AIFF Media Team

Cuttack, November 5, 2018: Indian Arrows head coach Floyd Pinto expressed his delight at the fact that his boys earned their first win of the 12th Hero I-League campaign in their first home game against Shillong Lajong, at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack, on Monday.

The Arrows, who had lost out their first game of the season 1-4 away at Chennai City in Coimbatore last week, were playing their first ever home game in Cuttack; last season, they played their home matches in Goa and Delhi.

Asish Rai got the Arrows underway, scoring an 11th-minute goal to hand AIFF’s developmental side the win against Shillong Lajong.

“To get our first three points in our first home game, was great for us. These guys have been putting in a lot of hard work, and it will give them a lot of confidence especially heading into the game against Mohun Bagan,” said head coach Pinto. “Now we have got something that we can hold on to.”

He went on to state that the Arrows have been training hard, and executed their plans on the pitch perfectly to register the win.

“The boys have been training hard, they have been performing really well in training, creating a lot of chances and scoring a lot of goals,” he said. “I think that showed in today’s match. Everything that we did was on point, and according to the game plan.”

Having opened their account in the 2018-19 season of the Hero I-League, Pinto said that his boys will look to continue the same in their next match against Kolkata giants Mohun Bagan.

“Today, Shillong did really well. I told their coach as well, keep playing the way they are playing. We did what we do best – stifle teams, get the ball from them, and hit them on the counter,” said Pinto.

Goalscorer Asish Rai expressed his happiness at the fact that he scored the first goal for this team, though he reiterated the importance of getting the three points on board.

“It doesn’t matter to me whether I score or one of my teammates score. The three points are important, and I am happy to have earned the first three points for the team. I really feel very happy that we won the match,” Asish signed off.