Indian Arrows are no strangers to making the headlines. They emerged as giant slayers last season after defeating the likes of Mohun Bagan in the I-League and Kerala Blasters in the Super Cup.
But their most recent victory against Churchill Brothers holds more significance for a variety of reasons.
This is a fresh batch of players who are playing top division football for the very first time. On Saturday, they were just playing their fourth match under the aegis of a new coach in former Indian skipper Shanmugam Venkatesh.
Keeping in mind that a team needs time to gel and adapt to a new philosophy, the performance that the youngsters put up against a formidable Churchill Brothers side deserves plaudits.
They were the better team by a mile in the first fifteen minutes of the match and although Churchill came back strongly to finish the half with a one-goal lead, the blue cavalry showed enough grit and determination to edge out the former I-League champions by scoring twice in the final 45 minutes.
Ankush Adhikari and Vikram Pratap Singh were playing champagne football in the opening quarter as they hardly allowed the hosts to get on the ball. Adhikari's pace and Singh's guile and trickery are an asset to this team. Aman Chetri came on in the second half which increased the potency in attack. Their sleek passing and co-ordination in the attacking third helped them open up Churchill's defence on a number of occassions. Albeit, their finishing needs to improve but this is one of the most difficult aspects of the game and with time and experience, it will only get better.
I-League
It is also an encouraging sign that in none of their three defeats so far, they were outplayed by the opponent. It was the finer details that made the difference. Against Punjab FC and Aizawl FC, they conceded late goals due to a lapse in concentration in the final stages. Given the quality they have shown, one can hope that as the season progresses, they will also learn the art of closing out games.
They play to their strengths and their defensive organisation has been decent, if not water-tight. Containing an in-form Willis Plaza is no mean task and Ruivah Hormipam passed that test with distinction. His goal-line clearance in the 16th minute also shows his awareness and excellent game reading capability.
It must also be remembered that the young colts are playing with no overseas players in the starting line-up and more often than not, they are the difference-makers.
"If I had left out Messi (Raphael Messi Bouli) last week, I would have been playing with three foreigners and foreigners make the difference, in all teams. That is for sure," commented Eelco Schattorie, head coach of Kerala Blasters. It is striking that even an ISL coach admits that foreigners make the difference in teams. And that is the case in I-League as well.
To lock horns against professional players who are not only experienced but also physically more dominant is a daunting task but these young players have been putting in impressive shifts each time they are taking the pitch.
The road is long and the journey has just begun. But if they continue to take little strides in the right direction under the watchful eyes of Venkatesh then hopefully by the end of the season, there will be some more big scalps in the kitty.