Guwahati: On May 5, Manipur was burning, and the flames of violence cut short the life of a promising, national-level hockey player from Imphal West. Shot during the deadly ethnic clashes, Laishram Rivaldo Meitei had captained Manipur’s sub-junior team in Goa last season. The talented defender was set to be included in the state’s junior team for the ongoing 13th Hockey India junior men’s national championships in Rourkela.
Merely 24 hours before the unfortunate incident, Rivaldo was worried about senior coach Thiyam Roshankumar Singh, who hails from the Bishnupur district in the state, from where there were reports of untoward incidents.
Recalling the last phone call with the 22-year-old on May 4, Roshankumar, now the team manager of the Manipur junior men’s hockey team, said he was on his way to Odisha, accompanying the Assam sub-junior girls’ team when he received the call.
“I have known Rivaldo for several years now as he was the captain of the sub-junior team, and he used to occasionally call for technical tips. On May 4, I was in Howrah when I received his call, and he was enquiring about my safety as there were some incidents near my hometown in Bishnupur. I said I was travelling to Odisha and wished him to give his best at the selection trials for the junior men’s nationals,” Singh narrated in a conversation with EastMojo.
“We reached Rourkela the next day and went about our training sessions before I found out about his death. It was shocking for me. It took me a few minutes to gather myself back and recall our last conversation. It was painful to lose one of the brightest talents from our region,” Singh told EastMojo, adding that he organised a prayer meeting in Odisha on May 6 to commemorate the promising Rivaldo.
At the junior nationals, the Manipur team opened their campaign with a commanding 16-1 victory over Jammu & Kashmir on Wednesday, but at the back of their minds, the players had a silent prayer, remembering their teammate, and more importantly concerned about their near ones back home, especially after nine people were killed in the fresh violence late on Tuesday night.
On Friday, the team registered another thumping win, this time by a whopping 19-0 margin against Gujarat, but the celebrations were still subdued as the situation back home refused to normalise anytime soon.
“There is an anxiety factor. Also, the players are emotional, and there’s a lot of anger inside especially when their families are in danger and one of their teammates has been gunned down. But at the end of the day, one has to focus on the task at hand, and as a part of the support staff, my job is to calm things down and let them focus on the tournament. We have won the first two games comprehensively, and need to shift our focus on the next few matches,” Roshankumar said while explaining the situation to EastMojo.
“It’s not easy to play with an open mind when your family members are in the middle of a crisis. Everyone is worried as the situation is still very vulnerable,” he added.
For the Manipur team, destination Odisha was nothing short of a dream. From holding selection trials in the middle of violence followed by the subsequent statewide curfew, to crowd-funding for flight tickets to Kolkata and the onward train journey to Rourkela, the 18-member squad has left the setbacks behind once they took the field in the first two games.
“We knew we could not depend solely on the association financially as the situation worsened in Manipur. People did not even have places to hide in certain areas, and in such a situation, the best we could afford was to collect money to fund our travel. The players come from various local area clubs, where some of the teammates contributed, also the local leaders, besides the family members of the players, helped us reach Rourkela,” he said.
Crediting the efforts of India international Chinglensana Singh, who also is a junior selector back home, Roshankumar said that the seasoned defender was instrumental in conducting the trials amidst the chaos.
“Chinglensana (bhaiya) has been really helpful right from the start, he arranged the selection trials in such a tight situation and closely monitored the side’s matches. He reached Rourkela before our crucial match against Odisha on Sunday,” he said while also acknowledging the efforts of the team’s head coach Ch Napoleon in their impressive on-field performances.
Placed in Group D, Manipur is clubbed with Jammu & Kashmir, Gujarat and Odisha in the tournament. While they have scored 35 goals so far in their two massive wins, they have their task cut out against the hosts, the best team in the group, when the two sides meet on Sunday.
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Roshankumar said that the team has to be professional in their approach and treat all oppositions alike. “It’s a new day, a new game. Yes, Odisha is a very good side, they are the hosts and what we require is a fresh approach and treat it as any ordinary match.”
When asked about his team’s chances in the tournament, Roshankumar said, “Well, we are another three wins away from the title, having said that it’s easier said than done. So we’re taking one game at a time, and if we win on Sunday, we’ll be in the knockouts.”
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