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Boys' day out
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The preliminary for the Mini World Cup gave a fillip to the sport
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Photo: Mohammed Yousuf
GO FOR IT! Youngsters trying their best at football Photo: Mohammed Yousuf
(pix in Mohd. Yousuf's folder)
It was football that got the attention as cricket took a backseat at the Railway Recreation Club (RRC) grounds last weekend. The last one-day international between England and India at Indore and the blazing heat notwithstanding, as many as 50 teams registered for the Adidas + Challenge by Saturday afternoon itself.
Hyderabad, a one-time football powerhouse that contributed seven players to India's fourth place finish in the Melbourne Olympics of 1956, was witnessing renewed football fervour after a long time. Boys aged between 12 and 16 thronged the ground to play in three formats, viz; five versus five, three versus three and one versus one, and the playing area for each reduced respectively.
The idea was to develop speed and skill. Aimed at bringing out the attacking instincts of the players, it also promoted quick passing. The offside rule was off, while the three versus three formation allowed players to shoot goals even off rebounds from the boundaries marked by hoardings of the sponsors.
So did it seek to blend the individual's role with that of the team? The only criterion to participate was that the boys shouldn't be more than 16 years. The field was truly an open one. Friends, members of the same colonies and apartment complexes could form teams. Some had colourful names such as Casanova and XXX and represented the city's soccer strongholds such as Trimulgherry and AC Guards. With the nightmare of exams behind them, the kids really let their hair down, one of them choosing to tie it up in a ponytail!
The venue was a beehive of activity. In the pavilion was a display of sports immortals such as Jesse Owens, Dick Fosbury and Nadia Comaneci, while one panel spoke of the origins of Adidas. The effort to acquaint the participants with sports history was a laudable one.
The series that kicked off in Hyderabad would move to Bangalore, Goa, Mumbai, Chandigarh, Delhi and Kolkata on different weekends. The winning team from each of these places would clash in Kolkata for the final. The winning team will be then sent to Berlin for the Mini World Cup, featuring participants from 41 countries.
The build-up to the World Cup has begunin right earnest, for it is coming up in a few months in Germany. While the view is global on one hand, the city's effort is to develop football at the grassroots level.
A. JOSEPH ANTONY
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