Sjoerd Marijne: I like giving responsibilities to my players in certain areas

Rani Rampal and the rest of the Indian team enjoyed a decent tour of Spain where they recovered from an initial setback to level the series 2-2 in the final game of the four-match series in Madrid. After a strong fightback from his team, Marijne was highly optimistic of the team’s prospects for the 2018 Women’s Hockey World Cup London 2018 and the upcoming Asian Games as well.

Marijne, in an interview with Scroll.in, spoke about his ‘players-driven’ coaching method that he applied with the women’s team successfully over the last few months. 

"Players-driven or coach-driven, it’s about giving responsibilities on a few areas. And, that’s how I work. That’s what I do with the women’s team. And, I did the same with the men. I think the ‘players-driven approach’ was over-exaggerated, misunderstood. I read an article that I don’t do anything and players do everything. That’s wrong. Because I prepare the plan with my staff.

"There is a tactical plan. You want the players to understand that plan. So, you explain it to them. But in that tactical plan, there are always things that you need to adjust to. Because your opponents also watch your tactical plan. They think ‘Okay, they have closed the left side, so, we go over the right’. So, then, you have to adjust. During the match, I can shout but not always reach the entire team. So, they need to take a decision if the opponent does something unexpected. So, that’s what you want them to learn. Because there are so many tactical possibilities and I can’t prepare them for all of them," Marijne said in the interview.

The women’s team are on a tight schedule this year with the World Cup and the Asian Games too closely spaced to one another, but the Dutch coach remained confident in his side’s ability to come good in the next few months.

"We will go all out. Because the World Cup schedule isn’t that heavy. You get a good amount of break in between matches. For us, it’s an important tournament. I know a lot of Indians are focusing on the Asian Games. But the girls worked a year and a half to qualify for the World Cup. So, we are going to focus on that and doing well in the tournament," Marijne added.