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Business News/ Mint-lounge / Mint-on-sunday/  The prodigals return to Neroca
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The prodigals return to Neroca

Manipur's footballers always had to leave the state to further their career; now, Imphal-based Neroca offers them a chance to compete at the top

Photo courtesy Neroca FCPremium
Photo courtesy Neroca FC

After a stint with FC Pune City in the Indian Super League (ISL) last season, footballer Lalit Thapa was figuring out his next move. He had a number of options in front of him, but there was one that stood out—a chance to finally represent a team from his home town.

Like most budding footballers in Manipur, Thapa started his journey at a local club, Neroca. After finding his feet and showing promise, the goalkeeper looked for avenues to build on his progress. But like most talented players in the state, Thapa had to look elsewhere to further his career.

The 32-year-old followed in the footsteps of his seniors, turning out for Peerless FC in Kolkata and Churchill Brothers and Sporting Clube in Goa, followed by the stint with Pune City.

So, when Neroca came up as a viable option again, there were a couple of things to consider: the money wasn’t as much as what the big guns offered and the team still only features in the second division of the I-League (I-League 2).

But what stood out was a chance to represent a team that is looking to put Manipur on the national stage, as well as an opportunity to move closer to family. It was a choice worth considering for Thapa.

Though it's been around since 1965, it was only about five years ago that Neroca first considered taking a shot at the top flight in national football. 

It has now given Manipuri footballers something to cheer about and has handed the fans a club they can finally call their own. This has also come at a time when the big guys are shutting shop, given the uncertainty that is Indian club football.

The second coming

Imphal-based Neroca, or North Eastern Re-Organising Cultural Organisation, was started by like-minded folks who pooled in money to run various sports and cultural activities, including football. In the past, their football side has been state champions, in addition to bossing local competition.

But while their domination was undisputed in Manipur, the fact remained that most players had to move to other clubs around the country to further their prospects. As a result, while the state has a good record of churning out top-level footballers, the only way that they could progress was by leaving the state.

All that changed when the club members got together and first thought of fielding Neroca at the national level. While it was earlier a community-based club run through contributions by members, it now had its first sponsor—the Classic Group of Hotels, which looks after the finances and marketing. For other decisions, the new sponsors work hand-in-hand with the club members.

“Neroca is from our locality, we are also members of the club," explains club CEO Naoba Thangjam. “After discussions with other members, we decided to sponsor the club and take on a professional approach in order to play at the highest level in Indian club football."

Thangjam represents the Classic Group of Hotels, which is headed by his father Thangjam Dhabali Singh, who is also the president of Neroca. The hotel chain, incidentally, was also started as a matter of Manipur pride.

“Manipur as a place lacked a decent hotel where we could accommodate guests. Some said the water ran out while they were in the shower, others complained that they woke up in the middle of the night in blackouts. So, we decided to address the issue by building a good hotel. We are doing something similar in football—bringing all our Manipuri boys together on one, promising team," Thangjam says.

“It’s a small state, but there’s a good chance every club in India will feature one Manipuri. So, why not give them a chance to play at home? We were also motivated after seeing what Shillong Lajong and Aizawl FC have achieved. We got started by organizing a lottery during the first season, so we are in it for the long run," Singh adds.

The restructuring started a couple of years ago, with the signing of head coach Gift Raikhan, who was then an assistant coach at Pune FC. He helped the club management meet the norms necessary to play in the I-League, picked his boys and gave them an identity on the pitch.

Gift Raikhan (front row, centre).
View Full Image
Gift Raikhan (front row, centre).

“People couldn’t believe I was leaving such a good club (Pune FC, which has now disbanded, but was going strong at the time). When the opportunity arose, I knew I had to come home and do something for Manipur football, for the people," Raikhan says.

With the norms fulfilled, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) accepted Neroca’s participation in I-League 2 last season.

“We thought of changing the club name to, say, Manipur United, but decided to stick with Neroca for all the efforts put in over the last 50 years," Thangjam says.

In their debut season, Neroca showcased all that the club is hoping to achieve. There were no big names, but the local talents made their mark, qualifying for the final round and finishing third behind seasoned campaigners Dempo from Goa and Chandigarh debutants Minerva FC.

The lack of exposure showed, though, especially during the away fixtures, when the players struggled to perform in the hot and humid conditions of Goa and Kolkata.

“Our hottest day is about 33 degrees Celsius. I had reports from the coach that the boys were cooling themselves in the shower at half-time during the away matches," Thangjam says, smiling.

But there was great promise in their game, which was enough to earn Neroca an invitation to the 128th edition of the Durand Cup in September. Raikhan also had other plans—it was finally time to bring the old boys home.

Manipuris came out in droves during Neroca’s stint at the Durand Cup. 
View Full Image
Manipuris came out in droves during Neroca’s stint at the Durand Cup. 

Thapa was joined by the likes of experienced strikers Sushil Kumar Singh, Subash Singh and defender Govin Singh. The rest of the senior squad comprised young Manipuris eager to make their mark in India.

With a 70% rise in the operational costs and the promise of revamped facilities, the players did not hesitate to take a pay cut and be a part of the rebuilding process at home. The period before the tournament was a turbulent one, with bandhs in Imphal hampering training sessions. Some days, they were even forced to practice at a smaller ground nearby.

“If we trained when these bandhs were announced, it would seem as if we were not supporting it. So, we had to walk out in small groups and be discreet when a session was announced," Thapa says.

Yet, Neroca made it to the Durand Cup final in New Delhi on 11 September, losing on penalties to Army Green. Ironically, their opponents, too, had a number of Manipuris on the field.

“Their coach was Sushil’s elder brother, one of our midfielders' brother was playing in defence. It was one big family. In fact, Lalit even said in an interview: how can we fight against our own boys?" Thangjam says, laughing.

A part of the stadium was painted orange—Neroca’s colour—during the big games, with fans pouring in to back their team. The excitement was palpable, given that no Manipuri side had made such progress in recent times. The club organized buses for them to get to the ground, even handing out merchandise to the students.

“The Manipuri community in various cities has stepped out time and again whenever we play. That evening, Manipur was glued to the television; there was also a screening at the community ground in Imphal. We were jinxed in the shoot-out and it was heart-breaking to lose," Thangjam says. “It was highly emotional—people had readied fireworks and were all set to celebrate. We realized how much the club meant to the people when we still got a warm reception at the airport on arrival, despite the loss."

The road ahead

With the experience gathered over the past year, Raikhan wants to put on a stronger fight in I-League 2 this season.

“People in Manipur have started dreaming. Nobody expected us to reach the final. The team has now been together for a while, so they are more familiar with each other’s style. I want to take it one step at a time; we hope to create history for Manipur," he says.

In addition to team-building, Neroca is also focusing on creating infrastructure and working at the grassroots.

“There’s so much talent here, despite the poor ground conditions. It’s easy to pull out a hundred good players from the thousands that turn up during trials. But what do you do when a thousand turn up and they are all good?" Thangjam says. “It makes the selection process really hard. In the future, we hope to have a residential academy to help us organize ourselves better."

With an unbeaten run in the group stage of the Manipur State League, the focus will now shift to the knockouts, followed by the I-League 2 qualifiers.

The future of clubs such as Neroca, however, remains uncertain given the three-tier structure proposed by the AIFF starting from 2017-18—ISL remains the top league, followed by I-League and I-League 2. There will be no promotion to or relegation from the ISL.

The club stakeholders, though, want to focus on the job at hand, which includes readying the Khuman Lampak Stadium in Imphal. It is a project undertaken by the club members, as well as some of the staff from the hotel.

“Everyone does their bit for Neroca. I had to take painters from the hotel for ground marking—they had little idea about football, but they are now experts. We have volunteers who help clean up and ready the place for a game. A friend volunteers as the DJ and the crowds drop in to watch some good football. The fact that they grumble when they watch a poor game explains what football means to this state," Thangjam says.

“We took up a certain responsibility when we decided to get involved. We don’t know what the future has in store for us, but we are in it to put a team from Manipur in the national league," he adds.

Given their lineage, the next generation of Thapas and Singhs will surely make it a force to reckon with.

Shail Desai is a Mumbai-based writer.

Photographs courtesy Neroca FC.

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Published: 19 Nov 2016, 01:21 AM IST
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