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FPAI’s Israil Gurung Makes Effort To Train Young Girls For Football
Israil Gurung, member of Football Players Association Of India, has been carrying out a commendable job in his native village of Jaigaon, of encouraging young girls between the age of 12-16 to pursue football along with their academics.
Israil Gurung has won the I-league with Churchill Bros, had stints in Portugal for the second division, and is currently a winger doing his AFCB license course. He was with FC Pune City for three years in the ISL.
The village of Jaigon is a remote one with very little infrastructure; most families hail from lower economic strata. Amidst widespread apprehension among parents about allowing girls into the game, Israil Gurung has been working against several odds to train these girls.
He was quoted saying, “The biggest challenge here is to convince the parents that the game can be pursued along with studies and they will have bright future only if they balance both. Most of the children here are drop outs from school (since their parents cannot afford it) and end up working as unskilled laborers. I try my level best to put them back to school so that they can come for regular practice, but it is always difficult because of the limited resources we have. I am thankful to a few people who have been helping me for the past years now and the FPAI for all their support. The road ahead is difficult but we will keep trying.”
Gurung has been training around 55 children in total, and has already sent four girls for trials with IWL clubs. One can hope that his efforts are able to take these girls to heights of success and give Indian football a new dimension.
Israil Gurung has won the I-league with Churchill Bros, had stints in Portugal for the second division, and is currently a winger doing his AFCB license course. He was with FC Pune City for three years in the ISL.
The village of Jaigon is a remote one with very little infrastructure; most families hail from lower economic strata. Amidst widespread apprehension among parents about allowing girls into the game, Israil Gurung has been working against several odds to train these girls.
He was quoted saying, “The biggest challenge here is to convince the parents that the game can be pursued along with studies and they will have bright future only if they balance both. Most of the children here are drop outs from school (since their parents cannot afford it) and end up working as unskilled laborers. I try my level best to put them back to school so that they can come for regular practice, but it is always difficult because of the limited resources we have. I am thankful to a few people who have been helping me for the past years now and the FPAI for all their support. The road ahead is difficult but we will keep trying.”
Gurung has been training around 55 children in total, and has already sent four girls for trials with IWL clubs. One can hope that his efforts are able to take these girls to heights of success and give Indian football a new dimension.
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