Chief minister Naveen Patnaik congratulates the triumphant rugby team on its arrival in Bhubaneswar. Picture by Sanjib Mukherjee

Bhubaneswar, Oct. 3: It may not quite have been the reception accorded to Dhoni and his band of bravehearts which won the T20 cricket world cup, but it was a hero’s welcome nonetheless for the victorious India under-14 rugby team that landed here this morning.

The entire team belongs to Kalinga Institute of Social Science, a part of KIIT Deemed University here.

The “Jungle Crows”, as the team is called, touched down around 8 am after their unprecedented victory over South Africa in the final play-off in the Touraid Under-14 International School Rugby Tournament at the London Scottish Rugby Club.

Thousands of fans flocked to the Biju Patnaik Airport to greet the 12-member rugby team, which arrived on a flight from Calcutta.

The Jungle Crows then boarded an open-top truck that inched its way through the streets amid lusty cheering from the people who had lined the streets. As the players took turns holding the cup, the truck reached Naveen Nivas, the residence of chief minister Naveen Patnaik.