For Churchill Brothers, the long wait is over. This family owned club from the Varca village in Goa made their tryst with destiny in the 25^th year of their existence when they annexed the 6^th I-league, setting several new records in the process. They became the second low-budget team after Salgaocar in 2010-11 to win the I-League. In the 4^th I-League, Salgaocar had no Indian player who cost more than Rs. 30 lakh for the season. Churchill Brothers also won the 6^th I-League with a low budget team estimated at Rs. 10 crores.

At least four teams –  Prayag United, East Bengal, Mohun Bagan and Dempo had bigger budget squads (in the range of Rs. 14—18 crores) in the 6^th I-League.

They scored a club record tally of 56 goals and procured a record 56 points in 26 matches. Their charming and dynamic CEO, Ms. Valanka Alemao, a law graduate from Pune and a social activist became the first woman to guide a football team to a national title in Indian football. Their technical director Subash Bhowmick became the first coach to win the national title with two different clubs. He led East Bengal to back to back titles in 2003 and 2004. Brazilian midfielder Beto became the first foreigner to win the I-League with two different clubs, Dempo in 2008 and 2010 and now with Churchill Brothers in 2012. Legendary Brazilian Jose Ramirez Baretto had won the National football League titles with two clubs, Mohun Bagan in 2000 and 2002 and with Mahindra United in 2006. The ex-international midfielder Tomba Singh (whose career was revived by Subash Bhowmick) became the first Indian footballer to win the I-league with two different clubs; he had earlier won it with Salgaocar in 2010-11.

When Churchill Brothers had won the 2^nd I-league in 2009, they exorcised the ghosts of the past – 1997, 2002 and 2008 – whewn they finished as runners up by faltering in the last round of matches. By winning this title, they have established themselves as a major force and the most consistent team in Indian football. In the six editions held so far, their lowest position was fourth in the 4th I-League, 2010-11. They have twice been champions and twice runners up (2008, 2010) and in the last season finished third. The club has also improved their infrastructure and facilities for their players. At the behest of Bhowmick, they have constructed a fine club house amidst sylvan surroundings, where the bulk of players stay in comfort.

In 2009 Churchill Brothers finished with a record tally of 53 goals in 22 matches. Lethal striker Odafa Onyeka Okolie,with an impressive tally of 26 goals, finished as top-scorer for the third year in a row. Their Serbian coach,  Zoran Djordevic, became the first foreigner to guide a team to success in the national league in India. In 2013, they won because of teamwork and not just the exploits of a lethal striker. Thirty five of the 53 goals they scored were by foreigners. Thirteen goals were scored by Brazilian playmaker Beto, the Gabonese striker Henri Antchouet scored 12 goals and before he left, Lebanese striker Akram Moghrabi scored 10 goals. But their Indian players also contributed to their success. India’s skipper Sunil Chettri ,who joined in February on loan from Sporting Lisbon scored the vital equalizer against Mohun Bagan, which clinched the league title, the match winner against Pune FC to end a five match winless streak and two brilliant goals against Dempo on April 17 to gain a vital point. Bineesh Balan scored a memorable hat-trick in the 8-4 win over Sporting Clube de Goa in a Round 11 clash on 16 December 2012. No wonder veteran technical director Subash Bhowmick said, “My team is my star. Till death, I won’t forget my players. They stuck around like glue.”

Team spirit, loyalty and above all the caring nature of owner Churchill Alemao and the professionalism of the CEO of Valanka were the motivating factors which inspired their success. Creditably, Churchill Alemao, Bhowmick and coach Mariano Dias managed to foster great team-spirit. This was exemplified by the phone call that Churchill Alemao received after clinching the I-League title with a 1-1 draw against Mohun Bagan. The congratulatory call was from Lebanon by their classy defender, Bilal Najjarine, who quit in the January transfer window due to a lucrative offer from a UAE club. Despite leaving, Najjarine spoke in a voice full of emotions. Long serving goalkeeper Arindam Bhattacharya had quit Churchill Brothers after a long stint with them and joined Mohun Bagan at the start of this season. Arindam  not only joined the victory celebrations at Alemao’s mansion on May 7, but also gifted Valanka with her favourite sweet dish – six tins of the renowned rasgullas of KC Das. It is this family like atmosphere, which makes Churchill Brother’s tick.

To his credit,  Bhowmick maintained an atmosphere of calm professionalism. He ensured that the team paid attention to detail and changed strategy whenever needed. The best example of changing tactics was in the second half in the deciding match against Mohun Bagan. Churchill Brothers were trailing by a solitary goal, when a visibly tiring Beto was replaced in the 65^th minute by the bustling Afghan striker Balal Arezou. The team switched to a 4-3-3 formation, with Arezou on the left, Sunil Chettri as striker and Henri Arnaud providing speed on the right. The ploy clicked and Churchill Brothers not only got the vital equaliser, but dominated proceedings and except for Bagan goalkeeper Shilton Paul’s heroics would have emerged winners.

Bhowmick also managed to cock a snook at his detractors as he replicated the success he obtained with East Bengal a decade ago. Many critics claimed that East Bengal won successive National league titles in 2003 and 2004 because of their star studded squad and not because of Bhowmick’s coaching. Now Bhowmick has had the last laugh as they way he has transformed Churchill Brothers is exemplary.

His greatest contribution was reviving the confidence of Sandip Nandy, Tomba Singh and Chettri who had been rejected by other clubs. East Bengal had felt Nandy was past his prime and not worth spending money on. Bhowmick let Nandy train with his first coach Gautam Sarkar (not the ex-international) and it worked wonders. Tomba had been dumped by Salgaocar but Bhowmick used him as an impact substitute creditably. During his stint with Sporting Lisbon, Chettri barely got any playing time and his confidence was revived by giving him a leadership role. Both Chettri and Beto were leaders on and off the pitch. They ensured their professionalism had an impact on their team-mates also.

Again it was Bhowmick who at the start of the season cajoled the Churchill Brothers management to retain the dashing Henri Arnaud as he felt his speed and work rate was exemplary. Bhowmick’s faith was justified as Arnaud with his devastating speed created many openings. Arnaud is now considered one of the best foreign strikers in India and is sought by many clubs. Bhowmick played the role of father figure to perfection, mediating with the management in case of a cash crunch and offering both solace and guidance. It is no wonder the players call him “Papa”.

Churchill Brothers are now the third club from Goa to annex the I-league title. Previous winners were Salgaocar (2010–11) and Dempo (2007-08, 2009-10, 2011-12). When Churchill Brothers first won the title in 2009, it heralded the dawn of a new era. Six to seven players from the North-East were invariably in their starting line up. It was for the first time that a team had won the national league, with so many players from Manipur and Mizoram in their starting line up, a trend seen in all their 22 matches.  Their former international stopper back, Gourmangi Singh, who hails from Manipur, had then said that “our time has come”.  This year their success is based on a clever blend of experience (Nandy, Beto, Chettri, Steven Dias, D. Ravannan and Denzil Franco) and youth (Ashley Fernandes, Bikramjit Singh, Bineesh Balan, Satish Singh, Sanjay Balmuchu, Jaison Vales and Naveen Sudhkaran).

In a small locality, Nong-Sohphh, Naspati-ghari in upper Mawprem, Shillong, an 86-year old man recovering from a heart operation is nostalgically recalling his experiences on the football field. This ailing patient is none other than the legendary Lt. Col. (Retd.) Puran Bahadur Thapa, whose delectable body swerves and thunderous left-footed shots entertained fans from Kashmir to Kanyakumari in the 1950s.  He had large and powerful thighs, a low centre of gravity, could turn quickly and unleash powerful but accurate shots from any angle.

Throughout his career, he played as either an inside left or outside left. Despite several offers from Kolkata clubs, he never left the security of his army job. Born in 1928, he joined the Indian Army in 1947. After his football career was over, he excelled as a soldier and retired as Lt. Colonel. He played for the 8^th Gorkha Rifles and Gorkha Brigade, represented Services in the Santosh trophy and played on several occasions for India.

This now forgotten man of Indian football became a household name 49 years ago, when he scored a hat-trick in an international match, at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata in the Quadrangular football tournament against Pakistan. It was the first hat-trick by an Indian in international football. Puran Bahadur’s hat-trick enabled India win the tie 3-1 and win the Quadrangular trophy for the third successive year. Overall, this tournament was held for four years, 1952-55) and Indian won each time, never losing a match to any of their opponents, Burma (now Myanmar), Pakistan and Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). In 1954, the only year this event was staged in India, the great S.A. Rahim was India’s coach and the late Sailen Manna was India’s captain.

Puran Bahadur was the star of that tournament. In the opening match against tenacious Ceylon, he created the only goal with a measured cross for overlapping left-half Noor Mohammed. In the next match, he and J. Anthony scored in the 2-1 win over Burma. Then came the icing on the cake, as his hat-trick against Pakistan helped India win the tournament. In those days, Pakistan was quite a formidable team and included the skilful outside left Masud Fakhri, who later played 2^nd division league football in England.

In 1955, he again excelled for India when they won the Quadrangular tournament for the fourth time, beating Ceylon 4-3, Burma 5-2 and Pakistan 2-1. The tournament was staged in Dhaka and S.K. Azizuddin was India’s captain.

That same year, Puran Bahadur lined up for India against the USSR Services team in an international match at the National Stadium, in Delhi. This USSR Services team contained legendary names like goalkeeper Lev Yashin, midfielders Igor Netto and Boris Tatushin. This trio and some others in that team were members of the USSR team, which a year later won the gold medal in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. Yet, on that sunny winter’s day in Delhi, they struggled to contain the mesmeric dribbling skills of Puran Bahadur. Oozing with confidence, he repeatedly evaded his marker with body swerves and sharp dribbles. The Soviet players were amazed at his ball skills, game sense and fitness. After the match, the manager of the Soviet team went to the press box and asked some of the local media about the background of Puran Bahadur.

His left-footed shots were so accurate and powerful that famous Indian goalkeeper Peter Thangaraj always said that he would always be left stranded whenever Puran Bahadur took a penalty kick against him in practice or in matches.

Yet, for all his skills and popularity, Puran Bahadur did not play for India in any major international tournament like the Asian Games or the Olympics. He represented India in two Quadrangular tournaments on foreign tours to Afghanistan in 1949, the Far East tour in 1951 and in friendly internationals on home soil. Injuries or work commitment deprived him of higher glories. However, this stockily built 5’4″ forward has no grudges and regrets about missing some famous tournaments, as the Army was his career.

A certainty for the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, he was not given permission to attend the trials as he was commissioned as an officer in the Indian Army that year, and joined the Indian Military Academy in Dehra Dun. He was really unlucky not to be chosen for the 1954 Asian Games in Manila. Ahmed Khan, Puran Bahadur and J. Kittu were automatic choices on the left flank. But he got injured, compelling chief coach Balai Das Chatterjee to choose M. Jayaram (Services) in his place.

Again, knee trouble forced him to opt out from the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. Precocious teenagers Tulsidas Balaram and Zulfikar got selected on the left flank along with J. Kittu. During that period there was a lot of depth in Indian football, and competition was intense for each position, with three or four well-known names vying for one position. Also, Puran Bahadur remained with the Services and Gorkha Brigade, which did not have much of a say in the selection of the national team. It was felt that if he had played for a Bengal club, he would have played more for India. A combination of all these factors resulted in India’s first hat-trick man not getting his due recognition with regard to international appearances.

But Puran Bahadur will always be remembered as a supreme entertainer. The Ambedkar Stadium in Delhi (known as the Delhi Gate Stadium in the 1950s) was his happy hunting ground, and he was always a crowd favourite. A charismatic player, he had numerous fans from all communities and walks of life in the capital. In the now defunct DCM football tournament he guided the 8^th Gorkhas, Dehradun to three consecutive finals, from 1950—52. In 1950, they lost to East Bengal 2-2, 0-2 and in 1951 to Rajasthan Club, Calcutta 0-1 and again in 1952 to the all-conquering East Bengal 0-4 in the final. In 1952, East Bengal also beat Hyderabad City Police 1-0 in the Durand final and became the first team to win the “Delhi double” the DCM and Durand tournament in the same year.

His finest hour was in the 1953 Durand tournament when he played for the National Defence Academy and the team, consisting mostly of young cadets, unexpectedly reached the final. In the quarterfinals they upset mighty East Bengal 2-0.  East Bengal had renowned international forwards in outside right P. Venkatesh, inside left J. Kittu and outside left Ahmed Khan. However, they were all eclipsed by the all-round skills of Puran Bahadur. In the semifinals, they played Mohammedan Sporting thrice before beating their renowned opponents. There were no penalty shootouts in those days and replays were common place. In the final, they were exhausted after playing so many matches within a week, and lost 0-4 to Mohun Bagan, for whom internationals S. Raman(1948 London Olympics) and Samar “Badru” Banerjee, India’s captain in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, each scored a brace. During the 1953 Durand tournament, Puran Bahadur forged a telepathic combination with centre forward Moloy “Mike” Lahiri, which continued till they both retired from the game in 1960.

Both also excelled in the 1958 Durand tournament. Inside left Puran Bahadur, with his crisp through passes and accurate crosses, created havoc. Gorkha Brigade upset the 1957 Durand champions Hyderabad City Police 3-1 in the quarterfinals and later in the semifinals ousted Indian Air Force 3-0. In the first all-regimental Durand final since Independence, Madras Regimental Centre (MRC) Wellington beat Gorkha Brigade 2-0 in the final.

A prolific goal-scorer, Lahiri scored many goals from Puran Bahadur’s probing passes. They belonged to an age gone by in their reactions during the game. After scoring a goal, Lahiri would raise his arm towards Puran Bahadur and acknowledge the pass with a smile. There was no excessive emotion and celebrations, or scenes of hugging and smothering the goalscorer and gesticulating towards the crowds. Both Lahiri and Puran Bahadur never thought of leaving the Indian Army and playing club football in Calcutta or Bombay.

Both played for India but not as much as they should have. Lahiri was controversially dropped from the squad announced for the 1960 Rome Olympics and named as the first reserve though he was a regular in the national team since 1958. The non-selection devastated him and he quit the game months later, devoting himself to his Army career. Lahiri had a distinguished career as he went on to Fort Bragg, North Carolina to become India’s first Green Beret Ranger and then raised the Commando wing of the Infantry school, Mhow. He retired as a much-acclaimed Lt. General but sadly died of cancer some years ago.

Puran Bahadur, now in the twilight of his life, is still a keen follower of Indian football, and laments that there is not as much depth in talent as was present in his playing days. He has two sons Ajay and Vijay Thapa. Ajay Thapa was captain of the St. Anthony’s Shillong school team which won the 1978 Subroto Mukherjee Cup beating Madhyamgram HS, Bengal 1-0 in the final, but then started his own business.

Shaikh Salman bin Ibrahim

History will be made in more ways than one at the Asian Football Confederation’s (AFC) Extraordinary Congress in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 2 May. A new AFC President will be chosen amongst four contenders and the front runner for the post is the suave 47 year old soft spoken but visionary Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa of Bahrain. There are four contenders for this coveted post. The others are Worawi Makudi (Thailand), Yusuf Al Serkal (UAE) and Dr. Hafej Al Medlej (Saudi Arabia). Whoever wins will be the 11^th President of the AFC and will replace the incumbent Zhang Jilong of China.

The first AFC president was Lo Man Kam of Hong Kong in 1954. Since then, there have been four presidents from Hong Kong, three from Malaysia, including the long serving Tunku Abdul Rahman from 1958—1976 and Hamzah Abu Samah from 1978 till 1994 and one each from Iran (Kambiz Atabay 1976-78), Qatar (Mohammed bin Hamam 2002-2011) and China.

So the 11^th President of AFC will be from a new country. The continent’s 47 member nations will have to choose judiciously from four experienced campaigners as Asian football is at the crossroads and needs to rid itself of the scourge of betting and match fixing. Asian football requires a vision for the future and that is why Sheikh Salman of Bahrain is seen as a hot favourite to win, as with his experience and diplomacy, he can re-build trust with the world governing body FIFA and restore confidence amongst sponsors for the game in the continent.

He is recognised as a man of firm principles, who desires change. It is these qualities which give him a distinct edge over his three rivals. Worawi, Yusuf Al Serkal and Dr. Hafej were all associated with Mohammed bin Hamman’s regime and as many AFC members desire change, they could opt for a new face but with experience in football administration.

Sheikh Salman has worked extensively in football and has been chairman of AFC’s Disciplinary committee and Deputy Chairman of FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee and attended 12 major international tournaments, including the FIFA World Cup in Japan in 2002 and the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

He has firm views regarding solving the pernicious problems of match-fixing and has launched his candidature with a visionary Asia United campaign. Uniting Asia is the key aim of Sheikh Salman’s campaign and to repair the relationship between the AFC’s 47 member associations and FIFA. He also wants to safeguard football’s future by leading the fight against illegal betting, match fixing and doping. He has visited several Asian countries to announce his campaign and wants to create a harmonious relationship with the confederation’s 47 members. His campaign message is on his website www.asiaunited2013.com

I was invited from India to attend a Press Conference, at the luxurious Radisson Diplomat Hotel in Manama, Bahrain, which was attended by media personnel from numerous Asian countries. He handled the grueling two hour question and answer session with aplomb and lucidly explained his vision for the future of football in Asia.

At this press conference, he revealed that in the AFC Congress on 2 May, he would also be contesting for a seat on the FIFA Executive Committee. His rival for that post is Hasan Al Thawadi of Qatar. In 2009, Sheikh Salman had contested for this post against former AFC president Mohammed bin Hammam but narrowly lost by two votes. Explaining the defeat, he said that he “didn’t see it as a failure. I got to know a lot of people…Asia got to know me better.” So, he hopes that this time he can pull of the double winning the election for AFC president and the seat on the FIFA Executive Committee.

The excitement in Bahrain was palpable and as I visited the famous Manama Souk, the posh Adelya shopping and restaurant complex and the Bahrain World Trade Centre, there was visible optimism that Sheikh Salman would be the first man from this small island country (population of just 1,323,535) to be head of an International Sports body. Just like the Bahrain Grand Prix, they feel that Sheikh Salman’s election will enhance their country’s international image.

Sheikh Salman stressed that he would work for the upliftment of football in all countries and this was reflected in the questions I asked him about Indian and Asian football.

Q. Will you support India’s bid to stage the 2017 Sub-Junior World Cup.

A. It will be a matter of pride for us if India gets the rights to stage the 2017 Sub-junior World Cup as it will be seen as a step to improve and encourage football in Asia. The AFC will fully support the All India Football Federation’s (AIFF) bid to stage the 2017 Sub-Junior world Cup and will extend relevant assistance in organizing the event. (Earlier Asian nations to have staged this tournament are China- 1985, Japan-1993 and South Korea -2007).

Q. What steps will you take to upgrade South Asia’s premier international competition, the SAFF Cup?

A.  The SAFF Cup is an important regional competition for Asian football like the Tigers Cup for south-east Asian countries. We will try and popularize this event with better marketing and publicity. After discussing with SAFF members, maybe it will be better to expand this competition and include some Central Asian nations like Turkmenistan and Kyrgstan. This will improve the scope of the tournament. Central Asia and South Asia must combine to improve their football standards.

Q. How can Indian football compete with the popularity of cricket?

A. I understand that cricket is the most popular sport in India and in several South Asian nations, but football is gaining popularity especially amongst the youth who like watching European football leagues and competitions. India must make its own programmes so that this interest can be harnessed and more young people play the game. We will extend all possible support to grassroots development of football and improving infrastructure in India.

Q. Your views on South Asian football.

A. Both India, Bangladesh and Maldives have good professional leagues, which can only get better. Nepal has a good youth development programme. Afghanistan is the most improved football nation in the South Asian region and we will extend them all support.

Expanding on the theme of improving Asian football standards, Sheikh Salman said, “Myanmar is running a good professional league and Laos is moving in the right direction. Our aim in AFC will be to help football in the diverse regions of the continent improve. We do not want to only concentrate on the Japan, South Korea and established powers in West Asia. We have to make sure our member countries use FIFA’s programmes and financial support properly. It is vital to improve our sport at grassroots level in all Asian countries. We have to develop our youth strategy to get more children playing football in an organized way which will require funding across Asia’s many member associations.”

Here are some of the other questions tackled by Sheikh Salman:

Q.  Why does this election matter so much to you?

A. Football on our continent has reached a crossroads. Many Asian nations believe that we have to change. The last few years have been increasingly damaging for our sport. Our relationship with FIFA has suffered, perceptions of our sport have been setback and our reputation has been sullied. All this must change. If elected, I will serve all of Asia.

Q. What is the biggest threat to Asian football?

A.  Betting and match fixing. About 70—80 percent of the cases that are known in world football emanate from our continent, so this is a problem which must be tackled on a priority basis. We will work with member associations across the continent to crack down on this disease together.

Q. How do you intend to tackle illegal activity like match fixing and corruption?

A. It will not be an easy task but we will have a zero-tolerance policy against bribery, corruption and match fixing. We have to clean up the game with strict measures. We have to work with outside agencies such as Interpol, the International Olympic committee (IOC), FIFA and others. Match fixing is an international problem and needs an international solution. We will apply all our resources to defeat the pernicious problem of match fixing.

Q. How will the guilty be punished?

A. I believe a severe approach is needed. I think nothing short of prison sentences for those found guilty of criminal behaviour and life bans from our sport is needed. We have got to be as severe as we can. We will extend support to all who fight against corruption in football.

Q. Your views on sponsorship and finance in Asian football?

A. We need to get a balance between professional business, commercial interests, TV rights, ticketing and our love for the game. Sponsorship is very important for the development of football, as is evident in Europe but we must get the balance right.

Q. How will you ensure proper distribution of revenue?

A. I will introduce full financial transparency, clarity in auditing and accounting and the International Financial Reporting Standards within the AFC. We want a system that’s fair, not a distribution system that depends on who you know. We will develop support programmes for those countries that have more need than others. Transparency is essential as it gives member associations full knowledge of what to expect from the AFC so they can develop the game across the region. A development programme has to be formed so that our large and diverse population can benefit by the rules of Fair Play and Respect both on and off the field of play.

Q. Your views on women’s football.

A. Like the FIFA President Sepp Blatter, I believe that the future is feminine. I am happy to say that the world champion in women’s football is Japan an Asian country. We will spread and develop women’s football in Asia. I want to make women’s football a priority and help countries overcome social barriers to take part in women’s football.

The immortals of 1911

When Mohun Bagan won the 1911 IFA Shield, their two defenders Sudhir Chatterjee and Bhuti Sukul played with great understanding. They formed a solid defensive partnership. Sudhir’s game reading and ability to anticipate opposition attacks made him an invaluable partner to Sukul’s tackling ability. Coincidentally, both their death anniversaries are in mid-April. Born on 12^th November 1883, left back Sudhir Chatterjee died on 12^th April 1966. Sukul’s death anniversary is on 16^th April, as he died on this day 70 years ago.

On 29^th July 1911, Mohun Bagan became the first Indian team to lift the coveted IFA Shield beating a British regimental team East Yorkshire Regiment 2-1 in the final. This victory led to massive political and social upheavals and established Calcutta as the nerve centre of football in India. This match also heralded the start of Calcutta’s love affair with football.

The victory of the oppressed over their oppressors in football was seen as a symbolic triumph and a huge morale-booster for activists committed to freeing India from British rule. It also challenged fundamental views on the racial superiority of white Europeans over Asians.  Bagan’s team in the 2-3-5 system was as follows:

Goalkeeper: Hiralal Mukherjee;

Defenders: Bhuti Sukul and Sudhir Chatterjee;

Half Backs: Manmohan Mukherjee, Rajen Sengupta and Nilmadhav Bhattacharya;

Forwards: Kanu Roy, Habul Sarkar, Abhilash Ghosh, Bijoydas Bhaduri and Shibdas Bhaduri (Capt.).

Results: Beat St. Xavier’s Institute 3-0, beat Rangers FC 2-1, beat Rifle Brigade 1-0, semi final beat Middlesex Regt. 0-0 and 3-0 and in the final beat East Yorkshire Regt 2-1. Goal scorers for Bagan in the final were left winger Shibdas Bhaduri and centre forward Abhilash Ghosh.

All these eleven players became legends in their lifetime, even though they achieved little success during the rest of their careers. The film Egaro, released in 2011 to commemorate the centenary of Bagan’s historic IFA Shield victory, has re-kindled interest about this match and the players. The film shows that after the historic 1911 IFA Shield triumph, a nationalist myth became associated with Mohun Bagan.  This win had wider social ramifications. It was seen as the deconstruction of the image of the Bengalis as an effeminate race and reconstruction of a more masculine and sprightly image.

The composition of the victorious Mohun Bagan team was a good indicator of how enthusiastically upper-caste Bengalis had taken up the sport. The team consisted of 10 Bengalis, six of them Brahmins with one player, Sudhir Kumar Chatterjee, a Christian. The rest were upper-caste Hindus. Only one player, Sukul, originally hailed from outside Bengal, his surname a corruption of the north Indian ‘Shukla’. Though from the upper castes, the players were not wealthy. Three of the team members, including captain Shibdas, were employed in government agencies and three were students at Scottish Church and Presidency Colleges respectively. Two were employed in private firms and two, Bijoydas Bhaduri (Shibdas’s elder brother) and Bhuti, were partners in a small business, which, among others things, traded in opium. Sudhir Chatterjee, who had a degree in education from England, was a teacher at the MS College in Calcutta. Not all the players were from Calcutta though. Manmohan Mukherjee was from Uttarpara and Nilmadhav Bhattacharya from Srirampur. Kanu Roy belonged to a wealthy family from Mymensingh in East Bengal and the Bhaduris and Sudhir Chatterjee were originally from Faridpur.

These eleven players were the first legends of Indian football. Amongst them, the trio of tricky left winger Shibdas Bahaduri (netted the equalizer in the final), the muscular centre forward Abhilash Ghosh (scored the match winner) and left-back Sudhir Chatterjee became really famous because of the stories and anecdotes associated with them. Abhilash’s parents did not want him to play this tournament as they feared he would get hurt. However he defied his parents to impress his girlfriend, who lived in the same locality.

Sudhir Chatterjee, a Bengali Christian, worked as a teacher in Bhowanipore College. There is a popular story that before the first and second round matches with St. Xavier’s Institute and Rangers F.C respectively, efforts were made by his opponents to prevent Sudhir Chaterjee from reaching the ground. Using the right connections, they tried to influence the Principal of Bhowanipore College to get Sudhir Chatterjee involved in college work so that he would not be available for the match. Sudhir was known to be a cerebral defender and without him, Bagan’s rearguard would not be so well-organised. Also, several of Bagan’s substitutes were injured and so they would have struggled to field a playing eleven. In both the matches, Sudhir Chatterjee just made it in time to the ground. The same ruse was attempted even in the final, but Chatterjee was alert and slipped off early.

The film Egaro shows that that Sudhir Chatterjee loses his college job because the British Principal hates to see him playing against a British team and his colleagues, who are also British, humiliate him. There is a dispute about the authenticity of the dismissal from the job, but the reasons for the jealousy of his British colleagues had also to do with romance. The British supporters were gathered at one side of the Calcutta Football Club ground, where the final was played. Much to everyone’s surprise, an attractive young British girl repeatedly cheered every time Sudhir cleared the ball and when Mohun Bagan scored. This young student admired the lean, lanky and smart Sudhir. There were even rumours of a passionate relationship, but nothing materialized. Sudhir’s popularity with the opposite sex probably caused envy amongst his British colleagues.

Poster for the movie ‘Egaro’, which is based on the 1911 team

Overall, Sudhir had an illustrious career. He was the only booted member of the Immortal eleven but his football career terminated in 1914 due to a serious injury. He joined Mohun Bagan in 1904 and was highly respected for his temperament and adjusting nature. On the morning of the final match, Mohun Bagan players went to Kalighat temple to pray in front of the goddess of power – Ma Kali. Mohun Bagan players stepped in the field with red tilaks on their forehead and blessed flowers in their pockets. Even Sudhir Chatterjee, a devout Christian, followed the same rituals as his teammates. It is gestures like these which made him a living legend amongst Bagan’s supporters.

A highly educated man, he had completed his MA degree; and after his football career was over, he went for higher studies to England in 1923 and joined Cambridge University. Later on, he got the post of lecturer at Trinity College, Cambridge. Soon after, he returned India and formed the Residential College at Bishnupur. He was also associated with other educational institutes like Scottish Church College and Women’s College. Later in life, he became a priest and was known as Reverend Sudhir Chatterjee.

His love for the game and Mohun Bagan remained undiminished. He witnessed the 1947 IFA Shield final, when Bagan won the tournament after a lapse of 36 years. He was the only surviving member of the 1911 team when the club celebrated its Platinum Jubilee in 1964. During the Indo-China War in 1962, he auctioned his 1911 gold medal and gave the proceeds to the national defense fund.

There is also an interesting anecdote about Shibdas Bahaduri. The triumphant Bagan players were leaving the ground when a middle-aged person accosted him and pointing to the East Yorkshire regiment colours and the Union Jack aloft on the nearby Fort Williams said, “this one you have done but what about that.” The supporter implied that Bagan had lowered the colours of a British regiment and that now it was the turn for the young men to join the nationalist movement and drive the British rulers from the country. Shibdas apparently replied that this would occur when his team next won the Shield. This off-the-cuff and probably flippant prediction came true. Though Mohun Bagan reached the IFA Shield final on a couple of occasions in the 1920s, it regained the trophy only in 1947. Bagan next won the IFA Shield in 1947, the year of India’s Independence, when they beat East Bengal 1-0 in the final. Sarat Das was the Bagan skipper on that occasion and Selim scored the match-winner. This could be just a coincidence, as Bagan did not win either the Durand tournament in Simla/Delhi nor the Rovers Cup in Mumbai from 1911 to 1947.

It is stories like these which has made the 1911 IFA Shield final so memorable and part of Bengali folklore. In fact, what has outlived the actual game and its protagonists is the nationalist glow around the Mohun Bagan victory in 1911, the same year that the capital of British India was shifted from Calcutta to Delhi. The craze for the final was so much that a two-rupee ticket was sold in the black market for 15 rupees and even vendors of refreshments charged high prices. The Pioneer newspaper reported that one small boiled potato was sold at one paise. The crowd for the final is estimated at 80,000—100,000. Two sides of the ground were open for assembled spectators. Touts used wooden boxes to help spectators get a view of the match and charged Rs. 3 to 5 per box, depending on the closeness to the playing area. There was no space even on the tree tops. The member’s seats were fully occupied and the enclosed side of the ground had been booked by B.H. Smith Company for British fans. So very few of the Bagan supporters had a sight of the match. They were kept informed of the progress of the game by the ingenious device of flying kites, with the score written on them. The match was played in aid of charities and the princely sum of Rs. 6,194 was collected from the paying spectators.

The victorious Garhwal FC squad

They were coached by one of the best Garhwali players the capital has produced, midfielder Sukhpal Singh Bisht, who was captain of once redoubtable Border Security Force (BSF), when they won the 1979 Federation Cup. Sukhpal Bisht has also coached the Delhi state team in the Santosh trophy. His assistant was Ravi Rana, also a former Delhi state midfielder.

In the time span of nearly three decades, there have been several changes in Delhi football, which are reflected in the differences between the Garhwal Heroes team that won the DSA League title in 1986 and 2013. In 1986, it consisted only of local players. The club was an outlet to promote talent amongst Garhwali youth in the capital. Now the team relied on three Nigerian recruits. Skipper Bala Alhassan Dahir and the 6ft 4inch defender Francis Egware have been with Garhwal Heroes for three years. Nippy striker Joseph Camara, who scored the match winner in the final, joined them this year. The foreign recruits are kept in a flat and paid monthly.

Local players were also recruited wisely. Experienced state custodian Rajat Guha was a reliable goalkeeper. Their rock-solid defence included Delhi state players such as right back Yogesh Prasad (chosen best defender of the 2013 DSA league), stopper back Inderjit Sharma and left back Deepak Kumar. Midfielder Nirmaldeep represented Delhi in the 66^th Santosh trophy in Orissa in May 2012.

Such a star-studded team costs money and Garhwal Heroes officials worked tirelessly to procure sponsorship. Their annual budget is about Rs. 20 lakhs. Hence, they needed a sponsor and managed to get a generous allowance from Indian Oil Corporation (IOC). They are now known as IOC-Garhwal Heroes. In 1986, the Garhwal Heroes officials had just arranged free kits, refreshments and a travel allowance for their victorious squad. Now embryonic professionalism is creeping into Delhi football and local players do not represent a club just for the sake of honour or locality/regional loyalty.

In 1986, the DSA league winners and runners up got attractive prizes and track suits. This year, the DSA distributed Rs. 3, 75,000 in prize money to the winners and runners up of the Senior Division league, A division, B Division and the inaugural women’s league in which five teams participated. For this, the credit goes to the DSA President and local MLA Subash Chopra – who used his good relations with DLF Executive Director Rajiv Talwar to get ample sponsorship for the local leagues. DSA secretary S. Shaheen and league convener Narender Bhatia also deserve plaudits for starting a women’s league. Next year, they are trying to persuade some of Delhi’s leading clubs to start women’s teams and expand the game amongst school and college girls. Hindustan FC has already started a women’s football team. If this move succeeds, the DSA will have set a new trend in Indian football. Jaguar Eves, sponsored by the JFC Sports and Management Pvt. Ltd, are the winners of the of the inaugural  women’s league in Delhi.

The transfer market in Delhi football has changed massively in the last three decades. Till the early 1980s, loyalty and commitment to a club was the hallmark of Delhi’s football culture. Except for transport allowance, kits and refreshments, there was no payment to the players. However, club officials would strive to get their top players jobs in leading public sectors like Delhi Audit, Northern Railway, State Bank of India, Central Secretariat, Delhi Electric Supply Undertaking (DESU), Food Corporation of India (FCI) and so on. A competitive, institutional league was also held annually.

Indian Nationals was the first Delhi club to offer payment to players in the early 1960s, followed by Young Men, financed by Bundu and Gama Qureishi – leading mutton exporters and butchers of Old Delhi. For many decades, the money culture did not enter Delhi football as the top players all got reasonable jobs and club loyalty was considered a virtue. In the 1960s, all the players of the popular City Club (champions in 1960, 1963 and 1964) stayed in nearby localities in the Walled City Area. So the club became an extension of local pride. When City Club overcame their Walled city rivals Indian Nationals 6-3 in a memorable match in the 1964 league, their supporters were jubilant. Outside right Aziz Qureishi, the hero of that triumph, was given free glasses of milk by happy supporters for the rest of the year and for a fortnight after the match, the team was invited for sumptuous Dawats (feasts) by delirious City Club fans.

Similarly, the players of President’s Estate, local league champions in 1966 and 1967 and runners up in 1964, were mostly from the sprawling residential complex of Rashtrapati Bhavan. During their years of success, President’s Estate’ star players, centre forward Pyare Lal, with his Elvis Presley hair style, Sri Prasad, Chaman Lal and defenders Gyan and Lufte Ali were like folk heroes in the locality.

Raisina Sporting, local league champions in 1961 and 1962, was the pride of the local Bengali population in the Capital. Many of their players came from Government colonies near Rouse Avenue, Gole Market and R.K. Puram and were household names. Bustling striker Shanker Mukherjee became a local Bengali hero when he was selected to join renowned Mafatlal Mills, Bombay in 1967 and helped them win the DCM tournament that year and in 1968. In the 1967 DCM semi final, after he scored the match winner against BSF by curling in a corner kick, he received several marriage proposals.

In the Walled City area, there were several clubs that thrived on local support. Many of these clubs are now struggling or defunct in this era of nascent professionalism and sponsorship. Usmania and Young India are now defunct. Ajmal FC, Collegians, Mughals FC (league champions in 1995 and Students FC (league champions in 1991) are now lower division clubs. Indian Nationals, league champions in 1999, 2000 and 2008, were relegated and got promoted to the senior division this season. Established teams like City Club, Shastri FC, Moonlight and Young Men are struggling in the senior division as they lack money power.

This inability to procure sponsorship and lack of playing space in the capital has affected other clubs also. The once-mighty President’s Estate and Modernites are now defunct. The once-famous Raisina Sporting, Union FC, BB Stars, Young Bengal Association, Frontier and Goan Sports club (developed football talent amongst local Goans) are now struggling to survive. The old order has given way to the new as money has come into Delhi football.

This trend started in the late 1970s when the player’s demands started increasing as prices escalated. But still, the amateur ethos prevailed and the money offered for a season was a pittance. At the turn of the 1980s, stalwart central defender Bhim left Simla Youngs for City Club for a colour TV. Another renowned defender, Aslam, shifted from Delhi Cantonment to Indian Nationals for Rs. 2,500 for the season.

The semblance of big money first came into Delhi football with the advent of South India FC. Their owner Vijay Bhaskar was the poor man’s Roman Abramovich. He pumped money into the club and sent the transfer market soaring. From 1993 to 1995, Vijay Bhaskar built powerful and expensively assembled squads. They became DSA league champions in 1993 beating Simla Youngs in the final. The South India players were paid in the region of Rs. 20,000 to Rs. 35,000 for the season. Before Vijay Bhaskar came on the scene, the highest paid player in Delhi football would get about Rs. 10,000 per season. However, his generosity was short-lived. As Vijay Bhaskar’s business slumped, his interest in local club football declined. By the end of the 1990s, South India were on the decline and now are a defunct club. However, they set the trend for big money in Delhi football.

In the last fifteen years, the prices of players have escalated rapidly. In the 1997 season, striker Bhupinder Rawat was reportedly paid Rs. 30,000 for moving from Shastri FC to Hindustan FC. Another striker, Dharmender Kharola, got the same amount for shifting from Young Men to Indian Nationals. The total budget for the top clubs in the late nineties was about Rs. 4-5 lakhs. This was a major increase from the last decade when teams were assembled with budgets of Rs. 50,000 to Rs. 1 lakh.

Delhi United is one of the most expensive squads in the capital city

The overall budget of local football clubs is increasing annually in the 21^st century. The most expensive team this season is ISS Delhi United, which cost an estimated Rs. 40-45 lakhs to assemble. All the senior division clubs have procured sponsorship to survive. Runners up in the recent DSA League were VVIP Goodwill FC and the losing semi finalists were G Pride Veterans FC and ISS Delhi United. Expenses of all clubs have increased as they recruit foreigners (mostly Africans) and outstation players as well. Their boarding and lodging expenses are considerable.

Clubs which have procured sponsorship would like a longer season, so that their sponsors get ample exposure. It is imperative that the AIFF start makes the B-Division into a regional competition, so that club football can flourish in several states of India.

]]> http://www.sportskeeda.com/2013/03/12/the-changing-face-of-delhi-football/feed/ 2 258724 http://www.sportskeeda.com/2013/03/09/book-review-centurion-the-father-the-son-and-the-spirit-of-cricket-by-pramesh-ratnakar/ http://www.sportskeeda.com/2013/03/09/book-review-centurion-the-father-the-son-and-the-spirit-of-cricket-by-pramesh-ratnakar/#comments Sat, 09 Mar 2013 18:12:42 +0000 Novy Kapadia http://www.sportskeeda.com/?p=1409043

Pramesh Ratnakar’s fictional story tries to bridge the divide between mind and body just as Sachin did as a batsman.

Centurion: The Father, the Son and The Spirit of Cricket
by Pramesh Ratnakar, Harper Collins India, Rs 225, 150 pages

During the 1990s and the first decade of the 21st century, cricket started creeping into Indo-Anglian fiction. It is not mentioned in the novels of established writers like Salman Rushdie, Amitav Ghosh, Vikram Seth, Anita Desai or Upamanyu Chatterjee but becomes the subject matter in various other novels. The first of its kind is the Autobiography of an Unknown Cricketer (Ravi Dayal, 1996) written by Sujit Mukherjee, a professor of English and later a publisher. Sujit played intermittently for Bihar in the Ranji Trophy during the 1950s. In his luminous account, told in graceful and understated prose, Patna becomes the unlikely centre of the cricketing universe. The joys and travails of the school, college and club cricket scene – travelling long distances in third-class train compartments, sharing out precious Gunn & Moore cricket bats are aptly depicted. This cricket novel is a nostalgic reminder of an age gone by.

The Zoya Factor is a cricket novel written by Anuja Chauhan(Harper Collins, 2008). It is about a Rajput girl named Zoya Singh Solanki who meets the Indian Cricket Team through her job as an executive in an advertising agency and ends up becoming a lucky charm for the team for the 2010 Cricket World Cup. Anuja Chauhan, the creator of Pepsi punch lines, tried her humour in a chick lit type of book based on cricket and the Men in Blue.

The plot reads like a whacky commercial — Zoya Singh Solanki is considered a lucky mascot of the Indian cricket team. The boys in blue discover that every time they eat breakfast with her, they win the day’s match. And not eating with her results in defeat. They also discover that Zoya was born at the exact moment that India won the World Cup in 1983. Zoya finds herself accompanying the team to Australia for the tenth ICC World Cup on an all-expenses-paid holiday. Cricket insiders enjoyed the gentle lampooning of the whole cricket circus, the pushy agents, the starry players and the manipulative board.

An unusual cricket-fiction book is The Taliban Cricket Club, (Aleph, May 2012) written by Timeri (“Tim”) Murari. It is based on a newspaper cutting of 2000, in which the Taliban had applied to the International Cricket Council (ICC) for associate membership and had decided to promote cricket in Afghanistan. The game has become popular there as many refugees had lived in Pakistan and not only learnt cricket but became quite proficient in it.

In the novel, a 21-year-old journalist Rukhsana returns to Kabul soon after the Taliban came to power. She learnt cricket whilst studying in New Delhi where her father is posted as deputy ambassador. When the Taliban announces a cricket tournament where the winning team would be sent to Pakistan to train, she sees it as an opportunity for her brothers and cousins to escape. So she forms a team and ironically names it the Taliban Cricket club.

However the most thought-provoking and philosophic novel on Indian cricket is by noted academician Pramesh Ratnakar. The narrative technique is unique and multi-layered. The author uses devices like an interview of a potential candidate (Professor Pramednra Vidyakar) for the post of college principal, dialogue, lyric poetry and prose narrative to explain his complex themes. Everyday conversation (hence the “hi” that opens it) turns into an interior monologue (of a character who could be Sachin Tendulkar), followed by a legal trial and a stretch of dialogue that hovers between Biblical and Vedic. There is also a fictional imagining of the psychological footprint left by Sachin Tendulkar’s father, a professor of Marathi literature, a genteel scholar who belonged to a world of books and words, on his son, a man of action.

According to the author Pramesh Ratnakar, the central idea of the book is to try and bridge the divide between mind and body just as Sachin did as a batsman. On his first tour, the precocious 17-year-old Sachin lofted the awesome Pakistani pace trio, Waqar Younis, Wasim Akram and Imran Khan because he combined mental toughness with unique batting skills and judgement of the line and length of the ball. Ratnakar thinks Sachin in such moments is like a creator, a poet. Sachin’s magic is with the bat, as the poet juggles with words. This argument is developed in the novel by the comments of the team psychologist Gordon who says that a poem is a mental construct and cricket is a physical activity. They are discussing the lyric poem written by Sachin’s father Professor Ramesh Tendulkar, a scholar and poet about his son’s batting prowess.

The discussion also involves the erudite Anil Kumble, the engineer who became a spinner and the Wall of Certitude Rahul Dravid. Gordon finally agrees that Professor Tendulkar’s poem brings about unity between cricket and creative genius, as they overcome all obstacles.

The book thus examines the dynamics of the father-son relationship, the scholar and the cricketing genius who is also a centurion. Sachin acknowledges that his father created and worked with cultural and educational surplus and created an environment at home that allowed his son to flourish in his chosen career of cricket. The search for self sufficiency is what Sachin’s father gifted to him. The excellent chapter Classroom shows Sachin also concerned as a father about the future of his children Sara and Arjun and the world of conflict and horrors that that they will inherit. This section of this unusual novel focuses on the debates and dreams that shape father-son relationship, and how to reconcile life’s dilemmas in a creative manner for the child to aim for excellence.

Above all, it is a book about idealism and utopia. The book seems to raise the query that is it not possible to create a utopia within your own lifetime, the kind of world you would like to live in. Sachin has created a cricketing utopia for India. How did he do this? Has Sachin bridged the gap between internal and external, mind and body in some unique manner? The author discovers linkages between academics, cricket and philosophy.

These remarkable comparisons emerge in the chapters, The Interview and The Trial. As the title of the chapter suggests, it is an interview of a candidate for the post of principal at the same college where Sachin’s father Professor Ramesh Tendulkar taught. Sachin Tendulkar is eavesdropping on this college principal interview and is invisible. It sounds incongruous but then many of Sachin’s feats with the bat were also quite incredulous. The candidate, Professor Pramendra Vidyakar, is a passionate and visionary thinker who has devised a career map for all of humanity. In the interview, he encounters both hostility and encouragement from the pillars of the institution.

However just as Sachin overcame many obstacles on his relentless drive for excellence as a batsman, Professor Vidyakar counters all arguments with his persuasive ideas, logical and well timed replies and theories. This section of the book is very philosophic and the academic author brings in a plethora of ideas about the God of cognition and Non cognition, physics and philosophy. The interview take many dimensions, conflict and humanity, and includes the thoughts of 14th century Maharashtrian poet-saints Muktabai and Janabai, Japanese poet-saint Basho, English lawyer-philosopher Sir Thomas More, 19th century American Indian leader Chief Seattle, and the poetry of Professor Ramesh Tendulkar.

These philosophic arguments reveal that cricket becomes a lyric on the playground due to the string of uncertainty that surrounds the game. The Centurion is an inventive and unusual book which looks at Sachin Tendulkar’s career from a philosophic perspective and his impact on generations of cricket lovers.

The tenuous links between sport and study, education and utopianism and man’s inner and outer worlds are also well examined in this book. Overall a complex work of cricket fiction, which requires careful reading as it talks about the whole problems of existence, using Sachin’s batting excellence as a metaphor for life.

Nayeem’s pride is hurt as he is dependent on financial support of his two sons Syed Fazaluddin, former Davis Cup player, and Syed Safuddin. He had spent his savings to turn his sons into professional tennis players and giving his now married daughter a good education. He is 69 years old and an old scooter is his only mode of transport. He was hurt that his expertise was ignored and he was made to feel unwanted. He knocked at many doors, the Bengal state government (both Left Front and Trinamool Congress) for help, the Indian Football Association (IFA) and AIFF for coaching junior teams or regional academies but was ignored. In desperation he would sarcastically remark, “I have turned from National coach to National beggar.”

But now the wheel has turned full circle. The Good Samaritan who has come to his rescue is eminent sports journalist Manas Chakraborty whose company Sports and Beyond is organising a charity match on 2 March 2013 for Nayeem’s benefit. The match will be played between Mohun Bagan and East Bengal veterans. The teams will consist of players who Nayeem coached during his career. The coach of East Bengal veterans is Shyam Thapa, and Biswajit Bhattacharya for Mohun Bagan. Some ex-internationals, Mauricio Afonso and Camillo Gonsalves of Dempo, are flying to Kolkata at their own cost to play in this benefit match, to be held at the East Bengal ground. Nayeem started his Calcutta playing career with East Bengal in 1966.

The great coach who India shunned for several years is appreciated abroad. Officials from Bangladesh and Brothers Union (Dhaka) are flying in for this match and will also provide financial help. The time span in which he was neglected in India, it was Bangladesh who used his expertise. He was national coach of Bangladesh in 2007-08. During his coaching stint with Brothers Union of Dhaka, he has helped them to win five domestic tournaments. Nayeem is the only Indian who has been national coach of a foreign country. He is revered in Bangladesh by players and officials alike. He revived the international career of striker Mohammed Alfaz Ahmed, who rates Nayeem as the best coach he has worked under. Alfaz, currently the coach-cum-player of Dhaka Mohammedan Sporting has said that, “Nayeem’s training methods are better than any foreign coach and he prolonged my career.” With his exceptional eye for talent, Nayeem spotted and moulded young Bangladesh internationals Zahid Hasan Ameli and defender Mohammed Nasirul Islam, who are now amongst the best players in their country.

Throughout his coaching career, Nayeem has been like a father figure for his players. During the 1996 Santosh Trophy in Goa, when Baichung Bhutia had a tooth-ache; Nayeem took him to a dentist. Ex-international goalkeeper Virender Singh (now Salgaocar’s goalkeeper’s coach) and ex-international midfielder S. Venkatesh have said that Nayeem always tried to provide the best facilities, nutrition and care for his players.

Nayeem’s attention to detail and analysis of a player’s ability are unique. To improve Nigerian striker Chima Okorie’s fitness, he made him do a lot of sand running. He extended Krishanu Dey’s career by making the diminutive play maker do weight training. He introduced sand running, circuit training, weight training and practise sessions twice a day in Calcutta football. It was Nayeem who first spotted Baichung’s amazing reflexes and felt he could be a striker rather than an attacking midfielder. Nayeem used Baichung as a striker in the 1995 Santosh trophy final against Punjab. Bengal won 2-1 with a dramatic back volley golden goal by Baichung. From that tournament onwards, Baichung’s career was transformed and he played as a striker.

Nayeem’s has transformed the careers of so many players by personal attention. For instance, he gave a new dimension to the game of Nigerian international Emeka Ezeugo, who played for both East Bengal and Mohammedan Sporting in the 1980′s. As Mohammedan Sporting coach, Nayeem made Emeka realise that he lacked the necessary speed to succeed at the highest level as a striker and transformed him into a midfielder. The rest is history. Emeka, who had come to India as a student, became a professional in Europe with Lyngby of Denmark, and later, Honved of Hungary. He was chosen to play for Nigeria as a midfielder in the African Nations Cup, which they won in 1994 and later in the 1994 World Cup in USA. Emeka has always acknowledged Nayeem’s help in transforming his career

The players admire Nayeem’s focus, seriousness of effort and attention to detail, but at times resist his interference in their personal life styles. This Hyderabad-born coach’s point of view is that he tries to ensure that his young players live a disciplined life style, to avoid the pitfalls of fame and quick money. Older players have a double-edged reaction to Nayeem’s coaching. They assail his rigorous coaching but also realise that the attention to fitness and diet will extend their playing careers. He always insists that his players should only drink mineral water, have lots of vitamins, and intake food which increases their strength and stamina. His stress on nutritive diet and the best of living conditions is often misunderstood by both club and AIFF officials. He has been branded as an expensive and demanding coach. Mohammedan Sporting hired him in July 2010 but dismissed him in September, claiming he was too expensive. Nayeem had got the club authorities to install a geyser and washing machine in the club premises so the players could benefit, but these gestures misfired for him.

Nayeem is very pained that his efforts to improve the fitness levels of his players and their eating and living habits are always misconstrued. Like his mentor, the late S.A.Rahim, he also believes in pithy axioms and says that, “just as cars need petrol to run, so a player needs rest and good food to perform well.” He practices what he preaches. Often, if club officials have demurred at the extra cost, he himself buys dry fruits, chicken and fruits for his players after a match or training session.

So what went wrong on March 1, 2006? India lost 0-3 to Yemen in their Asian Cup qualifier at the Ambedkar stadium, Delhi. It was the day that former President of the United States of India (USA) George Bush had landed in Delhi. There was tight security and the Delhi Metro had limited reach in those days. Hence, there were few Indian supporters at the stadium and they were outnumbered by the vociferous Yemen fans, mostly students at the several central Universities in Delhi.

An off-colour Indian team gave a lacklustre display. There were rumblings against the strict coaching regime of Syed Nayeemuddin and a day later – on 2nd March, 2006 – he was sacked. He was made a scapegoat for that defeat, and since then, his career has been in the wilderness. Out of frustration, he made some uncharitable comments about foreign coaches and Baichung Bhutia, but he retracted them soon afterwards. He has been branded as an over-strict, expensive and rigid coach and ostracised by football officials in India. But Sir Alex Ferguson, Fabio Capello and Daniel Passarella are also strict coaches who enforce discipline (Capello banned the English players from using mobile phones on match days) but they were not branded. Nayeem has been more sinned against than sinning because his detractors have refused to understand his point of view.

During his playing days, Syed Nayeemuddin was the most accomplished and artistic defender in the country. His ball skills, anticipation and clever passing were exemplary. A versatile player, he has functioned as wing- back, stopper back, midfielder and even forward for club and country. He led the first Indian team for the Asian Youth Football championships in 1963, and represented the senior national team regularly from 1964–1971. He was captain in 1970 when India finished third in both the Merdeka tournament and the Bangkok Asian Games. In 1967, he was chosen to play in the Asian All Stars team. His career took off with Andhra Pradesh Police from 1961 onwards under the tutelage of the legendary late Rahim. In 1966, he shifted to East Bengal, Calcutta and later he played for both Mohun Bagan and Mohammedan Sporting. A trendy dresser and classy player, Nayeem became a pin-up boy of the 1960′s, and was nicknamed the “Dev Anand of football” by East Bengal’s supporters.

The proceeds of the exhibition match on March 2 will help solve some of Nayeem’s financial worries. Staging such a match has also revived the dignity and morale of the forgotten man of Indian football. Earlier, Sports and Beyond had successfully staged matches to support Peter Thangaraj, Sudhir Karmakar, Parimal Dey, Arun Ghosh, Santo Mitra and Gautam Sarkar. All efforts are being made to ensure that Nayeem’s benefit match is also a resounding success.

Paul Scholes’ recently released autobiography aptly reflects his character – quiet, unassuming and understated. It is full of lucid insights about his career with both Manchester United and England, team-mates, important matches, opponents and goals. He copiously uses comments by his team-mates and others in the game which aptly reveals his character and impact on the game.

A sampling of some of these comments show how highly rated Scholes was by in both England and Europe. His club manager Alex Ferguson says, “Paul is one in a million.” Sir Bobby Charlton assesses the technical brilliance of Scholes in his two-page afterword to the book. Charlton says, “he had guile, an amazing touch and that priceless knack of making instant decisions that catch so many opponents on the hop.” Former England manager Sven Goran Eriksson says, “Paul finished with the national team too early” and that “he was very clever with outstanding technique. He could pass the ball over five yards or fifty.” Gary Neville says he was the most talented player he played with. Even the legendary Zidane has called Scholes as the complete midfielder.

The book also has Scholes’ assessments of his team-mates and rivals, as part of the narrative. He says, “to see Zidane in action was to see poetry in motion. The skills, the vision, the goals…” He praises Cristiano Ronaldo’s God-given talent and calls him a happy-go-lucky workmate and a congenital joker. Scholes stresses that Ronaldo’s image as a playboy is an exaggeration and that instead he had a top class attitude, was always practicing and took loads of physical punishment.

These interspersed comments give an extra dimension to the fast flowing narrative. The format of the book is unusual but very effective. Scholes has taken great pains to include vivid photographs on each page. His narrative technique is to comment on the action in the photographs. These pithy comments are part of the flow of his narrative. Sometimes, the thoughts of other players involved in the action are also included. For instance, on page 7, we see  the four year old Paul Scholes trying to trap a bouncing ball at his relative Uncle Patrick’s house in Middleton, Manchester. On that same page, the narrative gets linked to the photograph, as Paul Scholes comments on his Beatles hair-cut very much in vogue during the 1970s and how his family frequently visited his Uncle Patrick’s house. His maternal uncle, an avid Manchester United, played a big part in developing young Paul’s obsession with football and the Red Devils.

Then there are lively action pictures of Scholes tangling with Lionel Messi and Andres Iniesta, who he calls “two of the most gifted football artists in the planet” in the UEFA Champions League. Commenting on Manchester United’s losses in the 2009 and 2011 Champions League finals, Scholes admits that “facing Barcelona is the ultimate test because they are the best team in the world. Afterwards you need a week to recover because your concentration has to be all-consuming.”

There are pictures and comments of many of his 106 goals in the English Premier League and his 26 goals in the Champions League for Manchester United, from 1994-95 till 2011-12.  His injury-time winning goal, a well-directed header against arch rivals Manchester City on their own ground in April 2010 is, according to him, his most satisfying goal.

The book provides rare insights into the life and times of Scholes’ career. He candidly talks about his controversial decision to quit playing for England, when he was at the peak of his career, in 2004. He says that he retired at the age of twenty nine because he “did not like being away from home and my family for weeks on end”. He honestly admits that “whenever we were knocked out I was always more than ready to go home…..given my mindset I never enjoyed the football (international) and therefore had no chance of being anywhere near my best.” He then drops a bombshell by giving a secondary factor, namely the selfish attitude of some other England players,”who appeared to be there for personal glory.” That is the hallmark of this book; Scholes reveals little known facts about his professional life and of other professionals.

The book has 18 riveting chapters, which reveal his childhood, his early professional career and his successes with Manchester United from the time he joined in 1994-95 till the present. Scholes recalls his first match, which was against Port Vale in the League Cup on 21 September 1994. He scored both goals in the 2-1 win and then got his first start in the EPL against Ipswich Town, in which he also scored on debut. Writing about the start of his career in the opening chapter, A Natural Process, Scholes says, “I never planned my football career, it just happened. Even as a lad barely out of short trousers, I was an associate schoolboy with Manchester United…”

There are memorable chapters dealing with the years Manchester United did the double, winning the Premiership and FA Cup, aptly called A Double Dose of Glory. The treble crown and the magnificent unbeaten run after the 1998 Christmas are vividly described in the chapter Two Out of Three, can’t Complain. The title of this chapter is very appropriate as Scholes and Roy Keane were suspended for the memorable Champions league final against Bayern Munich at the Nou Camp.

The most interesting chapter has a title from a James Bond thriller, Blood and Plunder in the Moscow Night. It provides graphic details of how Manchester United were desperate to win the Champions League in 2008, as they felt they had underachieved in this tournament, frequently getting beaten in either the quarter finals or semi finals. The year 2008 was also significant as it marked the 50^th anniversary of the Munich air disaster. In the all-England against Chelsea, Scholes reveals the sense of injustice he felt when he got a yellow card for an accidental clash of heads with rival midfielder Claude Makelele. As a professional, he sympathises with international team-mate but Chelsea rival John Terry who missed the crucial penalty kick in the penalty shoot-out. Terry was crying at the end and in a sporting gesture, Scholes tapped him on the shoulder, as he knew that words could not offer any consolation.

This is a very sensitively written autobiography with delightful illustrations and mandatory reading for all Scholes and Manchester United fans.

Churchill Brothers is leading the 6^th I-League table with 38 points from 16 matches. They have scored 40 goals, the maximum amongst the 14 teams in the I-league so far. Their defence, ably marshaled by Bilal Sheikh El Najjarin, a foreign recruit from Lebanon, international Denzil Franco and Dhanraj Ravanan, has also conceded just 14 goals. Only East Bengal, coming second at present, have conceded less goals, nine in the league.

Unfortunately, Bilal Najjarin has got a lucrative offer from the Gulf and departed after 15 rounds. Churchill Brothers will have to recruit quickly to strengthen the defence to ensure their winning streak continues. They have three tough matches left, against Prayag United on 10 February and Round 23 and Round 24 matches in April against Pune FC and their nemesis Dempo. The outcome of these matches could decide the fate of the current I-League. They also need a quality defender soon, as they are playing in the AFC Cup this year and their group matches start in February 2012. The travelling and mid-week matches will put a burden on this relatively inexperienced squad. During the closing stages of the I-League, the experience and calm of senior and established players is vital.

For years, Churchill Brothers were known as chokers and faltered at the final hurdle. They could have won the 1^st National Football League in 1997. Coached by the Scotsman, the late Danny McLennan, they needed a win against lowly placed Indian Bank in their last league match in Chennai. However, they drew 1-1 against Indian Bank, whereas JCT beat Dempo in Margao to emerge champions. Similarly, in the 6^th NFL, they needed just a draw against Mohun Bagan in their final league match at Margao, but lost 0-1. The Jose Ramirez Baretto inspired Bagan became champions for the third time.

So, Churchill Brothers have to overcome the burden of history and the loss of a key defender to win the coveted I-League for a second time. Their progress so far has belied expectations but can they go the full distance.

Coached by Mariano Dias and the wily Technical Director Subash Bhowmick, Churchill Brothers have been a revelation this season. At the start of the season, two of their internationals, long serving defender Gourmangi Singh and midfielder Lalrindika Ralte were poached by Prayag United and East Bengal respectively. It was felt they lacked the squad to emerge as I-League contenders.

However, Subash Bhowmick, always renowned for his astute judgment of a player’s latent talent, chose wisely. During his successful stint with East Bengal from 2002-2005, he had opted for tenacious midfielder Douglas D’Silva, speedy Mike Okoro and the late Cristiano Junior, all of whom were match winners. This time, with support from the brothers Joaquim and Churchill Alemao, he ventured into a new territory, Lebanon, and procured the services of defender Bilal and lethal striker Akram Moghrabi.

As always, the Bhowmick magic worked. The choice of players and proper training helped make Bilal, along with East Bengal’s Uga Okpara, the best central defender in the 6^th I-League. Moghrabi has scored nine goals so far and is the third highest goal-scorer in the I-League. Churchill Brothers, venturing into an unknown territory like Lebanon to choose players, is not surprising as this family owned club have always been iconoclasts in Goan football.

Set up in 1991, Churchill Brothers is India’s only family club, with the brothers investing money from their family businesses, shipping and restaurants, for the football club. Its headquarters is the ancestral bungalow in Novangully, a small ward of the village Varca. Churchill Brothers ushered in liberalization in Goan football. They were the first to get players from the North-East to Goa, pay big money to star players and acquire foreign coaches.

Till Churchill Brothers came on the scene, the leading clubs of Goa like Dempo, Salgaocar and Vasco, owned by industrial houses, had set up a type of cartel and did not pay big money to players. Churchill Brothers changed the scenario in Goan football in the mid-nineties by improving the payments and luring players from outside Goa, particularly the North-East. Left back Rattan Singh and midfielder Somitai Saiza from Manipur were in the Churchill Brothers squad for the first NFL as was lethal striker Percy Mwase from distant Zimbabwe. Percy was also the first from his country to ply his trade in India.

The family’s passion for football has made them venture into distant countries/states to procure talent. When Churchill Brothers won the I-League for the first time in 2008-09, their victory heralded the dawn of a new era. Six to seven players from the North-East were invariably in their starting line up. Some of these players were Thokchom Naoba Singh, Reisangmi Vashum, Robert Lalthlamuana, Khentang Paite, Gourmangi, Govin Singh and Chitrasen Chandan Singh. It was for the first time that a team won the national league, with so many players from Manipur and Mizoram in their starting line up, a trend seen in all their 22 matches. No wonder international stopper back, Gourmangi, who hails from Manipur, had said that “our time has come.”

But there is a flip side to this passion also. Many coaches and players have complained that the family interferes with team selection and puts pressure on players before crucial matches. For years, Churchill Brothers had stumbled at the final hurdle. Thrice they were runners up in the NFL in 1997, 2000 and 2002, thrice in the Rovers Cup in 1997, 1999 and 2000, the 2001 Durand tournament, the 2002 IFA Shield and 1997 Dubai International tournament.

They finally broke that jinx in November 2007, winning their first major trophy, the 120^th Osian’s Durand tournament, beating Mahindra United 1-0 in the final. Since then, they have won the Durand tournament, twice in 2009 and 2011, and the IFA Shield also in 2009 and 2011. However, at the start of this season, their young team was succumbing to pressure. They lost their Round 1 match 1-2 to arch rivals Dempo on 6^th October 2012. Then, in a round 6 match at home on 17 November, they were trounced 0-3 by title aspirants East Bengal. The ghosts of the past were returning to haunt them.

It was at this stage that Bhowmick’s Midas touch got to work. Realising that the problem was psychological, he rallied his squad in a clever but unconventional manner. He never talked about title aspirations to the team before or after any match. He just got them to enjoy each match and play to the best of their abilities. The transformation in attitude worked wonders. The team played pacy, attacking football and won some matches by thumping margins. They overcame Sporting Clube de Goa 8-4 in a thrilling Round 11 match on 16 December and early in the New Year, trounced Shillong Lajong 6-0. Bineesh Balan, thrustful on the right, has been a revelation this season and scored a hat-trick against Sporting Clube de Goa.

Demolishing East Bengal 3-0 in an away match at Kolkata on 19 January was a major psychological boost for Churchill Brothers. Oozing with confidence, they played skillful, attacking football to score twice by half time and Lebanese Akram Moghrabi scored the third in the 83^rd minute.

Winning in Kolkata against their main rivals, Bhowmick feels will help his team exorcise the demons of the past, when they often choked in big matches. The momentum is with Churchill Brothers and if they maintain attacking football, they can emerge as the surprise winners of I-League 6.

Earlier this month, two legends of Indian sports, three times Olympic gold medalist Hockey player Leslie Claudius and 1951 Asian Games Football gold medalist T. Shanmugham expired after living life to the full. Coincidentally, both were half backs, or midfielders in current terminology. Claudius played at right and Shanmugham as left half, in the 2-3-5 formation (two back system) popular in India during his playing days.

Both remained involved with their respective sports even after retirement. Claudius served Bengal hockey for many years and was manager of the Indian team during the 1974 Asian Games. As manager, it was Claudius who broke the prevailing myth in India hockey that Muslim players will not go all out against Pakistan. In the 1974 Tehran Asian Games, he insisted on Aslam Sher Khan playing against Pakistan in the final. On the first day, the match ended in a 1-1 draw with Aslam scoring the equalizer. Shanmugham was Salgaocar club’s longest serving coach, from 1979 till 1996. He was also Technical Director of the Indian team which took part in the 1989 Nehru Cup at Margao, Goa. His record of winning back-to-back Santosh Trophy titles with Goa in 1983 and 1984 is also unique.

Both were exemplary human beings who put the game above self. Claudius had an awful setback in the summer of 1978. His son Bobby Claudius, also a half back, had returned home after representing India in the 1978 Buenos Aires World Cup. India finished sixth but young Bobby Claudius, making his World Cup debut, had excelled and a glittering career awaited him. Sadly, he died after a motor bike accident in Calcutta. Helmets were not compulsory in those days. Despite such a setback, Leslie Claudius did not become bitter or morose or withdraw from life. He continued to serve as a selector for both Bengal and India.

Shanmugham and Claudius also belonged to an era in which loyalty and not money was the main criteria. During his seventeen-year coaching stint with Salgaocar, the wiry Shanmugham never earned more than Rs. 20,000 per month. Despite lucrative offers from the Bengal clubs, he never left. Similarly, Claudius served Calcutta Customs all his life. Even 25 years after his retirement, he was a regular the Calcutta Customs club, for a round of cards. The amiable Claudius loved all sports. In the 1948 London Olympics, after the final, he went to the Oval to see Don Bradman play his last test match against England. During the 1960 Rome Olympics, he was amongst the select international athletes the Pope met.

Above all, both represent the end of an era, the passing away of a style of play which was both successful and a delight to behold. Shanmugham belonged to the Bangalore school of football, which relied on short-passing, possession football. It is a style of play reminiscent of the current Barcelona and Spanish national team. The build-up in attack was always elaborate with a series of short passes, at times very intricate but effective. That is the style of play adopted by Mysore when they won the Santosh trophy in 1946 and 1952 and were runners up in 1953 and 1955. Shanmugham exemplified the Bangalore school of football, which shunned physical contact and frenetic pace. His game was cerebral, based on interceptions, sound technique and astute passes. Some of the most skillful players in Indian football have emerged from Bangalore including the legendary Ahmed Khan and S. Raman known for their scintillating dribbling skills and M. Sattar, the perfect inside forward with his precision passes. There were six players from Bangalore in the Indian team for the 1948 London Olympics.

When India won the gold medal in the 1951 Asian Games beating Iran 1-0 in the final, besides the late Shanmugham, others from Bangalore in the squad were goalkeeper K.L Varadaraj and forwards P. Venkatesh, MA Sattar and Ahmed Khan. In 1951, Venkatesh was playing for East Bengal and Sattar for Mohun Bagan but they were originally from Bangalore. Shanmugam made his debut on March 7, 1951 against Afghanistan in the semifinal of Asian Games in New Delhi. Apart from that, he also represented India in another match – in the 1952 Helsinki Olympics against Yugoslavia. Shanmugam represented Mysore in the Santosh Trophy 1949-54 and helped his state win this coveted trophy in 1952.

None of the greats from Bangalore went into coaching and that is what makes Shanmugham’s dedication praiseworthy. He changed the style of football in Goa. In Calicut, 1987 Salgaocar became the first Goan club to enter the Federation Cup final. They lost 0-2 to Mohun Bagan in the final. For four successive years Salgaocar reached the Federation Cup final, wining twice and being runners up twice. They had only two foreigners in that side, Valentine Ezeugo and Iranian junior international Abolghasem Kosagavar. Well known Indian players in that team were legendary international custodian and Arjuna award winner Brahmanand stalwart defenders Derrick Pereira and Norbert Gonsalves and international midfielders Savio Madiera and Lawrence Gomes.

A year later Salgaocar became the first Goan club to not only win the Federation Cup but also to win a tournament in Delhi. They defeated tenacious Border Security Force (BSF) 1-0 in the final. Mario Soares, the youngest player in the team scored the match winner, off a pass from their solitary international recruit, the Nigerian Valentine Ezeugo. Soares was just 19 years old when he scored the match-winner and is till now the youngest player to have scored in the Federation Cup final. Overcoming the Delhi jinx was vital for Salgaocar. The 1952 Olympian and Salgaocar coach since 1979, Shanmugham had said, “In the 1980s, clubs from Goa did not travel well. They only performed well in a familiar environment like in Goa and the Rovers Cup in Mumbai. I had to make them believe in themselves that they could perform well anywhere. “

Salgaocar’s first ever Federation Cup triumph was a tribute to their fitness and tactics. They played six matches in eight days, winning twice on penalties. In the final, Coach T. Shanmugham’s game plan clicked. He had said, “Our tactics of keeping the ball on the ground helped us win. I told my boys not to play in the air, as the taller BSF players are better in aerial duels. Also I asked my midfielders not to allow the BSF players to hold on to the ball for long. I am glad my players stuck to the plan and we deservedly won. It was also a triumph of our physical fitness.

In 1989, Salgaocar lost the services of seven players in the inter-club transfer to newly formed, big-money spending MRF of Goa. However in their opening quarter final league match of the 1989 Federation Cup Salgaocar beat MRF 1-0 with a goal by Bruno Coutinho. The victory was a great morale booster for Salgaocar and they went from strength to strength. In the semi finals, they beat the glamorous Mohun Bagan for the first time with goals by Ignatius Dias and Bento Andrews. They went on to retain the trophy, beating Mohammedan Sporting 2-0 in extra time, with Valentine Ezeugo and Bruno Coutinho being the scorers. A year later, Salgaocar entered the Federation Cup final for the fourth year in a row but lost 1-2 to Kerala Police at Thrissur.

Similarly, Leslie Claudius was the last of the great Anglo Indian players who dominated Indian hockey in the decades before Independence. The predominance of Anglo-Indians in the national hockey team (nine in 1928 Amsterdam Olympics, eight in Los Angeles, 1932 and seven in Berlin 1936) is unique. The Anglo Indian style of hockey based on crisp passing, combination play, sound positional sense and change of pace was quite devastating.

What were the factors which led to such a dominance of minority community members in the national hockey team in 1928? The Anglo-Indian community in pre-partition India worked mostly in the Railways, Police, Port Trust, British run commercial firms and as school teachers. Was it the nature of such employment which gave them time to practice or their proximity to the British, which enabled them to excel in hockey? Cdr. G. Nandy Singh (Retd.) member of the victorious 1948 London Olympics team, who played for Calcutta Port Trust in pre-Independence days, feels that “the Anglo Indians were a privileged class during the British regime” and this enabled them to excel in sports. Even after Independence, in the 1948 London Olympics, there were five Anglo Indians in the Indian hockey team which beat Netherlands 2-1 in the semi final and Britain 4-0 in the final. A remarkable Anglo-India member of this squad was centre forward Reggie Rodrigues, who during his playing days was an active sports journalist with the Times of India (Mumbai). Rodrigues, who later migrated to Canada, is probably the only active journalist who even played in the Olympics.

The number of Anglo-Indians in the national squad declined as members of the community started migrating to Australia, England and Canada in the 1950s. The last Anglo-Indian to play for India in the Olympics was goalkeeper Mark Peterson in the 1988 Seoul Olympics. After Independence, Anglo Indians started migrating to Australia, Canada and England. Those who were left behind became a marginalized minority.

The History of the Football Clubs in Calcutta (1947—1985); Bengali Identities Since Partition
By Debashis Majumder, Readers Service, Kolkata, September 2012, Price Rs. 250.

In his thought-provoking and well-researched slim book, young scholar Debashish Mazumdar aptly shows how the colonial period football has played a very significant role in the political and cultural field of Bengali society. The origins and development of the great “Ghoti-Bangaal” (Mohun Bagan and East Bengal) rivalry are meticulously traced and commented upon. Debashis has used newspaper reports as his primary source of information along with field surveys and interviews.

The book is neatly divided into six chapters and presents a chronological view of Calcutta football before partition, till 1980s. The author is to be complimented for his attention to detail and rich nuggets of information which embellish the book. For instance, he says that Mohun Bagan defender Gostho Pal in the 1920s became a nationalist symbol on the football field, not because he won any major tournaments but because his powerful tackles against the British players destroyed the myth of physical weakness of the Bengalis.

The author also shows that Jyotish Guha, who took over East Bengal in 1940, rebuilt his side by recruiting from all over India, a trend set by the successful Mohammedan Sporting Club in the 1930s. Constituting East Bengal’s legendary forward line, from 1949—53 – P. Venkatesh, Appa Rao, Dhanraj, Ahmed Khan and PBA Saleh were all from either Hyderabad or Bangalore. In contrast, Mohun Bagan, during this period, recruited talented players only from Bengal. The author reveals that due to their historic 1911 IFA Shield victory, Mohun Bagan had a national identity and so captains of Indian teams for the 1948, 1952 and 1956 Olympics were always chosen from this club.

Debashis describes how in the post-independence period, the footballing identities of the Calcutta clubs changed. Mohun Bagan was transformed from a nationalist symbol to a symbol of aristocracy for the traditional families of West Bengal. The refugee crisis which affected the socio-political and economic atmosphere of West Bengal, reflected on the football field. The 16 lakh refugees from the eastern region of Bengal mostly settled in Calcutta and got emotionally attached to the East Bengal club. For the refugees staying in tents or hastily constructed re-settlement colonies, the success and failure of East Bengal became their own failures and successes in daily life. Urban society in Calcutta thus got polarized and feelings of a type of class struggle also prevailed in the traditional Mohun Bagan-East Bengal clash.

Debashish traces the timeline of this historic rivalry by quoting senior sports journalist Rupak Saha.

According to Saha, the influx of refugees in the 1950s, and identity with East Bengal led to a major craze for the match against Mohun Bagan. So from the 1950s, this match became the clash of the titans, which also acquired a socio-cultural ethos. The derby match was first a major craze within the city of Calcutta. However, the impact of live running commentary on All India Radio made the East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan clash a passion for people all over Bengal.

The book shows the decline of Mohammedan Sporting after partition, as it lost a huge section of Muslim supporters who migrated to Pakistan. The catchment area for the club also declined as they only recruited Muslim players. This rigid religious attitude caused a downfall in the performances of the club and by the mid-1950s, Mohammedan Sporting officials withdrew this rule and recruited non-Muslim players. This policy helped and in the 1960s, Mohammedan Sporting won the DCM tournament twice, in 1961 and 1964 and the Calcutta league in 1967, but could not match the financial clout of Bagan and East Bengal. Thus, Mohammedan Sporting became the third biggest power of Calcutta football.

The author shows that due to their wealth, clubs like Mohun Bagan and East Bengal made Calcutta the main centre of Indian football. For both financial reasons and prestige, the best players in the country in the late fifties and sixties, like Peter Thangaraj. T. Balaram, Jarnail Singh, Kempiah, Ram Bahadur, Syed Nayeemuddin, Mohammed Habib, Shyam Thapa and others, all played in Calcutta and became popular with the fans.

Cinema, player transfers and attitudes of supporters are all skilfully woven into a major narrative to show the intense rivalry between East Bengal and Mohun Bagan. Famous film director Satyajit Ray, in his film Jana Aranya, showed how club identity turned into social prestige for a man in the 1970s. A man gets questioned about his academic qualification but his replies reflect his club identity (namely Mohun Bagan). So football was not just the inspiration, but a way of life for the fans. An example of the fanatical following is shown in the life of Baghada, an East Bengal fan of the 1970s who came to the ground to cheer for his team in every match, even on the day of his son’s death.

Disgruntled fans often indulged in violence if their team was humiliated, like when Mohun Bagan lost 0-5 to East Bengal on 30 September, 1975 in the IFA Shield final. Bagan players like Bhaskar Ganguly, Subrata Bhattacharya and Prasun Banerjee went into hiding to escape the wrath of their bitter fans. They were rescued by club legend Sailen Manna with the help of the Calcutta police after midnight. Player transfers also became full of subterfuge and intrigue and some players were even kidnapped to get signed for a particular club. The rise of vernacular sports journalism, increase in number of Bengali newspapers and separate columns on football made the players heroes among the youth. All these factors, to a large extent, increased the tension of the derby matches in the 1960s and 70s.

It is hard to believe, but this book aptly shows that in the 1960s and 70s, there were better career and financial opportunities for a football player in Calcutta than for a cricketer. The book ends with the description of the death of sixteen football fans at the Eden gardens during an East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan match on 16 August 1980. Fights erupted in the stands after Bidesh Bose of Bagan, and Dilip Palit of East Bengal clashed on the ground and were shown the red card by referee Sudhin Chaterjee. The author shows that mismanagement by the West Bengal Government’s Ministry of Sports and failure by the police to control the situation led to the disaster. The seating arrangements were pathetic and there was no divisional barrier between Bagan and East Bengal supporters.

The book ends on a sombre note, with the author quoting Rupak Saha again and stating that this particular event created panic among the Bengali middle class and they started moving away from football and stopped watching derby matches in the stadium.

For anybody interested in Indian and Asian football’s biggest club rivalry, this book – with its fast flowing narrative – is essential reading. To understand the causes of violence and stone throwing in the recent East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan match, in which international Syed Rahim Nabi got injured, Debashis’ book will provide an excellent historical perspective.

But for generations of football players, officials and fans of the closing decades of the 20^th century, he was the man for all seasons for the Durand Football tournament. Kundu diligently served the Durand football tournament in various capacities from 1973, till he gave up due to indifferent health in 2010. He has been in charge of catering, transport, office management and reservation of hotels for the participating teams. Durand secretaries and sponsors came and went but Kundu, till the end, was indispensable for India’s oldest football tournament. At the Durand office in the Harbaksh Singh stadium, for many years, he was the man-in-charge. The location of each file, letters to prepare, phone calls to make, papers to get signed, teams to contact and all the office work was taken care of by Kundu. Till the age of 76 years, he worked throughout the year for the cause of the Durand football tournament and guided ten officers who served as secretaries for brief periods.

Till the age of 76 years, Kundu da worked throughout the year for the cause of the Durand football tournament.

His closest association was with the former secretary-general of the tournament, the late Wing Cdr. K.K. Ganguly, arguably the greatest sports administrator this country has ever seen. Kundu and Ganguly were an incredible duo. In the days before sponsorship, they ensured ample profits for the Durand tournament just from ticket sales, hoardings on the ground, advertisements in the Durand annual magazine and fiscal discipline. Ganguly was the organizer; Kundu was the man of action.

After Ganguly retired in 1989, many of the organizing secretary-generals were serving officers in the Indian Army but had little knowledge of Indian football. Kundu was their friend, philosopher and guide. Because of his Service background, he was always deferential to his superior officers and would start each conversation by saying “My dear Sir.”

Officials and players always liked him because he made sure their stay was comfortable. He would console when a team lost and praise good performances. When a team got eliminated from the Durand tournament and the manager would come to take money for their expenses, Kundu would ensure that the envelope was always ready and he would hand it over with a smile and encouraging words. In this small manner, he helped to mitigate their frustration.

Prior to 1990, the Durand committee organized the Subroto Mukherjee Cup also. For two months each year, Ganguly and Kundu organized the best run football tournaments in the country, due to impeccable honesty and planning. Every Durand final till the end of the 20^th century was a sell-out. Both semi-finals were invariably played before a packed stadium. The capacity of the Ambedkar stadium is small but still, during these two months, which were like a football festival, an estimated two to three lakh people in total witnessed the matches.

Kundu joined the Durand and Subroto Mukherjee Cup organisation in 1973 as the camp-in-charge. He was responsible for the young school students who took part in the Subroto Cup. He took great care to see that the players were well fed and looked after. As KK Ganguly used to say, “Kundu was the father, mother, friend, philosopher and guide, everything rolled into one for the young footballers at the Subroto Mukherjee and Durand camps. He would arrange for the football boots to be cleaned and polished, call the barber and dhobi when required. In the Subroto Cup, the players have always stayed in camps, initially at the barracks of the National stadium and later elsewhere. Kundu would stay in these camps himself and wake up the young players, when they had a morning match.

His attention to detail was remarkable. Realising that senior football players could be fussy and even superstitious about what they ate, Kundu tried to cater to the needs of football players from different regions of India with a variety of culinary preferences. The teams from Punjab got North Indian food and chappatis or paranthas with every meal. He ensured that club teams from Bengal got to eat fish and rice regularly. They were served rasgullas as dessert.

Ex-internationals Subash Bhowmick and Mohammed Habib liked a certain type of grilled fish. Kundu made sure that they got the fish cooked the way they liked, especially before important matches. After the 1982 Asian Games in Delhi, the participating teams in the Durand tournament stayed in hotels. Many still opted for Kundu’s food and lunch and dinner was delivered in army trucks. That is why the players, even seasoned internationals, always liked him and called him Kundu da or Dada.

His greatest hour was when riots broke out in Delhi in November 1984 after the assassination of the late Prime Minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi. The Durand tournament was on and teams like Punjab Police had to be protected and so were shifted to the Nehru stadium for security reasons. For a few days Delhi was like a towering inferno, law and order had broken down and there was mayhem everywhere. Shops got closed and the caterer and his staff at Nehru stadium had run away. But the far-sighted duo of Ganguly and Kundu ensured that the teams were well fed. Sensing trouble, Ganguly told Kundu to drive to the Brittania factory and buy loaves of bread worth Rs. 5,000 rupees. They also bought ample eggs, butter and large quantities of milk. The teams trapped at Nehru stadium, thus did not starve. The planning was so meticulous that even school teams participating in the Junior Nehru hockey tournament and staying at the Nehru stadium hostel managed to get adequate food due to Kundu’s generosity. During those troubled days, Kundu stayed with the beleaguered players to ensure they were looked after well, such was his loyalty to his organisation.

Asthma, the Delhi smog and pollution took its toll on him. In the last years of his working career with the Durand tournament, he survived by constantly using inhalers and a nebulizer. Despite laboured breathing, he never gave up and even in the bitter winter weather, came daily to work, travelling by public transport. Kundu and people like him belonged to an age gone by. Honour, and not money, was an incentive. He worked for a pittance, considering the amount of multi-tasking he did for the cause of the Durand football tournament. His happiness lay in successful organisation of the Durand tournament, talking about Indian football and the greats of the past. His loyalty to the cause of Indian football and the Durand tournament never wavered.

Like many people of his community, he always liked football. But the overwhelming passion for the game started when he was posted at Trivandrum in 1956 and watched mighty Hyderabad lift the Santosh trophy for the first time. He always talked about the brilliant attacking football of the 1956 Hyderabad team which scored four goals in the opening fifteen minutes and then eased off to trounce Bombay 4-0 in the final. Next year he saw Hyderabad lift the trophy again in their home town. The admiration remained forever and he always lamented the demise of Hyderabad football.

T. Balaram and the brilliant dribbler Chuni Goswami were his all time favourite players. He admired Inder Singh for his speed and lethal finish, goalkeeper Peter Thangaraj for his long throws and acrobatic saves, Shyam Thapa for his agility and spectacular goals, Mohammed Habib for his never say die attitude and defenders Syed Nayeemuddin and Sudhir Karmakar for their superb interceptions and graceful play. The late S.A. Rahim and P.K. Banerjee were his favourite coaches.

The Indian playing eleven in the 3-5-2 formation on that historic day at Melbourne was as follows:

Goalkeeper: Peter Thangaraj (Hyderabad/Services)

Defenders: S.K. Azizuddin (Hyderabad), S.A. Salaam (Hyderabad), SA Latif (Hyderabad).

Midfielders: Kempiah (Bengal), Noor Mohammed (Hyderabad).

Forwards: P.K. Banerjee (Bihar/Railways), Samar ‘Badru’ Banerjee (Bengal), Neville D’Souza (Bombay),

J. Kittu (Bengal) and Kannayan (Bengal).

Except for P.K. Banerjee (originally from Bihar), skipper Samar Banerjee and Neville D’Souza, the remaining eight players were from either Hyderabad or Bangalore. The indefatigable midfielder Kempiah, the dashing winger Kannayan (arguably the fastest winger ever produced by India) and the crafty Kittu had all started their football careers in Bangalore but shifted to Calcutta. Of the eleven that played in Melbourne that day, only Salaam, P.K. Banerjee and Samar Banerjee are still alive. The baby of the team, 19 year-old Tulsidas Balaram was supposed to start on the left flank.

Even on the eve of the match, it was confirmed he would start with vice-captain Kittu on the left flank. But on the morning of December 1, Rahim felt that it would be risky to expose an untried youngster in such a crucial Olympic match and so opted for the experience of Kannayan. In the semi finals, Balaram replaced Kannayan and from then onwards became irreplaceable. Till he retired in 1963, due to illness, Balaram was always in the playing eleven for India and a first choice selection.

The 17 member Indian squad, which finished fourth in the Melbourne Olympics, had eight players who learnt their football in Hyderabad: goalkeeper Peter Thangaraj, defenders Aziz, M.A. Salam, Ahmed Hussain and Latif, left half Noor Mohammed, and forwards Zulfiqar and Tulsidas Balaram. This was not surprising as in 1956, Hyderabad had won the National championships for the Santosh trophy trouncing Bombay 4-0 in the final at Trivandrum. Hyderabad was so dominant in the replayed final that they scored four goals in the opening quarter of the match and at the behest of the organisers did not further humiliate their opponents. From runners up Bombay, the duo chosen were goalkeeper S.S. Narayan and centre forward Neville D’Souza. Narayan played in the semi finals and bronze medal match (from the semi finals onwards, football matches were played on the historic lush green Melbourne Cricket Ground) as Thangaraj picked up a severe ankle injury in the victory against Australia.

D’Souza who played for Caltex, Mumbai became the first player to score a hat-trick in his maiden appearance in Olympic football. The fourth goal was scored by Vice-captain J. Kittu in the 80^th minute. The diminutive Kittu, who played his club football for East Bengal, scored after a 25 yard solo dash and a curling shot from the edge of the box.

On a hard and dry ground and against robust opponents, D’Souza, noted for instinctive ability to drift into scoring positions opened the scoring in the 9^th minute with a firm header. Skipper Samar Banerjee took a stiff shot that rebounded off the bar and following up D’Souza headed in. Australia equalized eight minutes later when Morrow headed in a free kick. In the 33^rd minute India scored again. P.K. Banerjee sped down the right and whipped in a low cross, which an onrushing D’Souza tapped in. Morrow again equalised for Australia three minutes later. But the second half belonged to India. Accelerating down the left, Kannayan cut in and was foiled by goalkeeper Lord. But an onrushing D’Souza, following up, bundled the ball into the net to complete his hat-trick.

Neville D’Souza was very motivated for the match due to an off the field incident. Before the Olympics started, he was travelling by the local bus, on a sight-seeing trip in Melbourne. When some bus passengers learnt that he had come from India to participate in the Olympics, they thought he was a hockey player. They were astonished when he told them that he was a football player, as they believed that India did not play this game. They also laughed when he said that India could beat Australia in football. Ultimately D’Souza had the last laugh on the Aussies.

The versatile D’Souza had an uncanny game sense and was always in the right position at the right time. With his deceptive speed, sudden acceleration and close dribbling D’Souza, resembled a Brazilian forward with his superb control. During his student days in St. Xavier’s, Bombay he played both football and hockey.  But later he opted for football and joined Tatas for a few years before switching to Caltex in the mid-fifties.

Casual in his approach to fitness, D’Souza’s international career lasted only for a few years. But many experts consider him as India’s finest goal poacher. In the 4^th Quadrangular football tournament in Dacca, Neville D’Souza helped India overcome a tenacious Pakistan 2-1 with a delectable winning goal.

India’s performance in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics should be evaluated within the perspective of Asian football during that era. The other two Asian countries made no impression in these Olympics. Japan lost in the first round 0-2 to Australia. Thailand was routed 1-9 by Great Britain. Compared to other Asian nations, India performed creditably and coach Rahim fielded the team in an embryonic 4-2-4 formation with Samar Banerjee and later Nikhil Nandy playing as withdrawn forwards. Renowned soccer critics and officials like Dr. Willy Meisel and Sir Stanley Rous appreciated India’s performance and said the display was a revelation. They congratulated coach S. A Rahim for making India play modern football. The Duke of Edinburgh also witnessed this match and the subsequent 1-4 loss to Yugoslavia in the semi finals. He also conveyed his message of appreciation on the grand performance of the Indian players.

Ironically the Indian football almost did not make it for the Olympics due to several controversies in the country. The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) initially refused to sponsor India’s entry for the Olympics. It was a typical personality clash. Several IOA big wigs did not like Mr. Pankaj Gupta, who was then the All India Football Federation (AIFF) President and who was initially selected as the Chef-de Mission of the Indian contingent for the Melbourne Olympics.  Under pressure the IOA was forced to send India’s entry but refused to pay the national football team’s expenses for the Olympics.

In 2009, six members of that legendary team were felicitated by the government for their achievement so many years ago.

Instead the IOA demanded a deposit of Rs. 33,000 from the AIFF by a certain date otherwise the entry would be cancelled. Mr. K. Ziauddin, secretary of the Western India Football Association used his contacts in Bombay, including football loving actors like Dilip Kumar, to collect the sum of Rs. 33,000 and deposited it at the IOA office. The AIFF was also forced to make its own transport arrangements for the airlift to Melbourne. The AIFF President Mr. Pankaj Gupta arranged credit facilities from Messrs Mercury Travels by hypothecating his house in Calcutta. The Indian team left Bombay by air on November 18 and played some practise games in Melbourne before their opening match on December 1.

The selection of the captain Samar “Badru” Banerjee also caused a controversy. The nimble footed Samar Banerjee was from Mohun Bagan. Due to their 1911 IFA Shield win over East Yorkshire Regiment, Mohun Bagan had a nationalist appeal among the common people so it was customary that in the early post-Independence years, the captain of India was from this historic club. Thus in both the 1948 Olympics and the 1952  Helsinki Olympics, the captain of the Indian team was from Mohun Bagan namely T. Aao and Sailen Manna. There was no controversy on their appointment, as they were established internationals.

However the nimble footed Samar Banerjee was a newcomer to the side, which included seasoned internationals, defender Azizuddin and left half back Noor Mohammed who had both played in the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. Due to Mohun Bagan’s pressure and certain communal feelings within the AIFF, Azizuddin was denied the captaincy. Some disgruntled AIFF officials commented that with K. Ziauddin as manager and S.A Rahim as coach if Azizuddin was chosen as captain, it would resemble a team from Pakistan instead of India. Thus Samar Banerjee became a compromise captain for the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. Aziz declined the offer of vice-captaincy which was then given to J. Kittu. Samar Banerjee played only one match in the Olympics and then was unable to participate due to severe cramps.

Another controversy was the inclusion of the precocious teenager Zulfiqar ( a couple of months older than Balaram) in the Olympic squad. He was the 17^th member and due to financial constraints the AIFF wanted him to be dropped. Rahim was adamant that Zulfiqar, renowned for his powerful shots and crisp volleys, should travel to Melbourne. Rahim made the ultimate sacrifice and offered to drop out from the squad to accommodate Zulfikar. He said that the captain, manager and senior players knew his tactics and they could choose the playing eleven at the Melbourne Olympics. Pankaj Gupta was aghast at such a suggestion and agreed to let Zulfiqar travel to the Olympics. It would have been a travesty to drop Zulfiqar that year as he was in sparkling form. He had excelled in the training camps held that year, two in Calcutta and the final one in Bombay. Also in the final trial match between Hyderabad and Bengal, which the former won 3-0, Zulfiqar had excelled.

]]> http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/12/01/indias-day-of-glory-at-melbourne/feed/ 26 26158731303 http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/11/17/delhi-football-a-trip-down-memory-lane/ http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/11/17/delhi-football-a-trip-down-memory-lane/#comments Sat, 17 Nov 2012 16:49:08 +0000 Novy Kapadia http://www.sportskeeda.com/?p=968173

Aziz Quraishi and fellow footballers with former President Zakir Husain

Delhi football has been through different phases. The first parent body of Delhi football was formed in 1926, with Professor Mohammed Zubair Qureishi as secretary, with the help of Sardar Sobha Singh and the Young Men FC secretary R.B. Sen known as Adu Babu. There was no proper local league then but the clubs used to participate in private tournaments organised by soccer enthusiasts.

The heyday of local football was just prior to Partition, when numerous talented players emerged from the Walled City area and Delhi won the Santosh trophy, for the first and only time till now, beating mighty Bengal 2-0 in the final. The team that played in the final consisted of four players from Mughals, two from Union and one each from Young Men, New Delhi Heroes, Government Press, Crescent and Royal Air Force. Skipper and goalkeeper Osman Jaan, who had played for the all-conquering Mohammedan Sporting team in the 1930s, was from Crescent and the pint-sized centre forward English was from the Royal Air Force stationed in Delhi.

After Partition, several members of this Delhi team, including a trio from Mughals, defender Munawar Hafiz, midfielders Afzal and Ahmed Hassan migrated to Pakistan. The migrants started a Mughals club in Karachi. Right midfielder Afzal, who had excelled in Delhi’s 1944 Santosh trophy triumph, was even selected for the Pakistan national team, which participated in the 2^nd Asian Games in Manila, Philippines. Another star player for Mughals club of that era was Darshan Singh Sodhi, who also captained the Delhi state hockey team and was later a national hockey umpire and secretary of the Delhi Hockey Association (DHA). In the 1940s, Mughals was a formidable team and won the local league title in 1944-45 without either losing a point or conceding a goal.

Delhi’s victorious Santosh trophy skipper Usman Jan was a sub-continent legend for his daring goalkeeping and achievements with Mohammedan Sporting. Thus after his death, the Usman Jan Memorial football tournament was started in Karachi. Mughals, Young Men, Crescent and Usmania club of Delhi participated in this tournament in the 1950s. Mughals won this tournament in 1951. After Partition, several clubs from Delhi frequently crossed the Wagah border and played either tournaments or exhibition matches in Pakistan. This was possible because of the many football officials and players from Delhi who had migrated after 1947.

In the 1950s, Frontier club, mostly consisting of players whose families had migrated from Lahore and Rawalpindi, were frequently invited to play exhibition matches there. Matches against local teams in Pakistan were played earnestly but it was also a nostalgia trip, to renew old acquaintances and visit familiar localities. Sturdy defender O.P. Malhotra, who went on those trips with Frontier Football Club, recalls the atmosphere. He said board and lodging was taken care of by clubs in Lahore and Rawalpindi. Frontier club paid for their train fare. Hospitality was immense and the team would frequently be invited to Dawats at various houses and be given gifts also. Breakfast consisted of lassi, eggs and fruits and a stream of visitors would come afterwards for gossip. Malhotra said that for the three week tour, he carried just Rs. 10 as pocket money and could not spend all of it.

Due to the violence and upheaval caused by the Partition of India, the Delhi league was suspended after 1946. It resumed after a break of two years in 1948 and the oldest club in the capital Young Men won it that year. From 1948 onwards, the Delhi league took a particular shape. It had three divisions. The top 10 teams played in the A division, on a double-leg basis, with all matches being held at the Ambedkar stadium, earlier known as the Delhi Gate stadium. The B and C division matches took place at either the nearby Crescent ground or the President’s Estate ground. Except for transport allowance, kit and refreshment, there was no payment to the players. However, club officials would strive to get their top players jobs in leading public sector concerns like Delhi Audit, Northern Railway, State Bank of India, Central Secretariat, Delhi Electric Supply Undertaking (DESU) and Food Corporation of India (FCI) and so on. A competitive institutional league was also held annually.

Matches of 70 minutes duration would start at 5.45p.m. but with allowances for delay on buses, the kick-off was often at 6.00p.m. Entrance tickets till the sixties were moderately priced at 10 paise (a coin denomination which does not exist any more). The Delhi league was seen as the ordinary man’s entertainment for those who could not afford holidays in popular hill stations Mussourie or Shimla or a distant Kashmir.

The involvement and passion of the crowds was intense and a rivalry developed between Old Delhi and New Delhi clubs. As Delhi expanded and Government housing colonies spread all over South and Central Delhi, the popularity of football also increased. In the 1950s, Delhi had lots of open space and local clubs had no shortage of grounds to practice. New Delhi Heroes became the most formidable team of the 1950s, winning the local league four years in a row (1953-56) and then twice in 1958 and 59. Some of the stalwarts of this side were centre forward Amba Suri, inside forward Krishan Thapar, later Chief Football coach later Deputy Director of National Institute of Patiala, sturdy full back Trilok Nath Lau, later a National Referee, midfielder Ram Swarup and former state captains A.N. Jayaraman and V.P. Suri. It may be recalled that 1948-56 Olympic hockey gold medalist, defender Randhir Singh Gentle also played football for ND Heroes. Gentle later shifted to Bombay to join the Tatas hockey team. He once played in the Rovers Cup when New Delhi Heroes needed a defender, following the sudden illness of a player.

Goalkeeper Hardev Sahai was one of Delhi’s star players in the 1950s. He represented Crescent Club and Young Men and was invited to join a formidable Rajasthan FC in Kolkata in 1952. In his first season, he helped Rajasthan FC emerge joint champions of the IFA Shield with Mohun Bagan.

With massive migration of the Muslim population, the support for football from the Walled City region got diminished. Famous clubs of that region like Crescent, Companions, Alexandria FC, Independents and Usmania declined and shut down. For a decade after Independence, Young Men were the only formidable team of Old Delhi and twice won the Delhi league title in 1951 and 1957. After Partition, it was the Bengali population of Delhi which played a major role in the development of the game by playing for various clubs and becoming officials. They also provided the bulk of the spectators and came in hordes to watch football matches at the Delhi Gate stadium. Raisina Sporting, a team supported by the local Bengali population, won the Delhi league twice in a row in 1961 and 1962.

Players rest at half-time at the old Delhi Gate (Ambedkar) Stadium with the crowd overlooking during a Durand Cup match in the 1960s

It was in the 1960s that the popularity of the Delhi league reached its zenith. The wounds of Partition had healed and Old Delhi football started to flourish once more. The most popular team in the capital was City Club consisting of some veterans and a talented group of school and college players, all of whom were residing in the narrow lanes near the Jama Masjid region. They won the Delhi league for the first time in 1960, with an all win record in the 2^nd leg. Later they won the league again in 1963 and 1964. Indian Nationals also based in the Walled City, had their own committed supporters and was the first Delhi club to pay money to purchase players for the season. In the early sixties, they had a fine forward line consisting of striker Nirmal Singh Sahi from Lucknow, wingers Durga Prasad and Ken Mathews and play-maker Som Nath.

Indian Nationals’ rivalry with City Club was intense and the Delhi gate stadium became a veritable cauldron of frenzied supporters when these arch rivals clashed in the local league. Their most fascinating clash was in the return leg on an overcast Sunday evening in July 1964.  City Club was the reigning league champions but trailed Indian Nationals 0-3 at half time. The confident officials of Indian nationals ordered boxes of sweetmeats for distribution after the match. But an inspired City Club spoiled the party. Spurred on by Aziz Qureishi (played for India Juniors in 1965 and later a TV serial actor in popular shows like Hum Log) and gutsy wing half Mohammed Iqbal, City Club rallied to win 6-3 amidst scenes of great joy. Aziz Qureishi the hero of that triumph, was promised free glasses of milk by happy supporters for the rest of the year and for a fortnight after the match, the team was invited for sumptuous Dawats (feasts) by delirious City Club fans.

The Delhi league was extremely popular in the 1960s and Delhi also twice won the Junior National Championships (Dr. B.C. Roy trophy) in 1963 and 1965. Several distinguished players also emerged during this decade. Aziz Qureishi (1965) and the late left winger Arunesh Sharma (1969) represented the India junior team in the annual Asian Youth Football championships. Crafty inside forward Shujaat Ashraf was snapped up by Mohammedan Sporting and scored in the final when his team won the 1964 DCM tournament. He later also played for East Bengal. Lanky stopper back Dev Raj Katyal of Youngsters and New Delhi Heroes along with dashing striker Shanker Mukherjee of Raisina Sporting were recruited by the renowned Mafatlal Mills, Mumbai, which won the renowned DCM tournament in 1967 and 1968.

Delhi football is a paradox. The leading clubs of the world, Barcelona, Manchester United, Arsenal, Metz and Chelsea annually organize camps to scout for talent from schools, but football clubs in Delhi have nowhere to play. The Delhi Soccer Association (DSA) is continuously striving to find suitable venues to conduct their senior division, A division and B division league matches. This is indeed regrettable as Delhi has a rich club culture unsurpassed in Northern India. Some of the Delhi clubs in the Walled City area, like Young Men (1898) and Mughals (1905) are over a century old. Popular City Club, from where current Indian skipper Sunil Chettri started his career a decade ago, is also floundering for lack of a regular practice venue.

In the last few years it has been observed that the DSA calendar varies, depending on availability of grounds. This is in sharp contrast to the well organized season, which stretched from April to December from just after Independence till the 1990s. The local league was held in the summer and monsoon months and finished by August-September. It was followed by the DCM and Durand football tournaments. Now there is no fixed schedule as the prices to hire grounds are exorbitant. Consequently, media interest has also declined and coverage of DSA League matches in local sports pages has dipped. Demographic and infrastructural changes in the capital have also affected football in the capital.

For instance, the President’s Estate ground, a regular venue for local football is now out of bounds for security reasons. This trend started during the tenure of late Gyani Zail Singh (1982—97). When APJ Abdul Kalam was president of India from July 25, 2002 to July 25, 2007 he converted the once famous football ground, venue of one of Delhi’s oldest football tournament, the Rajaji Cup, into a botanical garden. This complex was once the nerve centre of football in the capital and produced several state players; Chaman Lal, Sri Prasad, Pyare Lal, Lufte Ali, Gian, Girdhari Lal, Gopal Dass, Shane Alam, Chander Darshan, Aslam and others but now nobody plays or talks about local football in that area.

The Crescent grounds near the Indian Express Building in Central Delhi were once the venue for the A Division and B division league matches. Famous teams like the legendary Hyderabad City Police, RAC Bikaner and Leaders Club Jalandhar used to practice there when they came to participate in the DCM and Durand tournaments. Ex-internationals Yusuf Khan, Zulfikar (1956 Melbourne Olympics), Syed Nayeemuddin, Mohammed Afzal, Inder Singh (Asian All Stars), Gurkripal Singh and Magan Singh (captain of India in the 1974 Tehran Asian Games) have all practised on this ground. It is now an ornamental park.

The Mori Gate grounds, where Union Club and Young Bengal Association trained regularly are now part of the Inter State Bus Terminal (ISBT) complex. The Talkatora Gardens once the practice venue for Delhi’s famous clubs New Delhi Heroes and Delhi Cantonment remains unused.

In the 1990s, the DSA conducted preliminary league matches at the University of Delhi’s large playing fields(two football fields) in North Delhi. For the 2010 Commonwealth Games, this venue was converted into an athletics track and complex and so is unavailable. The Central Secretariat grounds near the Prime Minister’s residence in South Delhi was a traditional venue for league matches since the 1970s but is now priced out of reach and costs Rs. 2,000 per hour. One of Delhi’s most established clubs, Simla Youngs, six times league champions (1950, 52, 72, 73, 76 and 2005), practiced there for nearly half a century. Early in the 21^st century, they even set up an academy and provided systematic age-group coaching there. Due to the exorbitant rent, they had to vacate this ground last year.

Local league matches have been played at the DDA Sports complex in Jasola (South Delhi) in the last few years. The rent is also Rs. 500 per hour. However, after pressure from the DSA president and Congress MLA Subash Chopra, the rent was reduced to Rs. 300 per hour for Delhi football matches.

In 2011, when Syed Shaheen took over as secretary of the DSA with Congress Mr. Chopra in his second term as president, activities started briskly. The senior division league was conducted in August—September and the final was held on 13 September at the Thyagaraj Nagar stadium. A new club, Delhi United, emerged champions for the first time beating Shahdara FC, coached by former Mohammedan Sporting player Surender Kumar, 3-2 in a closely fought final witnessed by large crowds. The Thyagaraj Nagar sports complex ground is affordable at Rs. 500 per hour. However, the playfield is used constantly for Delhi schools’ sports trials and private sector sport meets and so is not in good shape.

The Ambedkar stadium in New Delhi

The A division league is scheduled to start on Nov. 16 this year at the Akshardam practice ground of the Commonwealth Games Village. The main senior division league may not commence till either late December or early next year because Ambedkar stadium, the hub of football in the capital is unavailable. The daily fee for renting Ambedkar stadium was hiked from Rs. 500 to Rs. 5,000 per day. This made the venue out of bounds for the DSA, which does not have big sponsors. At the standing committee meeting of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), pressure was applied to have the fees reduced. The MCD has relented but they want the backlog of payment cleared by the DSA before giving permission at reduced rates.

Delhi clubs have procured sponsors but they back out after a couple of years as due to absence of playing space, there is little mileage to be gained as matches are few. Six years ago, a major promoter, Osians, a Bombay based art auction house and cultural archive, also got associated with New Delhi Heroes. The founder chairman of Osians’ Neville Tuli is passionate about football and hence the involvement. Osians had ambitious plans for ND Heroes but they backed out in 2008 as they were not getting value for their investment. Amity took over Indian Nationals for a couple of seasons but they left the club in a lurch. Three-time league champions Hindustan FC has regularly managed sponsors from 1996 onwards, from Coca Cola to security firms but none last for long. Same is the fate with Simla Youngs and Shahdara FC.

Old Delhi clubs in the past used to be financed by rich patrons in the area. The owner of Student Club (Delhi champions in 1991) ran a small hotel in the Old Delhi area and used a part of his profits to finance the club. As business declined, the fortunes of the club faded and they are now languishing in the B division. Similarly, Young Men was looked after by the Qureshi family, famous butchers of the Walled City area. Due to inflation, rising cost in maintaining a football club and escalating prices of player,s it is becoming impossible for a single family to look after a football club in Delhi. Expenses for the season, mostly player’s fees are now in the range of Rs. 15-20 lakhs and returns are negligible. Young Men now fields a team of mostly students. Current league champions United FC are the most professionally run football club in Delhi at present and hope to play in the I-League,  2^nd division this season. Hopefully they last long.

 The rich legacy of Delhi football is fading. Famous clubs of the past such as Usmania, Youngsters, Presidents Estate (league champions 1966 and 67) and Raisina Sporting (league champions 1961 & 62) are now defunct.  Club officials and DSA management committee must find solutions soon. A good beginning was made by former DSA secretary Narender Kumar Bhatia and other officials like Liaqat Ali and Bachi Ram to revive football in Old Delhi by holding a training camp for school children during the summer holidays. They should even try and procure permission from the local authorities for Old Delhi clubs to train at the vast expanse of vacant ground opposite the Rajghat area. Urgent solutions are needed to find grounds to play otherwise the legacy of football in the capital will further decline.

]]> http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/11/11/delhi-football-clubs-have-no-place-to-play/feed/ 3 354170 http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/10/21/silver-jubilee-of-tata-football-academy/ http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/10/21/silver-jubilee-of-tata-football-academy/#comments Sun, 21 Oct 2012 13:42:20 +0000 Novy Kapadia http://www.sportskeeda.com/?p=867073

Never in the history of Indian sport has one game owed so much to one institution. This twisted version of former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s memorable words can aptly be applied to the Tata Football Academy (TFA), which this year has completed 25 years of existence. When it was created in 1987, the Tata Football Academy (TFA) was the only national and Asian academy dedicated to the development of football. Creditably, TFA has maintained its quest for excellence and held its ninth convocation for its tenth batch of 18 graduating cadets, from eight different states, recently. Creditably at this function, veterans like Chuni Goswami, Director TFA, 1986—89, P.K. Banerjee, technical director 1991—1997, Shyam Thapa and coach Ranjan Chowdhury were also present. The 1962 Asian games gold medalist, Arun Ghosh, Director TFA 1997—2002 and Mohammed Habib, coach 1986 to 1999 were also invited but could not make it for personal reasons.

In his inimitable style, PK regaled the young cadets with anecdotes of the past. He said that recently retired international defender Mahesh Gawli, whilst at TFA, used to cry at night as he was homesick. PK revealed how he spent hours soothing Gawli and urging him to stay. He also said that international midfielder Clifford Miranda was mischievous and used to climb trees to eat mangoes and other fruits.

TFA’s contribution to Indian football has been immense, especially during the nineties and initial years of the new millennium. During this period as the Indian economy changed, prices and life expectations increased considerably, so the feeder clubs, often colony based units looked after by dedicated individuals dwindled or shut shop. For decades clubs like Aryans, Kalighat, Kidderpore, Howrah Union in Kolkata, Orkay Mills in Mumbai, City College Old Boys and Arsenal FC, Hyderabad, Premier Tyres in Kerala, Leaders Club, Jalandhar and many others all over the country, nurtured talent and produced good players, who were then snapped up by the big clubs of India. As these clubs and institutions declined for economic reasons, TFA filled the vacuum. If not for TFA, India’s FIFA ranking would have slithered down even more.

Creditably about a decade ago, others have followed TFA’s example like Chandigarh Football Academy and Sesa Football Academy. The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has started an academy in Navi Mumbai earlier this year and a youth development programme since 2007. But for many years, TFA remained the only elite football academy in the country, with excellent training facilities, coaching inputs and foreign exposure trips.

In the last two decades, 120 TFA cadets have represented India in international competitions. Overall, 164 TFA cadets have represented the country in age group national teams. The most successful was the fourth batch when 13 of the 16 graduating cadets represented India. Some of TFA’s exceptional footballers include Carlton Chapman, P. Renedy Singh, Syed Rahim Nabi, Subrata Paul, Alok Das, Dipendu Biswas, Deepak Mondal (received the Arjuna award in 2010), Mahesh Gawli, Noel Wilson, Debashish Pal Chowdhury, Lolendra Singh, Kalyan Choubey, Sur Kumar Singh, Gourmangi Singh and India’s recent pre-Olympic captain Raju Gaikwad. TFA contributed immensely to arguably India’s greatest football victory in recent times, the 1-0 win over United Arab Emirates (UAE), which was then ranked 70 places above India in a World Cup qualifier, in April 2001. There were five TFA players, defenders Sur Kumar Singh, Mondal and Gawli and midfielders Noel Wilson and Renedy in that Indian team which upset UAE 1-0 in Bangalore.

The scouting of talented players is broad based, includes all social categories and India’s diversity is amply reflected in the selected TFA cadets. The recently graduated batch had an ace defender Sanjay Balmuchu, from a village in the iron-ore rich region of Jharkhand. Nicknamed the ‘iron man’, Balmuchu was discovered from the Feeder centre of Noamundi near Tata Steel’s iron mine. Balmuchu has now got a lucrative contract from Churchill Brothers. On the rolls at present is a talented 15 year old cadet Niranjan Sardar from the remote Kalarangatia village in Jajpur district of Odisha. He was spotted in a camp organized by TFA in Kalinganagar.

In contrast, the suave striker Karan Sawhney is the son of a wealthy Mumbai based businessman. Known for being able to “bend the ball” like Beckham, lanky Karan has secured a Rs. 22 lakhs two year contract with Salgaocar (Goa). TFA is egalitarian in its treatment of players. All share the same facilities and stay in rooms without air-conditioning.

At the five-acre academy, the country’s best talent is put through an intensive four-year training programme, given the best equipment and occasional foreign exposure. Previously foreign trips were to Brazil, Germany and Netherlands. However in 2010 the Tata Football Academy signed a technical tie-up with Sheffield United FC. So the TFA senior squad and four coaches visited Sheffield United academy for three weeks in September 2012 to get match exposure against English youth teams and professional guidance. The English club is helping TFA with coaching and technical expertise to develop the Academy and their cadets.  Sheffield United’s international coach Lee Walshaw frequently visits Jamshedpur to fine tune TFA’s training programmes and set up modern training schedules.

Creditably the TFA is expanding and have launched a non-residential Grassroots Development programme for local boys less than 10 years of age. Every two years, TFA will induct 75-80 boys under 10 years of age and from 2016 onwards these boys, proficient in football basics, will be available for selection in the Academy’s four year programme. Satellite centres have also been created at all Tata steel locations where sports infrastructure is available.

In the past 25 years, achievements have been stupendous. But TFA must develop a road map for the future and not let complacency creep in. There are a few worrying signs. In 1989, TFA was runners up in the IFA Shield, losing 0-1 to Mohun Bagan. Again in 1995 TFA entered the Durand final, upsetting Mohun Bagan in the semi final and losing in the penalty shoot-out (3-4) to East Bengal in the final. In 1997, a spirited TFA squad, coached by the effervescent Mohammed Habib reached the DCM final but lost 0-2 to formidable Mohun Bagan, which had lethal striker Chima Okorie, Sri Lankan international Roshan Pereira and speedy Abdul Khalique upfront. Reaching the final of three major domestic tournaments were tremendous achievements for precocious teenaged footballers, as they competed against the top senior teams of the country. In recent years, TFA has lost in the initial rounds of the Durand tournament and successes have only been in relatively minor competitions like Nayagrah football tournament and Harbhajan Singh memorial tournament. Has the quality of junior players joining TFA declined or is better coaching needed? It is time for stocktaking.

Of the 18 TFA players who recently graduated, 13 have been snapped up by the AIFF’s developmental team, the Pailan Arrows, an impressive statistic, but how many play regularly in the first eleven. Pailan Arrows have signed 35 players this season so many TFA recruits will be languishing on the bench.  Some like Alwyn George and goalkeeper Y. Ravi Kumar have already established themselves and will get regular chances but what about the hard tackling midfielder Siam Hanghal and Simranjeet Singh. Will they wither away, lose motivation and drift through the rest of their professional career? The trio of Bilal Khan,  Manpreet Singh and Balmuchu have signed for Churchill Brothers but will also mainly be used as reserves. This withering away of talented graduates should be a cause of worry to the TFA authorities, as it does not concern this batch only but was a repeated feature of the nine previous batches.

Winger Gautam Ghosh from the first batch, rated the most talented in the country, played for both East Bengal and Mohun Bagan but his career never really took off. Central defenders Anit Ghosh and Shanker Lal Chakraborty and striker Dipendu Biswas (once compared to Jurgen Klinsmann for his roving game) from the second batch, were also highly rated but they never really lived up to potential. Another silky striker Sheikh Sanjeeb faded away soon after leaving TFA. So many others cases can be cited, strikers Vimal Pariyar, P.C. Lalawmpuia (reportedly liquor problems) of the 7^th batch, Henry Gangte and Branco Cardoza of the 8^th batch, defenders Satish Bharti and Amandeep Singh and striker Alex Ambrose (4^th batch) and S. Malsawmtlunga and Subash Chakraborty (5th batch). All were promising players but could not make the transition from potential to fulfillment of talent.

TFA should take note of this drop-out rate and make new plans for the future. Some years ago, P.K. Banerjee suggested that Tata Steel start a senior team, where most of the TFA recruits can ply their trade after graduating. He felt that teenaged players coming out of a sheltered and professional set-up like TFA could not cope with the pressures and politicking of club football in the country. The Tatas football club would be a finishing school for the Academy graduates and then they could seek transfers to high profile clubs. Coach Ranjan Chowdhury, a loyalist, who still has TFA on his e-mail ID, supports this idea. It is worth considering as analysis reveals that players who joined clubs without the constant pressure of success, had a successful career. The best example is Deepak Mondal (3^rd batch—1998) joined JCT for two years. After he matured as an individual and player he left for the high profile East Bengal in 2000 and his career blossomed. Similarly Gawli joined now defunct FC Kochin for two seasons before signing for Churchill Brothers. Maybe for the next decade, TFA could try out this venture, start a club to give senior tournament exposure and maturity to the Academy graduates.

East Bengal’s coach Trevor Morgan’s birthday coincides with the Federation Cup finals. It is a tale of three birthdays.

He celebrated his 54^th birthday on Sept. 30 2010 - his first year in India in 2010 - cautiously watching his club’s prospective opponent (Mohun Bagan overcoming Dempo) in the final of the 32^nd Federation Cup at Cuttack. A year later, his celebrations were muted as a day earlier, East Bengal had been humbled 1-3 at home by Salgaocar in the Federation Cup final and injured ace midfielder Mehtab Hossein was declared out of action for several months.

He got the perfect birthday present in 2012, when his club swept aside Dempo (Goa) 3-2 to win the Federation Cup for the eighth time.

A week after their Federation Cup success, East Bengal start their 6^th I-League campaign against Sporting Clube de Goa in Margao today. Oozing with confidence, East Bengal are firm favourites for the title as they have a cohesive squad, with good bench strength and the best quartet of goal-scorers in the country: Chidi Edeh, and internationals Baljit Sahni, Manandeep Singh and Robin Singh. East Bengal have never done the double of winning the I-league and Federation Cup in the same season. Only Mohun Bagan (2001-02) and Dempo (2004-05) have done the same. This season is East Bengal’s best chance of achieving a historic double crown.

In the Federation Cup, East Bengal has many historic achievements. They are the only club to win the Cup in their debut year (1978-joint champions with Mohun Bagan), ITI Bangalore, champions in the inaugural year, 1977, aside. East Bengal are also the only side to win the Cup twice in one calendar year in 2010 – Guwahati (3.1.10) and Cuttack (2.10.10). Again, East Bengal are the first club to have entered the Federation Cup final four years in a row (2009—2012)

During this dream run, they won the title thrice and lost just once to Salgaocar in 2011. Foreign coaches Philip de Ridde (Belgium) in 2009 and Trevor Morgan (England) 2010—2012 spearheaded the club’s successes during this great run.

East Bengal has made 16 appearances in the Federation Cup final and won the trophy eight times. All their triumphs have been very dramatic. Thrice, they won the title in extra time, 1985, 1996 (golden goal) and now in 2012. In 2009, they won on penalties, beating Shillong Lajong 3-0, after the match ended goalless. That year they won the trophy without conceding a goal, a feat achieved only once before by Mohun Bagan in 1987. Twice in 1978 and 1980 East Bengal were joint champions with Mohun Bagan. Only in 2007 and 2010 they won the Federation Cup in regulation time.

1978, Coimbatore: East Bengal and Mohun Bagan were joint champions after both the final and replay ended in a goalless draw.  The final was billed as the clash of the coaches- Arun Ghosh of East Bengal against India’s most successful club coach P. K. Banerjee, then with Mohun Bagan. This final became famous for Arun Ghosh’s clever tactics. He realized that Bagan, launched attacks mainly from the left using the blistering pace of Bidesh Bose, who would latch onto through passes from midfielder Prasun Banerjee and burst through opposing defences.

In both the final and the replay, East Bengal thwarted the rampaging Bidesh by some clever marking. Right striker Mihir Bose played as a withdrawn right midfielder to assist right back Chinmoy Chatterjee in marking Bidesh. The speedy wing-back Chinmoy ensured that Bidesh did not run down the line and get in penetrative crosses. When Bidesh tried to cut inside and shoot at goal, Mihir was always present to tackle him. With Bidesh restricted, Bagan, the stronger team on paper faded and made little impact.

1980, Kolkata: East Bengal and Mohun Bagan were declared joint champions as the final at the famous cricket stadium, Eden Gardens (Salt Lake Stadium had not been built till then) ended in a 1-1 draw. This time P.K. Banerjee coached East Bengal and Arun Ghosh looked after Mohun Bagan. The 1980 Federation Cup was P.K. Banerjee’s finest hour.  For a decade the carping critics had said that P.K. only managed star-studded teams and got success as a coach. But in 1980, he proved his detractors wrong and with his clever man-management, eye for talent and astute tactics, developed a competitive East Bengal squad relying mostly on newcomers and just two established players in sturdy defender Manoranjan Bhattacharya and diminutive Mohammed Habib. Despite having a weakened squad, East Bengal were joint champions in both the Rovers and Federation Cup in the 1980-81 season.

During the transfer season, East Bengal had been decimated. Several star players, goalkeeper Bhaskar Ganguly, defender Chinmoy Chatterjee, midfielder Prasanta Banerjee, striker Shabbir Ali, wingers Surojit Sengupta and Debashish Roy had switched allegiance to Mohammedan Sporting, lured by lucrative contracts offered by the president Tahir Irfan Randerian, a tycoon with business interests in shipping and tea.

After the transfer season, P.K. Banerjee had only three weeks to develop a cohesive squad consisting mainly of youngsters and three Iranian recruits Majid Bhaskar, Jamshed Nassiri and Mohammed Khabazi. The critics felt this makeshift team would falter. But mainly due to the brilliance of Majid, the goal poaching of Nassiri and P.K.’s clever coaching, the weakest ever East Bengal side reached the final. In the semi final they overcame Punjab Police, 3-0.

Mohun Bagan with their brilliant quartet of forwards were expected to win the final easily. But P.K. used retractable wingers and made Majid play as a central midfielder. So East Bengal’s unusual 4-5-1 system and commitment, kept Bagan at bay.

P.K. Banerjee

1985, Bangalore: Another East Bengal (P.K. Banerjee coach) and Mohun Bagan (Amal Dutta coach) classic. On the day of the final, the erstwhile secretary Ashok Ghosh announced that P.K. would be India’s coach for the 1986 Seoul Asian Games. Amal Dutta was disgruntled as he had hoped to get this coveted job. So there was a lot of tension in the match. East Bengal had a rugged defence: Balai Mukherjee, Manoranjan Bhattacharya, Tarun Dey and Aloke Mukherjee and with Krishanu Dey, Biswajit Bhattacharya, Bikash Panji and Jamshed Nassiri in good nick were fancied to win.

P.K. used defensive midfielder Sunirmal Chakraborty to mark Bagan’s playmaker Prasanta Banerjee, so the match became a battle of attrition. Ultimately, East Bengal ousted arch rivals Mohun Bagan with an extra time goal by the Iranian striker Nassiri.

1996, Kolkata: In front of a capacity crowd of about 100,000 people at the Salt Lake stadium, East Bengal beat Dempo 2-1 with prolific striker Raman Vijayan scoring the golden goal in the 17^th minute of extra time. Shrewd midfielder Tushar Rakshit had put East Bengal ahead in the 15^th minute but Camillo Gonsalves equalized for Dempo, in a breakaway move a minute later.

Manoranjan Bhattacharya, East Bengal’s captain when they won the trophy in 1985, was now the club coach with veteran P.K. Banerjee as Technical Director. In the final, the team was jolted as ace defender Debashish Pal Chowdhury got injured in the 11^th minute. Ranjan Dey was pulled back from his role as defensive midfielder to stopper-back alongside Debjit Ghosh and nippy A. Sarvanan came in as a wide midfielder. Raman Vijayan was East Bengal’s hero scoring twice in the 3-0 win over Kerala Police in the semi-finals and once in the finals.

2007, Ludhiana: Another long wait for Federation Cup success ended in 2007. Kolkata’s glamour club had not won this coveted trophy since 1996. East Bengal seemed jinxed in this tournament and in the new millennium, had not even entered the semi-finals of the Federation Cup. Coached by a former Bagan legend Subrata Bhattacharya, they overcame Mahindra United of Mumbai 2-1, in the 29^th Hero Cycles Federation Cup final. Brazilian striker Edmilson netted a brace for East Bengal.

East Bengal played glorious, attacking football, winning four matches in 11 days and scoring 11 goals. Their lethal striker Edmilson was the tournament’s top-scorer with six goals in three matches. He missed the semi-finals against Mohun Bagan due to injury. East Bengal beat city rivals Mohammedan Sporting 3-1 in the first round, JCT 3-2 in the quarter finals and Mohun Bagan 3-2 in the semis.

2009, Guwahati: The genial Belgian coach Philippe de Ridde became the first foreign coach in the club’s history to win a major title. Nigerian defender Uga Okpara played brilliantly in each match and East Bengal won the tournament without conceding a goal. Nirmal Chettri( in his first season with East Bengal), Syed Rahim Nabi and Saumik Dey also impressed. Goalkeeper Abhra Mondal saved three penalties during the shoot-out in the finals against Shillong Lajong. East Bengal won this tournament, scoring just four goals in five matches, with two goalless draws and two 1-0 victories. No team has won a major tournament in India scoring such few goals.

This tournament marked the second coming of midfielder Mehtab Hossein. The Belgian coach made him switch from a wide midfielder to central midfield and told him this move would help in the revival of his international career. It certainly helped because since the 31^st Hero Honda Federation Cup, Mehtab Hossein’s career has blossomed. He is now a regular in the Indian team and considered the most dependable midfielder in the country. Mehtab acknowledges De Ridde’s efforts in the revival of his international career.

2010, Cuttack: A new, exciting and attacking East Bengal emerged in the 32^nd Federation Cup, which got limited media coverage as it was held just prior to the start of the Delhi Commonwealth Games.

East Bengal with attacking midfielder Penn Orji, Tolgay Ozbey, Robin Singh, Naoba Singh and Vashum in their ranks were quite dominant and won all their matches in grand style.

East Bengal scored eight goals in five matches. The influence of their new British coach Trevor Morgan was evident as they played more direct, one-touch football.

2012, Siliguri: Trevor Morgan got the best birthday present of his life, as East Bengal overcame two major rivals, Churchill Brothers (1-0 in the semi-finasl) and Dempo (3-2 in the finals) to win the tournament. He has now won the Federation Cup twice with East Bengal, a record he shares with P.K. Banerjee (1980 and 1985).

Morgan was spot on in his substitutions and strategy. He opted for Ishfaq Ahmed and Harmanjot Khabra as the wide midfielders at the start of each knockout match, as both have good defensive abilities. As both the semi-finals and finals drifted into extra time, he brought in attacking midfielders Sanju Pradhan and Lalrindika Ralte (another inspired selection, who joined this season). Ralte scored the match winner against Churchill Brothers and set up the winning goals against Dempo in the finals.

]]> http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/10/07/east-bengals-federation-cup-successes/feed/ 1 130415 http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/09/11/prayag-united-the-new-force-in-indian-football/ http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/09/11/prayag-united-the-new-force-in-indian-football/#comments Tue, 11 Sep 2012 04:10:28 +0000 Novy Kapadia http://www.sportskeeda.com/?p=713136  The 34^th Federation Cup, which commences from 19 September, will provide an indication of the strengths and weaknesses of the leading club sides of the country. During the recent transfer season there has been hectic activity and the domination of Dempo SC (Goa), East Bengal and Mohun Bagan could be challenged. There has been an exodus of players moving to Kolkata during the transfer season because cash-rich Prayag United has emerged as a new force in Indian football. Their budget of Rs. 20 crores for the season is the highest ever.

Since Mohammedan Sporting’s decline, in the early nineties, Mohun Bagan and East Bengal have remained as the Big Two clubs in Kolkata. This season after two decades, there will be three clubs from Kolkata competing for top honours as they have splurged cash on getting star players. Prayag United is challenging the financial might of both Bagan and East Bengal and has attracted top players to their squad.

One of the all time great foreigners to play in India, striker Ranty Martins has quit Dempo after eight seasons and joined Prayag United. Ranty, top scorer in the last two editions of the I-League is earning an estimated Rs 1.8 crore this season. The Costa Rican mid-fielder Carlos Hernandez has also joined Prayag United for a sum of Rs 1.25 crore. Hernandez played in the 2006 World Cup, could be one of the best players to have joined an Indian club. Both Ranty and Hernandez are also eligible for perks like accommodation, reimbursement of children’s tuition fees and a Mercedes S-Class car.

Two players from the Indian squad which won the recent 15^th Nehru Cup, have also joined Prayag United, goalkeeper Subrata Pal of Pune FC for Rs. 1.1 crores and defender Gourmangi Singh from Churchill Brothers for Rs. 1.05 crores. Former internationals, Sangram Mukherjee (Mohun Bagan), Baldeep Singh (Pune FC) have also signed for the new big money spenders of Indian football. Others to join Prayag United include promising midfielders Lester Fernandez (Pune FC) and MP Zakeer (Churchill Brothers) and defenders Dhanachandra Singh (Mumbai FC) and Ravinder Singh (East Bengal). As regards transfers, it was yesterday once more and like in the past the focus was on Kolkata.

Since the 1930s, Kolkata was Indian football’s El Dorado. Talented players flocked to the City of Joy to earn fame and fortune. East Bengal was the first to recruit outstation players, when they hired Laxminarayan and Murugesh from Bangalore in 1933. Mohammedan Sporting followed the same policy a year later. For the 1934 season, Mohammedan Sporting’s visionary secretary K.A. Aziz, recruited players from all over India. Defender Jumma Khan (who later on became the brand ambassador for the Indian Tea Industry), midfielder Bacchi Khan and forwards Saboo and Abbas joined the club from the North West Frontier Province (NWFP). Inside forward Rahmat and midfielder Mohiuddin came from Bangalore. Anwar had joined from distant Quetta and was the captain of the side. Goalkeeper Osman Jan from Delhi joined the club in 1936 as a replacement for the retired custodian Kale Khan. Mohammedan Sporting won the Calcutta league a record five years in a row from 1934—1938. In 1936 they became the first Indian team to win the double of the Calcutta League and IFA Shield. In 1940 Mohammedan Sporting became the first club to win the Triple Crown, the Kolkata League, Durand and Rovers Cup titles. So Mohammedan Sporting set the trend of achieving success by recruiting quality outstation players.

After Independence, Mohun Bagan followed the same path. T. Aao joined from Nagaland, S. Raman and M.A. Sattar from Bangalore, T. A. Rehman from Kerala and later Jarnail Singh from Punjab and Kempiah and Arumainayagam also from Bangalore. For many years the ultimate destination for a player coming to Calcutta was either East Bengal or Mohun Bagan or Mohammedan Sporting. During the 1950s Rajasthan FC, also developed big budget squads but the interest soon faded.

For two seasons 1980-81 and 1981-82, Mohammedan Sporting’s all-star squad, was on par if not better than Kolkata football’s Big Two, due to their multi-millionaire President Tahir Irfan Randerian’s financial clout. However in the ongoing Iran-Iraq war, Randerian’s export business suffered huge losses (ships got bombed) and the generous allowances to the club ceased. Since then East Bengal and Mohun Bagan, have reigned supreme in their city.

At the national level, the financial monopoly of the Kolkata teams had been challenged. In 1995, JCT made a star studded team, including three of India’s finest players of that generation, I.M. Vijayan, Jo Paul Ancheri and Carlton Chapman. Next season they recruited Baichung Bhutia also and along with classy foreigners like Stephen Abarowei, Christopher and Bernard became champions of the inaugural National Football League. Top notch players then cost about Rs. 20-25 lakhs per season.

JCT’s money splurge subsided after two seasons. In 2005 Mahindra United became the big money spenders of Indian football, recruiting classy foreigners like Yusif Yakubu and Jose Ramirez Baretto and internationals like goalkeeper Sandip Nandy, defenders Mahesh Gawli, N. Manju and Deepak Mondal and midfielder S. Venkatesh. Mahindra United did the double in the 2005-06 season annexing the both the Federation Cup and I-League, with a budget of about Rs. 5 crores.

But now for the first time, the Big Two are being challenged on their home turf. Prayag United is emerging as the third force in Kolkata Football. Their budget for the forthcoming season is an estimated Rs. 20 crores, surpassing all other teams in India.

Promising midfielders Lal Kamal Bhowmick, former international midfielders Lukram James Singh and S, Malsawmtlunga and reliable defenders Deepak Mondal and Bello Rasaq have remained with the club. So the big money spenders of the 2012-13 season Prayag United has the squad to match the best in the country.

Prayag’s relatively inexperienced coach Sanjoy Sen is a good tactician but it is to be seen how he can manage a team of established internationals. As the club owners have spent lavishly, they will expect success and there will be pressure on coach Sanjoy Sen to deliver. If he can handle this pressure, the club has quality players who can win trophies.

Another problem for Prayag United is that being a new club, they have few supporters and not die-hard fans like those of Mohun Bagan and East Bengal. Some success may enable them to attract a new brand of supporters or whittle away the support base of either Bagan or East Bengal. If they manage either of these feats, Prayag United could herald the dawn of a new era in Kolkata football.

Tuesday 4 September is a historic anniversary for Indian football, which is sadly remembered by very few.  It is the 50^th anniversary of India’s greatest victory in international football, wining the gold medal in the 4^th Asian Games in Jakarta by beating mighty South Korea 2-1 in front of a hostile crowd. With that memorable win, India established itself as the best in Asia and there was an attendance boom in local tournaments in the country. When people of my generation witnessed the 1963 Durand final between Mohun Bagan and Andhra Police, we watched some of the best players in Asia and tickets were sold out one day in advance. Conversations at dinner tables, coffee houses and local buses were on whether Bagan’s Jarnail Singh and T.A. Rehman would be able to stop the rampaging Zulfiqar and Yusuf Khan or whether Chuni Goswami and Arumainaygam would be able to penetrate the rugged Andhra Police defence. Indian football was the rage and the star players were like demi gods.

 Sadly, there is no footage to record the skillful display by India in the 1962 Asian Games, especially the brilliant trio of P.K. Banerjee, skipper Chuni Goswami and T. Balaram. Several stalwarts of that great team, goalkeeper Peter Thanagraj, defenders Tarlok Singh and Jarnail Singh, midfielders Ram Bahadur and Yusuf Khan are no more with us. Creditably the All India Football Federation (AIFF) honoured the remaining members of the 1962 Asiad team, during their 75^th anniversary celebrations. Many experts consider the 1962 Asian Games gold medal winning team as the greatest ever Indian football side. Noted coach and ex-international Subash Bhowmick even says that with proper physical conditioning, India’s victorious 1962 Asiad squad could have played in the World Cup at Chile held that same year.

 The 1962 Asiad Gold Medal remains the greatest achievement of Indian football because of the difficult circumstances in which it was achieved.  Due to paucity of foreign exchange, the team was not cleared till the last minute as the Indian Olympic association (IOA) thought they had no chance of winning a medal. So training camps were limited. At Jakarta, G.D. Sondhi, India’s representative to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had criticised hosts Indonesia for excluding both Israel and Taiwan from the 1962 Asian Games for political reasons. Thus right from the beginning, the crowds were hostile to India and there were even violent demonstrations against Indian participants.  The late Jarnail Singh, India’s ace defender, who also captained the Asian All Stars XI in 1966 and 1967, in conversation often recalled the atmosphere of hostility in Jakarta. As a devout Sikh, Jarnail always wore a turban, which made him very conspicuous. To avoid the hostility of the passionate crowds, Jarnail had said that he had to travel sitting on the floor in the team bus. Recalling the final against South Korea, one of India’s greatest forwards. T. Balaram said, “The capacity crowd of over 100,000 booed us and did not even pay respect to our national anthem. When the ball came in our half, such was the din that the referee’s whistle was not audible. When we attacked there was pin drop silence.” As most of the Indian contingent had returned home, a day before the football team had limited support. Midfielder F.A. Franco, noted for his exemplary work rate and courage remembered that the Pakistan hockey team (they had beaten India 2-0 in the final on the day before), were at the ground and cheered for India throughout the match.

India’s most successful coach S.A. Rahim, instructed his players to play with courage and commitment and try and shut out the crowd noise. They were also told to avoid the off-side trap; as it would be difficult to hear the referee’s whistle. The Indian team showed remarkable dedication and adaptability to win the final 2-1 against the favourites South Korea.

 Incidentally in a preliminary league match the Koreans had beaten India 2-0. The road to the final was not easy. India qualified as the second team in the group by beating Thailand 4-1 and Japan 2-0. In the match against Thailand, stopper back Jarnail Singh considered the best defender in Asia in the sixties, sustained a head injury after colliding with an opponent and received six stitches on his forehead. India played with ten men as the substitution rule was not yet applicable. Rahim’s made some shrewd changes in the team. Arun Ghosh played as a stopper back and Balaram shifted to midfield. Arun Ghosh clicked as a stopper back for the rest of the tournament.

 In the semi finals against South Vietnam, coach Rahim gambled by playing Jarnail as a centre forward. He could not be played in defence because of his bandaged forehead which would have prevented him from heading the ball. Rahim knew that playing Jarnail was a psychological advantage as many Asian players feared him for his hard tackling and intimidating physical approach. Also Jarnail had started his career as a centre forward and liked to move forward and take shots at goal. The move clicked as Jarnail scored India’s second goal after receiving a through pass from skipper Goswami. In those days South Vietnam had some players who had played in France and were a formidable opponent and leveled the scores 2-2 in the 58^th minute. However Chuni Goswami scored the match winner after a solo dash and clever dribbling in the 73^rd minute.

 Due to injuries, coach Rahim improvised with the playing eleven even in the final against South Korea. Jarnail was used as a bustling centre forward to harass the Korean defence into errors. Peter Thangaraj replaced Prodyut Burman, who had played all the matches till then as goalkeeper. The players were so motivated that some of them overcame sickness and injuries to pay in the final. Thangaraj had recovered from a bout of flu, but played in the final because coach Rahim felt that his height gave India a psychological advantage. Trilok Singh, the right back was in agonising pain because of a cut toe-nail but played with grit and courage. Towards the end of the final match, Jarnail was again bleeding at the forehead but refused to come off. Rahim used Yusuf Khan as a withdrawn forward and India played in the 3-3–4 system which bemused our opponents who lined up in the traditional 3-2-5 system of play Right winger P.K. Banerjee (17^th minute) and Jarnail (20^th minute) scored a goal each in the first half and India emerged 2-1 winners to win the Asian Games football gold medal for the second time.

 Subtly ploys by India’s most successful coach S.A. Rahim helped to motivate the Indian players on the day of the final. In the dressing room, prior to the final he made the entire squad hold hands and sing the national anthem, “Jana Gana Mana”. This ploy he repeated at half-time also. Coach Rahim had imbibed great team-spirit in the squad, which had left Calcutta for Jakarta on Independence Day, August 15^th, 1962. Many of the players considered this as a good omen and at Rahim’s insistence they felt like freedom fighters.  The fitness levels of the team was also exemplary and probably the best by an Indian team. Rahim also put a lot of emphasis on power training, fitness, cohesiveness, and confidence. His great ability was to create a club like atmosphere in the national team. His practise sessions were always intense but interesting with a lot of variations. He made the players get used to different positions and he put a lot of emphasis on individual training with the ball. Being a teacher in his earlier years he invented a lot of pithy slogans to motivate his players. Some of them were “Soccer is a passing game and a game of open spaces,” “soccer depends upon 2L+2H(legs, lungs, heart and head)” and “follow the opponent as soon as you lose the ball.” These are extracts from a booklet of notes prepared by the late Syed Abdul Rahim in 1961 and reproduced by his son, Syed Shahid Hakeem, an Olympian of 1960 vintage, as a booklet, A Guide to The Young Footballer (2001).

CARDIFF, WALES – AUGUST 04: Ryan Giggs of Great Britain walks back after scoring his penalty in the shoot out

From Berlin 1936 to Barcelona 1992, the Olympic football gold medal had always been won by a European nation.  However since then no European nation has won the football gold medal. The last European nation to reach the Olympic final was Spain (which included a young Xavi Hernandez in midfield) in 2000 in Sydney when they lost 3-5 to Cameroon in the penalty shoot-out after the final ended in a 2-2 draw.

Italy are the last European nation to win any medal in Olympic football. In Athens 2004 they beat Iraq 1-0 in the play-off for the bronze medal. In the 1996 Atlanta, 2000 Sydney, 2008 Beijing and 2012 London Olympics, no European country won a medal in Olympic football.  In London 2012, not a single European nation qualified for the semi finals, the first time this has happened in Olympic history.

Olympic football results cannot be seen as an indication that European football is on the decline. For in the 2006 World Cup all four-semi finalists were from Europe and in the 2010 World Cup, except for Uruguay, the remaining three champions Spain, runners up Holland third placed Germany were all from Europe.

Many experts feel that due to the excessive demands of their domestic leagues, European clubs are reluctant to release players for the Olympics, which invariably take place in July-August, as it clashes with the start of new professional season. Clubs that have qualified for the lucrative UEFA Champions league are even more hesitant to release players for fear of injury and loss of revenue in case of defeat in the group stage. After all Chelsea’s success in the 2012 UEFA Champions league earned the club an estimated £50 million pounds.

NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, ENGLAND – JULY 29: Juan Mata of Spain

So in the nineties and first decade of the 20^th century it was felt that European countries did not perform well in Olympic football as many players opted out of the competition since clubs preferred that they concentrate on pre-season training. But it was felt that this would change in London 2012, as weather conditions were conducive for attacking football. Also, two of the four European qualifiers – Spain and Great Britain – were very ambitious. As World Cup and Euro champions, Spain desperately wanted to win the Olympic football gold medal and showcase the quality and depth in their football and also claim to be the greatest nation ever to have played the game. As hosts, Great Britain, with several Premiership stars in their squad, were also hopeful of a medal. Many football experts had predicted a Spain vs Brazil final.

However instead of a grand performance, London 2012 was the worst ever performance by European nations at the Olympics.  Mighty Spain, Belarus and Switzerland were eliminated in the group phase itself. Great Britain won group A with seven points from three matches but lost on penalties to South Korea in the quarter finals. Britain’s penalty shoot-out jinx continues in international football. No wonder England’s former international striker Gary Lineker, now a TV presenter, commenting on this result, said, “some things never change.”

As hosts Great Britain had taken the Olympic football tournament seriously. They were playing in the Olympics for the first time since 1960 and had intensive training camps. Even though Great Britain’s inspirational coach Stuart Pearce had dropped the iconic David Beckham, the three over-age players selected were all capable performers in the Premiership, the legendary 38-year-old Welsh international Ryan Giggs (Manchester United), Micah Richards (Manchester City) and Welsh international forward Craig Bellamy. Chelsea’s Daniel Sturridge, Josh McEachran and Ryan Bertrand, Manchester United’s Tom Cleverley, Swansea City’s Joe Allen (has now joined Liverpool), Arsenal‘s Aaron Ramsey, Blackburn Rovers’ Jason Lowe and Birmingham City’s Jack Butland were some of the other well-known Premiership players in the Great Britain squad.

Spain finished bottom of group D with one point from three matches, losing 0-1 to both Japan and Honduras and drew 0-0 with Morocco. It seems Spanish football is having a crisis in finding strikers. Despite fielding promising strikers like Cristian Tello (Barcelona), Adrian Lopez (Atletico Madrid) and Iker Muniain (Athletic Bilbao) they could not score a single goal in three matches.

World and Euro 2008 and 2012 champions Spain had hoped to win the Olympic football gold medal and become the only country to be continental, World and Olympic champions simultaneously. They thus selected Euro 2012 winners Juan Mata, left back Jordi Alba and defensive midfielder Javi Martinez in their 22-man squad for the Olympic games in London. Chelsea midfielder Mata and Barcelona-bound fullback Alba both scored in the Euro 2012 4-0 final win over Italy. Mata’s club-mate Oriol Romeu, Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea and Barcelona pair Martin Montoya and Cristian Tello were also selected. However, despite dominating games they failed to create enough chances or score goals and thus were eliminated at the group stage.

CARDIFF, WALES – AUGUST 01: Giovani dos Santos of Mexico goes past Timm Klose of Switzerland

Switzerland also named a number of senior internationals for the 2012 Olympics. Wolfsburg goalkeeper Diego Benaglio, Fiorentina’s former West Ham midfielder Valon Behrami and Nuremburg defender Timm Klose were all picked in the 18-man squad as over-aged players. Fulham’s Pajtim Kasami and Aston Villa goalkeeper Benjamin Siegrist were also selected. Yet the Swiss flopped, losing 0-1 to Korea, 0-1 to Mexico and drew 1-1 with African U-23 champions Gabon. So the Swiss made no headway in-group B and came last. Belarus fared slightly better in Group C at least securing a win (beat New Zealand 1-0) but also made an early exit as they lost 1-3 to both Brazil and Egypt.

Despite big names, the European nations under-performed in 2012 Olympic football, as the players were obviously not motivated enough to give their best. The club vs country issue, a perennial problem in world football is taking its toll. In years to come Olympic football will lose its lustre if the most dominant continent in world football takes this competition lightly.