Player Interviews
Andrew Cronje - Corinthians

Decisions, decisions. The overwhelming success of Andrew Cronje’s first full season in charge of Corinthian means his future with the reds is still very much “in the air”.

The South African’s dreams of playing in a second Olympics in 2012 – he played in Beijing, too, in 2008 – could have already seen him step down from his player-coach but for a stellar run in his club’s maiden Irish Hockey League to complement their best ever league finish.

Making the South African panel again would require availability for all tours and training camps, something which he says is doable from Ireland but the large expense could make it a prohibitive venture.

But with the carrot of the EuroHockey League just a couple of wins away and the prospect of breaking new ground, Cronje is refusing to rule anything out until after the IHL weekend is played out.

“My plans are still very much in the air. We’ve got to see how this weekend goes. If we qualify for Europe, it becomes a relatively simple decision. If not, I’m not sure I’ll be able to do a full season but I am certainly hoping to be back playing at Corinthian so not moving on by any means.”

Should Corinthian miss out, plenty of variables still need to be considered.

“I need to make myself available again for the South African team on a full-time basis, every cup and every tour. It is a matter of looking at my studies and one or two opportunities back in Cape Town so it’s about planning my life the best way I can in the build-up to the London Olympics.

“Even then, I’ve still got to make the national team, get back into the squad and we’ve still got to qualify which is next July in Egypt so there’s a lot of water that’s left to flow under the bridge but it is a massive goal of mine to go to another Olympics.

“It’s very confusing at the moment but, honestly, I’m just focussing on the weekend but once the weekend is gone and we know what’s happening, then I’ll make a firm decision.”

To that end, Corinthian battle Lisnagarvey in Saturday’s late game on Saturday (5pm, Grange Road). Both sides were spectators at the main event last year, contesting the wildcard playoffs in 2009 but Cronje knows that domestic league form is easily deciphered from a focus on the main event.

’Garvey’s division of form has been stark – awesome in the country’s premier competition, patchy in Ulster’s top tier. And the Cape Town man knows that it is a format which suits the Hillsborough outfit’s all-action approach.

“They’re in the semi-finals for a reason but we’ve had a good look at them [at last week’s wildcard playoffs] and will have our tactics. They play a high tempo and intensity game so it should be a cracker and we’re looking forward to it.”

Just two competitive fixtures in the last six weeks has allowed Corinthian’s squad to reach full fitness and Cronje believes his side are in ‘perfect’ condition as they seek to add another chapter to a memorable season at Whitechurch Park.

“To put it bluntly, it’s been an amazing season. I knew we had the potential to do really well this year. We set targets at the start of the year which might have sounded unrealistic but getting into the IHL semi-finals was one of those.

“We had a good squad throughout, the guys trained from July all the way through so it didn’t surprise me at all; the guys certainly had it in them.”

Interview conducted by Stephen Findlater, Freelance Journalist on behalf of the IHA