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Jude Felix relishing more power, responsibility in new role

Felix was appointed as the head coach of the junior team last month, a role that has brought him back into the coaching limelight of Indian hockey.

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By his own admission, former India captain Jude Felix didn't have much to do in his previous coaching assignment with the national hockey team: assistant to senior men's chief coach Terry Walsh back in 2014.

Now, he has a younger team under his belt with greater power to call the shots. Felix was appointed as the head coach of the junior team last month, a role that has brought him back into the coaching limelight of Indian hockey.       

"I'm really excited because I've got a bunch of youngsters who will definitely play for India. The kind of things that I want to teach them looks exciting. I have the confidence that they will turn out to be good players for India in the future," Felix said.

"When I was with the senior team, I was not really used, to be very honest. But here you have a say. You mould them the way you want them, and teach them the kind of hockey that you know. I have got a lot to offer, and I'm excited every day to train these boys," he added.

More say aside, this job also brings with it more responsibility. The junior team had become the toast of the nation last December after its Junior World Cup (JWC) victory at home, and the then coach Harendra Singh was credited hugely for doing wonders with the team.

While Harendra has moved on to bag the senior women's coaching job, Felix will have to carry juniors' success story forward with a fresh bunch.

Ask Felix if that's pressure and pat comes the reply: "Absolutely not. Even if they had not qualified for the quarterfinals of the JWC, I would still have pressure on me to win the World Cup. So, it doesn't make a difference who achieved what before. The fact is I'm on the job now. I have to deliver. Simple as that."

An ever-continuing debate in Indian hockey is whether to fast-track promising juniors into the senior set-up or ensure that they continue to put in the hard yards in the junior ranks. In fact, one of the reasons why former senior coach Roelant Oltmans was sacked was because he wasn't drafting enough youngsters in the team.

Citing the example of Harmanpreet Singh and Harjeet Singh, who were part of the previous junior team while also playing for the seniors, Felix said there was nothing wrong in promoting juniors to the next level if they are good enough to be there.

"Some of my boys are good enough to be given a chance to be called into the senior team in the next 8-9 months. So, if these guys are going to play in the senior team and come back to play the JWC, that will do a world of good for the team.

"In each position, there needs to be at least four players challenging for the place. When you have that quality of competition, you start playing well," the two-time Olympian said.

The former half-back has narrowed down on 37 probables from a six-week camp in Bengaluru, and is now training them in Lucknow till October 17 to prepare for the Sultan of Johor Cup.

Felix's first lesson to the newbies was about forgetting the tag of being a defender or forward or midfielder.

"Everyone needs to know how to attack and defend," Felix said. "Basically when you play hockey, if you're attacking, you have to outnumber the other defenders in that given situation. Likewise, when you're defending, you have to outnumber them in your circle."

While the Sultan of Johor Cup in Malaysia will be Felix and the team's first challenge, the coach has set his sights on long-term objectives.

"My focus is to definitely retain the World Cup title, knowing that India have had very good results over the years at the junior level. Apart from that, my objectives are to make them play some attacking and attractive hockey. The kind of hockey we're seeing right now, I'm not for it, where there is so much of back-passing and stuff like that. I'm in the process of teaching the boys many new things," Felix said.

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