A sports story so stunning, so beautiful and so romantic has seldom been scripted in the annals of Indian sport. And while this is not a Goan story, the exhilarating journey of the club from the mountains of Aizawl, unheralded, to the top of the I-League, and possible champions, does have a Goan influence. But first, the breaking news. With Saturday’s 1-0 win over fancied Mohan Bagan, Aizawl need to just draw their last match to win the I-League whereas Mohan Bagan need to win their last game and hope Aizawl loses theirs.
It was the withdrawal of the Goan clubs from the I-League this season, which allowed Aizawl FC a re- entry in the top most league of the country, after a devastating relegation last year, inspite of finishing a spot away from the rock bottom team, DSK Shivajians. The Pune-based side had relegation immunity due to their corporate-backed direct entry into the tournament. Mizoram was stunned and heartbroken by this All India Football Federation (AIFF) rule.
But the boys from the hills of Mizoram, where traffic jams occur on match days, and their football team is their life, they gave it back to the AIFF and took sweet revenge, the only way they knew and could – on the football field – in the Federation Cup. They went for the very best, beating Bengaluru FC twice in the Federation Cup over two legs and reached the finals for the first time in history. For football lovers who follow the English league, more than our home grown league and our own heroes, here’s a comparison. This was akin to Portsmouth or Doncaster Rovers of the English second division beating Chelsea or Manchester United.
After this Federation Cup final appearance, the whole of Mizoram rose proudly to demand that their team be brought back to the premier I-League and compete with the best. Everyone from the Governor to the Chief Minister wrote to the AIFF. Hearts finally melted and Aizawl was back. Those who didn’t see the passion of the mountain boys felt Aizawl came in as they did to fill the numbers. What they did fill were the hearts of not just the football supporters of Mizoram, and yes they are crazy fan-atics.
They run on this passion, because with a budget of a mere Rs 3.5 crore, the team can only function on the love of their people. And the fresh air of the Mizoram mountains. And these, turned out to be priceless. Compare this to the budget of Bengaluru FC – Rs 30 crore. The club’s highest paid player gets not more than Rs 2-3 lakh per month. Yes and that is only for the highest paid player.
The love is priceless, because the team’s fans fill up the stands and buy the club’s merchandise. The club is Mizoram’s unifier and with a little help from corporates and the clout of its president Robert Royte, they have managed. And how. But for the dream to be a reality, good football had to be played. And that needed one man to move from the sea to the mountains – the Kuwait-born Indian footballer Khalid Jamil, the former coach of Mumbai FC, who let the boys play with the freedom that they wanted with control. It was almost as if the samba football, of teams by the sea, was being played in the rugged mountains. The results were brilliant. Eight out of nine home games have been won, (including the Saturday win against Mohan Bagan) the eighth being a draw. A mere three goals have been conceded in their home games, perhaps an I-league record for a season.
If this is not romance, then what is? If this is not why we love sports in general and the beautiful game of football in particular, then what is? Every Goan heart, we are sure will melt when the story of Aizawl sinks in, especially at a time when Goan football is going through tough times laced with sadness as the best Goan clubs have pulled out of the competition.
Many are comparing the Aizawl story to that of Leicester City, the Midlands team which went from being relegation candidates to Premier League champions in the 2015-16 season. It is indeed, a story close to the English one, but our story is nicer, because it runs not on any money, and gets you miracles.
What a weekend this will be in Aizawl. What a moment for Mizoram. An I-League title win will not just triumph over all sporting achievements of the state. It will be one of the most touching and remarkable stories in the history of Indian sport.
