Canty coach in dilemma

Press, 1 July 1983, Page 26

Canty coach in dilemma

By

KEVIN TUTTY

Jim Bowden, the Canterbury hockey coach, and Alan Mclntyre, the Wellington coach, have been saddled with a dilemma with the announcement of the New Zealand team this week. The New Zealand team will not return for a fivenation tournament in Malaysia until the middle stages of the national tournament in Palmerston North in August. Canterbury, with five players in the New Zealand side, and Wellington, with six, will thus be below full strength for the first three days of the tournament. But to complicate matters further, the New Zealand Hockey Association will request that provincial coaches not use New Zea-

land players in the latter stages of the national tournaments. This will allow players time to recover before tests against India on successive days a week after the national tournament concludes. The chairman of the N.Z.H.A., Dr .Bruce Penfold, said that coaches would be “requested” not to play New Zealand representatives. But if a coach includes a player who is used only sparingly in Malaysia, the N.Z.H.A. would not mind. Mr Mclntyre, whose team is worst affected, said his initial thought was to ask for dispensation to include all the New Zealand players when they returned, but realised that was not practical.

He will probably make do witij 12 or 13 of the allow-

able quota of 15 players for the first three days of the tournament, and add two or three players for the final stages. However, he said yesterday that it would be key players he would want to add to the squad, like the Miskimmin brothers, Brent and Peter, and Hus Bhikha — players likely to be heavily involved in Malaysia. Wellington was beaten 1-0 in the final of the Challenge Shield by Canterbury at last year’s tournament and the players were keen to win the Shield this year, said Mr Mclntyre. He had spoken to the New Zealand representatives this week, and they were all keen to play at the tournament on their return from Malaysia. Mr Bowden has been kindly treated by the

national selectors, who overlooked players of the calibre of Balvant Bhana, lan Riach and Mark Burtt. But he will still be forced to add players to his squad for the national tournament. He has not made a decision yet on whether to survive on a reduced squad for the first two games. Mr Bowden also has to decide whether to use his new squad, or the full strength team for a match against Wellington in Blenheim on July 23. He confessed yesterday that it is a difficult decision. The match is played for the Bowden Trophy — donated by his father — and Canterbury is defending the trophy. Mr Bowden will make the additions to his squad after this week-end’s club games.