LAHORE: The national hockey team arrived back in Lahore from Australia on Wednesday, where captain Imad Butt launched a scathing attack on the team management, alleging systematic mistreatment and lies during the tour.
Speaking to the media at Lahore Airport, a visibly frustrated Butt confirmed that videos circulating on social media depicting the team’s poor accommodation and treatment were accurate. “All the videos that came from Australia are true,” he stated. “The team management lied to us a lot. We cannot continue with this management anymore.”
The captain revealed the psychological toll the mismanagement has taken on the players. “The Hockey Federation and then the team management are to blame. They have made us mentally ill,” Butt said. “How can we perform when we are treated like this?”
Butt made a direct appeal to the country’s leadership to intervene. “There is an appeal to the Prime Minister to take notice of the incident,” he pleaded, adding that the federation and management must be held accountable for what he described as a “nightmare” tour.
He concluded by calling for structural changes within the sport’s administration. “There is a need to bring honest people into the hockey management,” Butt asserted, reflecting the deep frustration within the squad over the lack of professionalism and support.
