KARACHI, Dec 21: Humiliation, shocks and agony are all that Pakistan managed during the year which ended with the worst-ever show at the Asian Games, in the history of Pakistan hockey.

The year, which could and should have brought laurels in hockey and smiles back on the faces of the countrymen, proved a disastrous one under the rule of khakis.

And it was not that the team failed to accomplish mission impossible, but the fact that it fell by the wayside in events like Commonwealth Games, compounded the anguish of hockey buffs.

The results might have been painful for the followers of the game but they were certainly not a surprize. Mind-boggling decisions, insatiable desire for one big victory were the major factors which caused the damage.

The decline started when Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) called up ageing star striker Shahbaz Ahmad for the 2002 World Cup held in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur.

Shahbaz’s call-up was what the PHF secretary Brig Musarrat Ullah Khan termed a ‘gamble’ which eventually backfired when Pakistan finished a poor fifth.

The decision became more controversial since Shahbaz, notorious for the revolt against the PHF he led weeks before the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, was not only discarded after 1998 Utrecht World Cup debacle, but was also coaching the same outfit for which he later played in Kuala Lumpur.

Consequently, coach Hanif Khan and his deputy Khawaja Junaid were booted out in a humiliating manner. “Mr. Indispensable”, Brig Khalid Khokhar, was sacked as manager, but retained as the selector, while Shahbaz once again went into deep sleep, perhaps to surface again.

Strange are the ways of the PHF who then back-pedalled by reversing its earlier decision of getting rid of old horses after the Kuala Lumpur setback.

PHF kept on pursuing its hobby — gambling — and invited retired goalkeeper Ahmad Alam, ageing Kamran Ashraf and Naveed Alam, for the Manchester Commonwealth Games and Champions Trophy.

Col Zafar Ali Khan and Tahir Zaman were installed as manager and the coach for this year’s three major events — Commonwealth Games, Champions Trophy and Busan Asian Games.

The pair, instead of carrying out repair of the damage, turned a deaf year to the calls for injecting young blood into the squad and opted to have spent forces like Ahmad and Kamran in the squad.

The result was as expected. The prospects of snapping the gold or at least the silver vanished as Pakistan suffered the worst- ever 7-1 defeat by unfancied New Zealand in the Manchester Games semifinal. All the greenshirts could do was to defeat South Africa 10-2 for the third place playoff.

Almost the same set of players went to Cologne where the team lost to arch-rivals India 3-2 in a Trophy league match, only to defeat them back 4-3 to earn a bronze.

Kamran quit after the Cologne contest fearing the axe which was quite likely after the pathetic showing. His retirement was ample proof he was not required when he was re-called.

The year culminated like the way it had started.

Still confident that short cuts would do the trick, team management hammered the last nail in the coffin of Pakistan hockey which Olympians had said died after the unbelievable, unprecedented fourth position at Busan Games.

Pakistan returned empty-handed from the Asiad for the first time ever when they lost to India 4-3 in the semifinal and were thrown out of medals bracket by Malaysia 4-2 in bronze medal playoff.

But the PHF was not content as it continued to play its favourite game of musical chairs and took few more mind-boggling decisions. It accepted Col Zafar’s resignation, demoted Tahir, an FIH coach, as Shahnaz Sheikh’s assistant, while unknown Col Shahid Jaffri (retd) became the manager.

It was not only the darkest year for Pakistan hockey, but the gloomiest chapter of the country’s history blemished by back-to-back ignominious defeats, that too by rank outsiders.

Favouritism flourished while the game hit its lowest ebb with opportunist vultures hovering above the dying, decaying sport. But the PHF felt elated and “satisfied” with the bronze medal secured at Commonwealth Games participated by the second raters South Africa, New Zealand, Wales, Barbados, and Canada.

PHF obliged people from every nook and corner of the country to keep their mouths shut and bought a certain allegiance by sending them on joyrides despite financial woes.

But the saddest part of the story is present PHF hierarchy spent its energy and resources producing more than 100 so-called coaches but did not have time to explore talent.

The PHF top brass, however, did not prove itself as dignified as it should have been when it cleared the “misconception” that it would quit by shouldering the responsibility of the drubbings.

The PHF secretary kept on running the “One Man Show” throughout the year which is still going on and is expected to continue next year also.

Overall the year leaves deep scars on our national game as it is being run by those who neither have common sense, self respect nor love for the game but happy to be at the helm of affairs at any cost.