Shimla-the birthplace of the Durand Cup and the Indian Air Force ...

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football, as a sports teacher with St. Mary’s school in Delhi and trained local clubs and occasionally the Delhi state team. Three of them, speedy Bhupinder Singh Rawat, hard working Ranjit Thapa who shifted to midfield in the 4-2-4 formation and elegant left winger Amar Bahadur became regular internationals. Tika Ram played for India in the 1969 Merdeka tournament. Ranjit and Amar Bahadur were members of the Indian team which finished third in the 1970 Merdeka tournament. Amar Bahadur also scored the winning goal against Japan which enabled India win the bronze medal in the 1970 Games at Bangkok. This was the last great year for the senior national team, the last occasion when it won medals at the Asiad level. In the 1966 Durand tournament, the final was quite unforgettable, as the Sikh Regiment could not match with the speed and thrust of the Gorkha Brigade. The match to remember was the semi final against Mohun Bagan. For three successive years (1963-65), Bagan inspired by greats like Chuni Goswami, Jarnail Singh, Kempiah, Dipu Das and Arumainayagam, had won the Durand Cup. They were first Indian team to achieve a hat-trick of wins. With East Bengal upset by EME Secundrabad (snap left footed top of the box volley by inside left Jayaraman) and Mohammedan’s trounced by the Gorkha Brigade, in the quarter finals, it was left to Bagan to maintain Calcutta’s pride. The match played on a cold, sunday afternoon in January 1967, aroused tremendous interest and excitement amongst local football fans. The query on everybody’s lips was, “would the experienced Jarnail Singh, C. Prasad, P. Kannan and Nitu Ghosh be able to thwart the rampaging Gorkhas?” Around the Ambedkar stadium (then known as the Delhi Gate stadium) there were serpentine queues, as eager spectators clamoured to get tickets for this historic match. Touts did roaring business. The Re. 1 tickets of the third enclosure were sold in the black for Rs. 20 or Rs. 25, a princely sum in those days. The match was well contested. Initially Bagan controlled proceedings. 22 July 2011 purple beret Coach Shyam Thapa The dribbling skills of Kannan, Arumainayagam and Ashok Chatterjee enabled them retain possession and slow down the pace of the game. Mighty Jarnail Singh, C. Prasad and Sushil Sinha managed to blunt the Gorkha attack. Just before half time, Gorkhas changed their approach play and used one touch football to level attacks. Bhupinder Rawat broke the ice with a dream goal. Running in from the blind side bravely flung himself in front of lunging Jarnail and scored with a diving header at the near post a right flank cross. The crowd went ecstatic. Midway through the second half, Gorkhas sealed victory when tenacious midfielder Nar Singh scored with a snap shot, a rising left footer which somehow deceived the usually reliable Prodyut Burman in the Bagan goal. Bagan exerted pressure in the end, but the Gorkha defenders averted danger with their first time clearances to record a memorable win and end Bagan’s unbeaten six year streak in the Durand tournament. Prior to this defeat, Bagan had lost in the Durand way back in December 1961. On that occasion they were beaten 0-1 by Andhra Pradesh Police in the final, with inside left Zulfiqar scoring the match-winner. In 1962, the Durand was not held due to the India-China war and Bagan were champions from 1963-65. This article was earlier published in 1996 P.K Banerjee (right) with Shyam Thapa
The Madras Regiment Football team ‘Soccer is very close to the heart of every south Indian especially so in the Nilgiris (Tamil Nadu). The game is passionately played and followed in South India and so is the case with every ‘Thambi’ in the Madras Regiment. The Madras Regiment at the Madras Regimental Centre, Wellington organised and trained the team to reach the pinnacle. From raw soldiers, the team was built with great planning. Some of the known players included Aruldas (Captain), Peter Thangaraj, Sadasivan Nair and Alphonse. The team had a tradition of victory and won various tournaments like the Palghat Foot Ball tournament, the Travancore Trophy and their dream run culminated in winning the Durand Cup twice in 1955 and 1958. The MRC had the privilege of receiving the trophy from the then President of India, Dr Rajendra Prasad. The Madras Regiment team was sought after and received invitations to participate in various tournaments all over India. The individual players too were the envy of other teams. Peter Thangaraj represented India in both Asian and Olympic games in Melbourne and the Rome Olympiad. Thangaraj also represented India in three successive Asian Games from 1958 and was adjudged as the “Best Goal Keeper of Asia” in 1958 and was honoured with “Arjuna Award” in 1967. heroes In recognition of the services rendered by Peter Thangaraj, the Regiment re-named a stadium after him as ‘Thangaraj Stadium’ in May 2009. Dr Rajendra Prasad, President of India with winners of Durand Cup 1955 Dr Rajendra Prasad having tea with winners of Durand Cup 1958 purple beret July 2011 23
Page 1 and 2: www.purpleberet.com July 2011 Vol.
Page 3 and 4: start up Editorial The 2009 leaders
Page 5 and 6: the coveted trophy Durand is the th
Page 7 and 8: The beacon... Air Chief Marshal P V
Page 9 and 10: Lastly, we had to evolve a system t
Page 11 and 12: What are the future plans to take D
Page 13 and 14: The legacy A Purple Beret Story The
Page 15 and 16: me. They got a penalty award toward
Page 17 and 18: The IAF football team in 1948. Seat
Page 19 and 20: Winners Years Winners Runners-Up 19
Page 21: heroes The memorable Gorkha Brigade
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Page 27 and 28: has the Army XI entered the Durand
Page 29 and 30: Debrief Durand Football In 1947, wh
Page 31 and 32: Theories abound on this trend. L. I
Page 33 and 34: article pertains to sports infrastr
Page 35 and 36: football tournament in India (third
Page 37 and 38: Period Activities Purpose First wee
Page 39 and 40: though he felt a bit uncomfortable.
Page 41 and 42: Roll on Football on screen By Khurs
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Shimla-the birthplace of the Durand Cup and the Indian Air Force ...

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