PUNE: What would you say if you are asked to describe the day-to-day life of a 19-year-old in the city? The first few things that would spring to mind would be college, parties, movies and the like. But none of these apply to
Ameya Argade
who at that age is forging his reputation as one of the most qualified young coaches the city has to offer. The scrawny lad from
Dr. Kalmadi Shamrao High School
(
KHS
) has already acquired the English FA Level 1 and Level 2 licences, the
AFC Goalkeeping Level 1 Licence
and the AFC `C' Licence. He is considered the youngest person in India to have acquired the latter at the age of 18 years and 1 month.
But how did it all start for Ameya?
“A lot of people told me that you cannot make a career out of this so I desperately wanted to prove them wrong,“ he said. “Fourteen out of 15 people told me to not take it seriously but that one remaining person would encourage me to carry on and that's what kept me going.“
Taking up a career in sports is still frowned upon by many an Indian family and it was no different when Ameya made his intentions clear to his parents. They accepted his decision to drop out of college and were willing to go the distance alongside him, evidenced by the lakhs they spent in the registration fees for the licences and it is all bearing fruit now judging by the strides he has made.
“Initially my parents were obviously quite skeptical when I told them about pursuing a career in football but when they saw my progress they gave me their full support,“ he said. “Right from packing my lunch to dropping me off to the centre during my licences, they have put in a lot of effort.“
Their effort has not gone to waste as Ameya is a coach in demand, having coached at his alma mater (KHS) and currently training the kids at Orchid School in the morning before doing it again with the Beta Academy in the evening.Before preaching to his wards about the importance of fitness and diet, Ameya himself hits the gym before starting work and follows a strict food regimen. He's not doing too bad financially either and is looking ahead to the journey rather than regretting past decisions.
“I want to work as an assistant coach at a big Indian club to gain as much knowledge as I can from the head coach and getting higher coaching qualifications concurrently ,“ said Ameya.
Having played for over five years as a goalkeeper in the PDFA leagues, Ameya noticed some glaring flaws in the Indian football selection system which made him realise the need for improved coaching and more qualified persons being in the selection process.
“I realised that we needed better qualified coaches and that is when I took the first step in my coaching journey by enrolling for the `D' Licence,“ he added. “A good player might become part of a revolution but a good coach can start the revolution which is why I chose to become a coach.“
Ameya has set his sights on mixing it with the big boys having accumulated valuable experience working with the likes of Bharat FC Soccer Schools (Nashik) and Parshuramians SC.
Despite all the structural uncertainty , Indian football is experiencing a boom at present and this a perfect time for young, enthusiastic and most importantly , highly-qualified coaches like Ameya to enter this brave new world.
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