Hockey: Telkom coach Jos Openda seeks to restore team's winning mentality
Hockey
By
Elizabeth Mburugu
| Nov 09, 2017
Telkom coach Jos Openda has his work cut out as he seeks to restore a winning mentality in his team.
With the Africa Cup for Club Championships set for January 20 to 28 in Accra, Ghana, there is little room for any slip-ups.
The undisputed Africa hockey champions will be looking to defend their title and win a record 10th African gong.
However, they face an uphill task if Kenya’s performance at this year’s Africa Cup of Nations held in Ismailia, Egypt, a fortnight ago, is anything to go by.
The Kenyans performed poorly in the event, as South Africa, Ghana and Nigeria called the shots. Kenya finished fourth.
Openda, who will be out to guide Telkom to their fifth consecutive title, told The Standard Sports that Kenya’s poor show was a call to his charges to train harder.
“When Ghana and Nigeria beat Kenya, it boosted their confidence and was a warning to us. We need to work harder.
"We expect stiff competition from them because they have proved they are better than us at the national level, but at Telkom, we do things differently,” he said.
Openda admitted that after watching video footage of his players in action at the continental event, he realised they all struggled throughout the competition.
“A lot needs to be done, especially with my nine players, who were part of the national team, because they all struggled and failed to get it right in all aspects of the game.”
He added that they had intensified their training after Kenya’s dismal output in Egypt, with the aim of having the players back in shape ahead of the tough task.
“I had players in every unit and we need to work on all aspects of the game from goalkeeping, defence, midfield and attack because nothing seemed to work out.”
The nine-times Africa champions will face stiff competition from bitter rivals Ghana Revenue Authority, who they have beaten in the past five finals to lift the national crown.
Telkom Assistant coach Josephine Ataro said playing in Ghana would be a tough test.
“Playing in Ghana is not easy. The last time we were there, the results did not go our way. But we have matured in the game and I believe we have what it takes to defend our title,” Ataro said.
Meanwhile, Kenyan men have dropped six places to 42nd in the recently released International Hockey Federation (FIH) world rankings.
This follows their dismal show at the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations that saw them finish fourth behind winners South Africa, Egypt and Ghana.
South Africa (15) top the continental standings.
Egypt are second in Africa and Ghana third.
Kenyan women retained their third-place slot in Africa and are 40th in the world.