“Scared,” was how Najimudeen, who excelled as a forward and assisted for one of the three goals in the final of the maiden triumph of Kerala in Santhosh Trophy in 1973, responded when asked about his emotion on being selected to that team.
He was among the players from the team who turned up for an interaction with upcoming football players organised by the Kochi Corporation in the council hall on Wednesday to mark the golden jubilee of that glorious victory at Maharaja’s Ground, which was packed to the rafters on that wintry evening.
Play and study
Mr. Najimudeen, the youngest in that team, recollected how his family was initially against his passion for football and how they were eventually won over by his triumphs on the turf. “You should play even if your parents oppose. But always balance it with your studies as there is no point in playing the game without education,” he said.
C.C. Jacob, the former Indian international who featured in the Asian All Star Eleven, remembered how the stadium was packed to the touchline during that final and space had to be made for him to take a throw-in during the game. The pure elation of lifting the trophy in one’s own backyard where one kicked around the ball was a defining memory of that historic day, he said.
Key role for coach
Victor Manjila, the goalkeeper known for his gravity-defying acrobatic dives, dedicated the victory to the sheer brilliance and tactical acumen of coach Olympian Simon Sundararaj. “It wasn’t a star-studded team and that was among the challenges. Simon sir used to train us using drawings on a board. He also had to constantly shuffle the team owing to injuries and only five out of the 11 players who took the field in the final had played all through the tournament,” he said.
Mr. Sundararaj put discipline, physical fitness, and dedication as three essential attributes for excelling in sports. He also emphasised on the significance of a good diet.
Sethumadhavan, one of the four goalkeepers of that team, observed that the young generation of footballers was fortunate for having so much facilities to build their game now. Anyone can play football but becoming a proper footballer calls for acquiring the right technique, he said.
