The Tale of Two Derbies;A Search For Answers

The packed stand in Calcutta on the left and the empty stands in Goa...Pic by  Goa football Live

BY DOMNIC PAES IN FATORDA

September 6   witnessed two of India's well known football derbies. One took place in the East of India (Calcutta) and the other on the West of India (Goa).

East Bengal took on Mohun Bagan at the mammoth Salt Lake stadium in front of a huge crowd, supporting both sets of teams, while Dempo SC took on Churchill Brothers at the tiny Duler Stadium in Mapusa , in front of empty stands.

Although people may argue that the  East Bengal v/s Mohun Bagan  match has a lot of history associated with it, there is no denying the fact that the  Dempo SC v/s  Churchill Brothers game  used to be one of the biggest  in Goa in the  early 2000's attracting  at least 15000 thousand people earlier.

So, what has changed since then? Where have those fans disappeared? What has GFA done to rectify this anomaly? Where is that passion for football that Goan’s talk (rather brag) about? A lot of questions, that have very few satisfactory answers.

 Goan’s  have always been susegad, yet they came for matches earlier- in large numbers- but nowadays teams are unable to sell even 100 tickets. A common answer most people give is that, the quality of football is poor. But, then, the quality is almost same in Kolkata. Yet, they get a much better crowd.

So who has better passion for football? Just sitting on a couch and talking about having passion for football is stupid. And most Goan’s are guilty of bragging about this unfounded passion that has suddenly gone missing.

The topic of FC Goa will definitely crop up and people will say that they manage a full house. But that is the case in other parts of India as well just because of the promotion. This is where the Goa Football Association comes into picture and should take the major blame for this debacle. Having all GPL matches at one stadium is utter foolishness. The rains have gone missing so there is no question of water logging at the smaller grounds. Why are teams from South Goa playing at Duler, Mapusa?. Let the South based teams (Churchill, Cavelossim, Curtorim,Guardian Angel) play at either Raia or Cuncolim or Trinity ground. Its much better to have 1000 people in a small village stadium than having 10 people at Duler Stadium. Secondly the marketing of GPL by the GFA has been almost non- existent. Why is it that the Kolkata league can get telecast on TV and the Goa League organisers cannot even give live updates?

Goan football in on its death bed and needs radical changes to survive. The fact that there is not a single Goan in the India U-19 team and other age group teams, itself should ring the alarm bells for Goan football. A state that contributed almost half of the Indian team a few years ago, can’t even have 2 players in the starting eleven in recent matches.

Constructive discussion on this topic will be highly appreciated. Even officials in the know are free to clarify certain points if they feel are not appropriate.

Viva Goa !

(The views of the writer are published because they reflect the anguish of true Goan football fans-Editor)