‘We Wanted To Tear The Book Up’: Haryana Steelers Reflect On Maiden PKL Title Journey

‘We wanted to tear the book up’: Haryana Steelers reflect on maiden PKL title journey (Image Source: IANS)

Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex: Haryana Steelers' camp roared in celebration on Sunday at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Balewadi, Pune, after scripting a memorable 32-23 win in the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) Season 11 final against Patna Pirates.

Shivam Patare continued his supreme attacking form on the night, with ample support from Vinay, as the duo earned 9 and 6 points, respectively, to help the JSW Sports-owned franchise maintain their lead.

Mohammadreza Shadloui's defensive prowess put shackles around Patna's formidable attacking line-up, as the Iranian scored five successful tackles to keep the opposition at bay.

This was Haryana's first-ever title win in the PKL. It is a result of impeccable scouting efforts made by the management over the past couple of years, as they continued to put faith in youngsters and invested in developing local talent. The hard push to rope in Shadloui, who was part of the title-winning Puneri Paltan side last year, proved to be the masterstroke, as the Iranian proved himself to be a complete allrounder, and brought in attitude and confidence to Haryana's defence.

Skipper Jaideep gave a glimpse of the team's mindset going into the final and said, "We already had played Patna twice before and we spent a lot of time analysing the videos and understanding their game. We prepared our plans accordingly and stuck to our plans. We told the coach that we will not be making any mistakes."

Jaideep further reflected on Patna's raider Devank's remarks on ‘turning the page’ against Steelers. "They wanted to turn the page. We wanted to tear the book up. That was our message to the team. We were fully confident we would win. We lifted the trophy in style because we wanted to have fun and enjoy this moment," he added.

The win meant even more to Haryana head coach Manpreet Singh who took his side to the final last season as well, but was unable to help them lift the trophy. Speaking immediately after the win, Manpreet said, "We feel great. We put in a bit of effort last year. We converted our silver medal to gold medal. This was a great journey. I had a great time teaching the young players. When there is raw material, you can mould it any side you want to. It was great to see young players do what they were taught and they converted the hard work and helped us win the trophy."

With a focus on sports science and a training camp at the JSW Sports' Inspire Institute of Sport (IIS) over the years, further helped Haryana players in being in tremendous shape and maintaining amazing levels of fitness. Haryana Steelers CEO and JSW Sports COO Divyanshu Singh gave an insight into the efforts taken behind the scenes to prepare the team to reach this stage.

"This is a long time coming. It has been a lot of hard work - from missing out in the playoffs to improving our efforts in scouting, bringing our coach Manpreet Singh and focusing on implementing sports science through Inspire Institute of Sports and ensuring that we look for the right youngsters to improve our team composition. Last year we made a lot of great strides with the team reaching the final and being so close to the trophy. This year it was all about bridging those gaps, and making those small differences so that we can go all the way," he said.

"While the league is three months, the work cannot be confined to 4-5 months. The players who were retained, we ensured we are working with them throughout the year at IIS. We are in the process of setting up our academy in Haryana as well. Those things make a big difference,” he added.

The dominance and attitude displayed by the Steelers throughout the season caught attention and became a massive talking point. Steelers were the first team to qualify for the playoffs and finished in the top position in the league stage. Apart from Shadloui finishing as the top defender of the season with 82 tackle points and 78 successful tackles, Vinay also earned 48 points in do-or-die raids, the highest by any player. Overall, Haryana attained 260 successful tackles, and 290 total team tackle points, the maximum by any team this year.

Looking into the future, Shadloui expressed delight over his time at Haryana and said that he now aims to win his third title in a row. "Haryana Steelers was a great team for me. Everything from the management, the players and the support staff was remarkable. And finally - we won the trophy. I am happy and I speak from the heart. I hope the next year, we, at Haryana Steelers, can win trophy again,” he said,

The dominance and attitude displayed by the Steelers throughout the season caught attention and became a massive talking point. Steelers were the first team to qualify for the playoffs and finished in the top position in the league stage. Apart from Shadloui finishing as the top defender of the season with 82 tackle points and 78 successful tackles, Vinay also earned 48 points in do-or-die raids, the highest by any player. Overall, Haryana attained 260 successful tackles, and 290 total team tackle points, the maximum by any team this year.

Article Source: IANS