KOLHAPUR, June 28: Polo might be known as the `royal' sport in India, but Kolhapur's king favours a different game altogether: he is a soccer fan from the top of his head down to the soles of his feet. In fact, Srimant Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj - scion of the erstwhile Maratha kingdom - is so football-crazy that he turned the royal polo grounds into four soccer fields. And of course he never skips a soccer game, even if it is just a bunch of school children playing.In the Chhatrapati Shahu Vidyalaya, the school patronised by the Kolhapur royal family, soccer is part of the curriculum from Class V onwards. There is even a full-fledged royal team, one of the 33 clubs in a town which seems to be obsessed with soccer. ``This love for soccer is not new. The game has been nurtured since the days of prince Shivaji, the younger son of the 19th century social reformer king of Kolhapur, Rajarishi Shahu Maharaj,'' says Shahu Maharaj.His father, Srimant Shahaji Maharaj, was also a keen soccer player. It wasduring the days of Shahaji that the `Jai Bhavani' soccer team, patronised by the palace, was formed. Since then, several soccer teams have come up in Kolhapur.Rajendra Dalvi, secretary of the Kolhapur Football Association (KFA), attributes the rise of the game to the royal patronage received. ``Ever since the polo grounds of the royal family were turned into football fields and the game made a part of the Chhatrapati Shahu Vidyalaya curriculum, children, especially of this school, have been acquainting themselves with the finer nuances of the game,'' says Dalvi.Besides, members of the Royal Jai Bhavani team receive an honorarium of Rs 100 for every match as an incentive. The kits are provided free of cost to the players. The royal initiative has paid rich dividends. In 1991, a Kolhapur lad, Richie Fernandez, represented India juniors in an international tournament in Malaysia. Dalvi says there will be many more.The town has already seen some 20 local lads representing Maharashtra in sometournament or the other. ``This season the team played nearly 30 matches. Though our team did not win the Shahu Trophy tournament, they got the necessary exposure as teams from Goa, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh also participated.''While there is initiative and infrastructure, funds remain a problem. According to Dalvi, most teams in the district depend on donations. A scheme to procure sponsorships for teams from sugar co-operatives and industries has been drafted jointly by the football and sports associations.
