'We got three points and that's what is important.'
Veteran India goalkeeper P R Sreejesh had no qualms in admitting that the tense 3-2 victory over New Zealand in the Paris Olympics men's hockey opener was a wake-up call ahead of tougher pool matches, even as coach Craig Fulton was pleased that the team stuck to its plan in Saturday’s match.
Skipper Harmanpreet Singh's penalty stroke conversion in the 59th minute proved crucial as India escaped with a narrow win to log three points.
"The first match in the Olympics is never easy. New Zealand is not an easy team. We made some mistakes, but there were a few good things as well. It's a good wake-up call for the team," Sreejesh said.
"We got three points and that's what is important. We gave them opportunities and they converted. The last few minutes were not easy but in hockey it's always like that; from first whistle to the last there is tension," he said.
India head coach Fulton said at this level, tough matches will be routine.
"You can see Australia, Argentina was 1-0. It's tight. It's really, really tight. So this was a really, really important step for us. It wasn't the perfect performance, but we had a plan. We stuck to it," the South African said.
Fulton admitted that India could have played a more aggressive game.
"There are a few plans that we have. But we have different plans for different teams. And the best form of defence at times is attack. And we didn't really do enough with the ball.
"On the ball, we weren't that good today in terms of keeping possession. But New Zealand are a competitive team, so they did well. They intercepted a lot of ball. So little areas, where we need to work. We did well," he said.
Fulton said he will take the victory even though it was not a flawless performance from his side.
"We had a good game. And I'm glad that we got the win the way we did because we made some mistakes. They punished us for it. And at the end of the day, we came back and got the win.
"This is the Olympics. So everyone's primed. You know, it's no easy team."
