Mangalore, June 10: With the world’s biggest football carnival just hours away, the hardcore fans of the game in Mangalore are racing against time to finalise their preparations for the gala event being held in South Africa.
The buzz of the World Cup is already in the air as discussions in the jaunts and colleges in the city hover around the tournament, which is said to be the greatest sporting event in the history of mankind.
Though rains have called a halt on live sporting activities in the city, there are still takers for galli cricket and football. The sight of football-mad youngsters dabbling the ball and cricket enthusiasts swinging the willow in Nehru Maidan and other smaller grounds in the city even during the rains is a testimony to Mangaloreans’ passion for sports.
Just visit any of the malls or shopping centres in the city, you will invariably bump into young football fans flashing their loyalties through T-shirts coloured with national flags. An auto-ricksaw driver in Hampankatte has painted his vehicle in Argentina’s sky-blue-and-white. In fact, certain pockets of the city have become an extension of South Africa.
Those who never used to go to sleep without their daily dose of cricket discussion have suddenly started murmering names of Messi, Tevez, Robihno and Kaka. “We are already disgusted by the cricket over-kill. Tournaments like the one we played recently in Zimbabwe and the one we are going to play in Sri Lanka fail to give us the real kick we look forward to in a game,” says Suresh Kamath, a 10th standard student at St Lourdes High School in Bijai.
A new convert to the religion of football, Suresh added: “As it is the performance of our national team is not that great. So, I am really excited about the football World Cup.”
D.K. District Football Association president D. M. Aslam believes there is a huge following for football in the city even though we don’t have proper infrastructure and support from the authorities. “I will be glad if authorities take steps to improve infrastructure for the promotion of football at least taking a cue from the hype surrounding the football world cup,” he says.
Mr Aslam, a skillful defender during his younger days, however, declines to predict the winner this time around, as “there are many good teams” competing for the coveted trophy.
“My favourites are Brazil and Argentina. But I still consider Portugal as the dark horse of the tournament,” says Aslam.
Asked if DKDF is making any arrangements for fans to view World Cup on large screens, Aslam said, “We would really have thought of setting up a giant screen at the football ground in Nehru Maidan if it was not the monsoon season. Now we are holding talks with a couple of theatre owners in the city to find out if they are ready to screen the matches, at least the semi-finals and the finals.”
Donnet D’Souza, the physical education director of St Aloysius College, is equally excited about the upcoming tournament. “I am a big football fan. I will be watching all the matches. But I will have to stay awake for really long,” gushes D’Souza.
Asked where he will put his money, D’Souza said, “It has to be Brazil 100 per cent.” He also has his reasons. “They are a huge sporting nation. They treat football as though they are born to play that game. On top of that they are coming to the tournament with a lot of preparation,” says D’Souza.
“England are also a good side. They also have some extremely good players. All eyes are on Wayne Rooney now, who is capable of doing a Maradona of 86for England,” he added.
But there are also people who have not decided whom to support. “I have not decided yet. But I have a soft-corner for Argentina. I am hoping Maradona may repeat his magic in his capacity as the coach this time,’ says Arun, a former player of NMPT football club.
Though the spirits of the football mad public are sky high, the restaurants and hotels in the city have not come forward with any big plans to cash in on the buzz as they fear rains may play spoilsport. Sumana Shetty, PRO of Gold Finch said: “We have not finalized our plans as yet. But by Saturday we might come out with something.”
With the countdown for tomorrow’s inaugural match between host South Africa and Mexico already begun, the excitement in the city has reached a feverish proportion. For the next one month the over-the-coffee chit-chat among the friends every morning would primarily centre around the games of the previous night. Over to South Africa!
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