Move to prune hockey fixture

Press, 4 July 1978, Page 6

Move to prune hockey fixture

Several of the world’s top hockey nations will endeavour to restrict the size of future World Cup tournaments, and the Netherlands Hockey Board has already written to the International Hockey Federation suggesting this. „ , ~ A copy of the Netherland s letter was received by the management committee of the New Zealand Hockey Association last evening, with a covering letter saying that representatives of several countries discussed the matter at the World Cup in Buenos Aires in March. Apart from the Netherlands, tlie countries involved in the discussion were England. West Germany, Spain, New Zealand and Australia. Although most of the management committee was in favour of the idea a letter supporting the Netherlands’ suggestion will not be sent to the F.I.H. until the N.Z.H.A. has had a chance

to ask its representative at Buenos Aires, Mr B. Bremner, for a further comment. The Netherlands’ letter said the World Cup tournament this year asked too much of the participants. The Increasing frequency of international tournaments made it almost impossible for amateur sportsmen to find the time required to attend. The letter suggested a 12-team tournament, as opposed to the . present 14-team tournament. Two pools of six teams would be easily managed in 14 days and it would also cut organising costs. An invitation for New Zealand to attend the fifteenth Jawaharlal Nehru tournament at New Delhi from November 14 to December 6 was declined. The t organisers asked New Zealand to join the tournament after the six-nation tournament ends in Lahore Pakistan, on November 24.