A roar of support for the Lions

Taking controversies and pull-outs head-on, amidst a sea of uncertainties, Yannick Colaco made the World Series Hockey work. The Chief Operating Officer of Nimbus Sports, said the success in Bengaluru has been on expected lines.

“From a marketing perspective, Bengaluru is one of the key markets for us. We expected the turnout, but what we did not expect was the involvement of the supporters. We were pleasantly surprised with that.”

Much before the advent of the glitzy Indian Premier League, hockey was the first sport to introduce a city-based league with international flavour. Though the Premier Hockey League had its own base of fans, the event was shelved after three seasons in 2008.

Following a four-year break, the World Series Hockey was launched on the lines of PHL, but with added glamour. But it wasn’t a run of roses, given the all-out war between Hockey India and the Indian Hockey Federation, which backed the WSH.

With the top Indian players pulling out of the event, the event appeared all set to be banished to the backburner even before it began. But thankfully, the enthusiastic crowds at Bengaluru have shown that passion for hockey is undiminished, with or without the Indian stars.

Going by the response in namma Bengaluru, the WSH has proved to be a smashing hit. For all the seven home matches of Karnataka Lions, the fans thronged the stadium and bathed it in a sea of yellow, showing unprecedented strength and support for hockey.

The team, on its part, responded well and after an initial slump, the Lions have roared back to book themselves a semifinal slot on their home turf on Sunday.

Attributing the rise of the team, to the unstinted support of its fans, skipper Arjun Halappa said, “We’ve hardly played any international matches in the city and the local leagues do have a sizeable attendance. But the response we saw during our home matches has been phenomenal. The spectators have created a special atmosphere which is magical.

“What really touched the team was the fact that even when the chips were down, they rallied behind us. When you are losing, the general pattern is that the spectators, overcome by emotions, tend to turn hostile or become quiet, but in this case, they have cheered us until the final whistle. We couldn’t have asked for more from our home crowd.”

Apart from the game, what really got the crowds to the stadium and kept them on their toes was the foot-tapping music, racy cheerleaders and the electrifying atmosphere created by the organisers.

Each time Len Aiyappa, clearly a favourite among the fans, stepped out to take a penalty corner, the whole stadium would chant ‘Aiyappa! Aiyappa!’ This, according to the burly player, who shuttles between playing in the Italian league and the city, has infused the much-needed energy and motivation in the team.

“This kind of support is something I have never seen here and it has actually motivated the team to push for the semifinals slot which we eventually earned. We’ve had a blast playing in front of our supporters and hopefully, we can win the trophy for them,” said the 33-year-old who is among the top scorers of the league so far.

Aiyappa, who flew in from Italy on a short, two-day notice after Indian ace Sandeep Singh opted out of the League, believes all the adoration and attention has made his trip worth the effort.