New strikers on the block

AS LITTLE boys, when they built sand castles on the beach, Kerala's Ignatious Sylvester, Mohammed Najeeb and Goan Francis Silveira were taking small steps towards realising their dreams.

The three brats, staying in places as far apart as Thiruvananthapuram, Kannur and Margao, probably chased a big, worn-out ball all over the beach. And some, like Najeeb and Ignatious, had their brothers for company.

Born to fisherfork, the beach was their area of life for both Silveira and Ignatious. The leather ball is now their life. A ladder to reach their dreams. And the three are fast proving to be the heavyweights of Indian football's frontline.

Playing on the beach, apart from making one tougher, gives one loads of stamina. It helps one run tirelessly, for long periods. And this could be one reason for the youngsters' success.

They are now the ones who create magic on the football field, who send crowds in a frenzy. Take spectators on a fantasy trip. Gifted with twinkling feet, lovely ball control and eyes set on the goal. The game will be a sorry story without them. For what is football without its glorious goal-getters.

Indian football's striking-line wears a fresh look now. With I. M. Vijayan virtually on his last legs and Baichung Bhutia trying out English pastures, names like Najeeb, Ignatious and Silveira now head the scoring charts in major events. Like the recent National League and the Santosh Trophy.

With nine goals Najeeb, playing for Maharashtra, led the pack in the Thrissur Nationals while Goa's Francis Silveira was the top marksman in the NFL with a ten-goal tally. Najeeb and Ignatious were also among the leading bunch in the NFL, with eight goals each. And the common factor binding the three strikers was their beach beginning.

Najeeb was a late-comer to serious football. ``I began seriously only at 19, through a summer coaching camp conducted by Mr. Bharathan. My early days were with the Kannur Gymkhana club,'' he said, after joining the Indian camp in Thrissur a few days after the Santosh Trophy.

He was too late for junior tournaments but led the Kerala under- 21 team in 1994. Soon after, he moved around, representing Tata Tea (Munnar), ITI (Bangalore), Mohammedan Sporting (Calcutta) and FC Kochin before settling down with Mahindras in Mumbai. And it was with Mahindras and Maharashtra that he achieved the biggest success.

``This is the best season of my life. I would remember it for long. Everything about this season is memorable,'' said the 25- year-old who helped Mahindras to the sixth spot in the NFL.

Najeeb's dream season also had a dream setting. A perfect stage was set for him, at Thrissur, to display his potential. And he grabbed the chance with both hands and turned a hero. Playing in front of home crowd, he struck the match-winner which gave Maharashtra the Santosh Trophy, breaking host Kerala's heart.

There was a bit of deception in the final stab. Najeeb crept into the box quietly from the left, and as Kerala goalkeeper Nelson charged out sensing danger, he shrewdly placed the ball in. ``He sent the goalkeeper the other way nicely,'' Maharashtra's happy coach Harish Rao said.

After playing in soccer-crazy Calcutta and Kerala, Najeeb admitted that life in Mumbai was very quiet. ``People are crazy about cricket there and we don't see big crowds for football tournaments. I enjoyed my days in Kerala. There's nothing like home,'' he said. This was probably the reason for Kerala witnessing the best of Najeeb. The youngster finished with 19 goals this season.

Find of the season

Kerala's Ignatious Sylvester is clearly the find of the season. Only 22, the State Bank of Travancore striker is a prolific scorer and got the `best forward' award in the Santosh Trophy.

His eight goals had him in the leading pack in the NFL and another four strikes from as many matches in the nationals spoke volumes for his abundant skill.

This boy with his lethal left-footer has the uncanny knack of being at the right place at the right time. This is the secret of his success, says SBT coach N. Mohammed Najeeb, a former international.With Ignatious in superb touch, SBT could have finished much higher than the ninth spot at the NFL.

But the team repeatedly messed up good leads given by Ignatious, including a 2-0 advantage against East Bengal which SBT held for 85 minutes.

After stars like Jo Paul Ancheri left SBT for greener pastures a few years ago, its coach Najeeb went searching for talented youngsters in nearby areas.

``Ignatious was one of them. Four years ago, he used to practise with the SBT team.

I took him to institutions like Titanium and the KSEB but nobody wanted him. He was talented but he did not have a good finish. Also, he was not that hard working early on.

``It was at SBT where he polished his act. He developed good speed with the ball, shooting on the run.. and all the finer things. And since he realised that football could take him places, he started slogging it out. Slowly, he joined SBT,'' said Najeeb.

Ignatious has been in fine nick the last two years. He was the top scorer in the NFL Second Division last year and helped SBT gain promotion to the premier league.

He also topped the charts in the Scissors Kerala League in the past two years.

How does he get the goals?

``I don't plan anything before matches. I don't expect big things either. I take things as they come. It's all God's grace that I've come this far,'' said Ignatious.

Ignatious' shooting prowess has helped SBT gain a lot of respect in the national circuit. ``And it is almost a football academy in Kerala now.

The team has shaped a number of youngsters into talented players. Boys like Ashif Saheer, Abdul Hakkim, Noushad and Ajayan are classic examples. And while other teams sign foreigners, we pick only Malayalees,'' said Najeeb proudly.SBT's Ashif Saheer is another frontliner who has stood out with a sterling show.

Despite his lack of height, the youngster is fast, has lovely ball control and precise passes.

He is a versatile shooter and finds neat angles for his strikes. ``And for his height, he makes up with superb timing while going for headers,'' said the SBT coach.

With eight goals, Saheer finished second to Tamil Nadu's Sabir Pasha in last year's Santosh Trophy goal-getters' chart in Chennai. He also grabbed the `first hat-trick' at this year's Santosh Trophy in Thrissur.

After leading the charts for a long time, Churchill Brothers' Francis Xavier Silveira was unlucky to finish second in the NFL final goal- scorers' list.

The top marksman was Mohun Bagan's Uzbekistan player, Igor Shkvirin, with eleven strikes. However, Silveira had the honour of being the top striker among Indians.

The 29-year-old attacker, who hails from Agassian, near Margao, came up with brilliant efforts that took Churchill Brothers to the runner- up spot in the recent NFL.

``Most of my goals in the NFL were tactical successes, mostly placement shots,'' said Silveira who was earlier with Dempo and Sesa.

While Ignatious shuts out soccer completely from his mind in preparation for matches, Silveira sleeps through the day and then ponders over the game. ``And there have been times when you feel that this is going to be your day, and you can even smell the goals coming,'' said the Goan striker.

And Maharashtra's Najeeb?

``Just stay cool. Relax, be confident. Be sure.'' For sure, scoring goals is exciting!

STAN RAYAN

Kochi

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