Indian Team Arrives By Air For Dominion Tour

Press, Volume XCI, Issue 27684, 14 June 1955, Page 15

Indian Team Arrives By Air For Dominion Tour

HOCKEY

flie first Indian hockey team to visit Xew Zealand for 17 years arrived at airport yesterday from cydney by a Tasman Empire Airways nr-6 airliner. The 18 members of the Jam (including the manager, Mr R. T. tfatiiotra) left Christchurch last evenby bus and will play their first match in New Zealand against the astern Southland Association at Gore Sorrow. Altogether the Indian •inderers, as the team will be toown. will play 30 matches in New Teaiand. including three tests, at WelSgton. Auckland, and Christchurch. Most of the players come from the cate of Delhi, one of the strongholds Zf Indian hockey. Five Olympic playas and two All India players have .gen included, making the team one rf the strongest ever sent on tour jom India. Xext year, according to the manIndian hockey authorities hope *be able to invite a New Zealand £gn to make a tour of their country, sportsmen made the best ambassadors Xj the Indian team was in New Zeato promote good relations. fte captain of the team (Dr. -artharan Singh) said that the idea j the tour was not to win games—--jat is immaterial. The idea is to jeate friendly relations and that will of great service to both countries, jia understanding between nations is j great importance. From unck?r•anding comes co-operation, from co--erstion comes peace, and from peace prosperity—that is the object of fiys tour.” Dr. Gurcharan Singh is a master of pence from Lyallpur Agricultural allege, India, a master of science tan Toronto University, and a doctor > philosophy from Michigan College. % is now a professor of horticulture *jr the Government of India

Olympic Champion The star of the side is Babu Singh, fee inside right, who was Olympic campion for 1948 and 1952 and who Trttt the Helms Trophy in Los Angeles a 1953 as the best athlete in Asia. He jeered nine of the total of 13 goals scored by the invincible Indian Olympic team in 1952. Babu Singh, capped the All India team which went to the Olympic Games in 1952 and also fie All India team which went to pghanistan in 1950. and the All jaiia team to East Africa in 351. He is regarded as a worthy pccessor to Dhyan Chand, the greatest hockey player of all. Dhyan Chand came to New Zealand in 1926. Close on the ladder of importance to 3abu Singh as a master of the hockey cirir is Balbir Singh, the centre fornrd, a tall and handsome Sikh, who ras also a member of the Olympic csampion teams in 1948 and 1952. He ■as represented the Punjab State since 1546 and captained the All India team I» Malaya in 1954. Critics of international hockey regard him as a worthy contender for the crown now worn by i the older Babu Singh. Tributes to the work of Mr W. H. 'Down, secretary of the New Zealand Hockey Association, and Mr Gumarain Singh, organiser for the Indian •.jurists, were paid at the official welcoming ceremony conducted in the pavilion of + he Russley Golf Club. But for these two men the tour would not tare been made, said Mr C. C. Holland. immediate past president of the association. Welcome to Team

The first official welcome was extended by Mr J. G. Leggat. chairman of the management committee of the jsociation. Indian hockey was the yardstick by which New Zealand hockey was judged, he said, but the situation had now arisen whereby no present New Zealand players had ever seen an Indian team in action and vsy few coaches had had the privilege. The present tour would correct this. “I was Mayor of Christchurch when fee last Indian team visited this city in 1938,” said the Mayor (Mr R. M. Mscfarlane, M.P.), welcoming the team or behalf of the citizens of Christchurch. Those players left a lasting

f 3“®? on all who saw them—?nri k ?hi playe S or not ’ the Mayor said - ??« th s ¥ ™P ld Probably be said after ! th ® Present tour ended. ! M=?n n J bers the team are: Mr R. £,. ' ?J a h !?. tra (manager), Jagat Inder (goalkeeper), Balbir Singh (goal- ’ and P HehPh G wv Sln « h 'eaptam g =‘ b ? c £\ R - s - Gentle (left Suraj Bahram (left or right back), Gurnarain Singh (left or right m £\ L ' Glaudius (centre half), 07F. Malhotra (right or left half), Krishan I>l (centre half) Pishori Lal (left “ I V !gh ,V lr , J ja (right wing forriok??’ (? a bu) Singh (inside right) Balbir Singh (centre forward), Naresh Chander (inside left), Gurbachan Singh (left wing), M. Gurdass (left wing), and Jaswant Rai (all rounder). Members of the New Zealand Hockey Association will tour New Zealand with the team. INDIAN HOCKEY TEAM NEW SOUTH WALES BEATEN, 4-2 (N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) rm T , SYDNEY. June 13. ine Indian hockey team, which is on its .way to New Zealand, gave a brilliant oispiay of stick and position play on Saturday to beat New South Wales, 4-2, before a crowd of 8000. As soon as the match began, the Indians gained possession of the ball and swept down the field, alternately shortpassing along the ground and scooping the ball over the defenders' heads. inside right, Babu Singh, dominated toe game and made every opening. r he centre forward, Balbir Singh, scored three goals for India, and a penalty goal W^ s av £ rded against New South Wales. Ne «,^.° uth Wales. John Gibbons and Don White scored goals.