Joginder Singh, a name synonymous with Indian hockey's golden era, wasn't just a talented player; he was a magician with a hockey stick. Born in Delhi, his journey took him to the bustling city of Kolkata, where he left an indelible mark on the sport.
Join us as we delve into the life and times of this hockey legend, exploring his achievements, his impact on the sport, and his enduring legacy.
The Kolkata Connection:
For a couple of years, hockey was abandoned by East Bengal and Mohun Bagan. They did not form a team. Now, they have returned to hockey. But once upon a time, the Calcutta ground was different. East Bengal and Mohun Bagan gave importance to hockey along with football. The officials of that time also thought about hockey. The galleries were packed with spectators when East Bengal and Mohun Bagan played hockey. In 1958, Jatindra Charan Guha was impressed by the stick-art of a nineteen-year-old Sikh player in Delhi. He offered him to play for East Bengal the following year. Due to personal problems, the young Sikh could not come to play in Kolkata. But he did not escape J.C. Guha's attention. He brought him two years later in 1961. With this agreement, Joginder Singh came to play for East Bengal in 1961 with accommodation in Kolkata for three months and a hand-me-down of 50 rupees. He left his job in Northern Railway and joined Delhi Customs.
After playing for East Bengal for two years, he joined Mohun Bagan in 1963. During the hockey season, he would take a three-month leave from Delhi to play in Kolkata. At the end of the season, he would return to Delhi. In 1964, he returned to East Bengal and also to Kolkata, where he had left his job at Delhi Customs and moved permanently. After coming to this city, he was unemployed for a few months. After the hockey league ended, he joined the South Eastern Railway. From that job, he played for BNR from 1965. He continued until 1972. Later, he also played for Howrah Union and ‘Khalsa Blues’. Tired of age, one of the best right-outs of all time in India was a back. He was old, his speed was not what it used to be. Still, he enjoyed the game to the fullest. Before leaving Delhi and coming to Kolkata, he had played in an Olympics. Still, Joginder had a special attraction to Kolkata, not Delhi.
“As a child, I played hockey, cricket, and football. My father's (Sajjan Singh) first choice was hockey. This was the first reason for me to get into hockey. And the second reason was my strong desire to travel abroad. I have loved flying since I was a child. I used to see in the paper that the Indian hockey team occasionally goes to play abroad. I thought that if I could learn the game of hockey well and get into the Indian team once, I would be able to travel abroad frequently. I wouldn't have to spend any money on myself”.
International Acclaim
The very first opportunity to travel abroad by plane came to him in the year of 1959. He went on a tour of East Africa. A new player in the national team, Joginder scored 8 goals on that tour. India won all 26 matches he played on that tour. He last played for India in 1967 in Madrid, in the Nation of international hockey. India became the champion there. That is, both the beginning and the end for India were good for Joginder. His international hockey career lasted 9 years. However, he could not be in the Indian team continuously during that time. For example, he played in the Olympics in 1960 and 1964. India won silver in the first and gold in the second. Although he was in the Indian team that won the silver in the 1962 Asian Games, he was not in the team that won the gold in 1966. Although he was sometimes a victim of politics, he was left out of the 1966 Asian Games team for a completely different reason. He fell and injured himself during the camp. His contemporary Gurbax Singh has said many times, ‘The hockey stick was like a magic wand to Joginder.’
At one time, the forward line of South Eastern Railway was like this: Mushtaq, G.D. Singh, Piara, Abdul Hamid, Joginder. Like the Panch Pandavas of East Bengal in football, they were called the Panch Pandavas of South Eastern Railway hockey. That forward line was a terror to any team at that time. Joginder’s stick was a touch of fine art. It was as if he drew pictures on the green field with a ball and a stick. A story heard from Abdul Hamid, ‘If Joginder Singh could, he would even cut his own team members. Once we played against Bhilai Steel. On the first day, we did not score a goal, because Joginder kept more ball on his stick. On the morning of the replay, we started hitting his legs with sticks. So that he could not run much on the field. He got angry at the injury from that hit. He said, "I won't play." We forced him onto the field. The results were also obtained. He couldn't run that much with the ball. He was releasing the ball after passing two or three people. We won the match by three goals."
Former player and international umpire Sushanta Dey told a story many years ago, ‘1972-73, Inter-Rail Hockey in Delhi. In the semi-final, we (Eastern Railway) were leading by one goal in Joginder's match against South Eastern Railway. Desperate to avenge the goal, Joginder took a hard hit. The ball hit my ankle directly. I was immediately out of the field. Of course, we won the match with that one goal. But what happened to me was what happened. My feet swelled up. From that evening onwards, Joginder started taking care of me. He took a tube of red German medicine and massaged my feet till 2 am. Despite his efforts, I could not play in the final the next day. Joginder was full of regrets about this.’ Joginder watched the final match sitting next to Sushanta. He tried to console him.
After leaving the game, he umpired. He also came to coach. He also passed the NIS in the first division in 1972. He coached the junior Indian team several times. In the 1985 Junior World Cup, in the 1987 Junior Asia Cup, in the 1988 Junior Indian team's tour of Russia. In between, he was the junior national selector in 1986. A strange incident happened in 1987. At that time, Joginder was the coach of both the teams - BNR and East Bengal. Both those teams reached the final of the Beighton Cup. Always a cheerful, lively Joginder handled that strange situation with a smile. In the final, BNR defeated East Bengal, 2-1. That was Bengal-Nagpur Railways’ last Beighton Cup triumph.
Along with hockey, Joginder had also been involved in football for a long time. He was born in Delhi on August 3, 1939. He spent his childhood and adolescence in Delhi playing football, cricket and hockey. When he joined Aligarh University after completing his studies there, he was still a keen football player. He also played for Aligarh University in the All India Inter-University Football. He started playing sports while studying at S.B. Higher Secondary School in Delhi. He started playing domestic hockey in Delhi for the Invaders Club (the junior team of Khalsa Blues). He went to play for Delhi in the National School Games in Pune in 1955. That was the first time he went outside Delhi to play. He died on November 6, 2002 after suffering from kidney disease for a long time.
The Lasting Legacy
Two and a half years before his death, I went to the South Eastern Railway quarters in Garden Reach to do an interview (which was published in the newspaper 'Hockey Darpan'). He was ill at the time and under house arrest. But the memories of childhood did not fade. He said,
"No one in our family ever played sports. Everyone was busy with business. However, my father encouraged me to play hockey a lot. When I was in school, a hockey stick cost four annas. I would run from home to school in Connaught Place instead of taking a car. I would save money by eating less tiffin. I would buy sticks, balls and sports clothes with that money. My mother (Pritam Kaur) would also complain a lot about it."
