involved in order to establish high-performance environments," he explains.
Van Eijk, in fact specialised in journalism. Does that help him as a coach? "Every learning experience helps as a coach. My university really helped me in that regard. I find it very important to always keep good relations with people from the press, so you can always ask me questions; I know how that works," pat comes the reply.
Like most of the players who will compete in Rourkela and Ranchi, the Germany men's Under-21 World Cup-winning coach hopes for Hockey India League to be a "stepping stone" in his career too. "I want to enjoy the experience, and learn as much as possible about all the different cultures. And I want it to be the next step in my coaching career, so as to solidify a spot in international men's coaching."
