CHANDIGARH: After Ireland qualified for the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Japan and South Korea, the sport’s profile increased like never before. Roy Keane fought and did not travel but the rest of the country were decked up in the colours of the Green Army.
The household of David Harte too followed the rule but he himself wasn’t too enamoured. He had played it at some level but his ambition was already locked on to something entirely different — becoming a field hockey goalkeeper for the national team. There was nothing wrong with that but field hockey was way below on the sporting food chain. Rugby, Gaelic football, hurling and football dominated the media. Field hockey? It was so low on the list of priorities that Harte, a 14-year-old at the time, may have half expected his parents to brand him as a nut case when he first told his wish to them. Luckily, they respected his dreams and supported him rather than trying to evangelise. The last 14 years may have been an up and down journey for him but it has been worth it. Especially the last 365 days. January last year he won the FIH Goalkeeper of the Year Award. Eight months later, he captained Ireland at the Rio Games, the first time they have been at that stage in 108 years. On Thursday, the cycle came to a neat end as he was again crowned Goalkeeper of the Year, beating out the likes of PR Sreejesh.
What does he make of it all? “Unbelievable journey,” is how he summarises the last 11 years or so. “When I sort of entered the fold (he made his debut) in 2006, we were ranked 19th in the world. We are now 10th which is a fantastic achievement. Hopefully, we can now push on and create more history.”
That may or may not happen but the domino effect can already be felt according to Harte, who plays for Dabang Mumbai. “The sport’s been featured in mainstream media for the first time since the Olympics,” he says. “The women’s team as well won the Hockey World League 2 over in Malaysia and these things definitely help. There is an increase in terms of kids joining clubs back home.”
Narinder Batra, president of the International Hockey Federation (FIH), would be thrilled to hear those words because he ran on the pitch of taking the sport to a global level, a stage where the likes of Ireland can compete with the superpowers on a yearly basis. However, Harte warns more is to be done. “We have a population of 5.5 million and our sport is competing with many so we need to do more work to sustain this momentum we have had.”
swaroop@newindianexpress.com