Jharkhand makes its mark in women's football

Six from the State in the squad as India open their U-17 World Cup campaign against the United States on Tuesday

There is a road under construction to Banari Goratoli, a village situated well over two hours from Jharkhand. In fact it will be in Astam Oraon’s name, the young girl from the village who will lead India at the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.

Astam is one of the six from the state of Jharkhand. Nitu Linda, Purnima Kumari, Anita Kumari, Sudha Tirkey and Anjali Munda are the others, all coming from far away villages, who have made it to the World Cup squad. The State is second only to Manipur - a powerhouse in Indian women’s football - which has seven.

This World Cup -- India will open their campaign against the United States on Tuesday -- has been a long time coming. Marred by multiple delays and hurdles, including a FIFA suspension for the National Federation, the dreams of the 21 girls are within touching distance.

What the legacy of this World Cup will be is a question that will be answered in time. But at least it has shown what it takes to build, and maintain, an ecosystem to develop football.

That the team is dominated by Manipur players is unsurprising. In fact, they dominate the senior team as well with conservatively 10 players in the national set-up.

But that is Manipur, a state fertile with sporting culture. One that encourages women’s participation thanks to once being a matrilineal society where women still hold a strong position in everyday life. Lack of big economic opportunities means it becomes a means to an end - a job, a better life, a window to markets elsewhere. Granted women’s football in India is semi-professional at best, but it’s still seen as a career path.

There are also tangible role models. The societal structure has a sports club in every locality and players, who shaped their game playing in their neighbourhoods, give back to the next generation by being part of their youth. It would not be odd to see Oinam Bembem Devi or Yumnam Kamala Devi around the Eastern Sporting Union ground to watch the youngsters play.

That about Manipur, Jharkhand, meanwhile, is an interesting story. One that comes because of long-term planning, outreach programmes and tapping into the culture. A blend that is a bit serendipitous, in this case.

Admittedly, it was turbo-charged in the past two years. During the first lockdown, it was reported that the U-17 girls in the national camp were struggling with training and nutrition. Coming from distant villages and under financial challenges, the government stepped in to help. They followed it up by helping host the national camp at Jamshedpur, where the team has trained for nearly a year now.

But the platform had already been laid. The first step was focusing more on the women’s game.

“We are concentrating more on the girls because… look at the rankings,” admits Jharkhand Football Association secretary Gulam Rabbani. “We have been working on grassroots for 10 years now.”

This attitude to focus on the women’s game, presumably because the gap to the elite level is smaller than in the men’s game, is something that has been echoed by other states as well.

The first step was to identify areas where there is talent. The focus was put on the 8-10 districts which have a rich sporting culture, especially in football and hockey. The major ones that were under the microscope of the football association were Gumla, Chaibasa, Lohardaga and Dumka.

“Girls have always played in the villages, there is no (gender disparity in sport) issue with tribal girls. We have retired army footballers with D licenses (coaching) and they go and do trials. We had, and still have, coaches who go by bike or by walking to do trials and then bring these players to the city. We help with their schooling, accommodation, nutrition, etc. The government also helps,” says Rabbani.

The effort has yielded dividends, according to Rabbani the State has 14 women footballers in the Army. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, Jharkhand won the girls’ Sub-Junior National Championship and finished as runner-up at the junior level. This is their golden generation.

“Jharkhand villages have a lot of school and district level players who work a daily wage job. The tribal belt always had a strong football culture. Many districts in Jharkhand have football in schools because it’s a cheap game. It also works because the girls are really fit because of the physicality in their daily life,” says a person in the know.

“At the local level, there are good coaches who work in their own private centres. There are also non-profit football academies. This has been going on for 10 years or so.”

The foray of the NGOs has been a boon as many use football to tackle social issues like child marriage, lack of opportunities and illiteracy among others.

This World Cup is hence a symbol of the State’s efforts. One that shows the value of planning and work. One that can be replicated, with tweaks of course, in other stations.

Nevertheless, according to Rabbani, this is just the first step.

“We have very good youngsters coming up. Our hope is that we can challenge Manipur because at the senior level they dominate.”

Healthy competition. Long may it continue.