Hockey players trapped in endless rows, feuds

BHOPAL: That the national sport still exists in this country is nothing short of a miracle. For, day in and day out, administrators seem to be making every effort to destroy hockey in India.

If players are suffering because of an inefficient and disinterested administration in Chhattisgarh, the situation is even worse in Bhopal, which has produced such greats as Inam-ur-Rehman, Aslam Sher Khan, Jallauddin Rizvi and Sameer Dad, to name a few.

Bhopal is currently plagued by infighting among two associations that want to wrest control of the game. And because of their infighting, many of Bhopal’s players couldn’t represent their state in the ongoing Hockey India-organized and Madhya Pradesh government-conducted Senior National Hockey Championships here.

The plot complicates further at the state level. Hockey in Madhya Pradesh has found itself trapped in the crossfire between two warring factions – the Madhya Pradesh Hockey Association and the Madhya Bharat Hockey Association – which are fighting each other to run the game in the state. The Bhopal faction is the third dimension in this sordid affair. While the entry of the State government has turned out to be a blessing for hockey in the state, it has complicated matters as far as the associations are concerned.

Madhya Pradesh government’s sport department is doing extraordinary work in promoting hockey. They have even set up an academy where players from different parts of the state are selected and later groomed to become quality players. In fact, the MP Hockey Academy is participating in this tournament as well. But others, who have the passion and the talent to perform on the national stage, have been left high and dry.

The situation forced a few senior players, including reputed Olympians from Bhopal, to take an alternate route. They requested Meghalaya Hockey Association to let players from Bhopal participate under their banner. So when Meghalaya took the field against mighty Haryana on Saturday, the team was full of players from Bhopal. That they lost is a different story. The players are happy that they are at least getting to play in front of and against so many big names.

“We only want to play hockey. We have grown up seeing stars in Bhopal and want to emulate them. We are not interested in who is running the show. All we know is that we have the talent and our boys should get opportunities to showcase their skills,” an official, who didn’t want to be names, told TOI.

Olympian and Air India skipper Sameer Dad, who successfully led his side to an emphatic 17-0 win over Kerala on Sunday, feels the prevalent scenario is hampering the growth of local boys. “It’s time there is some kind of an agreement. If it continues in the same vein, many quality players from this state will get affected,” he told TOI after the win.