news details |
|
|
| Mehrajuddin Wadoo: An inspiration for youth in Kashmir | | | GURGAON, JULY 12
Football may be the last thing in the minds of youth in the troubled Kashmir, but Mehrajuddin Wadoo has dared to dream of making it big in the beautiful game.
The 24-year-old from Srinagar has not let the violence and misery in his home state deter his passion for the sport, which has seen him play with distinction for the national side as well as some of the top clubs in the country.
"Situation has been so bad in Kashmir that there was no opportunity for anyone to think about football. But I had a love for the game which has helped me in my difficult journey," the long-haired midfielder says.
"My father was also a footballer and so I think the game runs in the family," Wadoo, who recently moved from Mohun Bagan to arch-rivals East Bengal, said.
The weather also is not a help for the game in the valley, he says.
"We can only play football in summer in Kashmir. In winter, there is snowfall and the grounds are rendered unplayable," Wadoo, a member of the Indian team that regained the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) championship in Karachi in 2005, said.
There are grounds and basic infrastructure for the sport in the state but Wadoo is hoping they will get a much needed boost when the next Santosh Trophy is held there.
The national championship was scheduled to be held in the strife-stricken state this month but was cancelled due to the Amarnath Yatra during the same period. It will now be held at the end of the 2007-08 season.
"Watching such a high profile event first hand will encourage youngsters and children to take up the game in right earnest," Wadoo hoped.
He still returns to Kashmir during the off-season and says there is a new crop of youngsters willing to treat the game as a career option.
"Two Kashmiri youngsters have signed for Mohammedan Sporting and are doing reasonably well. But everybody has to work hard and not everybody can make it to the national team," Wadoo said.
"It is important to first increase the number of youngsters playing the game which will then help in unearthing players of real quality."
During his not-so-long career, Wadoo has played in all the major football hotbeds in the country.
He started with J and K Police before moving to J and K Bank. He then took the significant step of moving out of his home state.
Wadoo went to Bangalore to play for Hindustan Aeronautics Limited in 2002, before a stint with the Indian Telephone Industries (ITI) in the same city.
His big break came when he was taken by Sporting Clube de Goa before he moved to the mecca of Indian football, Kolkata.
"In Kolkata, the people have a passion and understanding for the game and a local derby can easily bring 50,000-60,000 people to the ground. We can only dream about such numbers elsewhere, including in Goa," Wadoo said.
After three seasons in the maroon of Mohun Bagan, he traded it for the red and gold of East Bengal in the transfer season this year.
"I needed to move on for the development of my game. It had started to stagnate at Mohun Bagan," Wadoo said.
He is keen to develop himself as a complete footballer and has tried to utilise the expertise and experience of national head coach Bob Houghton to the fullest.
"The coach employs a 4-4-2 formation and I am one of the midfielders. But according to the requirements of a situation, one has to play anywhere on the field," he added.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
