‘Our aim is to revive hockey culture’

KARACHI: PHF’s director development and planning Naveed Alam has said that the eight matches among Pakistan Senior, White and Development squads are part of PHF’s efforts to revive hockey culture in the country.

“This is why these games are being organised in various cities,” he told ‘The News’.

He said that in the past whenever Pakistan team went to participate in any major event, it played with reserve players. “Such matches not only provide match practice to the seniors but the reserve players also learn a lot and so a skillful pool of players is developed as backup,” Alam said.

“Due to these matches hockey will spread in the country. Unfortunately such matches were not organised in the recent years,” he added.

The district associations and government officers have been consulted to organise these matches in a befitting manner, Alam said.

“People can come to watch these matches without having to pay anything. Students have been invited to see these matches,” he added.

The matches will be played from May 2-12.

Pakistan will go to London in June for participation in the World Cup qualifying rounds. 

Alam said that Johar Town hockey ground administration in Lahore created hurdles in the training camp of Pakistan White and Development squads and two of the eight matches.

He said that Johar Town administration should remember that the turf there was laid due to the efforts of PHF and that PHF is the custodian of the national game across the country. “No one can stop PHF from organising training camps or matches,” Alam said.

He said that the series of matches would be started from Okara and then matches would be played in Kasur, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Mardan and Gojra.