The Cannon with an Angel’s Face

Hockey is India’s  National sport and though Cricket is the most followed sport in the country and has the nation’s pulse so to say, there was a time when Hockey ruled the hearts of the Indian populace. A time when emotions ran high gripping a nation in its frenzy, whenever  India played. India and its fierce subcontinent rivals Pakistan dominated Field Hockey across continents, however things began to change when the playing surface started undergoing a transformation. The grass field was replaced by the artificial and quicker poly grass and eventually the super quick Astro Turf.

The much fitter and athletically superior players from Australia and Germany in particular were always a step ahead of the Indians. Hockey was turning into a much faster sport. The ball travelled across the turf much more quickly than before and suddenly the sublime dribbling skills of the subcontinent players were to an extent over powered by the sheer pace of the Australian and European teams and by the end of the 80s, the domination of India and the subcontinent  was beginning to fade.  But to be fair it was not about speed all the time, with players like Ric Charlesworth of Australia and Stefan Blocher of Germany to name a few, who were immensely skilled and gifted players too.

The Dutch also were making headway into the sport  slowly and steadily when there was a sudden spark with the debut of an amazing player. It was the year 1985. The impact of this player was such that it changed the discourse on Hockey. He had brought in a disruption. It made teams re-strategise, forced them to think and it so happened that the game underwent a distinct change. It was the advent of Floris Jan Bovelander, the Dutch Penalty Corner Specialist who seldom failed. The Dutch team were propelled to dizzying heights by the inclusion of Bovelander and since then they have been a force to reckon with.

Floris Jan Bovelander from Haarlem in Netherlands, just changed the way Penalty Corners were taken. He hardly hit the ball. Infact he dragged and scooped it with such power and precision that even before the custodians of the goal could realise, the ball was past them and into the net. Bovelander knowingly or unknowingly brought in the ‘Drag Flick’ , which became a potent weapon of the Dutch. The ferocity of the Bovelander drag flick was much  feared and he quickly came to be known as the ‘ Cannon with an Angel’s face ‘. For the Dutch whenever it was difficult to get field goals, they simply had to get a penalty corner and then Bovelander would do the rest. He hardly missed and had an unprecedented conversion rate.

The Dutch team riding high on Bovelander’s skill, beat Pakistan in Lahore to be crowned World Champions in 1990. Bovelander scored 9 times in that tournament ( though Pakistan did have their revenge beating the Dutch side on penalties in the Final, four years later). The Dutch went from strength to strength and won the Gold at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996. Bovelander also played a crucial role in the bronze at the Seoul Olympics and the runners up trophy at 1994 World Cup.

Bovelander had brought in a massive change in  Hockey. He inspired other teams to work on the Drag Flick which eventually gave rise to a generation of very fine Drag Flickers around the world like Sandeep Singh and Sohail Abbas. He went on to play 241 games for Netherlands scoring 215 goals in his International career. Post retirement too, Bovelander has been associated with hockey and was a part of Indian Hockey too.

The Indian Hockey is surely catching up and the bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics gives lot of heart. This success  should be an inspiration for other Asian Teams to make a strong comeback and regain the glory which was once our very own. This blog is also in remembrance of my father who was extremely fond of Hockey and encouraged me to play the sport. He gifted me a small hockey stick when I turned 3. I did play Hockey and was pretty good at it too. ( I have taken a bit of liberty to boast about myself. It is my blog anyways )

Floris Jan Bovelander is a Game Changer and a true inspiration for the ones playing the sport and also for the ones who love the game.

Boem Boem…Bovelander.