KOLKATA: “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”
Robert Frost may have written the verse in 1916 but it could resonate today for any Indian women’s football enthusiast visiting the Calcutta Cricket and Football Club (CCFC) grounds here. While one can find the girls putting their football skills on display before the foreign coaches from Australia, Spain, Croatia and Scotland in their red and black kits, a closer observation revealed the presence of Bala Devi in their midst.
It is the star Indian striker’s journey from a humble background to playing for Scottish women’s champions Rangers FC that every of the 12 footballers attending the elite scouting camp organised by Women in Sports want to emulate.
It was Women in Sports -- the organisers of the six-day trial from June 6-11, in association with Football Players’ Association of India and Debanjan Sen Foundation -- who were instrumental in Bala bagging the trial at the Scottish women’s football giants in 2019 and now wants to enable more girls to fulfill their dreams of plying trade in Europe.
“It all started with Bala and her determination to make it to the best place to nurture her talent,” Women in Sports founder, Sanaya Mehta, told the TOI. “She stuck around alone in Glasgow during the rigorous trials and even through the pandemic. And now the younger girls have a chance to do the same.
“Finally, it’s about the girls and their skills. We have only done our bit in bringing the coaches. But it’s pure joy for us if one of them makes it from here.”
The first-of-its-kind trial for women in the country was kept open to all national and age-group players as well as the performers at this year’s Indian Women’s League (IWL). While 12 players, including national team footballers like MK Kashmina, Priyangka Devi Naorem and Apurna Narzary attended the camp, some of the top Indian players like Manisha Kalyan made it conspicuous with their absence.
Yet, the coaches in attendance were all left pleasantly “surprised” by the skill level of the footballers who are devoid of the best facilities that are available to players in their countries.
(Photo: TOI arrangement)
“While I didn’t come with any expectation, we were all surprised by the skill of the players here. It is a shame that some of them may not get the chance to showcase their talents at the top level,” assistant coach of Dinamo Zagreb, Mia Medvedovski, told the TOI.
Apart from the Croatian club, the others who sent their scouting representatives to India includes Australian league champions Melbourne Victory, their rivals Sydney Wanderers, Scottish women’s champions Rangers and Spain’s Marbella FC.
“I watched just the final match of IWL and I found them playing a lot of long balls,” said Pedro Martin, the head coach of Marbella FC. “But here I find the girls are excited to play different styles, including short passes. And being from the country of Tiki-taka, I was left really impressed with their skills.”
I-League club Aizawl FC’S head coach Yan Law, watching the trials from the sidelines, was happy to see the women footballers enjoying their game on the lush green turf. “Most of them don’t get a full field to practice. It’s a sad scenario and all clubs need to have a women’s team and provide the players with more facilities,” Law reiterated.
CCFC provided the venue and hosted the trials that included friendly games between the participants and the club’s boys’ team. “We have always supported sports of any form in our city. It’s also a good opportunity for our kids to learn by watching the coaches train and competing with the footballers,” CCFC president Deepankar Nandi said.
But one camp and some efforts from benevolent organisations or individuals cannot be enough in tapping the full potential of the women footballers in India. That requires the “willpower” of and a long-term plan from the All India Football Federation to raise the women’s game.
“I think there are teams playing at different levels in Asia. For me, on tier 1 will be teams like Australia, Japan, North Korea, South Koreas and China while tier 2 will have Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines and the likes. India should try and become the best in tier 2 first,” said Tom Sermanni, Sydney Wanderers’ head of women’s football and former head coach of Australia and USA women’s teams.
“The federation needs to have more willpower. There should be more programmes in place to develop elite players. There should be a plan in place with starting and end points. The Asian Cup could have been a good starting point if not for the Covid incident. The upcoming U-17 Women’s World Cup could play the same role. But it can’t stop there!”
Apart from sharing the field with their idol Bala, the girls also got a taste of training in the way the best in the world do it. “The practice has been different. Sessions like those on push pass and speed have been amazing and may have already improved my game,” Gokulam Kerala midfielder Kashmina commented.
While the road less taken may be the most enticing, it is also the toughest to scale as Bala would vouch for. But as Indian football stands at the crossroads, the footballers who only get to play one of the shortest football leagues for women unlike their male counterparts, will keep setting their sight on greener and more equal pastures outside.
As Bala, who is still recovering from her ACL injury and joined the girls a couple of days after the trials began, put it: “It’s a great opportunity for the girls!”
