Currently, in Japan, Aikman is preparing his wards for the biggest test of their lives. Clubbed in Pool A along with defending champions Argentina, Australia, Spain, India and New Zealand; Japan are currently the lowest-ranked side in the group standings at 15th.
Aikman felt that the postponement came as a blessing in disguise for all the managers at the Tokyo Olympics. It helped the strongest minds in the sport to go online and grab some valuable inputs which will make the event interesting in July-August.
The 62-year-old Dutch coach also felt that they had more of an advantage last year and were hoping to surprise their opponents in Tokyo. But with COVID wrecking havoc, all of their Tokyo Olympics plans went haywire, giving other teams more time to strategise.
Japan need more gametime against European sides before Tokyo Olympics
Since 2019, Japan have competed internationally twice with the latest being the Malaysian tour. Although Japan rubbed shoulders with the likes of Great Britain and Malaysia, Aikman stated they need more matches against the European teams before the Tokyo Olympics.
Argentina is also supposed to come to Japan this month. This is also the same time the Japanese team leaves for Canada. If the Canadian tour fails to materialize, Japan will be playing Argentina at home for a few matches. He also stated Japan still have areas to improve and hope to be in the best shape before the Tokyo Olympics.
With all the other teams in the group having high-level game time in the FIH Pro League matches, Japan is clearly on the backfoot but one can’t rule them out at the Tokyo Olympics. However, Japan have never been a part of the FIH Pro League.
0 votes
