Chennai, Dec 26: It was providence that saved the future Indian women football stars of Cuddalore being swallowed by the giant tsunami wave on December 26, 2004.
While fate had not been kind to these poor and orphan girls, December 26, 2004, was an exception.
“On Saturdays and Sundays the girls would assemble in the stadium and then go to the beach for practice. On the Tsunami day which was a Sunday, the girls had assembled at the stadium. But on that day I had some work and had asked them to go back to their orphanage,” S. Mariappan, the football coach and Physical Director at the Government Higher Secondary School in Cuddalore, told IANS.
Mariappan retired as the Head Master of a Government Higher Secondary School. “We would practice in the beach sands to strengthen our legs. That day at the last moment our coach had asked us to go back to the hostel, cancelling the beach training session. Then we saw people running and shouting that the sea had come in. We went back to the orphanage and there were a large number of people who were affected by the tsunami,” a player, who had represented India in international events, told IANS preferring anonymity citing her employment regulations.
“I had gone to the school and was immersed in some paperwork when I felt the chair shake. Then I received a phone call from my home enquiring about my safety. I was told that the sea had overflowed and people were running here and there,” the football coach recalled.
Mariappan’s house was near the beach. First, he went to his home and saw that everyone was safe, and then checked about the safety of his family members.
“I then went to the beach and helped people affected by the wave and on the way saw several bodies on the road. The giant wave had put huge fishing boats atop trees. Dead bodies were piled on trucks and were buried near our school on a mass scale. It took nearly a year for me to come out of that shock,” he said.
Though, the future women football stars were safe, their relatives were not that lucky as they were swallowed by the tsunami wave. “At the government orphanage, children who had lost both their parents or one of them and were from extremely poor families were admitted. Some relatives or guardians normally visit the girls once every couple of months. For some girls no guardians came to visit after the tsunami as they, too, perished,” Mariappan added.
“For instance, V. Vinitha’s ‘chithappa’ (her father’s younger brother) was supporting her. But his family was washed away by the wave. Her mother is alive. But the girls took these things bravely,” he said.
Vinitha had represented India in the AFC Women’s Asia Cup held in Korea and the gold winning team at the South Asian Football Federation Championship held in Pakistan in 2015-16. Eleven girls coached by Mariappan had played for India and several others represented their state and universities.
After passing class 12, children cannot stay in the orphanage and had to return back to their parents or guardians. Given their poor financial condition, higher education was almost ruled out.
Seeing their predicament and not wanting to waste their blossoming football talent, Mariappan decided to accommodate the girls first in his home and when their numbers increased, he took a separate building on rent and accommodated the girls.
The expenses were met out of his pocket and donations in cash by some others. Many of the girls have now joined the Tamil Nadu Police and some are married. (IANS)
