Desiballers issue five

NEW SEASONRENEWED HOPEIT HAS been almost a month since the end of the World Cup, leaving fans with

plenty of time to fill the void before the domestic season gets underway.

Some fans have been watching other sports to keep themselves occupied while

others are engrossed in the endless rumours and reports of their favourite

players either joining or leaving their clubs. But the wait is almost over and soon

all the attention will turn to the action on the pitch.

Like any new season, it is a chance for players and teams to start fresh; to banish

the disappointment of the last campaign, to build on the promise or to simply

keep setting new goals for further success.

Here at Desiballers, we enjoy following the highs and lows of the players from the

south Asian communities in Britain and Europe playing in the professional

leagues as well as at the top end of the non-league scene.

Of course, the number of ballers of south Asian origin isn’t great and most people

would say that not much is being done to address this. Of course, the Football

Association is trying to address the lack of visibility and presence of Asians in

Football and will be hosting a number of consultation forums across the country

in August and September.

But we try to play our part by highlighting the individuals plying their trade in

football, be it full time or part time, all for the purpose of increasing visibility and

awareness. We also want to acknowledge those players who have, in spite of the

odds being against them, and show our communities we do have representation,

albeit a small one.

As always, keep up with all the latest news and interviews on

www.desiballers.com, follow us on twitter and check out and like our Facebook

page. You can also drop us a line at [email protected]. We love to hear your

thoughts and opinions.

Thanks for reading and whether you're a player or a supporter, all the best for the

new season!

Team DB

THE PROFESSIONALS

HERE WEGO AGAINIT IS the start of another football season

and yet the same questions are being

asked about the lack of south Asian

players in the game.

But we’l l leave that debate for another day

and instead focus on those players who wil l

be plying their trade at al l levels of the game.

At the time of writing, there are a number of

players who are sti l l on trial with clubs and

sorting out their futures so we are unable to

put together a comprehensive l ist.

But rest assured, as and when news is

confirmed, we wil l be updating you guys on

www.desibal lers.com and on our social media

channels on twitter and Facebook.

But there are a few players we can focus on

and we’l l start in the Premier League, where

Neil Taylor wil l be looking to reclaim his place

as Swansea City’s no.1 left back fol lowing the

departure of Ben Davies to Tottenham.

Taylor had played second fiddle to his Welsh

compatriot for much of last season and there

was speculation that he would be leaving

Wales to seek his future elsewhere.

But with Davies heading to Spurs, Taylor now

has a chance to prove his worth and regain the

form he showed before dislocating his ankle in

September 201 2.

Another player who has had to battle back from

injury is Adil Nabi, who has got back on to the

pitch after a lengthy lay-off fol lowing a knee

injury suffered in pre-season last year.

The striker is hoping to fol low in the footsteps of

Saido Berahino and break into the West

Bromwich Albion first team.

Adil ’s younger brother Samir Nabi was given a

one-year professional contract and though he

may not be an obvious choice for the first team,

but a repeat of his good form for the Under 21 s

may have manager Alan Irvine taking a punt on

the 1 8-year-old.

In the Championship, Danny Batth wil l be

looking to use the success of last season’s

promotion winning season to challenge for

promotion in the Championship.

Wolves were runaway leaders at the top of

League One to gain promotion back to the

Championship at the firs time of asking. Batth

was one of the standout players and part of one

of the meanest defences in the country.

League One sees Malvind Benning hoping to

build on the last campaign in which he was

named Walsal l ’s young player of the year. The

left-back even bagged a couple of goals andhis

focus wil l be to help the Saddlers to promotion

Meanwhile Josh Shama wil l be enjoying a

second season at League Two side Oxford

United since turning pro back in 201 2. The

attacking midfielder hasn’t yet featured for the

first team but did make the bench for a couple

of FA Cup ties last season and has been ever-

present during pre-season.

Into the Conference and Jasbir Singh and

Aman Verma have signed deals for

Kidderminster Harriers with the aim of going for

promotion to League Two. Singh enjoyed four

solid seasons with Solihul l Moors but made the

move back to Harriers showing intent of his

ambition for success. Verma was signed by the

club towards the back end of last season and

has decided to stay for another year.

Other players who wil l be featuring this season

include Shabir Khan (Worcester City), Indy

Aujla (Boston United), Amar Purewal

(Darl ington), Arjun Purewal (Durham City), Jey

Siva (Grays Athletic), Atif Bashir (Barry Town),

Bilal Butt (Burnham) and Raajan Gil l

(Tamworth).

PROMOTION CHASER

6

THE PROFESSIONALS

TWO PROMOTIONS in three

seasons; most players would

be satsified with achieving

such a feat just once.

But Jey Siva is rel ishing a new

challenge and is targeting a third

promotion after joining Grays

Athletic of the Ryman Premier

League.

The left-back was part of the

Wealdstone FC team who were

the runaway leaders of the

Ryman Premier League last

season. They wil l be playing in

the Conference South this

season but Siva made the tough

decision to leave the Stones

after a successful season.

"Grays Athletic is a massive club

with great history which is very

close to my house and work,"

Siva told Desibal lers.

"When the opportunity came

around to play for Grays I had to

go for it. The manager, Jody

Brown, is very ambitious and he

wil l take this club forward. I 'm

gutted to have left Wealdstone

but due to work commitments

and travell ing distances I had to

depart. "

Siva added: "I want to win the

league again but realistical ly

pushing for play offs.

Nevertheless, Grays wil l benefit

from having someone like Siva

in their ranks, who has a knack

for winning trophies. He has

been an ever-present member

of the Indian Gymkhana/SS

Hounslow who have dominated

the summer tournaments in

recent years.

"I definitely believe that a

winning mental ity and

experience goes a long way in

this league. There are a lot of

talented players in this league

who do not show enough desire

and hunger to win. In our

changing room, everyone is

pul l ing in the right direction."

Siva has spent a few seasons in

non-league football and believes

his game has come on a lot,

especial ly playing alongside

former professionals.

"My game has developed a lot

especial ly over the last season

at Wealdstone. We had five ex-

pros playing for us and every

week I learned something new.

"One person who took me under

his wing and influenced my

game was Glen Little. I had

many discussions with him

about improving my game.

"I 'm looking forward to playing

with him again at Grays."

Anyone who has played with or

against Siva wil l be aware of his

abil ity to provide assists with

that trusty leg peg of his, so

would he prefer a more

advanced role or is he satisfied

playing at left-back?

"I 'm comfortable playing left

back and that's where I want to

play. I would obviously do a job

at left mid if it would bring

something to the team."

Siva and Grays kick off their

season away to Bil lericay Town

on Saturday 9th August before

entertaining Margate on the

fol lowing Wednesday. Follow

Siva on twitter: @Jey_Siva

IT IS the start of another football season

and yet the same questions are being

asked about the lack of south Asian

players in the game.

But we’l l leave that debate for another day

and instead focus on those players who wil l

be plying their trade at al l levels of the game.

At the time of writing, there are a number of

players who are sti l l on trial with clubs and

sorting out their futures so we are unable to

put together a comprehensive l ist.

But rest assured, as and when news is

confirmed, we wil l be updating you guys on

www.desibal lers.com and on our social media

channels on twitter and Facebook.

But there are a few players we can focus on

and we’l l start in the Premier League, where

Neil Taylor wil l be looking to reclaim his place

as Swansea City’s no.1 left back fol lowing the

departure of Ben Davies to Tottenham.

Taylor had played second fiddle to his Welsh

compatriot for much of last season and there

was speculation that he would be leaving

Wales to seek his future elsewhere.

PROMOTION CHASER

PROMOTION CHASER

Jey Siva's not the only player to win trophies in recent years. Here'sfour guys who have league and cup winning medal in their collection

ANWAR UDDIN2006­7 ­ DAG & REDNationwide Conferencewinners2009­10 ­ DAG & REDLeague Two play­off finalwinners

AMAN VERMA2010­11 ­ DARLINGTONFA TROPHY championswinners

DANNY BATTH2013­14 WOLVESLEAGUE ONE champions

ZESH REHMAN2012 ­ KITCHEE SCHKFA 1st div champions, HK Leaguecup, FA Cup2013 ­ KITCHEE SCFA Cup2014 ­ PAHANG FACharity Shield champions, FA Cup

THE PROFESSIONALS

8

WHEN the idea of putting together the ultimate Desiballers XI was first mooted,there was a thought that it wouldn’t take long to put together a list.In fact, most people would struggle to name a five­a­side team of players from asouth Asian background let alone a team of 11!But having put in hours of research and looked back at the players we havecovered on both the desiballers blog and website, we’ve finally cracked it – wethink.So have a look at our squad over the next couple of pages and let us know yourthoughts ­ [email protected] or on twitter: @desiballers

10

NON LEAGUE BALLERS

THE 23-year-old was a constant

fixture in the Solihul l Moors first team

and notched up over 1 50

appearances for the Conference

North side. Singh has been a solid

shot stopper and became an instant

fan favourite. Singh has rejoined

Kidderminster Harriers for the new

season as they aim for promotion to

the Football League.

THE defensive midfielder-cum-

right-back began his career in the

youth ranks of Ipswich Town and

Wolverhampton before seeking his

fortune in the States. He played in

the North American Soccer League

(NASL) between 1 972-1 978, taking

on the l ikes of Eusebio, Pele,

Bobby moore and Franz

Beckenbauer. Verdi helped St

Louis Stars win the NASL Central

Division Championship in 1 975.

HAVING captained West Ham to

glory in the FA Youth Cup in 1 999,

Uddin went in search of first team

football elsewhere. A serious injury

took him out of the game for 1 8

months but the powerful defender

rebuilt his career, heading into non-

league football . He skippered

Dagenham and Redbridge to

Conference national success and led

them to the Football League. Later

on he joined Barnet FC where he

was given the captain's armband.

THE Birmingham-born defender

has etched his name in the

history books, having been the

first south Asian footballer to

play in al l four professional

divisions in England. Rehman

has international experience,

captaining Pakistan and has

also advanced his playing days

with a move to Asia where he

has played in Thailand, Hong

Kong and now Malaysia with

Pahang FA.

BORN in Denmark, the man

with one of the deadliest left

pegs in non-league football has

steadily risen up the pyramid.

Siva has achieved two

promotions in three seasons

with two different clubs; Enfield

Town and Wealdstone. This

summer he made the move to

Grays Athletic in the Ryman

Premier, hoping to once again

taste promotion success with

the Essex-based club.

HE dazzled the fans and the

opposition with his skil ls while

playing for the l ikes of Preston

North End, Leyton Orient and

Crystal Palace during the

tough old days in the 1 970s.

Heppolette was born in

Bhusewal, India and amongst

the many highl ights in his

career was helping PNE win

the old Third Division

championship in the

1 970-71 season.

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NON LEAGUE BALLERS

THE Birmingham-born defender

has etched his name in the

history books, having been the

first south Asian footballer to

play in al l four professional

divisions in England. Rehman

has international experience,

captaining Pakistan and has

also advanced his playing days

with a move to Asia where he

has played in Thailand, Hong

Kong and now Malaysia with

Pahang FA.

BORN in Denmark, the man

with one of the deadliest left

pegs in non-league football has

steadily risen up the pyramid.

Siva has achieved two

promotions in three seasons

with two different clubs; Enfield

Town and Wealdstone. This

summer he made the move to

Grays Athletic in the Ryman

Premier, hoping to once again

taste promotion success with

the Essex-based club.

BEGINNING his youth career at

Manchester United, Ahmed

played for the l ikes of

Huddersfield Town, Tranmere

Rovers and Port Vale. And he

also showed he wasn’t afraid to

leave home, playing for

Hungarian giants Ferencvaros as

well as Abomoslem FC in Iran.

The midfielder also plays for the

Pakistan national team, making

his debut in a World Cup qualifier

against Iraq in October 2007.

FOUR promotions in five seasons

sounds pretty impressive doesn’t

it? I t’s what Iqbal achieved during

his time with Farsley Celtic in

non-league football while

combining his time as a science

lecturer at Bradford college. Iqbal

has had a fairly successful career

in semi-pro football , also playing

for Bradford Park Avenue. He has

also played international footbal l

for Pakistan, l ike Ahmed, making

his debut against Iraq.

HE was the first player of Indian

origin to play at the World Cup

finals when he represented

France in the 2006 FIFA World

Cup finals in Germany. Dhorasoo

featured for some of Europe’s

biggest clubs including Lyon, AC

Milan and Paris Saint-Germain

and won a few trophies along the

way including the Ligue 1 title

twice with Lyon and the French

Cup at Lyon and Paris Saint-

Germain. He is also a

campaigner for human rights.

HUSSAIN had a brief spell at Old

Trafford as part of the

Manchester United youth team.

The 21 -year-old has been an

important player for Molde FK in

recent years and helped them

win both the Norwegian League

title as well as the Norwegian cup

in consecutive seasons.

Hussain's flair and skil l has made

him a standout player in Norway

and with time on his side, he

could add a few more trophies

and medals to his col lection.

BEFORE his recent, well-

publicised troubles, Chopra was

a lethal force on the pitch,

scoring goals for fun. A proper

goal poacher, he scored one of

the fastest goals in the Premier

League, bagging the winner

against Spurs for Sunderland 1 5

seconds after coming on as a

substitute. He also bagged a few

goals for Cardiff City in the

Championship and made his

Champions League debut for

Newcastle against Barcelona.

12

13

14

ANY SPORTSMAN or woman

who has suffered a potentially

career-ending injury knows it

takes real mental toughness

to return to the pitch and get

back to full throttle.

Monica Sharma was on the

verge of taking her football to

bigger things but an ACL rupture

took her out of the game for

nearly two years. Here began

the dark days where Sharma

thought about giving up the

game she loved. But each day

which passed by during the

rehabil itation period, so grew the

urge to return to the pitch and

give it another go.

Sharma joined FA Women’s

Premier League (southern

region) side Chesham United

last summer after a successful

trial with the club.

In an exclusive interview with

Desibal lers, Sharma, who has

since joined Tottenham Hotspur

Ladies, talks about how she got

into the game, taking inspiration

from Liverpool legend Jamie

Carragher and maintaining a

balance on and off the field.

How did you get into football?I was near enough born into

Football . My family, especial ly

my dad and uncles were

devoted Liverpool fans. So firstly

I had no choice but to support

them, and secondly watching

anything else on television was

never an option. The men in my

family used to play for a local

Sunday team, currently known

as Indian Gymkhana FC.

Attending either home or away

games, or even the summer

Asian tournaments, we as a

family would always go down to

support them. Alongside this,

the joy of playing on the streets

with neighbouring kids was

where my passion for footbal l

began.

When did you go from playingin the back garden/park toplaying for a team?Beginning of secondary school

was when I decided to take the

next step of playing for a team.

With the help of my PE

teachers, I was playing for

Middlesex County Girls where I

real ised for the first time how

much potential I had and how

tough this would be, both

mental ly and physical ly. But that

just shows it’s crucial to receive

the right guidance at an early

age. I t doesn’t necessari ly have

to be your family, which in my

case were my PE teachers.

What has been your biggestachievement in football?Playing in the FA Women’s

Premier League! Especial ly after

a serious injury two years ago

and thinking at the time that’s

the end of my football ing days.

Coming back last summer and

competing at one of the highest

levels in Women’s footbal l is

definitely my biggest

achievement

You can read the full interview

with Monica Sharma by

visiting www.desiballers.com

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