Coach disappointed by last-minute errors that cost Patna victory

Bengal Warriors managed to forge a superb comeback and tie the game 36-36 with the last piece of action in their fixture against defending champions Patna Pirates at the Dome@NSCI SVP Stadium in Mumbai on Friday. The Pirates inflicted two All-Outs on Bengal in the first half itself, however, a stunning second-half display inspired by Bengal’s Deepak Narwal ensured that the game ended in a draw.

Patna Pirates coach Ram Mehar Singh was dismayed at the post-match press conference. “It's natural [to be upset]. If it's confirmed that you are winning the match with a lead of three points in the last minute of the match and then you give away two points to the opposition raider [Deepak].

“And then when went we went to raid, there were just 30 seconds remaining… The biggest disappointment is that such a natural and senior player [referring to Monu Goyat] makes such a mistake [not being able to consume the final few seconds in the last piece of action in the match]. After all this of course you will get angry. We had the game in our hands, confirmed. We gave it away,” he fumed.

Bengal Warriors coach Jagdish Kumble, on the other hand, showed a totally different set of emotions after his team’s last-minute rescue act. “We had come here to win. But this was a tough match, we knew it. We made a few mistakes at the start and because of that they took the lead. Later we made up for our mistakes wherever we could,” he said.

Meanwhile, the first match of the day witnessed hosts U Mumba stumble to a 39-36 loss against Jaipur Pink Panthers. When asked to assess his team’s performance, Jaipur coach Balwan Singh said: “We played well but in the second half there was some pressure. We knew during what situations we will be under pressure, so we were alert and prepared. They [U Mumba] are also a good team but today our players played better than theirs.”