Reid attributes awards sweep to team’s sacrifices

New Delhi, October 7

Indian men’s hockey team chief coach Graham Reid today steered clear of the controversy surrounding the FIH annual awards, saying the honour which he and his players received were a recognition of their sacrifices in the last one and a half years.

India swept the annual awards on Wednesday, claiming all the top honours based on a voting system lambasted as a “failure” by men’s Olympics champions Belgium, prompting the FIH to say that it would try to figure why some associations did not cast their ballot.

Five Indian players and head coaches of both the men’s and women’s teams claimed the top honours in different categories after they got maximum votes.

Asked about the controversy that erupted, the Australian said: “Look, as coaches and players we have nothing do with how things are chosen or the system. We just go out there and play to our best. It is a recognition of the work put by this team, including the support staff.”

“There is a lot of work gone into this. I see this as a reflection of the sacrifices and work put in for the last 16-18 months by this team during lockdown,” he added. — PTI