We took back what is rightfully Ours

04/18/2016

Kanteerava, February 13th. The West Block stand is so packed that the fans are forced to sit on the steps.

The mood is tense as they get ready to welcome back Mohun Bagan for the re-match – Bagan had wrested the title in the dying minutes at the same Kanteerava in front of this crowd last year. It still rankles, and this crowd is unforgiving. Every touch of the ball by Bagan is booed, every fall by their players greeted with jeers, and even old man Sanjoy Sen is not spared. Half-way through they unveil a massive banner that reads “We will take back what is rightfully ours”. As the canopy of the blue cloth gets passed over our heads and then blots out the field, the neophyte Blue in me wonders at the brashness of this belief, in this god-given gift of a title that was wrongfully snatched away. A while after half-time, some untimely fireworks land on the banner and burn holes right through it. And by the end of the night, Bagan make it 0-2 to walk away with a massive lead at the top of the table, and the title challenge looks equally riddled with holes. But the fans have not given up even at the end as the decibel levels stay steady. The mood is as gloomy as a wake, but they still hold hope.

The mood in the dressing room though must not have been so 'high'. Coming on the heels of an ignominious defeat to a 10-man Sporting team again at home, it seemed all was lost. An enraged Ashley Westwood had said, “I put it down to collective weakness; we have weak characters right through the club. We’re a weak club, simple as that. We’re soft, we don’t appeal for things and we lack leaders,” after the Sporting match. One could only imagine the extent of his fury after that day.

Yesterday, the crowd at the Kanteerava was 11,431-strong. Royal Challangers Bangalore were playing a home game at the Chinnaswamy less than a mile away, but the crowd could care less – something big was happening here. As the Blues trooped out into the stadium, Westwood must have been glibly eating his own words about their “weak character” - braving all odds, Bengaluru had chased Bagan all the way over two months waiting for them to stumble, and stumble they did. The final test, however, awaited as the Blues had to win on the night to avoid a dangerous last match against Bagan at the Barasat for the title.

This team was somehow different from the one that lost to Bagan. Different players had stood up in the run-up to this match and made it count when it mattered - Alwyn George, Vineeth, Eugeneson, Udanta, Doungel. The crowd was as ebullient and equally boisterous as ever. And the team responded in brilliant fashion. The first goal came in the 8th minute. Lalchhuan Mawia's cross brought Salgaocar’s Karanjit forward who sprawled across after punching the ball away, but it fell right into the path of Eugeneson Lyngdoh, who calmly slotted it into the unguarded goal. And Bengaluru were on track for the title. The crowd was going mad, even as support staff in the cordons were hugging each other.

From here on, it looks like the title was already in the bag. Every Blues' run that ended in a miss is treated with loud 'oohs'. When skipper Chhetri goes down, the crowd is on its feet and would sit back down only after he pushes himself up. Every mis-hit by Salgaocar jeered at, the crowd is definitely getting on the Goans’ nerves as they look lost through the match. As they lose their tempers, yellow cards ensued for arguing with the referee, an off-side called after the winger had abused the linesman on his way down the pitch seconds back. Not that the refs needed much encouragement. They were nudged in not-so-subtle ways – every time an opponent went down, the crowd goaded them to “send him off!”, every marginal call that went against BFC retorted with unmentionable epithets.

As the second half begins, one of the light towers at the arena starts playing hide and seek, but that's about the only uncertain thing happening out there. Soon it becomes clear that this Salgaocar side is not posing any challenge, and early celebrations begin. The emcee announces we are 15 minutes away from a second title, and the team moves the ball around nonchalantly waiting out the minutes.

AFC match hero Vineeth sprays an easy chance in the 85th minute after being fed by Alwyn, but he is forgiven for that. Finally Chhetri hits the final nail – in the 87th minute, Chhetri runs down the left flank through two defenders and sends in a perfect cross for Doungel, who taps it in. After the team celebrates in two huddles around the skipper and Doungel, an exultant Chhetri looks up at the West Block and pumps his right fist in the air. The huge Chhetri poster flutters wildly in his background.

The support staff in the cordons hug each other and talk about how much this means after last year's loss. As the final whistle brings the game to a close, they run in to join the players on the field, and wild celebrations ensure. The gang dances to Bravo's 'Champion', and meanwhile, one of them brings out an admiral blue banner. They line up in front of the West Block and slowly unravel it – it reads, “We are because you are”.

The West Block have made the Blues what they are – Champions. Westwood will most likely leave in days, but he leaves behind something greater than what he took over. Amid the ever-present shadow of cricket, and the new threat of commercialized football, the Blues stand as an oasis of hope for the beautiful game in this nation. They are young, they are in your face, and they never back down - they are the new face of football in India.

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