New Delhi, 13 October 2024: Soorma Hockey Club, JSW Sports’ franchise in the revamped Hockey India League, will be propelled by Indian hockey greats Sardar Singh and Rani Rampal. Sardar Singh will join Soorma Hockey Club as the Men’s Mentor and Indian Coach while Rani will take charge as the Women’s Mentor and Indian Coach.
In the Men’s coaching setup, along with Sardar Singh, will be International Coach Jeroen Baart, Analytical Coach Michael Cosma and Technical Consultant Arjun Halappa. Meanwhile Jude Menezes (International Coach), Harvinder Singh (Assistant Coach) and Sean Dancer (Analytical Coach) complete the line-up for the Women’s team.
Soorma Hockey Club, a Men’s and Women’s team representing Punjab and Haryana, is set to bid for players for the Men’s team in the HIL Auction today in New Delhi. The Women’s Auction will take place on 15 October.
The JSW Sports group, with a heritage of creating sports culture in India over the last ten years, who own multiple teams in different leagues like, Delhi Capitals (men and women) in the IPL, Bengaluru FC in ISL, Haryana Steelers in PKL and Pretoria Capitals in SA20, have added two teams from HIL to their arsenal.
“We’ve put together a coaching team of the highest pedigree and that gives us confidence from the get-go. What Sardar, Rani, Arjun, Harvinder and Jude have achieved with and for the country is remarkable, and they bring with them invaluable experience to the table. In Jeroen, Michael and Sean, we have international staff who will give this team a different perspective.
“Our philosophy and vision behind all our initiatives in Indian sport is to promote and develop the sport from the ground up, which reflects in our choices for Indian coaches and upcoming youth development programs which we intend to launch soon.
“Our focus will be on developing the sport in the catchment areas of Punjab and Haryana given their heavy contribution to the talent pool, and we’re excited about the difference these teams will make to sport in the country.” Divyanshu Singh, COO of JSW Sports commented ahead of the auction.
Sardar Singh, a former Indian Men’s Hockey Team Captain with 314 caps to his name, will bring his immense knowledge to the franchise as the Indian Coach of the Men’s Team. Sardar, in the first edition of HIL in 2013, was named Player of the Tournament with Delhi Waveriders. He played all editions of the league since and has coached the Indian Sub Junior and Hockey5s Teams post retirement.
“JSW have shown immense faith in me by choosing me to mentor the Men’s team of Soorma Hockey Club. The Hockey India League is a great platform for young and talented players and coaches alike. It’s also a fantastic product for fans of the sport.
“I am eager to share my knowledge and help the young players from India reach greater heights along with the rest of the coaching team. This is an exciting project, and we will do everything to make it a success,” Sardar Singh shared.
Rani, hailed as the Queen of Indian Hockey, has inspired a generation of women to take up the sport with her breath-taking performances for the Indian Women’s Hockey Team. She has scored an astounding 205 goals in 254 outings for the National Team and was a crucial cog in the team that made it all the way to an unprecedented high by qualifying for the 3rd/4th Place match of the Tokyo Olympics in 2020.
“I have been meaning to explore areas that the sport of hockey has to offer, beyond just being a player. So, when this opportunity to be a mentor and a coach for Soorma Hockey Club came my way, I decided to take it.
“This is the first time a league of this stature is being conducted for women in the country and it is going to help raise the standard of hockey. The auction is coming up soon and we aim to assemble the best team in the League. I am looking forward to the season and will be giving all I can to help this team succeed,” Rani added.
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