Vishwas shared his football wisdom

Football players in Goa in the seventies were not moulded. They individually got themselves into a mould and with a few tips, here and there, left behind lasting impressions of their own styles of play. Many retired when their feet could not take them further while others stepped onto different branches of football.

Vishwas Goankar was one of them. As a player, he was a classic defender who made life miserable for most strikers. Standing over 6 feet, Vishwas made getting the ball past him tough. If you beat him , one would have to run faster because Vishwas would try to beat you to get the ball back.

Vishwas Gaonkar started playing football under Andrew – of the famous ABCD quartet of Vasco SC. “Andrew was my first coach. He taught me the basics and I actually started playing as a midfielder. It was only after joining Salgaocar that I switched to left wing back and eventually became a defender,” says Vishwas.

In his hey days , Vishwas Gaonkar was the best stopper back of Sesa Sports Club and one of the best defenders in Goa. He belonged to the group of Nicholas Pereira, Mahesh Lotlikar and Leopoldo Fernandes.

When Vishwas was beaten he looked mean. He appeared to charge at his opponents and stretched his legs to win the ball back. Yet , despite his angry looks , Vishwas was the type of player never really to be booked.  “ I used to play tough but never rough. I have a strong heart. I must have got around two cards during my career. I used to frighten my opponents but to hurt them was never my style,” admits Vishwas.

“During my days, the role of a coach was to maintain the physical fitness of players. We were not thought football. I learnt by myself, practising alone or by just watching others. It was all individual effort and a lot of hard work went into it,” confesses Vishwas.

Sesa Sports Club was the baby of coach Joao Mello for years. He went where Sesa went or Sesa went where Mello went. The two were inseparable and out of this bond grew Vishwas Gaonkar. Vishwas was Mello’s blue eyed defender. “Coach Mello used to urge me to move forward during corner kicks. I was trained to head and it is because of him that I scored goals,” admits Vishwas.

“ I was not born a player. I wanted to become a good player and I worked hard for that . My hard work paid off,” asserts Vishwas looking back at his days. “ I do not remember how many Santosh Trophy’s I took part in but remember the first one was in Patna. I must have played for three or for more years. During my days there were many good defenders. To get into the team was a big achievement,” confesses Vishwas.

“Goa had the cream of defenders of the country. Playing for Goa was as good as playing for India . I really have no regrets for not getting the opportunity to wear the Indian colours,’ ”admits Vishwas.

“Domnic Soares was the toughest forward I ever faced. Domnic used to make us dance to his tunes. He could fool two or three of us easily. I never came across a forward with the talent Domnic had. He was very intelligent and that made it difficult to judge his next steps,” says Vishwas.

“I was disciplines as a player. I hated to be benched and that is why I worked hard to keep myself in the first eleven. I never missed practise and luckily suffered no major injuries. It was only later in my career that I suffered from muscle pull,” recounts Vishwas.

Vishwas’s journey has been one from player to coach. Vishwas’s transition took about a year. After completing his NIS he started coaching Sesa Goa and was with the team until it was disbanded.  “ I joined the Sesa Football Academy (SFA) afterwards .” opined Vishwas.

Vishwas was with Sesa FA for eight years and is still remembered by the students who have passed out for the lessons in discipline that he imparted to them. 

“The joy I got in football I do not get in business. Playing were the best moments of my life. What football gives me, nothing else can give. It is something difficult to explain. The money I earned in football is greater than the money I make in business. The happiness of football is not possible to replace,” says Vishwas who runs a fourteen room boutique hotel in Morjim.

“Football has no direction today. We do not know where we are going. If it has taken us a decade to replace Bhutia , it is proof that football is not going anywhere,” avers Vishwas.

“Nicholas Pereira is the best player I have seen in football. He was as good as any marquee player we see nowadays. We had international players of the highest order in our days. We cannot get decent footballers today. This is the state of football in India , not just Goa,” says Vishwas.