Hockey is struggling to survive in Mumbai: HMC secretary Mahadik

Dhananjay Mahadik

Even as Mumbai's air quality index hasn't quite plummeted to unhealthy lows just yet, hockey, our national sport, is gasping for breath here.

As the eight-team Hockey Mumbai Super League (HMSL) gets underway at the Don Bosco High School turf at Matunga today (May 1 to 11), the organisers, Hockey Mumbai City (HMC) have revealed their struggles to achieve this Mission Impossible.

"There are no sponsors for field hockey [11-a-side version] in the city. Sponsors believe there are no big clubs or big names in Mumbai hockey anymore so there are no footfalls or eyeballs [spectators], so there's no point advertising. So far, we've only managed to collect 50 per cent of funding to cover the tournament," Dhananjay Mahadik, secretary of HMC, told mid-day on Wednesday.

Even as five-a-side rink hockey tournaments have been annual affairs in some of the city's pockets like Kandivli, Malad, Andheri and Bandra, to name a few, there has not been a field hockey event in the city for over two years. Champions Training Centre emerged victors in the last edition of the HSML in 2023.

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No ground in Mumbai
Mahadik, Commonweath Games silver-winning defender, says there is no good quality, full-size hockey turf in the city. "There are two prominent hockey turfs in Mumbai. One is at the Mumbai Hockey Association Ltd [MHAL] in Churchgate and the other is at the Sports Authority of India [SAI] campus in Kandivli. However, there is an ongoing lease issue between the MHAL and the state government, who own the land, so I wrote a letter to Maharashtra's Sports Minister Dattatray Vithoba Bharne [a copy of the letter is with mid-day] on April 22 to seek his permission to use the ground for our tournament, but have got no reply. And the SAI ground is awaiting renovation [the state is planning a centre of excellence there] so that's unavailable too. Thankfully, Don Bosco has a ground which we have hired. It's shocking that hockey is struggling to survive in a city like Mumbai which has produced numerous internationals and Olympians in the past," explained Mahadik, whose HMC is the only district body recognised by Hockey Maharashtra which runs the sport in the state and is affiliated to the national body, Hockey India.

Low income, high expenses
"We're charging Rs 25,000 entry fee per team, but our expenditure is higher. The winning team's cash award is R1 lakh while the runners-up will earn Rs 50,000. The cost to rent the turf is Rs 80,000, while we will be paying the referees Rs 400 each per game [five officials for each of the 19 games]. Also, every game will have a man of the match award [Rs 1000] which I will pay for from my own pocket. I'm not even getting into administrative expenses like food and refreshments," said Mahadik, adding that HMC is planning to organise a weekly camp for players, who will be scouted from this tournament to represent Mumbai District or better still, go on to represent the state team.

The eight HMSL teams - Police Boys, CTC, Union Bank, Mumbai Police, Central Railway, Bombay Republicans, MbPT and Mumbai Customs - have been divided into two groups. The quarter-finals will be on on May 6-7, semis on May 9 and final on May 11.

State government cancels MHAL's lease

The State govt has cancelled the lease of the Churchgate plot occupied by the Mumbai Hockey Association Ltd. As per a GR (Govt Resolution) issued on Wednesday: "The lease of the plot [to MHAL] is hereby cancelled and the said plot will remain under possession of the Sports Department for use as a playground." MHAL secretary Ramsingh Rathore however, told mid-day that he has not yet received this GR. "I can only comment on the issue after receiving the said letter and throughly going through it," said Rathore.