Dutch veterans post first victory in Lahore

By AM Khan

LAHORE, Pakistan (TheSportsNEXT) December 5, 2012: The Flying Dutch Hockey team on Wednesday defeated the young guns of the Dar Academy 5-4 in a hotly-contested second match of the three-match series here at the Johar Hockey Stadium.

The Dar Academy which was leading the game at half time 2-1 lost the match with a goal difference as experience prevailed over youth. The average age of Dar Academy was below 20 whereas the foreign side was beaming with veteran Olympians and former world cup players.

The Flying Dutch Hockey team is visiting Lahore on the invitation of the Dar Hockey Academy and with the support of the Sports Board Punjab, which is following the vision of the Punjab government in holding national and international sports events.

MNA Mian Hamza Shahbaz was the chief guest of the hockey match and presented souvenirs to the visiting team. Usman Anwar, Director General Sports and Youth Affairs was also present on the occasion along with former international Pakistan hockey players and Olympians like Khawaja Zakauddin, Danish Kaleem and Tauqir Dar, who is also president of the Dar Academy were also present on the occasion.

Speaking on the occasion, Hamza said that the Punjab government not only held international sports activity in the province but also displayed to the world that the country is safe for holding any international tournament. “With the successful holding of the Punjab International Sports Festival we have helped in portraying a soft image of the country and the world has now realized that Pakistan is safe to host any international team,” he said.

“We have not only established 11 world records but also showed to the world more than 2.5 million people took part in the Punjab Youth Festival,” he said.

Expressing his surprise on the progress of the Dar Academy team players, Dutch team manager Bob said that he had seen these youngsters playing in Holland a year ago and they had improved their game a lot. He also expressed his surprise over the wrong impression being spread about Pakistan regarding insecurity and praised the treatment they were given thus far during their stay in Pakistan.

The Dutch veterans apart from playing hockey are also visiting historic and places of interest like Wagha Border, Lahore Fort, Badshahi Masjid etc. and as a good will gesture they have also brought 200 hockey playing kits for the Pakistan youngsters.