MADURAI: The sun had just vanished into the horizon, leaving behind a trail of crimson shades in the sky. A Sundararaja was busy packing his boots after the day’s practice when he saw a group of boys playing football on the ground. He stood there for a while, looking at each of their moves only to realise that though they were high in spirits, they lacked technique.
The head constable at the armed reserve unit of the police approached the boys and struck a conversation. Seeing their interest in the game, he made up his mind to train them without knowing that a surprise would come calling in a matter of months.
Yes, the boys won against a bigger team, and ‘the big win’ laid the foundation for Reserveline Football Academy in Madurai. Established by Sundararaja in 2015, the academy changed the lives of many a youngster from the economically-weaker sections of the society. More than six years have passed and the academy has become a huge success as it won trophy after trophy in many competitions.
Now, 42-year-old Sundararaja can boast of training as many as 80 students, including 10 girls, under different age categories. To help him at his venture are his students-turned-coaches, who with utmost dedication impart training at the playground of a government-aided school in both the morning and evening hours, that too, free of cost.
Football is in his blood. Sundararaja has been a footballer since his school days and he also played for the police team. Ask the police constable about the initial stage of the Reserveline Football Academy, he would say the secretary of Madurai Football Association, SM Seeni Mohaideen, has played a vital role in the coaching phase. “It was Seeni who insisted on me pursuing coach’s training. Former Indian football player Rajamanickam also played an important role. He is still my mentor,” he says.
In order to effectively train his students, Sundararaja did professional certification courses (D-license certification in All India Football Federation (AIFF) in 2017, C-license in 2019 and is waiting for B- license examination). One of his students, who later became a coach at his academy, G Veeramani (29), a D-license holder, said the training is being held daily from 6.30 am to 8.30 am and from 4.30 pm to 8.30 pm. Training is imparted based on age groups.
Another student-turned-coach, A Abubakker Sithik (30), an NSNIS certificate holder, said he wants to bring change to the lives of children from belonging to poor households, as they are the ones who cannot afford this due to their financial status. “Sundararaja is a person who wants to improvise himself before taking up any challenge. That’s why we did certifications,” he says.
The 15-year-old Kamalesh, son of an office assistant, joined the academy after seeing his friend playing. “My friend was trained under Sundararaja, and now he is playing so well. I also want to play like him one day. The teams of the academy have won many State and zonal trophies. They were the runner-up at the Nethaji tournament,” they said.
If Sundararaja had not seen the enthusiasm sparkling in the boys’ eyes playing on the ground years ago, the academy would not have taken wings. “These children have raw talent. But it’s the technical and strategic approach towards the game that will help convert their efforts into success,” he says with a smile.