New Delhi: Winning the national football championship for the Santosh Trophy by Mizoram underscores the phenomenal growth of the sport in the North Eastern states, which is fast becoming the new nursery of Indian football.
Kolkata and Goa used to be the powerhouses of football nationally, but in the last decade or so, the North Eastern states Manipur and Mizoram have emerged in a similar role.
In Mizoram and Manipur, football is a way of life thanks to the unstinting support from the community and the government. From a pastime the sport has become a lucrative career option for youngsters.
On March 9 Mizoram became the second North Eastern side, after Manipur, to win the national championship in its 68-year history.
Manipur’s success came in 2002-03.
The man behind Mizoram’s triumph is journalist-turned-sports administrator Lalnghinglova Hmar, the state association’s secretary.
Hmar credits the Santosh Trophy success to the formation of the Mizoram Premier League (MPL) in 2012.
“The highly competitive league has paved the way for our team’s national success. The league is played by eight teams at a single venue in Aizawl and all the matches are telecast live by a local channel.
The exposure that young players are getting thanks to the league was the main reason behind Mizoram’s success,” Hamar told IANS.
He added that Mizoram must sustain the good work that fetched it the Santosh Trophy.
“In all these 68 years, Mizoram is only the second North Eastern state after Manipur to lift the trophy. Manipur’s lone success came more than a decade ago. So, for Mizoram, the key will be to sustain the success over a period of time,” he said.
Ask FIFA’s regional director Shaji Prabhakaran, the man who oversaw the implementation of the successful Vision Manipur, one of the first pilot programmes of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) in the country, he will say Mizoram’s triumph is a success for the programme.
“The rise of North Eastern football started with Vision Manipur in 2005. It was highly successful as they were able to put together a strong purposeful league. Now Mizoram will inspire more and more smaller states,” Prabhakaran, who was the director when Vision Manipur was implemented, told IANS.
Prabhakaran said Mizoram’s success story, which came without much support from other stakeholders, should inspire other states as well.
“Mizoram’s rise in Indian football has been phenomenal. They didn’t get much support and the MFA should be lauded for getting the job done at the grassroots. They have a strong grassroots programme and now they are reaping rich dividends,” said Prabhakaran.
Hmar, however, said that the Mizoram government has helped the game by providing infrastructure.
“The government has helped us in developing the infrastructure. Today we have three astroturf, two in Aizawl and one at Lunglei. The fourth one is coming up at Champhai. Better infrastructure will expose the game to more youngsters,” said Hmar.
The likes of Lalrindika Ralte and Jeje Lalpekula from Mizoram are established players in the national team. There are also numerous others from the state in the various I-League clubs.
Jeje, who currently plays for Dempo SC, hopes that players from Mizoram will dominate the national scene for a few more years.
“Mizoram’s rise in national football is great. There was a time when some 85 players were playing in the I-League. I hope the number will go up and in the next five years players from Mizoram will dominate the national scene,” he said. (IANS)
