THE STORY OF EVE

Women have come a long way from the steel and whalebone corsets to the shorts and T -shirted gals of today. This liberation from feminine dress restrictions of old,has not only given them the freedom overcoming cumbersome obstacles, but has actually provided them an opportunity to give the aggressive side of their sex, an outlet for the benefit of sports.

The 1999 FIFA Women''s World Cup was a victory not only for the United States of America, who beat China 5-4 on penalties after the match had ended in a 0-0 draw, but also for the women''s game. It was competitive but fair, it was positive and attacking. The referees and assistants - all women - officiated with confidence and authority. The crowds turned up en mass and created a party atmosphere and the games drew unprecedented audiences on nationwide television. Women''s football had delighted supporters, silenced critics and won a whole load of new friends.

In Goa, traces of women''s football go back to the year 1973. Clube Vasco-da-Gama, Panjim, is believed to have put together, perhaps for the first time ever, if not in India,definitely in Goa,a football match on March 4,1973,between a women''s team and a men''s team called Eves and Adam.,. Infact the match was part of the carnival celebrations that were on, during the first week of March. The match was played at the Police grounds, Panjim,in a truly festive spirit, with the men in funny Carnival clothes, resorting to all sorts of antics on the field. But the Eves, more determined and serious about the game, walked off with a 3-1 victory. The goal scorers were yolanda D''Souza and Clara Gonsalves (2) for the winners and Pednekar, a dwarf, who scored off a penalty for the losers.

The following year, on February 24, 1974, another Carnival match was played at the Police ground, Panjim, organised, once again, by Clube Vasco-da-Gama. But this time the match was played between two women teams, Pachangas XI and Conchitas XI, which ended in a 2-2 draw.

Among the players, who impressed with their strong play were Isabel Sequeira, Camila Pinto, Devika Sequeira, Isabel Ribeiro, Judy D''Mello and Pamela Mascarenhas. The others were Thelma Dias, Neeta Sharma, Sonja D''Costa, Neelam Sharma, Aneth Pereira, Maria Luisa Almeida and Guida Dias. The referee was Timoteo Fernandes.

Little did the organisers realise that what began as fun would soon take the dimension of an organised sport.

The first movement of women football can be traced down to Candolim, way back in 1973-74, when Clara Gonsalves rallied around a few girls and began playing the game. Simultaneously girls from another village, Parra, took to the game.

Matches between these two villages were frequently held. During this time yolanda D''Souza, an international hockey star and daughter of the great football player Joveniano D''Souza, encouraged girls from the beach side resort village ofCaiangute, to play the game. It was only when the Calangute girls entered the fray, that the game gained momentum. The traditional village rivalry of Calangute and Candolim spilled over into the women''s game.

As the number of girls playing football in these villages increased, they decided to hold friendly matches which drew quite a crowd. Supporters from either village were there to boost their players and the matches were fiercely contested. Calangute registered their superiority, in their first match against Candolim,with a convincing 3-0 victory, all the goals coming from the boots of yolanda, her first hat-trick in competitive women''s football. Thereafter there was no stopping the Calangute girls. They were unbeatable. Rekha Kamat from Santa Cruz, an excellent player joined hands with Candolim, as there was no team from Santa Cruz, the village she came from, nor did the neighbouring city, Panjim, capital of Goa, have a full-fledged team.

The Candolim girls latter joined hands with a few more girls from Panjim and Santa Cruz and fonned a team called PanCan. Despite these efforts, Calangute led by yolanda continued to rule the roost. Women''s football had caught on in North Goa, oblivious to curious stares from passers-by, during the seventies. However support by way of equipment and trophies was badly lacking. The game eventually slowly spread to South Goa, where Filomena D''Souza from the city of Vasco and Soccorinha Pereira from the village of Varca took the initiative. These girls encouraged football in their areas and fonned very good teams. Albino Valles offered a lot of support to the Vasco team, coaching them, while in Varca it was Peter Rodrigues.

It was time to have an organisation for the sport, which had by now built up. In a meeting held at Don Bosco High School, Panjim, on September 22, 1975, it was decided to fonn the Goa Women''s Football Association. An ad-hoc committee, which also included a few men, was elected. It was headed by Joe Vaz as its President. The other office bearers were: Secretary - Clara Gonsalves; Treasurer - Joaquim Antao. Members - Juliana Gurjao, Rekha Kamat, yolanda D''Souza, Wilson Paes, Joseph Cardozo, Antonio Colaco, Vishwas Vaingankar, Anita Fernandes and Jasmine Silveira.

After the fonnation of the ad-hoc Committee, some exhibition matches were played by the local women teams.

In the same year, the country''s apex women body, the Women Football Federati011, was fonned at a meeting in Lucknow and it was unanimously decided to organise the first national championship at Lucknow itself. The office bearers of the Women''s Football Federation of India were: Patrons - Ram Ishwar Singh, M. L. c., Patna; M. C. Kolay, Calcutta, Bengal; President - Mrs. H. Shaiza, Imphal, Manipur; Chainnan - Mrs.Indumati Korke, Nagpur; Vice Presidents - S. N. S. Rao, Bangalore, Mrs. E. Kurian, Kerala; General Secretary - Safdar Raza Zaidi, Lucknow; Joint Secretaries - Mrs. Aniti Banerji, Calcutta, Mohn. Ahmad, Hyderabad, N. U. Siddiqui, Delhi; Treasurer - N. D. Parmer, Ahmedabad; Members - B. M. Rachappa, Karnataka, G. P. Singh, Rajasthan, K. Sanajaoba Singh, Manipur, M. K. Kadao, Vidharba.

The States were intimated about the Nationals and were asked to prepare their teams, within a short span of time, so as to test their interest in the game. Our girls had till then been exposed to playing just exhibition matches and therefore were not prepared for the Lucknow Nationals. The Lucknow event however saw eleven other States participate. The event turned out to be a big success with an overwhelming response from spectators, though the standard of football had nothing much to write home about.

Played at the Sports Stadium, Lucknow from July 2 to July 5, 1975, West Bengal emerged India''s first women champions beating Vidharba in the finals. Uttar Pradesh clinched the third place while Bihar finished fourth. The other teams that participated in the inaugural nationals were Punjab, Kerala, Karnataka and Gujarat.

During that year a team from Thailand played a series of exhibition matches in India, beating the host in every game.ln Goa, on October 4, 1976, an all-women Managing Committee was constituted. At this meeting the Constitution was framed and approved, which was a direction in the right step towards the development of women''s football in Goa. The all-women committee elected was: Vijayadevi Rane - President; Ermina Almeida and Anderson - Vice Presidents; Lia Vaz - Treasure Rekha Kamat - Joint Secretary, Clara Gonsalves - Secretary Maria A. Vales, Joanita Rodrigues and Phyllis Faria - Members.

The new managing committee of the Goa Women''s Football Association, took charge a few weeks prior to the seconD nationals at Sultanpur (AP). Within a week, a full-fledged Go selection under the guidance of Joao de Melo, was ready alii raring to go. The results were more than satisfying. The Goa girls in their first ever appearance at the Nationals performed
creditably well, creating a tremendous impact. They stormed into the final only to lose to Bengal, by the slenderest of margins,after conceding an own goal. Kamataka and Manipur followed to clinch the third and fourth place. Goa proved their penchant for goals, with a riot of 35 goals. yolanda D''Souza, Goa''s captain accounted for 15 goals herself, the highest in the tournament, which included two hat-tricks.

Goa''s National success acted as a catalyst, generating a lot of interest in the game by the fairer sex in the State. In the month following the return of the squad that did Goa proud, Patronga Sports Club organised a tournament for women for the Parkkot Rolling trophy. Calangute Association, led by none other than yolanda D''Souza, were the proud winners of the first edition of the trophy.

Based on their performance at the Sultanpur Nationals, five players yolanda D''Souza, Helen Fernandes, Rekha Karapurkar Kamat, Soccorinha Pereira and Sylvia D''Souza were selected for the India camp at Patiala. The first four donned India colours against B. K. Women''s Football XI of Sweden in 1976.

yolanda inflicted the most damage, scoring a hat-trick, ensuring seven victories. The hatrick was the first by an Indian woman in international football and finds its place in the Limca Book of Records. In 1977, an English visiting side, Tiverton,
played 10 matches in India. yolanda D''Souza, Soccorinha Pereira and Juliana Gurjao played for India and helped Indian win eight matches. One ended in a draw and the other India lost.

During the 1976-77 season, in the inter-zonal held at Rajamundry (A.P.) for the Kamala Nehru Trophy in 1976-77, a full Goa side represented West Zone comprising of Goa, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan. They lost to East Zone comprising of West Bengal, Manipur and Orissa, in the finals via the tie-breaker, after a goalless regular time. The South and Central Zones took the third and fourth position respectively.

Goa''s women football missed out on history that very year. Our very own, Rekha Karapurkar was chosen to captain the Indian squad at the first ever Asian Women''s Cup Championships held at Taiwan. But unfortunately the departure of the Indian squad did not materialise, as the Government of India failed to clear the team in time. Other Goans in the team were yolanda D''Souza, Soccorinha Pereira, Helen Fernandes and Juliana Gurjao.

Towards the end of the 1976-77, it was Goa''s turn to host the third women''s nationals and we won our first National Championship h(onours for the Pinjore Trophy in 1977 on our own soil.

The Goa team, coached by Joao de Melo, whose players had already made an impact at the All-India level, started as hot favourites for thetitle. West Bengal, twice winners, were Goa''s main rivals. The Bengalis were bent on making it 3-in-a-row.
However, Goa denied them this privilege and the achievement is now legend.

Thirteen teams took part and were placed in four groups. Bengal, Chandigarh, Andhra Pradesh (AP) (group I); Kamataka, Gujarat, Vidarbha, Uttar Pradesh (UP) (group 11); Manipur, Kerala, Maharashtra (group III); Goa, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh (MP) (group IV).

In the league, Goa slaughtered MP 25-0 and Punjab 10-0 to move into the quarterfinal where they beat Gujarat 5-0. In the semifinal Goa outplayed Manipur with ease knocking six goals into the net, to set up a final clash with Bengal.

On its way to the final, Bengal thrashed AP 13-0 and Chandigarh 12-0 and got the better of Kerala 3-0 in the quarterfinal. In their semifinal, Bengal, without much difficulty marched into the final beating Kamataka 5-0.

In the final played at the Bandodkar Stadium, Campal, Panjim, Goa avenged their previous loss to Bengal, dethroning the holders. The Goan girls overturned Bengal''s apple cart, beating them by a convincing 3-0 margin. Soccorinha scored a total of 19 goals and yolanda 18, proving they were unstoppable. Goa had three distinctions in this Championships: (I) Soccorinha Pereira the most outstanding player in the tournament was the only player to score three hat-tricks in a row against MP, Punjab and Gujarat; (2) The Goa team did not concede a single goal due to the excellent goalkeeping by Elma D''Cunha and (3) The team scored 49 goals, the highest tally ~o far. (against MP 25-0, Punjab 10-0, Gujarat 5-0, Manipur 6-0 and Bengal 3-0)

The Goa team: Elma D''Cunha, Esperanca Almeida, Helen Fernandes, Fatima Rodrigues, Rajani Sirnipuruskar, Rekha Kamat (Capt), Juliana Gurjao, Perpetua Fernandes (Sr), Succorina Pereira, yolanda D''Souza, Perpetua Fernandes (Jr). Reserves: Filomena Fernandes, Filomena D''Souza, Sylvia D''Souza, Clementina Fernandes, Petorlina Fernandes, Ema Fernandes, Anita Fernandes, Caetana Barbosa, Agnes Gomes, Arabella Coutinho and Susan D''Souza.

In the 1979 Nationals at Calicut, Goa had to be content with the runners-up trophy and subsequently success was elusive. Other States like Kerala and Manipur rose to become powers in women is football. In the 1980 Nationals, held in Lucknow, Goa had to be content once again with second position losing by a solitary goal to Bengal in the finals.

In 1978, India participated at the IInd Asian Cup Women''s Cup, held in Thailand. yolanda and Juliana represented India where they won the runners up position while Taipei were champions. In 1979, the Indian team toured, played and won exhibition matches at Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong. Juliana and yolanda played in the India team as centre half and striker respectively.

In 1980 the III Asia Women''s Cup was hosted at Calicut, Kerala and India fielded two teams. The India-N team was captained by Juliana Gurjao and included other Goans like Fatima Rodrigues, Elma D''Cunha, Clementina Fernandes and Ritinha Pereira. The India-N team had yolanda, which won the runners¬up place losing to Taipei, Taiwan, in the finals.
This was followed with yolanda touring Malaysia with the India Senior team. The India team also toured Singapore and Thailand along with yolanda and Juliana that year. In October,1981, yolanda was named vice-captain of the India team that participated at the World Cup held at Taipei, Taiwan. India lost in the quarter finals, but not before they drew with World Champions Germany.

In 1980-81, exhibition matches were played in Nepal and all the states of India. The girls who played in these series were Elma D''Cunha, Clementina Fernandes, Ritinha Pereira, Fatima Rodrigues and Juliana Gurjao.

In 1982 the IV Asian Cup was held at Hong Kong. India won third position. Ritinha Pereira and Juliana Gurjao represented the India team. This was the last of the greats that Goa saw.After that Goa could not come up with an excellent crop of players. The standard of the game began deteriorating and administrative trouble at the Federation level saw women''s football allover India disintegrate.

In 1977-78 Clara Gonsalves left Goa for better prospects and Jyoti Rane took over as Secretary of the Association for 10 years and laid a strong base for Women''s Football. Goa hosted the West Zone in 1981 and the Association under the leadership and guidance ofVijayadevi Rane as President, worked tirelessly to earn back the glory for women''s football in Goa. The women had the full support and guidance from the Goa Football Association and its members Vishwas Vaigankar, Anthony Botelho, Joe Vaz and Albino Valles in particular. Later on the secretaries for the Association were late Nina D''Silva from 1988 to 1990 and Zarina Nazareth who took over from 1990 onwards.

In 1987 the Nationals were held at Gorakhpur and Goa finished third after losing to Bengal in the semifinals. Bengal and Manipur shared the championship. The players who excelled were Tracy Pereira, Vinda Fernandes, Elvy Fernandes, Sheela Fernandes, Sylvia Furtado, Joanita Fernandes and Komal Pereira.

In the Federation Cup we finished runners-up to Manipur. Ironically, Goa has never won the Federation Cup.

Vinda Fernandes, Elvy Fernandes and Clementina played for India at the Jakarta Invitation Tournament for the Subroto, where we ended in second place behind China. The same year, Vinda, Tracy and Sylvia played for India-Red, winning the Indira Gold Cup at Trivandrum, Kerala. The second string national team, India-Green had in its ranks Sheila Fernandes and Elvy.

In 1988-89 the Goa team participated in the Nationals held at u.P. The coach, Vanessa Vaz, due to some misunderstanding the field, assaulted the referee and Goa was slapped a two year ban on participation.

The Federation Cup was played on Zonal basis.The selections were done on zonal basis East Zone i.e. Bengal Manipur combined team, always won the inter-zonals.

In 1994, Goa participated in the III National Women''s Championship, with Olavo Gama as coach. The players were Maria Rebello, Gracy Pereira, Fatima Rodrigues, Margarida Rodrigues, Angela Gomes, Linette D''Costa, Komal Pereira, Fernandes, Severina Xavier.,Carol Fernandes, Cristalina. Goa failed to qualify for the quarterfinals.

Around this time the game''s world governing bodies, FIFA and the women''s body amalgamated and the affairs of women''s football allover the world came under the aegis of FIFA.This change was followed at every national level, except in India.In Goa, the change took place in the early nineties, with women football coming under the control of the Goa Footl Association and Albino Valles was appointed the women''s representative in the Goa Football Association. However at the national level there were problems and the ,Warne Football Federation of India would not hand over control to India Football Federation (AIFF). Talks continued for a number of years and in 1995 a consensus was reached. The Al convened the first meeting of a Women''s sub-committee September,1996, wherein representatives from all the Stal attended and they chalked out a plan for developing women''s football. Juliana Gurjao e Colaco was nominated as Goa''s representative. Krishnan Singh from Mumbai was appointed the women''s Secretary and plans were scheduled for conducting the sub-juniors, juniors, seniors and the Federation Cup championships.

Except- for the Senior Women''s Nationals, which was organised at Haldia, Bengal and at Guhawati, the rest of the plans did not materialise. The First Federation Cup was scheduled to be held in October, 1988, at MaIda, Bengal but due to floods in the area, they was postponed. Goa was to be represented by Vasco Sports Club.

At the Goa Football Association elections for the 1995-99 term, Juliana Gurjao e Co1aco was nominated the women''s football representative member on the Executive Committee. A sub-committee for Women''s Football was formed with Victor Gonsalves as Chairman, Juliana Colaco as Secretary and the following as members: Francis Raposo (Panjim), Anthony Fernandes (Vasco), Cristalina Fernandes (Panjim), Sheela Fernandes (Siolim), Carol Fernandes (Dona Paula), Linette Vaz (Majorda), Olavo Gama (Nuvem), Anita Rodrigues (Panjim),Jovita Lopes, Jennifer Ferrao, Oswald D''Costa (Navelim), Maria Rebello (Margao), Raghuvir Shirodkar.

To develop women football, the Committee decided to organise weekend camps for senior girls at Carmel College grounds, besides conducting regular coaching camps with the assistance of preliminary coaches from Sports Authority of Goa, for the under 14 and under 19 years girls. The need to tap young talent and train them was unanimously felt.

In the first tournament held in November, 1995, about 10 institutions participated. Holy Trinity High School, Benaulim, won the first edition while St. Lawrence High School, Agacaim, emerged runners-up.

Maria Rebello was selected to represent India at the Asian Football championship held at Malaysia, in September 1995.
The Fourth Senior National Women''s Football Championship was held at Dirbhangar, Assam from February 25 to March 14, 1996. Ten States Assam, UP, Karnataka, Western India Football Association (Bombay), Tripura, Punjab, Bihar, Rajasthan, Meghalaya and Goa participated.

The Goa team consisted of: Cristalina Rodrigues (Captain), Sheela Fernandes (Vice Captain), Carolina D''Souza, Alfrida Fernandes, Telina Pereira, Fatima Rodrigues, Margarita Rodrigues, Victoria Vaz, Prarnila Gouveia, Maria Rebello, Maria Angela Gomes, Vinda Fernandes, Philomena Fernandes, Severina Xavier, Angela Rodrigues, Sandra Fernandes, Fatima Fernandes, Maria Cardozo, Raghuvir Shirodkar (Manager), M. M. Muttawali (coach).

A pre-national residential coaching camp for 21 days was conducted and the team played well. They qualified for the quarter final league beating Meghalaya 4-0, Bihar 1-0 and drew with Punjab. The top scorer for Goa was Maria Rebello.

After the Nationals, four Goan girls, Maria Rebello, Angela Gomes, Fatima Rodrigues and Margarita Rodrigues were chosen for the India camp, to select the India team for the Asian Women''s Cup at Bangkok and a series of matches at Germany. However, Maria Rebello was the only Goan to find a place in the India team.

In 1996-97, elections to the women''s committee were held. While the President and the Secretary remained the same, Francis Raposo, Oswald D''Costa, Peter Vales, Brahmanand Shankhwalkar, Monica Lobo, Carol Fernandes, Cristalina Rodrigues, Jennifer Ferrao, Linette D''Costa, Sheela Fernandes, were elected.

Inorder to develop and generate interest at school level, regular coaching camps were held at Peddem, Siolim, Agacaim, Dona Paula, Vasco, Fatorda Sports Complex, Navelim, where special attention was given to nutrition and diet, under the guidance of Vallabh Mahambre, Carol Fernandes, Francis Raposo, Tony Fernandes, Anthony Fernandes, Agnel Fernandes, Raymond, Fatima Rodrigues, Angela Gomes, Esperanca Alfonso, Oswald D'' Costa, Olavo Gama and Mariano Dias.

In 1998-99, the following were elected as the women''s sub committee members: Lisette Alvares, Francis Raposo, Anthony D''Souza, Oswald D'' Costa, Jennifer Gonsalves, Carol Fernandes, Sheela Fernandes, the President and secretary remaining the same.

The third edition of the Junior Girls Football championship was held from 23 November, 1998 to 13 December 1998. Seventeen institutions participated in the league cum knockout tournament held at various centres in Goa. St. Lawrence High School, Agacaim, coached by Francis Raposo emerged winners, while Carmel Higher Secondary School finished runners-up.

Special attention is being paid at the junior level, their diet and travel taken care of. These girls will be inducted into the State Senior team, with an aim that, in the near future, Goa will regain in the glory, it once enjoyed. Salu Fernandes, Lisette Alvares, Jerson Colaco, M. M. Muttawali and Maria Rebello have taken up the task to train the girls in camps.

In the second edition of the Junior girls tournament held in November, 1997, St. Lawrence High School, Agacaim, once again proved their superiority beating Carmel HSS. Twelve teams had participated.

Goa''s performance over the years, has been hampered, due to indiscipline of senior players, who do not take the camps seriously, attending them only towards the fag end, a few days before the Nationals.

The sub-committee therefore decided to focus on the juniors and build a strong senior squad for the future. Goa led by Maria Rebello, participated in the VIth Senior Nationals held at Haldia, Bengal. The squad, though performing satisfactorily, lost in the semi-finals to Manipur.

Pramila Gouveia, Grace Pereira, Severina Xavier, Maria Fernandes, Tina Fernandes, Sharon Lobo, Agnes Dias, Telina Pereira, Rezia Alvares, Laura Estibeiro, Margarita Rodrigues, Twinkle Fernandes, Vinda Fernandes, Angela Gomes, Angela Rodrigues, Conceicao Gracias, Lydia Valles were the members of the team, coached by Oswald D''Costa. Maria Rebello was selected to represent India at the Asian Games held at Bangkok in 1998.

The VII Senior Nationals held at Guwahati, Assam and Shillong from May 8 to May 22, 1999, saw Goa lose in the semifinals after being seeded in the quarter-finals league.

The State team led by Angela Gomes, consisted of Girija Devi, Uvena Fernandes, Conceicao Gracias, Lydia Vales, Mercy Vaz, Anarita Afonso, Blanca Barretto, Mickey Fernandes, Michelle Fernandes, Coney Vaz, Gracy Rodrigues, Esperanca Fernandes, Tereza Fernandes, Mafalda Colaco, Rita D''Costa, Laura Estibeiro, Susie D''Costa, Linette D''Costa, Telina Pereira, Julie D''Silva. Coach Salvador Fernandes.

The squad was trained by Francis Raposo while Pelagia Raposo accompanied the team as manager. Angela Gomes, Uvena Fernandes, Telina Pereira were selected for the India camp. The women''s team participating in the ill National Games at Manipur, lost in the semi-finals. Pramila Gouveia led the team which was being coached by M. M. Muttawali.

Many of the senior players like Maria Rebello, Gracy Pereira, Severina Xavier, Telina Pereira, Julie D''Silva, Susie D''Costa have left the shores of Goa for Mumbai after being offered jobs there and are playing for teams in Mumbai.

The womens sub-committee proposes to register the players and develop the five zonal clubs with the aim of going professional in years to come. The sub-committee proposes to provide technical guidance, clinics to coaches who are regularly coaching at the centres, so as to develop the quality of coaching.

Besides this, the coaches attend the coaching programmes under the GFA Youth Development Programme.

Succorina Pereira was the first, among the women footballers, who was awarded the State''s most meritorious and highest sports award, the Bakshi Bahaddar Jivabadada Kerkar award 1976.

Next was the turn of yolanda, the internationally acclaimed striker. Rekha was honoured the following year, while Juliana Gurjao, another internationally acknowledged midfielder was honoured in the the year 1980, followed by Ritinha Pereira 1981. Clementina Fernandes was honoured in 1987.

yolanda de Souza was also declared the ''Player of the Decade,'' by the Womens'' Football Federation of India in 1980.

The 1999-2000 committee has Victor Gonsalves as chairman of the women''s sub-committee, while Juliana Gurjao continm to function as its secretary. The members that make up the sub committee are: Esperanca Alfonso, Oswald D''Costa, Olavi Gama, Mario Martin, Anthony D''Souza, Lisette Alvares,Newton Azavedo, Pearl D''Costa, Sheela Fernandes, Carol Fernandes, Maria Maddox, Francis Raposo, Pelagia Raposo,Jennifer Gonsalves, Edwin Fernandes. The committee is focuse on development of the game in the Under-19 and Under-l bracket and plans to organise a zonal league of five senior teams which will be sponsored teams, two from Salcette, 0°1 from Tiswadi, one from Bardez and one from Mormugoa.

The coaches and members incharge of the teams are; Salcete A - Oswald D''Costa, Esperanca Alfonso; Salcete B - Olavo Gama; Tiswadi - Francis Raposo, Pelagia Raposo and Carol Fernandes; Bardez - Newton Azavedo, Lisette Alvares, Pearl D''Costa; Marmagoa: Mario Martins, Anthony D''Souza.

This tiny State has produced some of the best woman footballers in the country. This is the beginning of a mission to earn back the days when Goan women''s soccer was supreme.

Young talent like budding Mercy Vaz, Blanca Barretto, Franketa, Yogan, and Uvena Fernandes are performing well at the grass roots and with the right inputs, these young girl could well be filling in the gap left by yolanda, Juliana, Rekh Succorina and many more, to put Goan women football on th National map once again.

BAKSHI BAHADAR JIVABADADA KERKAR AWARD
YEAR	NAME
	PLAYERS
1976-77	Soccorina Pereira
1977-78	Yolanda D''Souza
1979-80+	Rekha Kamat Karapurkar
1980-81	Juliana Gurjao
1981-82	Ritinha Pereira Fernandes
1985-86	Clementina Fernandes
1986-87	Elvy Goes Fernandes
1989-90	Vinda M. Fernandes
1994-95	Komal Pereira
	ORGANISER
1976-77	Jyoti Rane Botelho

Yolanda de Souza: Madonna of Goan football

Unlike in the West where the fairer sex had to cry hoarse, from rooftops fighting for woman''s liberation, India had always produced her fair share of women who were glorified for their extraordinary abilities and given their rightful place society with due acknowledgment. Infact India has the distinction of being the only land in the history of mankind to have placed woman on a pedestal and worshipped as a goddess.
Indian women ruled kingdoms, changed destinies of men, wrote immortal poetry and generally were on par with men if not their superior.
Against this backdrop it should come as no surprise that in Goa too, one woman was allowed to enter the domain of a game which was considered predominantly a male bastion. Kicking the football accurately into the net came naturally to her - indeed it was a God-given gift by her own admission. yolanda D''Souza, the internationally acclaimed striker who has etched her name in the Limca Book of Records for being the first Indian woman to score a hat-trick in international football, has been the beacon of light in women''s football in Goa.
yolanda who started playing football as a past time along with her brother in her pre-teen years took to football as this was the only game in Goa in those years which enjoyed tremendous support from all quarters right from the common villager to men who were running the government.
This tomboy used to excel in hockey and badminton and was infact a state hockey player having been selected for an India camp in 1975. But then destiny had other plans for this star-in-the-making and there she was towing her brother, to whom she was very close, to the football playground in Candolim and playing alongside with him. But being a woman, she was invariably kept as a goal keeper and as a ''ball boy''. "I was a tomboy in those years riding bikes and doing many things that were ''reserved'' for boys and one of those things was football," she recalls.
yolanda was a prolific scorer and netted a lot of goals including a hat trick in the first ever women''s
national that Goa took part in 1976. Shooting is an art, they say, and if anybody could prove this right it was yolanda. She scored 15 goals out of the 35 goals scored by Goa in that tournament although the team lost to Bengal in the final.
One would be led to believe that yolanda must have put in a lot of hard work and training to achieve the distinction of being the most lethal striker. Hence it comes as a surprise when yolanda says that shooting was a God-given gift to her. "I would not put it down to training but I think 1 am just born with the ability to score. Maybe because I used to be the goal keeper most of the time when I was playing with my brother so I knew the position of the goal. Of course I used to practice on my own. I had very good control with the ball,".she said.
Two factors honed yolanda''s skills as a lethal striker. In hockey she used to play in the left inside position and while playing football with her brother, she was the goalkeeper. After she took up football as a playing career, she just ''transferred'' her hockey position and since she was a ''goalkeeper'' she had the hunting eye and knew the parametres of the goal instinctively.
Says yolanda, "our coaches never explained to us the roles of a half or a forward. 1 just adopted my hockey position and started playing. We used to practice on our own and then defeat top teams." She has won awards like the prestigious Bakshi Bahaddar Jivbadada Kerkar award given by the State and was also named as the "Player of the Decade" by the Women''s Football Federation ofIndia in 1980.
While in school, at Little Flower in Calangute, yolanda developed a passion for art which has stood her in good stead . after she left football. But she also had great affinity for sports.
Badminton and Hockey were the chief games in which she indulged wholeheartedly. yolanda went on to play in the inter¬school badminton championship where Vijay Madgavkar, the then national badminton champion, spotted her and selected her to play for the state. She would have been a badminton champion had it not been for poor infrastructure and lack of coaches which led yolanda to take up football a sport then gaining in popularity.
"I represented the state in hockey and badminton and was actually selected for the hockey camp in 1975. It was at this time that we heard about women''s football being played at national level. 1 gave up playing hockey and badminton simply because 1 did not have the support. But in football we had a lot of support not only from GFA but also from the locals,"
yolanda said speaking abouther initial years in football.
Villagers were so fascinated by the thought of the fairer sex in football boots that they sponsored the entire kit for them, even to the extent of taking care of their transport to various tournaments.
Football occupied centre stage in yolanda''s life and her academic career was just a haze. Her love for football was so great that she was ready to sacrifice her studies in Fine Arts and play football. This was because the Arts College at Altinho, Panjim, did not have a syllabus for sports. yolanda''s sister, Dr Susan D''Souza who was then studying at Xavier''s College Mapusa convinced her to join there as she would get time to play football. But the Arts College principal acceeded to her request to play and dissuaded yolanda from leaving. "The principal refused to let me go and allowed me to play to my heart''s content. So that''s how 1 remained in Arts College with freedom to play," she said.
yolanda does not regret that she missed the bus to make it big in academics. She was content with being an average student. Further, job security and the urge to settle for a nine¬to-five job never crossed her mind. And when she got the offer to join the Art College as a lecturer, she just could not accept it because it would leave her very little or no time to play football.
yolanda tried to dabble in teaching but could not continue with it. "I tried teaching but 1 found it uninteresting to teach somebody, whereas as an artist and designer 1 could think and be creative with my own ideas," yolanda explained.
In yolanda''s opinion, Goan women have got the talent and they are just born with it. Their skills are very good and perhaps the only factor that needs to be stressed on is physical fitness, she adds. Goan lasses struck terror in women''s football teams from other states. The very name of Goa sent shivers down the spine of Bombay and Punjab women.
Goa made a mark in thevery first women''s national they participated although they lost in the final in 1976. But they had already put it across to their opponents that they meant business. At that time they had requested for separate accommodation because they could not adjust to the change in environment as it was the first time they had ventured out of Goa. So the rumour that floated around among the other teams was that Goa girls wanted to stay apart because they did not want others to see them consuming alcohol. Recalls yolanda: ''These Bengal girls came up to us and said didi (elder sister) - they called everyone didi - you know what, everyone thought that Goa girls always played well because they were drinking and that''s why they want to stay separately".
In the early days of women''s football in Goa, yolanda was the moving force that stirred up the girls in Candolim and surrounding areas to play football. "We were quite embarrassed to go to the ground and so we went to the beach, about four of us, and started kicking the ball. Soon players like Alex Miranda who saw us playing volunteered to train us. So there was not a single time when women''s football was taken as a joke or something that people should not be doing," yolanda informed.
Looking at the Goan perspective, she feels that Goan girls have the stuff to make it big. Goa always had very good players in midfield and forward positions. Most of the games that Goa lost were because of the lack of good goalkeepers. The fact that Goan trainers did not pay attention to goalkeeping is still a mystery to yolanda. In her list of some of the great players, Komal was one good keeper and there was Elvi who was a goalkeeper but yolanda later shifted her as a forward.
In football, as in life, there are ups and downs. While the woman''s team was one of the best consisting of some of the top players when it went for the 1981 World Cup at Taiwan, a dismal coach undid it all for the team. India was the number two force in Asia, with Taiwan perched on the top spot. Unfortunately, says yolanda, the coach undid them. While the rest of the team was raring to go in all seriousness, the coach was in jocular spirit as if he was leading a circus troupe. In yolanda''s words: "Even today I regret the coach we had at that time. For some reason we had the coaching camp at Lucknow. He went there for fun while we were serious. After an aggressive fIrst match against Germany which we drew by losing two scoring opportunities, the rest of the tournament was a holiday for us. It was sad that we could do whatever we wanted. The team could not excel simply because the coach was not the right guy."
If Indian women''s football has to become a force to reckon with, then there has to be a drastic change in thinking of 1 administrators. Women''s football suffered because of proble within the organisation, says yolanda. There is an abundar of skills. There is no farmer to reap the fruits, she added.
yolanda stresses on the importance of tournaments. 1 revival of women''s football depends upon the number matches they are going to play. "In our time many tourname)
were held even if there were only t\ teams," she says.
She feels that it is very important for women''s football to move toward professionalism because many people become disillusioned with playing, not or football but also many other sports, wh they gained nothing from the game f which they gave so much. She cites ( instance of a brilliant girl, Tracy, who ha[ good academic record and was also a fll class player with outstanding performanc,
for Goa. But people demanded mom whenever she approached them for a jo yolanda also feels that corporates have 1 come forward and adopt teams.
Looking back at her playing day yolanda says that there was no scientif approach to the game. One had to t
physically fit so it was only physic, exercises that coaches stressed on.
Except during nationals when they were kept on a strict diet no importance was given to the type of food they ate.
She rates Rekha, Succorina, Helen Fernandes Tracy an Elvi as some of the really outstanding players.
yolanda did not fear any goalkeeper because she knew he scoring ability. She came across many good goalkeepers bu there was no goalkeeper who stopped her from scoring. "If did not score it was because of my own fault," she state Only the Bengali defenders could put brakes on her by tig marking with not less than two players. Because she was of average physique, yolanda played more of a thinking game b evolving spur-of-the-moment strategies to beat her opponents.
Some of her best memories are when P. K. BaneIjee''s wi£ came and congratulated her at Lucknow for scoring even though yolanda felt she performed well below her standards. The other incident which is still green in her memory is when she scored a goal with a bicycle kick at Malaysia. India eventually won the match with that single goal. Apart from this she carries the memories of all the winning games.
"Ask not what anyone can do for you but what you can do for the game," this is what yolanda would tell a girl if she comes up to her for advice on football. Players should realise that when they play it is for their own good. She says. "I will tell the girls not to expect too much from the organisers. In our days we wanted to play. It did not matter if we got a poor allowance. They should not brood over things that they are going to get if they play."
Behind every success story there are a host of other unseen and unheard factors of which never come to light but play an important role in the success story. "I owe a lot to many people. In my initial years it was my mother and grandmother, later in college it was my principal, says yolanda with gratitude in her eyes. Finally when she was going full steam as a star footballer it was her director in the Industries and Mines Directorate, who provided her with the necessary impetus. "I was working in the design and development centre and half the year I was traveling around playing even though I was supposed to be working, but my director gave me the go-ahead," yolanda disclosed.
In the 40th anniversary celebrations GFA is looking forward to revive woman''s football with earnest and have formed a committee. What they require now is people with commitment and consequently the contribution of football icons like yolanda would be more than welcome.
yolanda gave so much of her time to sports that she neglected the other part which she enjoys very much that is art. So now she is making time for art and has immersed herself into it with devotion. Though presently she follows football she is making up for the lost time in terms of designing and art. However she is willing to give help in developing football. "Of course I would love to help but not totally getting involved because it really needs commitment," she said.