Two days ago, we had lost 4-0 to Dihing. As the Captain of Umiam Football, and missing two opportunities of scoring a goal, it had definitely not ended the way I had imagined.
Sleepless nights and shame plagued me. In addition, some in the Starting XI had pulled out injured from the next match. Even if we defeat Brahmaputra in the next match (which seemed a real distant fantasy), our chances of qualifying from the Group looked really slim.
Today, it had ultimately boiled down to a match where our sole motive was to regain that lost pride. And Brahmaputra was definitely not the best opponent to do that. Last year's winners, Brahmaputra had an array of talented players, reinforced by the inclusion of Arnav bhaiyya (currently, the best player on the Campus) in the team.
We managed to draw first blood, with me begetting the fortune of earning the credit. I knew I had redempted myself, and now it was time for the whole team. We shifted into Total Defense, as we had poked a sleeping lion. Relentless strikes from every side and numerous shots on goal adorned the match. At this point, I would not shy away from heaping praise on Aditya, our Keeper playing on Debut. Single-handed, he thwarted all those strikes. All my doubt and reluctance of placing a first-yearite (supposedly without experience) in charge of protecting our post was buried in the grave.
Another star debut was that of Sarthak, another first-yearite brought in at the last minute to strengthen an ailing defense. It was again a big gamble, which paid off at the end of the day. Sarthak and Mohit bhaiyya negated all possibilities of an aerial strike, Bhanu and Sarkar doing the same on the ground, demoralising every opponent and building up that frustration in Brahm. Pallav, Ankith bhaiyya, Loy, Piyush and Paul took care of building the attack and believe me, the swift counter-attacks were a pleasure to watch.
I don't know about anybody else on the team, but today I played my heart out. Stamina was always a problem, but that surprisingly didn't affect me much today. The sheer determination and belief I saw today in the team made me extremely proud of having the opportunity to lead them.
We may or may not go into the Quarters, but know this.
You earned a salute today. A 21-guns one !
Sleepless nights and shame plagued me. In addition, some in the Starting XI had pulled out injured from the next match. Even if we defeat Brahmaputra in the next match (which seemed a real distant fantasy), our chances of qualifying from the Group looked really slim.
Today, it had ultimately boiled down to a match where our sole motive was to regain that lost pride. And Brahmaputra was definitely not the best opponent to do that. Last year's winners, Brahmaputra had an array of talented players, reinforced by the inclusion of Arnav bhaiyya (currently, the best player on the Campus) in the team.
We managed to draw first blood, with me begetting the fortune of earning the credit. I knew I had redempted myself, and now it was time for the whole team. We shifted into Total Defense, as we had poked a sleeping lion. Relentless strikes from every side and numerous shots on goal adorned the match. At this point, I would not shy away from heaping praise on Aditya, our Keeper playing on Debut. Single-handed, he thwarted all those strikes. All my doubt and reluctance of placing a first-yearite (supposedly without experience) in charge of protecting our post was buried in the grave.
Another star debut was that of Sarthak, another first-yearite brought in at the last minute to strengthen an ailing defense. It was again a big gamble, which paid off at the end of the day. Sarthak and Mohit bhaiyya negated all possibilities of an aerial strike, Bhanu and Sarkar doing the same on the ground, demoralising every opponent and building up that frustration in Brahm. Pallav, Ankith bhaiyya, Loy, Piyush and Paul took care of building the attack and believe me, the swift counter-attacks were a pleasure to watch.
I don't know about anybody else on the team, but today I played my heart out. Stamina was always a problem, but that surprisingly didn't affect me much today. The sheer determination and belief I saw today in the team made me extremely proud of having the opportunity to lead them.
We may or may not go into the Quarters, but know this.
You earned a salute today. A 21-guns one !
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