Climbing the Treetops to see the whole of India playing Football
Posted by India - 04/07/2008
Rajura 26-28th January 2008: On a particularly breezy day in January the 4th National Rajiv Gandhi Memorial Jhopadpatti Football Tournament concluded amidst a lot of cheer and enthusiasm.
The final match of the tournament left the audience spellbound. In a closely fought battle between the state teams of Vidarbha and Maharashtra the game went much beyond penalty shootout and had to be decided by sudden death. The final moments of the game were so intense that the sports fan jumped in the ground and had to be pushed away for the penalty shootout. The match ended with Vidarbha’s Vipin Fulsunges final goal taking the goal tally to 5:4 in Vidarbhas favor.
It was a conglomeration of efforts of many a people including Krida Vikas Sanstha Shivaji College, Rajura Traders Association, Lokmat Sakhi Manch.
Rajura District proved to be a magnanimous host with one of the best match venues so far. The people gave a rousing welcome to the players, who felt right at home. The teams were housed at Swayamwar Mangal Karyala guest house, while the match official resided at the Venkateshwara Lodge.
All for a Better View: People climbed treetops to get a glimpse of the Finals
The tournament was inaugurated on the Republic Day of India (26th January) at the hands of Honorable Anees Ahmed (Minister of State for Animal Husbandry Dairy Development and Fisheries). The opening ceremony was marked with Patriotic choreography by local artists songs by Mr. Lalit Naidu and March pass by all the participating state teams from Jammu Kashmir, Uttaranchal, Bihar, West Bengal, Orissa, Gujrat, Vidarbha and Maharashtra.
As per the customs the ground was blessed before the first match. The opening match was played between Maharashtra and Orissa, with the former winning by 1:0.
Soon after the Kits were distributed by K.V.M to all the respective state teams and match officials.
On the second day the remaining matches were played on league basis.
The excitement was visible on the 3rd morning with the daily warm-up itself, players and coaches were talking about strategies. Scores of youngsters were flocking the venue much before the match timing.
The third day started with Cycle rally with themes such as, save petrol, save environments, AIDS awareness, polio eradication, cycle for better health etc. Many school and college children along with social workers and local youth also took part in the rally which covered a 5 km route through Rajura. Hot milk and refreshments were provided to the participants by the local traders association. (A first among many others)
Soon the match for 3rd place was played between Orissa and West Bengal, with West Bengal winning by 4 goals. This was followed by the much awaited final match.
During the closing ceremony Mr. Mamulkar awarded all participating state team with a cash prize of Rs. 1000/-.
Present on the occasion were Member of Parliament Mr. Hansraj Ahir, M.L.A S.Q Zama SDPO Mr. Ankush Uikey,, Headquarter Secretary Dr. Abhijeet Barse, Ex. MLA Prabhkarrao Mamulkar, M.L.A. Wamanrao Chatap, KVM Founder-Prof. Vijay Barse.
All the winning teams were awarded with Cups, participation certificates were issued to all the participants. Best Goalkeeper award was given to Aqueel Khan, Top scorer award was given to Mr. Bunty Rakshel, and the best Goal of the tournament was given to Sushanto of Orissa.
The media coverage to the event was provided by Prof. B.U Bordewar of Lokmat. The list of players for the coaching camp was also announced by at this occasion.
Given the first time and the number of participants, the local organizing committee did a commendable job of co-ordinating all the arrangements under the leadership of Prof. B.U Bordewar, Mr. P Mamulkar, Mr. Anil Wadatkar, Mr. Pascal Ellamati. The LOC promised an even better co-ordination for all the future events.
Lives of many local youngsters were touched by this tournament and they promised to kick off bad habits and better participation in coming events.
Homeless World Cup 2007 players Mr. Vishal Meshram and Mr. Vinod Mendhe were felicitated on this occasion, they interacted with the youngsters, shared their experiences and challenged them to change their lives through football. Another Homeless World Cup 2007 player Mr. Shah Faisal did a commendable job of training the entire Maharashtra state team which made it to the final.
The Winning Vidarbha Team receiving trophy at the hands of MP. Hansraj Ahir & MLA S.Q. Zama, also seen Founder, V.S. Barse. (Standing extreme left in white)
At the conclusion I would like to say that it is just a matter of time the whole India will covered under our umbrella, we are looking at a tomorrow when every one gets a chance to participate in organized sports irrespective of their social or financial background.
Three Cheers to Rajura and KVM.
Viva La Futbol- Jhopadpatti Football Zindabad
