Victor Manjila the previous Indian goalkeeper and one of many members of victorious 1973 Santosh Trophy group
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Fifty years on, the perfume of Kerala’s first Santosh Trophy triumph continues to be candy, and so too are its recollections. It was a humongous achievement by underdogs Kerala on that frigid December night on the Maharaja’s College Stadium, and it modified the way forward for the Beautiful Game within the State without end.
Captain Mani along with his hat-trick within the ultimate towards Railways gained immortality and his bunch of gifted gamers turned the primary actual superstars of the State. For the primary time within the historical past of the State, the Government declared a public vacation to commemorate the title win by a sports activities group.
Kerala’s maiden Santosh Trophy win was very a lot unexpected in an period the place the sport was dominated by Bengal. Punjab, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka have been formidable sides and Kerala was a rank outsider within the event.
The 1973 Santosh Trophy was performed below floodlights and your complete Kerala group was taking part in below lights for the primary time. The event began slightly ominously for the host because it misplaced its first alternative goalkeeper Victor Manjila to a fractured shoulder within the opening match towards Delhi.
“I had issues sighting the ball below the lights. We couldn’t apply that a lot below the lights, and it was a problem for all of us. I suffered a hairline fracture on my shoulder and needed to go away the sector within the first match towards Delhi. But I stayed with the group until the tip of the event,’’ stated former Indian goalkeeper Manjila.
Itty Mathew, the previous India goalkeeper who was a member of victorious 1973 Santosh Trophy group
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
Constant accidents pressured coach Olympian Simon Sundararaj to tinker with the group a lot that solely 5 gamers — Captain Mani, T.P. Jaffar, Hameed, Ok.P. Williams and Devanand — began in all of the matches.
“The team started to settle down after the first match, and we improved as the tournament progressed. Najimudeen and Mani excelled as forwards. We adopted a 4-2-4 system and Sundar sir’s game plan was to attack through the wings and feed strikers with low crosses, and it worked,” stated Manjila.
“There were nearly 50,000 people in the stadium, and it looked like 70,000 when they occupied every inch of the ground till the touchline. Often, players had to remove the spectators while taking corners. The atmosphere was electric,’’ said former Indian international goalkeeper Itty Mathew. “The positive energy of the crowd rubbed on the whole team. The noise was deafening when Mani completed his hat-trick in the 80th minute.”
Of the 26 gamers, 10 have handed away and a few are ailing. The Santosh Trophy Football Players Welfare Association will felicitate the gamers and the teaching workers in Kochi on Sunday as a part of the Golden Jubilee celebration of Kerala’s maiden Santosh trophy win.
Source web site: www.thehindu.com
