We don’t know where they were from, what is their complete background. We just took them in a sports team which we introduced in their school. We just fished them from nowhere. But they took to the game as fish would do to water. They grabbed the game offered to them with full enthusiasm. They are now our delights, they may not even aware of this our happiness.

Their control over the game is amazing. They have become best of the lot. Truly speaking they don’t know their true worth. The innocence that make them of their worth, is something that should be cherished. Most of them seem weak, fragile, don’t appear to be athlete in the first place, on any stretch of imagination not to speak of physically demanding game as that hockey. But for those who watched them day after day, week after week, as they grew from absolute zero to hero among their mates, it is they who moulded themselves in a fierce environment to stand out prominently, today. Our pleasure is akin to young couple watching their first child grow day by day, relishing every bit of it.

These boys are from just two schools in the southern part of Delhi. These two schools are beneficiary of One Thousand Hockey Legs which seek to revive hockey at schools. They have been selected out of hundreds who turned out for trails and could emerge successful out of strict selection process, protracted at that. The problem during the selection process often had been plenty. To narrow down a few out of wanting hundreds has been a problem, but that is a thing of past. Each class one coach for one week, these talents were thus pinned down two or three boys after that, and that is how these two school teams were formed.

Now almost six months after their school hockey teams were formed, and regular coaching and practice took place – despite their schools not having grounds – we are in a position to say there are some gems among them. Here in this piece we piece together those gems, for, we want you to share the pleasure which we have cherish nowadays. In those gold olden days, when our country was not dotted with academies, sports schools or sports hostels — things that constitute sports nowadays — talents that cropped up at schools played a big role in developing crack Indian teams. May be in a small measure such puritan phase is occurring in this part of India. And, here we discuss about jut two schools out of 12 we have enrolled in One Thousand Hockey Legs in Delhi.

Suman Kumar: He is from Saket school. Calm and composed. Good at studies, comes third in the academic ranking in his class. Not a hard hitter, not a robust player, but has an amazing control over the ball, and significantly ball sense. He is mild mannered, shows maturity beyond age, never missed single practice session so far. Short passes, self taught dodges, finding gap in a melee are his forte. Injury prone, easily disgusted at others brain-less game, are the areas he needs to work on besides fitness. He is a boy wonder.

Naveen Kumar: Suman’s class mate. Rough and tough variety. He always wants his team to win; dislikes losing. Regular in practice and in class room as well. He is class topper and missed the practice session only once when he had to appear in a function to receive the class topper award. Very agile, serious in hockey, good clearances, good at goalkeeping and at defence. Needs to work on his speed and taking shot before stopping it!

Pawan: His appearance is deceptive. He just looks like a sleepy boy disinterested in anything. But a good game player. Very fast and opportunistic. He is very calm, hardly talks but lets him game do the talking on the field. Lean, flies on the field. My gut feeling is he is one boy who learns everyday, every session and shows tremendous ability to improve. Pawan, proud of you.

Sandeep Kumar Maurya: Naveen, Suman, Pawan are his class mates. He is sturdy, good boy, but many claim he is rough on the field, complaints flare at him after every match, serious or friendly. Probably he is tough and unforgiving on the turf, and wants his team to win. He will do anything for that. Solid at back, good midfield as well.

Paras: Very small boy, hammers, talkative. He is a brilliant thinker, has a never-say-die attitude. During the match, very cleverly snatches the ball down under the nose of otherwise established mates. When he persisted to play the game, many eye brows were raised, but the tiny had silenced every one of them. Very punctual to practice, it is beyond our comprehension how this tiny frame is packed with so much energy to last as long as other sturdy ones. Takes interest in co-game activities, reliable communicator.

Amit Kumar: Initially unpunctual, casual, but shows seriousness nowadays after it was announced his school team will play against other school in the Education Department’s Zonal Sports Meet. This boy one day struck an image of himself without even himself taking note of it. He kept on trotting the ball with stick as if he is a magician, maintaining a great degree of equilibrium. Tough on field, all rounder, has a knack of scoring and setting up goals. He may turn out to be the trump card of Saket school, who knows.

Sushil Chauhan: In the induction phase this boy always came out poorly. He was punctual, but most of the time he would carry a boil, struck with fever or even injury. But all his friends wanted him in the team, we were a bit confused, but so he is. How wrong it would have been had we dropped him for the casualness he showed in the beginning? Because, he is now a livewire, bubbling with energy and enthusiasm. A regular to practice at both National stadium and DDA Sports Complex, the baby-faced Sushil will stuck with your sight, forever.

Sunil Kumar. He is both mother and fatherless. Very lovely, mischievous, boy next door. Often fever-struck misses classes, has no much energy left for practice. However, his style and the way he manages himself in the match situation endear this writer. He is yet to understand himself, show some seriousness. As of now he is playful kid, winning heart of anyone who notices him. I stand by this boy, has lot of sympathy for him, hopefully he will be more serious and rise to the expectations reposed on him. As of now, he is a delight to watch when on field. Very dodgy, quick, alert, he can deceive his rivals easily, that too with a twinkle of mischief in his eyes.

Vijay Das: Normal boy, with enormous ability to learn and put those points on the field. Very firm on basics, he is also trainers’ delight for his simplicity, obedience and prowess. He is introvert, always calm, serious looking 8th class kid. He has such ability on the field, he would carry other’s eyeball with him. A crucial player, the corn-vendor’s son is capable of changing course of a match. Every coach who trained him came out with good remarks. Plays long time, practice hard. Stylish runner on the field, exercise good ball control.

Vikas Paswan: stands tall among his class mates, and it is not this gift of nature alone makes a remarkable player. An easy going type, maintains calm, has an indelible ball control ability and a naturally gifted sense of ball distribution. Very good at setting up goals for others, his is a mature mind. Takes every incident at his usual stride, never indulge in boyish time passes. Has a body that is ideal for hockey athlete. He is a must for his school team because he contribute immensely to the team’s fortune. Very punctual, enjoys hockey to the hilt. On the field, easily noticeable player with all round abilities.

Deepak Paswan: He is younger brother of Vikas Pawan, and in many ways opposite to him, especially in mannerism and flamboyance. Talkative, but brainy. He is full of wit and humour. His post-practice, post-match comments enrich everyone. Shorter, he is a very good ball player, tireless dynamo in the field. He can easily dodge a player bigger, heavier and taller than him, evoking series of laughter on the stands. Very punctual, takes full load, has a deceptive mind and game. A pure delightful boy, a joyous kid. Organization like Hockey Citizen Group that implements One Thousand Hockey Legs must be proud of such young kids to whom it has given a life-time chance to cherish life, in the form of hockey.

Bharat Lal: Slightly over-age, plain speaking, great-hearted boy. Bharat Lal comes from humble background, and has to do a lot of household chores before making himself available for hockey in the morning. He shares burden of his parents in their small business, and sees to it hockey does not affect this. Still, he does everything with a smile, and without murmur. A great boy stuff. That way his is a great personality. On the field, his game is noticeable, appreciated by coaches.

Brijesh Gopal: ‘Pintoo’ to his friends, Brijesh Gopal is a great boy. Calm and composed, he shows enormous enthusiasm towards the game. Hardly misses practice, and does serious follow ups. Very deceptive in appearance. He is stormy on the field. He is very quick, brainy, takes long strides; his ball control during matches is the best as of now. The tiny boy, fragile frame, is talent personified. He was almost not in the team during selection but scrapped through, thankfully. He is a match winner for his Begumpur team. I love this boy for his unassuming, easy going style. He is a long term material, no doubt on that.

Photos & Design: K. Arumugam