‘Railways are tough to beat’

But this time around Joshi is representing Delhi in the Santosh Trophy and will find himself lining up against his current employers and former team mates on the opening day of the tournament. “Railways will come hard at us in the opener. They are a tough bunch to compete against,but this time we are prepared,” says the defender.

Having played for the Railways Joshi is keen to share his insider’s knowledge with his team mates. “I have been watching the likes of Mohun Bagan’s Sangram Mukherjee and their primary stopper Amrit Raja from close quarters during my Railways’ days. This is my trump card as I know how they play the game. But one must refrain from getting over confident,” the 29-year-old adds.

Joshi declined to play for his employers this season.

The inter-Railways tournament,which used to double up as the official selections for the Railways team,was called off. In its place,they conducted the open trials selection process for the first time,one which Joshi was forced to reject due to the new addition to his family.

“Six months back,my first child was born and I could not leave Delhi for long durations of time. I was invited by the North Eastern Railways coach Bhuvnesh Ghildiyal for a month-long camp. It wasn’t easy for me to reject his offer,but under the circumstances I had to say no,” he says.

The first time father asserts that playing for Delhi will not jeopardise his job with Railways. “Whether I win with Delhi or any other state,Railways will always be my first home,” the ticket collector adds.

Joshi suggests that his approach to the game won’t be anything out of the ordinary. “The most important thing is to go into every match with the same amount of intensity. Railways is the just the first game,but three points against them will be a big confidence booster. It will be invaluable to our hopes to advance further,” he concludes.