Houston Hurricanes FC, a charter member of the Texas Premier Soccer League (TPSL), has signed Indian football prodigy Pratik Shinde to a three-year contract extension.
“I talked with our General Manager Roderick Lemond and we decided that we wanted to tie him down for the next three years,” Hurricanes President/Head Coach Brendan Keyes stated. “He deserves full credit for his recent performances, coming over to a foreign country with with his family back in India must be hard on anyone, never mind an 18-year-old.”
The Mumbai native has been impressive in his time in America, starring for the Galveston Pirate of the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) in 2012 before signing with the Houston Hurricanes in 2013. He played in sixteen games for Galveston, registering four goals and five assists. He was highly regarded and was certainly rated as one of the top players in the NPSL’s South Central Conference.
“I am so proud to play for Houston Hurricanes with the history the club has, going back to the days of NASL and USL,” Shinde added. “It is an honor to play for Coach Keyes and the Hurricanes. I have great teammates who give everything on the field, a coach that has created a family within the team, and the spirit in the camp is something I have never experienced before.”
The young midfielder has appeared in 16 games for the Hurricanes, scoring four goals and five assists in all competitions. Shinde was vital in the team advancing in the Admiral Texas Cup, even playing in the final with a difficult injury picked up in training.
“I do miss my family and friends back home, but I want them all to know I will do my best to represent our great country and carry our flag proudly,” Shinde added.
The Hurricanes are currently on winter break, but will return to action beginning February 1st with a series of warm-up matches to help prepare them for a run at the TPSL playoffs.
