Bhubaneswar: Post arriving in the city last evening, the Belgium team was seen practicing at the Kalinga Stadium today and getting acclimatized to the weather and the pitch. Ranked 5th in the world in the FIH ranking, the Belgium team is looking at going up the ladder by winning important matches and aiming for a Finals berth.
Playing in India for the second time within a year with the last being the Hero Hockey World League Final 2014, Belgium earned the 5th spot in the tournament by beating India 2-1 where both the teams were fighting for the 5th / 6th position. Now placed with Australia, Pakistan and England in their Pool, Belgium will be aiming at starting the tournament by beating Pakistan on the opening day.
Speaking on the sidelines of the practice session, Tom Boon said, “We are all practicing the set pieces initially to simply better them. We are also trying to play together by focusing on the coordination. The weather is pretty warm here but I don’t think that should affect our performance. The practice match with Germany will help us understand our positions and we’ll incorporate the learning when we take on Pakistan in our first match of the Hero Men’s Champions Trophy.”
Speaking on the upcoming tournament, Belgium Coach Jeroen Delmee said, “It was a good session today as we are trying to get used to the pitch. There was a little difficulty in concentrating today because of the time difference and a lot of travelling. The players are trying to adapt themselves to the weather as well, with almost a difference of 20 degrees. We’ll be having a practice match against Germany on Thursday and our aim is to reach a good level in the game. Today was altogether an easy session but it will build up in the coming days.”
Post a Comment