Balaidas Chatterjee (in extreme right) with the Indian team at the 1948 London Olympics
Personal information
Date of birth
(1900-03-10)10 March 1900
Date of death
1974
Position(s)
Defender
Senior career*
Years
Team
Apps
(Gls)
1921–1927
Mohun Bagan
1927–1930
Aryan Club
Managerial career
?–1948
Mohun Bagan
1948
India
1949–1959
Bengal
1953–1954
India
1960s
Mohun Bagan (team manager)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals
Balaidas Chatterjee (Bengali: বলাইদাস চ্যাটার্জি; 10 March 1900 – 1974)[1][2] was an Indian footballer and football manager, who played predominantly as defender. He became the first head coach of the India national team and guided them at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London.[3][4] During his playing days, Chatterjee played for Mohun Bagan in various domestic competitions.[5][6]
On 29 July 2013, it was announced that Chatterjee would receive the Mohun Bagan Ratna posthumously for his achievements while at the club.[7]
Playing career
[edit]
Chatterjee was brought up and coached by legendary Dukhiram Majumder, founder of Aryans.[8][9][10][11] He joined then Calcutta Football League side Mohun Bagan in 1921 and was part of the "golden era" of the club during British rule in India.[5] Being a multi-sports personality, he was a tough guy on field, known for giving a "fitting reply" to the Europeans during matches.[5] In 1923, they participated at the Rovers Cup in Bombay and defeated several English teams to reach the final, the first Indian team to do so,[12][13] but went down 4–1 to a technically superior team 2nd Battalion of Durham Light Infantry.[14][15] They later defeated Calcutta' FC (the oldest football club in India with having Europeans in squad) for the first time in the return leg of Calcutta Football League.[5] In 1925, his team became the first civilian Indian team to be invited in the historic Durand Cup, where they were defeated by Sherwood Foresters in semi-finals.[16][17]
Chatterjee played for the club successfully as center half in 2–3–5 formation throughout his career.[5] In the 1930s, He represented Mohun Bagan in multiple tournaments alongside some of club's legendary players — Karuna Bhattacharya,[18] Syed Abdus Samad,[19][20] Umapati Kumar,[21] Sanmatha Dutta, Bimal Mukherjee, and Satu Chowdhury.[22] After leaving Mohun Bagan, he appeared with Aryan, one of the oldest clubs in the city.[5]
As referee
[edit]
After retirement, he went on to become match referee and officiated numerous football matches between Indian and visiting European teams.[5]
Managerial career
[edit]
Mohun Bagan
[edit]
Chatterjee began his managerial career as trainer cum head coach in his former club Mohun Bagan and guided the team in Calcutta Football League until joining the Indian team in 1948. He later served as secretary of the club.[23] Under his leadership, youth department of Mohun Bagan was set up in 1944.[23] During his tenure, Sheoo Mewalal signed with and played for "the mariners".[24]
India: 1948 Summer Olympics
[edit]
After gaining independence from Great Britain in 1947, India sent a football team to the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, England.[25][26][27] Chatterjee became head coach of India and he had prepared the team that defeated Department Store XI 15–0 on 13 July, and Metropolitan Police F.C. 3–1 on 16 July. As part of preparation, they toured to Europe and went on to defeat English teams, Pinner F.C. 9–1 on 24 July, Hayes F.C. 4–1 on 26 July, and Alexandra Park FC 8–2 on 28 July.[28][29][30][31]
In the main tournament, their first match was against Burma, but the game was a walkover. India played their one and only match of the tournament against France,[32] in which Chatterjee was the head coach of the Indian side. India lost the match 2–1 through goals from René Courbin and René Persillon, with the Indian goal coming from Sarangapani Raman.[33][34][35] His team was having some legendary footballers of the country, captain Talimeren Ao,[36][37] Sailen Manna,[38][39] Sheoo Mewalal,[40][41] Mahabir Prasad,[42][43] and Ahmed Khan.[44][45] After the tournament, Indian footballers' bravery and brilliance in bare feet, earned them admiration of Princess Margaret, younger sister of Queen Elizabeth II.[46][47][48]
India later went on to play few friendly matches in their Nederlands tour, where they went down to Sparta Rotterdam, but managed to win 5–1 against Ajax Amsterdam.[49][50]
India: 1953–54
[edit]
Chatterjee again took charge of India in 1953 and managed the team in Asian Quadrangular Football Tournament in Rangoon. India won title as few new faces like Amal Dutta,[51] Anthony Patrick, and Chandan Singh Rawat.[52] got the opportunity to play.[53][54][55]
Mohun Bagan
[edit]
He was associated with Mohun Bagan in the 1950s and 60s, and mentored some of India's notable footballers, predominantly Chuni Goswami,[56][57][58][59] and Kajal Mukherjee.[60] When Arun Sinha became coach, Chatterjee became team manager of the club. In the 1960s, the club won Calcutta Football League, IFA Shield and Durand Cup multiple times.[61] He was in the team management of Mohun Bagan, and was part of Jarnail Singh led team that toured to East Africa and played matches in Uganda, Kenya, Zanzibar and Tanganyika.[62][63]
Bengal: Santosh Trophy
[edit]
Chatterjee became coach of Bengal football team in 1949.[5] He trained players for the Santosh Trophy, one of the prestigious tournaments in the country.[64] With Bengal, he won six Santosh Trophies between 1949 and 1959,[5] and groomed players like Sailen Manna,[65] Sheoo Mewalal, P. K. Banerjee.[66]
^Kapadia, Novy (7 June 2015). "Mohun Bagan: Blaze of Glory". indianexpress.com. The Indian Express. Archived from the original on 22 February 2016. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
^Webdesk, Xtratime Bangla (21 April 2020). "ভাইপোকে পোস্টে বেঁধে লাথি মেরে ছিলেন স্যার দুখিরাম মজুমদার…" [Sir Dukhiram Majumdar tied his nephew to a post and kicked him...]. xtratimebangla.in (in Bengali). Kolkata: Xtratime Bangla. Archived from the original on 21 October 2022. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
^Dasgupta, Biplab (11 October 2020). "প্রসঙ্গঃ স্যার দুখীরাম মজুমদার" [Context: Sir Dukhiram Majumdar]. justnews24x7official.com (in Bengali). Kolkata: Just News 24×7. Archived from the original on 21 October 2022. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
^Bhattacharya, Ayan (10 September 2023). "বাংলা ভাগের ক্ষত কিভাবে বিষিয়ে দিল মোহনবাগান আর ইস্টবেঙ্গলকে?" [How did the wound of the partition of Bengal poisoned both Mohun Bagan and East Bengal?]. inscript.me (in Bengali). Kolkata: ইনস্ক্রিপ্ট বাংলা নিউজ. Archived from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
^"Player: Sheoo Mewalal". ifawb.com. Kolkata: Indian Football Association. Archived from the original on 27 November 2022. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
^Das Sharma, Amitabha (15 March 2012). "A natural leader — Sailen Manna". sportstar.thehindu.com. Kolkata, West Bengal: Sportstar. Archived from the original on 22 October 2021. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
^Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Mahabir Prasad Olympic Results". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 December 2012. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
^Dutta, Prasenjit (22 May 2022). "ময়দানের তৃতীয় নয়ন" [The Third Eye of Kolkata Maidan]. prohor.in (in Bengali). Kolkata: Prohor News. Archived from the original on 5 February 2023. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
Sen, Dwaipayan (2013). "Wiping the Stain Off the Field of Plassey: Mohun Bagan in 1911". In Bandyopadhyay, Kausik; Mallick, Sabyasachi (eds.). Fringe Nations in World Soccer. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-99810-5.
Sen, Ronojoy (2015). "The Empire Strikes Back: The 1911 IFA Shield and Football in Calcutta". Nation at Play: A History of Sport in India. Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-16490-0.
Guha, Chandak (5 September 2019). "ইংরেজরাও ভয় পেত বাংলার প্রথম কিংবদন্তি ফুটবল কোচকে" [The Englishmen too feared Bengal's legendary first football coach]. bongodorshon.com (in Bengali). Kolkata: Bongodorshon Information Desk. Archived from the original on 8 September 2023. Retrieved 24 October 2022.
Ahmed, Rasel (1 February 2019). "জাদুকর সামাদ: বাংলার একজন অতিমানব" [Magician Samad: The Wizard from Bengal]. roar.media (in Bengali). Dhaka: Roar Media News. Archived from the original on 17 January 2021. Retrieved 17 December 2023.