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Time of India
05-07-2025
- Sport
- Time of India
Shivarajan, part of Vasco SC's Golden Era, dies at 81
C M Shivarajan (extreme left, middle row), joined Vasco in 1965 Panaji: C M Shivarajan, an influential member of Vasco Sports Club's Golden Era that conquered almost everything that crossed their path in the late sixties and seventies, died in Mangaluru on Friday. He was 81 and is survived by his wife Asha. Popularly known as Shivraj, the defender joined Vasco in 1965 after impressing everyone with SN College, Kannur, and Lucky Star. The defender had offers from Kerala-based clubs, including Titanium, but those who knew him well said he chose Vasco due to the influence of OK Sathyan, his former Kannur Lucky Star who had already made the move to the port town. During his time at the club from 1965 to 1974, Vasco were a champion side and won plenty of trophies. They made it twice to the final of the Rovers Cup, a prestigious fixture in Indian football's calendar at the time. Vasco lost both finals, against Kolkata giants Mohun Bagan. In his debut year, Shivarajan won the Senior Division League title and Vasco secured an invitation to participate in the IFA Shield in Kolkata, where they surprised Leaders Club from Jalandhar in the pre-quarterfinals. Shivarajan's best, though, came during Vasco's tour of Kerala where they tasted big success, winning tournaments like the Nehru Trophy, Kerala Football Association Trophy, Mappen Mapillai Memorial Trophy, Sait Nagjee and Chakola Gold Cup. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 20 Pieces of Clothing Older Women should Avoid Learn More Undo At home, besides the league title, Vasco won everything on offer, which included the Taca Goa, Police Cup and Bandodkar Gold Trophy. 'Shivraj was a gentleman, both on and off the field,' said Peter Valles, who shared the dressing room with him. 'When I joined the club (in 1973) as a junior, I was fielded at right back in Shivraj's place and he was naturally disappointed. I apologised to him after the game but, rather than sulking, he hugged me and passed on encouraging words, which I could never forget.' Shivarajan represented Goa at the 1969 Santosh Trophy in Nowgong, where five other Vasco players -- Arvinder Singh, George Ambrose, George Rosemond, Catao Fernandes and Dominic Soares – were also selected. He was also part of the state squad in 1973. After his retirement, Shivarajan took over as president and later secretary of Kannur District Football Association and was Kerala's selector for the Santosh Trophy, handpicking the side that became champions in 1992 and 1993.
United News of India
08-05-2025
- Sport
- United News of India
AIFF condoles death of former India midfielder DMK Afzal
New Delhi, May 8 (UNI) The All India Football Federation condoled the death of former India midfielder DMK Afzal, who passed away, on Wednesday. Afzal is survived by his wife. An excellent midfielder of his times, Afzal was a part of the gold medal-winning India team at the 1962 Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia. Afzal has two appearances in the India shirt, making his debut against the Republic of Korea in the group stage of the 1962 Asiad. Condoling Afzal's death, AIFF President Kalyan Chaubey said, 'D.M.K. Afzal was a fine midfield maestro of his times, and served the beautiful game with the utmost passion and dedication. I extend my sincerest condolences to his family in this sorrowful hour.' At the domestic front, Afzal has the distinction of winning the Santosh Trophy with Andhra Pradesh in 1965. With his club, Andhra Police, he won the Durand Cup (1961), Rovers Cup (1962, joint winners), and the DCM Trophy (1965). He later moved to Kolkata with East Bengal, and won the Calcutta Football League (1966), IFA Shield (1966), Rovers Cup (1967), Durand Cup (1967), Sait Nagjee Trophy (1968), Kerala FA Shield (1968), and the Bordoloi Trophy (1968). UNI BM
Hindustan Times
24-04-2025
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
An emotion called East Bengal
Kolkata: It was only after a couple of matches that we really understood what this was all about, says Jamshed Nassiri near the halfway mark of the documentary 'Shotoborshe East Bengal,' to commemorate the club turning 100. The year was 1980 and Nassiri was part of an East Bengal side whose roster had been severely depleted. Yet, like Shyam Thapa who spoke of a hilsa being given to him on the pitch during East Bengal's historic 5-0 win against Mohun Bagan in the 1975 IFA Shield final, what Nassiri remembered was how fiercely the fans loved the players who wore the red-and-gold shirt. With PK Banerjee as coach, East Bengal, riding mainly on the exploits of Nassiri and Majid Baskar were joint-winners of the Federation Cup and the Rovers Cup that year. That, in essence, was what the documentary directed by celebrated film maker Gautam Ghose sought to convey. That, for their ability to defy the odds, East Bengal became an emotion, a totem for a displaced people. A temple, says the actor Soumitra Chatterjee in the film. One whose 'mashal' became more than a torch after it was lit in protest against the Indian Football Association (IFA) when Bengal's apex body had tried to stall East Bengal's promotion to the first division. The 'mashal' became a beacon of hope for the marginalised. It was where those uprooted from their moorings, first by Partition and then by the wars in 1965 and 1971 felt at home, said Kalyan Majumdar, the club's long-time former secretary. The documentary is dedicated to the 'homeless people of the world.' So, it fit that Jyotish Guha, the general secretary for 28 years spanning the Bengal Famine, World War 2 and mass migration from across the West Bengal border, would take on state chief minister Bidhan Ray and refuse to change the name of the club. A name that, the documentary says, was taken from a defunct indoor sports club in the house of the freedom fighter 'Deshbandhu' Chittaranjan Das. Stories like this fill the early part of the documentary released on Thursday in the presence of chief minister Mamata Banerjee, a number of former players, East Bengal's Indian Women's League (IWL) winning team and current men's team coach Oscar Bruzon. It was good to see and hear many of those who have died – Banerjee, Chatterjee and Chuni Goswami among them – and also proof of how long this was in the making. Incidents of players being kept in safe houses before they signed for the club, a tradition in Kolkata from the 1960 to the 1990s, are recalled through interviews as are the club's famous wins in India's blue riband competitions, most of which are now defunct. Of the interviews though there are too many and the pace slackens with one former player talking after the other. There are also factual inaccuracies such as Emeka Ezuego playing in the 1986 World Cup when he did that eight years later and the 5-0 match being played at Eden Gardens when it was on Mohun Bagan ground. The English subtitles had a number of names spelt wrongly and the club's rich tradition in hockey is mentioned as an afterthought. And if sport is all about timing, the release nearly five years after East Bengal turned 100 is questionable. But because the documentary archives the storied history of one of the extant clubs in Asia and is a rare thing in Indian sport, it, warts and all, makes for worthwhile viewing. In a country where archival footage is rare, and even harder to source, Ghose and the club deserve credit. Their effort may not be consistently memorable but monumental it certainly is.
