Chuni ever hungry for goals: Arumai

BENGALURU: "Tuumi sab goal korechu. Ami goal kore ne. Tumi pass do, Ami goal korbo," these were the captain's words that rang in the ears of former India player Arumainayagam when he heard about the demise of his skipper Chuni Goswami.Recalling his golden days in Indian football alongside Goswami, Arumainayagam, who was in the 1962 Asian Games gold medal winning squad in Jakarta, said the skipper was always hungry to score goals. "He scored many goals. If he hadn’t scored a goal while someone else in the side had, then he used to say this to us in Bengali which meant ‘You have scored a goal, I’m yet to score one, why don’t you give me a pass so that I’ll score one," the veteran player recalled.Recalling the trip to Jakarta for the Asiad, Arumainayagam said: "We were not sure to make that trip as we had not got the clearance from New Delhi. But our captain Chuni Goswami asked us to be ready. We all wore our blazers and waited and finally, the clearance came and we flew from Calcutta to Jakarta."Arumainayagam, who wore Mohun Bagan colours for eight years and was known as Orumai in Kolkata, said some of the best moments came when the team won the big titles. "Those days we won three Durand Cup titles and also the Rovers Cup. The Durand Cup was the most prestigious tournament as the Cup was given away by the President of India," he said.The Bengalurean, famous for his speedy runs down the left flank, said he considered himself lucky to play alongside the likes of Chuni Goswami, PK Banerjee and Tulsidas Balram. "Today is a sad moment for Indian football," he said.