BENGALURU: After the success of the two annual editions of the futuristic Hockey India 5-a-side Senior National Championship (Men and Women), the third edition kicks off here Tuesday at the Field Marshal KM Kariappa Hockey Stadium.
The six-day domestic hockey tournament will see state teams vie for top honours in three categories – Men’s, Women’s and the Combined Men & Women event on 22 September where both men and women will play in a combined team. This mixed format garnered great interest in the previous edition with players giving it a big thumbs up.
Hosted by Hockey Karnataka for the first time, the 3rd Hockey India 5-a-side Senior National Championship 2018 will see a star-studded line-up with international players Preeti Dubey, Sonal Minj, Lalruatfeli, Satbir Singh, Raj Kumar Pal, Junior World Cup winners Parvinder Singh and Harjeet Singh participating.
A team participating in the combined event category will feature a minimum of either 4 men or women making up each squad of 9 members.
In the combined event category, Hockey Maharashtra, Hockey Punjab, Hockey Odisha and Hockey Jharkhand form Pool A whereas, Hockey Haryana, Uttar Pradesh Hockey, Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu and Hockey Karnataka, are in Pool B.
In the Men’s category, defending Champions Hockey Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh Hockey, Hockey Punjab and Hockey Jharkhand are placed in Pool A while Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu, Hockey Maharashtra, Hockey Haryana and Hockey Odisha will lock horns in Pool B.
In the Women’s category, Hockey Haryana, Hockey Punjab, Hockey Odisha and Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu will make up Pool A while Hockey Karnataka, Hockey Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh Hockey and Hockey Jharkhand are in Pool B.
Rules:
This short format game is played on a 48 meters x 31.76 meter size court. In this format, each team consists of 9 members, out of which only 5 members can be present on the court at any given time of the match which includes one goalkeeper. The duration of the match is 10 minutes x 2 periods with an interval of 2 minutes between the periods.
The key differences from 11-a-side field hockey are in terms of the way the goals are scored and penalties are imposed. A goal is awarded when a goal is scored from anywhere on the court which is unlike traditional hockey where you cannot score directly from outside the circle. In addition, the ball is moved using a push, scoop or flick and a hit.
In terms of fouls, only free hits and challenges are awarded for respective offences by an attacker or defender. A Challenge is similar to the way shootouts are conducted in modern hockey. Free hits and fouls follow the same rules as modern hockey as well.
Hockey India secretary general Mohd Mushtaque Ahmad stated: “This year’s edition of the Hockey India 5-a-side Senior National Championship will see it’s rules being tweaked slightly to only make the game all the more exciting for a spectator. After two successful editions hosted by Hockey Maharashtra in Pune, this year the event will be played in front of a passionate Bengaluru audience who I believe will thoroughly enjoy the format. 5-a-side hockey has the potential to attract a global following and help in promoting the sport where players can play on any surface and also on different sized pitches. Hockey is a non-contact sport and on a social level many countries play combined competitions with men and women in the same team. This will be the second time it is being formalized and structured and Hockey India is proud to set this in motion.”
