It has been a while since I blogged, but like everyone in hockey in the Netherlands, I also had a well-deserved winter break. No indoor hockey, mid-winter or team sessions at the gym for me. Just 3 weeks, in my own small and cold country celebrating Christmas, New Year’s Eve, and visiting family and friends. I can tell you, it was great! Despite having had just 1,5 days of sunshine with a maximum temperature of 15 degrees. 😉
Since January 15 I am back in India so in terms of adventures I don’t have much to share with you unfortunately. However, we did welcome Ciriello’s Coaching Academy (Chris Ciriello’s academy, former Australian International and player of Bloemendaal (Dutch National Champion) in Bhubaneswar. Super cool to see how origin, color, religion and poor or rich don’t matter the tiniest bit when on the pitch. And amazing to see how you can also have a lot of dancing and playing fun off the pitch (check my Instagram ‘Slinkstersxm’ for a nice movie about this). Although language was a barrier to communicate open and freely our girls and the Australian girls made some new friends.
It was also great to hear from the Australians that this trip put the girls with both feet on the ground. From everything they have seen here in India they understand that they lead a “luxury” life at home. So for anyone who reads this and thinks “that would be good for our (youth) team”, come to India for 1 or 2 weeks of hockey, it is an unforgettable experience for your team (also for the teams here) . And what if India is too far? I would like to come by and tell you all about it!
The coming months will be dominated by the 2020-2021 season, yes also here in India. As a result, I am mainly busy with selections for the coming season. A nice subject to give you as a reader of this blog a glimpse into the cuisine of how this is done in India.
Since I will return to the Netherlands at the end of June, I have also been working on my own future during my three weeks in The Netherlands. In regards to hockey that means, explore if I can find a nice club again for next season (2020-2021) to start coaching.
In the context of “shameless self-promotion” I would like to make an appeal: “I would love to coach a senior team in the Netherlands again next season, so if you are looking for a hockey fan please contact me.” All clubs in the Randstad are welcome, as I do not yet have a new place to live, a lot is possible. You can contact us via sjoerdwoelders@gmail.com or send a message via Facebook/Instagram.
