Rourkela, Jan 10 : Soorma Hockey Club are halfway through phase 1 of the men's Hockey India League being held at the iconic Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium in Rourkela. They are just two points away from joint table toppers ' Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers and Tamil Nadu Dragons after four matches played. Soorma Hockey Club will now aim to continue their stellar performances in the second half of the phase, beginning with a match against Hyderabad Toofans on Saturday.

So far Soorma have clinched one outright win against the Vedanta Kalinga Lancers and have registered two penalty shootout wins against Tamil Nadu Dragons and Delhi SG Pipers to amass seven points.

'I think we've been very resilient. We haven't started our games at our best sometimes but we've seen in almost each game that we were able to get back in the game, fight until the end and get the win over the finishing line. I think that's a really important habit that we that we do not let things go and we keep fighting until the last minute and I'm pretty happy with that. We need to be stronger from the start and it's our key focus for the next few games that we play a better hockey game for the whole duration. But I'm very happy with our endings every time, and I hope we keep getting the points at the end of the game,' head coach Jeroen Baart reflected on the team's performances so far.

In the last game against Delhi SG Pipers, Soorma found themselves staring at a two-goal deficit in the last quarter. But captain Harmanpreet Singh stepped up to lead from the front and found the back of the net twice with his unstoppable drag flicks to bring Soorma back into the game. Heroic saves from Vincent Vanasch in the penalty shootouts then ensured that they walked away from the game with a bonus point as well.

'It's definitely not part of the strategy. I think we try to be as good in the first half as in the second half, but sometimes it doesn't happen. The opposition sometimes changes things as well, and we have to just manage to get through the first part of the game with the right amount of quality, in the right mind, and the right amount of intent. And it's definitely not a choice. But I'm pretty happy with the conviction that we have had in every second-half until now because that has propelled us to third place on the table with seven points. We have to make sure that in the next game against the Hyderabad Toofans, we perform again,' he explained.

The Hyderabad Toofans have won one of their matches and secured a penalty shootout victory, meaning they are just two points away from equaling Soorma's tally. The 26-year-old Australian forward Tim Brand has already notched up two goals for his side. The Toofans also boast one of the best drag flickers in the world - Gonzalo Peillat.

'We played a practice game against them before the League began, but that was more for us to look at ourselves. I think they have a couple of really quality players at the top of the circle. And yes, they have Peillat at the top of the circle, but we have Vincent Vanasch in goal, and we really rely on him as of course as well to make a difference for us. So, we know that there are talented players in the team but again, we're focusing more on ourselves,' he commented.

'Victor Wegnez is also very close to getting back on the pitch. We also don't want to rush things, so we have to see this day by day and hope that we can get him as soon as possible on the pitch again because he's an important factor for our team,' Jeroen added before signing off.

/IANS