Renowned names from Global Hockey all set to descend on Delhi tomorrow :: Kelly Fairweather, CEO, FIH to be present for Hockey India League 2015 auctions

New Delhi | September | Wednesday | 16, 2015 :: With Hockey India League Auction 2015 scheduled to take place tomorrow, the franchises will be seen bidding their best numbers to embrace players who will help complete their respective squad for the next two editions of Hockey India League. Present for the auctions will be FIH CEO,  Kelly Fairweather as the new regulations gets the backing of the International Hockey Federation. Besides him each team’s representatives which includes the owners along with the key think squad as well as coaches, who will be seen working on the combinations and ensuring that they bag the best players suited to complete their squad.

All eyes will be on the India Men Team Captain Sardar Singh and drag- flicker Rupinder Pal Singh as the franchisees would be aiming to get these two on their side. Foreign players like Jamie Dwyer, Nicolas Jacobi, Andrew Hayward, Kieran Govers as well as Lucas Rey will go strong on the auction table as their presence will add the foreign strength and automatically make the squad look strong. Tomorrow will unveil which franchisee successfully picks up which players and the limit to which each will stretch themselves so as to create their targeted team while even ensuring that they complete their required squad with the kitty money that they are left with. So it will be a big task at hand for each representative on the table, be it Barry Dancer, Roelant Oltmans, Viren Rasquihna, Cedric D’souza, Dilip Tirkey or Harendra Singh. Each franchisee are aware the value that each player will add to their team and how bidding for them successfully will help them create the ideal squad that each is aiming for.

With the introduction of the new regulations, the franchisees are putting their last moment thoughts and strategies in place and each will want to take advantage of the present scenario. So while the strikers will feel that that the new regulations will put them on a stronger position, one should not forget that the defence here will also play the key as each franchisee will want to build a stronger fort. So while franchisees are gearing up for tomorrow’s auction, the players are even excited as they are waiting to get picked up by their new franchisees.

The HIL Auction 2015 will witness top players from across the globe going under the hammer wherein 135 Indian and 137 foreign players will be seen going for bids by franchisees. Going by the new regulations Franchisees can build a team of 20 players, which allows each franchisee to have 12 Indian players and 8 foreign players in their respective team.

With the successful completion of three editions, the franchises have become more experienced now and this is what makes this season more competitive and challenging.

Speaking prior the HIL Auction 2016, Dr Narinder Dhruv Batra, Chairman Hockey India League and President, Hockey India, said, “As the preceding editions of the HIL saw a remarkable success, the league in its fourth edition has gained the right momentum and is expected to kick start on a fantastic note with the HIL Auction 2015 slated for tomorrow. It will be an exciting moment to see the franchises targeting the finest players to ensure a successful bidding session. What will play a key role is the new regulations introduced just a couple of days back. If one field goal results in two goals, so I think the strategy will to have the best strikers in the team. So I am sure there will be last moment thinking in terms of targeting the best possible players for each ones team”.

Speaking on Kelly Fairweather’s honourable presence for tomorrow’s auctions, Dr Batra added “It’s an honour to have Kelly Fairweather here tomorrow with us during the auctions. His presence in a way helps us verify that they are even excited about the new regulation that we are introducing and are looking forward to see how this helps change the tempo of the game during the League”.

Hockey India League Auction 2015 will commence at 09:30 am at The Lalit, New Delhi tomorrow (17 September 2015). The auction will be telecasted LIVE on DD Sports and YouTube from 0900h onwards.