EDITORIAL
It's time for another edition of the " School Tie " .
We have tried to put together material which has as much " Marian" content as
possible and we would like to thank all the alumini who have helped us do so .
Thanks, chaps, and keep up the good work !
We would also like to thank Fr. Evarist Newnes, Principal, St.Mary's for the
support he has provided to Association activities in School ; it would be
difficult to carry out any school -related activity without such help.
We all owe a lot to St.Mary's. If there is any way YOU could help St.Mary's and
/or Marians , do get in touch with us/Fr.Newnes.
Bimal Goculdas (bgoculdas @hotmail.com)
Deepak Mehta (deepakmehta11@hotmail.com)
PRINCIPAL’S ADDRESS AND REPORT FOR THE YEAR 2000-2001 ( Abridged )
Good evening, Ladies and Gentlemen and my dear students. On the occasion of the Annual Awards Day, I consider it my privilege to welcome all of you in the audience. I now present the school report for the academic year 2000- 2001.
After an orientation programme for the teaching staff, by a team of
Professors from St. Xavier's Institute of Education, we welcomed the students to
a new academic year on June 05, 2001. As the issue of the Pre-Primary Act had
finally been resolved , we heaved a sigh of relief. There were 1452 students on
the rolls at the beginning of the academic year. During the course of the year,
Mr. Menino Rodrigues, our stage manager and electrician retired after a long
innings of 35 years of selfless service at St. Mary's. Ms Rosita D'Costa and Ms
A. Datt left us. Ms Maria Dias, too, retired after putting in 22 years of
service. We express our gratitude to all those who have left the institution,
for their valuable contribution and wish them success in their new milieu.
Ms Patricia Viegas & Ms Karishma Hora joined the teaching staff in June 2000.
We welcome them.
The ICSE results of March 2001 were brilliant. We secured cent per cent results.
Out of 116 students, 14 students secured above 90%, 44 students were in the
above 80% category. There were 26 students in the above 70% group, 27 in the
above 60% bracket and just 5 who secured above 50%. Master Sudhanshu Ladha stood
first, securing 94.17%. Kunal Kundaje was second, with 94.00% and Devarsha Mehta
stood third, with 93.50%. Congratulations to all our students and to all those
who contributed to their academic growth along the way. We wish them success as
they continue their studies in their respective streams and various colleges.
May they keep the St. Mary's flag always flying high in every thing that they
do.
Apart from academics, our students have also participated enthusiastically
and successfully in several inter-school extra-curricular activities. At the
Discovery Channel Quiz competition, our Junior team comprising of Masters
Siddhant Singh and Akshay Dave, bagged the first prize and were awarded a cash
prize of Rs.5000/- each and Hero Honda bicycles. In the Quiz Competition IQ 2001
for schools, organised by the Rotaract Club, Masters Malav Modi and Raghuvansh
Ramaswamy were the recipients of Certificates and a cash award of Rs.10,000
each, as study aid from Informatics. In the Bournvita Quiz competition, Master
Kartik Ramkrishnan and Nimish Murdeshwar were runners-up in the Quarter Final
stage. Our school secured the second place in the inter-school Dramatics
organised by Spotlight at the Jamnabai Cascade 2000. This hilarious play written
and enacted by the students, is being staged again today with a few
modifications. Our school won the Literary Art championship, that included
dramatics, quizzing and debating, at the prestigious Jamnabai Cascade 2000
event. Peshotam Kapadia was awarded the Best Speaker prize. In the inter-school
Essay competition, conducted by the Bombay Scottish Alumni Association, Soumitra
Singh secured the third prize.
The interest and enthusiasm in the field of sports is definitely visible. We
may not have made it to the top always, yet our boys have learnt a lot of skills
on the games field. While there has been greater participation in inter-school
events, there still remains the need for some, to put in that little more time,
effort and energy that is required to achieve success.
Our school participated in all the football tournaments for the various age
groups, organised by the schools in the city. Our under - 12 team made it to the
finals, in the inter-school tournament, organised by the Mumbai School Sports
Association and were awarded the Runners-Up Trophy. In the Rev. Brother Paulus
Football Tournament, organised at Vasai, our U-17 team won the trophy and was
awarded a cash prize of Rs.3000/- . Our school participated in the "three on
three" basket ball tournaments organised by the YMCA. The U-16 team emerged as
winners, while the U-13 and U-18 teams were runners-up. At the Bombay City
District Amateur Athletic meet, Bishwa Pandey won the individual championship in
the U-10 category while Master Nishit Shetty was awarded the prize for being the
fastest runner in the 50 metres event of the U-8 group. A detailed report of the
achievements of our students in the field of sports will be found in the
brochure. I congratulate and commend all those who have participated and
represented the school in various activities.
Our efforts to "twin" with our rural school in Uplat-Patilpada, (Thane Dist.)
continue. The entire school focuses its attention on this project , for a period
of 10 days, when the "Canteen Days" are held to collect funds for the school in
Uplat.
During the year, about 140 students of classes 8 & 9, had their social service
camps at the Adivasi boarding school in Uplat. The cultural programmes and
socials, working together to fill the potholes on the mud road, praying as one
body and playing together in the vast open fields was an enriching and novel
experience for our students. They were able to identify the problems of the
tribal students and see how different it was from the urban way of life.
Last year the herculean task of renovating our magnificent auditorium was
completed very successfully. This year, the exterior of the school has been
given a new look with fresh coats of paint. One wonders whether the oldest
building is 137 years old !
Our Computer Centre has recently been upgraded with Intel Processors and 128
MB RAM connected to a Ghz processor with a high speed network. There are now a
total of 24 computers, connected to a server, for our students and one computer
for the staff. The software syllabus, too, has been upgraded together with all
the hardware. We hope to acquire a high speed Internet Line for our students and
have our official school website shortly. We have taken the Big Byte !
The school band started enthusiastically on August 15, 2000, with the beating of
the drums, the playing of the flutes and the blowing of the bugles.
The St. Mary's Alumni Association, through its executive committee has been
working closely with the school. The Committee organised career talks, given by
the Alumni themselves, for the students of class 10. The talks were informative
and got our students thinking about their future dreams and plans. The Alumni
have also been partners in our twinning project and contributed handsomely for
the rural boarding school in Ulpat. As true Marians and products of a Jesuit
institution, they also provided monetary assistance to the Gujarat Jesuit
Society, for the relief work of the earthquake victims in Gujarat.
And finally, dear Parents, I take this opportunity to thank you for your active
involvement in the institution. Many of you have helped behind the scenes, in
more ways than one, to give the best to our students. Your co-operation in
assisting us in our co-curricular activities, viz. the Junior Festival of Plays,
Sports Festival Canteen Days, School Exhibition, etc. is deeply appreciated.
There are some among you, who have acted as "teachers", to fill in, while a
teacher was on leave. We are deeply grateful to you for giving of your time and
expertise. The Teachers' Day celebration, too, was a memorable and wonderful
gesture on your part. Thank you for your generosity, your care and concern for
the institution.
This report would be incomplete, if I failed to express my indebtedness to all
those who help me to shoulder my responsibilities as Head of the Institution. I
express my gratitude to the Heads of the various sections of the institution -
Mr. Paul Machado, the Vice-Principal, Ms Theresa Fernandes, the Junior
Supervisor and Ms Marie Martin, the Preparatory Supervisor and Fr Leslie Rebello,
the Treasurer - for their assistance and co-operation in the handling of the
day-to-day, academic and non-academic issues of this huge institution. I also
thank the teaching and non-teaching staff, the supplementary and service staff
and the members of the Jesuit community at St. Mary's, for their help and
support.
May God our Guru bless them all.
May He fill each one of us with His strength and give us the wisdom to preserve
the beauty of his creation in nature.May Mary, our Patroness, be with us along
the way and guide every step we take to strive for excellence in every field.
Fr. Evarist Newnes, S.J.
FROM HERE AND THERE
MEHTA PIECES TOGETHER A MAHLER PUZZLE
For some conductors, Mahler's massive Second Symphony is a problem of
cohesion--making hundreds of small parts and five extended movements into an
organic entity that flows, that moves through disparate emotional and spiritual
states without contradicting or distracting itself.
That has never been Zubin Mehta's problem. From the first time we observed him
conduct this apparently sprawling puzzle in musical wholeness, way back in the
1960s, his grasp of its superstructure has proved masterly, his polishing of
myriad details into a clear narrative apprehensible.
The so-called "Resurrection" Symphony, a great and multifaceted work, has
become one of his indelible signature pieces.
It could be no surprise, then, that at his latest return to the Los Angeles
Philharmonic's podium, Friday night in the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Mehta
presided over a thrilling and cathartic performance of the piece, beautifully
executed by the orchestra he once led for 16 seasons, and with the accomplished
assistance of the Los Angeles Master Chorale and two splendid soloists. It was
an inspiring night at the Philharmonic.
All forces combined to display a continuity which, once achieved, seems
inexorable. The Philharmonic's resources in re-creating this huge canvas have
never been so broad, and the orchestra used all of them to express the emotional
complexities in which Mahler uniquely specialised. The ensemble's first-desk
soloists shone, but without interrupting the musical flow. And each instrumental
choir added lustre to the whole performance, while complementing their fellows.
As must happen for the work to succeed, the two soloists, mezzo-soprano Mary
Phillips and soprano Heidi Grant Murphy, contributed telling, warm-voiced,
emotionally charged readings of their important assignments. They were supported
wholeheartedly by the tonal expertise and wide dynamic palette of the full L.A.
Master Chorale, in its best voice. At the end, appropriately, Mehta shared his
bows with the Master Chorale's music director, Paul Salamunovich. Also
appropriately, those bows were extensive.
( The abovementioned Newsitem appeared in the November 27th , 2000 edition of
Los Angeles Times under the " Los Angeles Metro " column by Daniel Cariaga .)
{ submitted by Pranav Mulani}
MR.PARDIWALA
It was with sadness that I received the news of Mr. Pardiwala. Our Class of
1973, had the privilege of Jal as our PT master. May his soul rest in peace.
Visited the alma mater after almost 11 years. and what a home coming. The ole
boys dinner was fantastic... the food was great and meeting class mates..was
difficult spotting them..had to look for old balding and grey Marians !!! Limji
N..I missed meeting you. Nothing seems to have changed and a walk around school,
during class hours, brought back fond memories. Even the borawalla...Chauntpal
was there...looking the same...a few streaks of grey and a little gaunt ..but
what the hell !!!almost hugged the guy !!!
The auditorium, the junior classes and desks, the noise from the classrooms at
recess...was great to be back.
The net and website is a great way to keep in touch. Any ideas if we have a N. America, Australia chapter of the old boys association ? If any one has news please reply. I do remember Sharrukh Saudhagaran ( 1972 ) was active with the US chapter.
Best wishes to all for the festive season and 2001.
Anand Rebello ( kanda !) 1973
SCHOOL ANTHEM
From: Andrew
To: pranav4u@earthlink.net
Sent: Saturday, March 31, 2001 1:10 PM
Hi Pranav,
Here is something I would like to share with all St. Mary's students especially with those to whom St.
Mary's is very close to the heart.
Something about me : I joined St. Marys (ISC) in August 2000 as a Music Master teaching classes 1 - 4. I have "composed" the School Anthem which could be played on any multi media PC or could be added to the School Web page and downloaded onto any PC.
I still have to refine the composition and would be grateful for any comments or feedback.
Regards
Andrew Monteiro
yoand@vsnl.net
LIVE A LITTLE , LAUGH A LITTLE
BUSINESS LESSONS
Lesson Number One
A crow was sitting on a tree, doing nothing all day. A small rabbit saw the
crow, and asked him, "Can I also sit like you and do nothing all day long?"
The crow answered: "Sure, why not." So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the
crow, and rested. All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the rabbit and
ate it.
Management Lesson: To be sitting and doing nothing, you must be sitting
very, very high up.
Lesson Number Two
A turkey was chatting with a bull. "I would love to be able to get to the top
of that tree," sighed the turkey, "but I haven't got the energy.
"Well, why don't you nibble on some of my droppings?" replied the bull.
"They're packed with nutrients." The turkey pecked at a lump of dung and found
that it actually gave him enough strength to reach the first branch of the
tree. The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch.
Finally after a fortnight, there he was proudly perched at the top of the
tree. Soon he was promptly spotted by a farmer, who shot the turkey out of the
tree.
Management Lesson: Bullshit might get you to the top, but it won't keep you
there.
Lesson Number Three
A little bird was flying south for the winter. It was so cold, the bird froze
and fell to the ground in a large field. While it was lying there, a cow came
by and dropped some dung on it. As the frozen bird lay there in the pile of
cow dung, it began to realise how warm it was. The dung was actually thawing
him out! He lay there all warm and happy, and soon began to sing for joy. A
passing cat heard the bird singing and came to investigate. Following the
sound, the cat discovered the bird under the pile of cow dung, and promptly dug
him out and ate him!
Management Lesson:
1) Not everyone who drops shit on you is your enemy.
2) Not everyone who gets you out of shit is your friend.
3) And when you're in deep shit, keep your mouth shut!
25 THINGS THAT PROVE YOU'RE A BOMBAYITE
1. You think Chowpatty & Juhu beaches as "nature."
2. You say "town " and expect everyone to know that this means south of Churchgate.
3. You speak in a dialect of Hindi called 'Bambaiya Hindi', which only Bombayites can understand
4. Your door has more than three locks.
5. Rs 500 worth of groceries fit in one paper bag.
6. Train timings (9.27, 10.49 etc) are really important events of life.
7. You spend more time each month travelling than you spend at home.
8. You call an 8' x 10' clustered room a Hall.
9. You're paying Rs 10,000 for a 1 room flat, the size of walk-in closet and you think it's a "steal."
10. You have the following sets of friends, school friends, college friends ,neighbourhood friends, office friends and yes, train friends, a species unique only in Bombay.
11. Cabbies and bus conductors think you are from Mars if you call the roads by their Indian name, they are more familiar with Warden Road, Peddar Road, Altamount Road.....
12. Stock market quotes are the only other thing besides cricket which you follow passionately.
13. The first thing that you read in the Times of India is the "Bombay Times" supplement.
14. You take fashion seriously.
15. You're suspicious of strangers who are actually nice to you.
16. Hookers, beggars and the homeless are invisible.
17. You compare Bombay to New York's Manhattan instead of any other cities of India.
18. The most frequently used part of your car is the horn.
19. You insist on calling CST as VT, and Sahar and Santacruz airports instead of Chatrapati Shivaji
International Airport
20. You consider eye contact an act of overt aggression.
21. Your idea of personal space is no one actually standing on your toes.
22. Being truly alone makes you nervous.
23. You love wading through knee deep mucky water in the monsoons, and actually call it 'romantic'.
24. Only in Bombay, you would get Chinese Dosa and Jain Chicken.
25. You call traffic policemen as “Pandus" and expect out-of-towners to
understand that.
I LOVE MUMBAI!!
( submitted by )
A POEM BY AJAY SINGH , CLASS OF 1983
DEATH
Death takes my breath.
I see pain which is when it comes.
Does a dying man really feel what
we think of death.
Death may not be what it seems.
It’s a breath away from breath.
The ether of energy.
The sound of Silence.
It could be the sound of a sparrow.
Or if I feel life right it could be the break of dawn or the onset of night.
It was the last few months in this sack.
I was thirsting for oblivion.
I was told that the dark side never ends.
But I thirsted for water.
Water was there in abundance but I always wanted more.
There came a time that I had no thirst.
That’s when I realised that I was short of breath.
That was my story.
The truth was that I would be happier if I had quenched my
thirst with breath alone.
The last breath seemed to have water but it was too late.
When the sun rose in September.
The winter said I will be coming soon.
The summer graciously softened.
The days come and then come the months but the seasons come
when they have to.
The next day.
The winter winds once again reminded the summer.
But the end never comes easy.
Then came the sun the moon and the stars.
The summer was at a loss of words.
The winter had the skies on its side.
The old comes so does the new but time is perpetual.
WEB TIMES
Once again, we see a period of total silence on the Mary's alumni front for
several months .... and then a flurry of activity, sparked by some seemingly
substance-motivated emails.
And then, we see even MORE weird emails (albeit motivated by seemingly
pertinent indignation) from individuals asking the WHOLE community to
unsubscribe them! I know that end-user adoption on the internet has been slow
globally, but even the newest users ought to know how to unsubscribe themselves
from the list without, essentially, doing exactly what they are asking others
NOT to do .. i.e., sending out mass emails with no substantive message.
I continue to be amazed by this trend, but I for one am not going to bad-mouth
it....much. Sure, we have all graduated and gone on to do bigger and better
things in life... but if this is the only way we Maryz Boyz can keep it
together, then so be it.
Of course, I WOULD like it if the community as a whole could focus on more
meaningful messages and thoughtful initiatives, such as the following (I'd bet
that the combined net worth of the Mary's alumni today would be mind-boggling
and certainly conducive to funding even a fraction of some of these kinds
of activities!):
** contributing articles or anecdotes to this forum, or to the School Tie
(speaking of the tie, I believe I still have my ties from school when I was "de-virginized"
by other taporis tearing out the tags at the back of the ties... any one else
remember this?!)
** a student-mentoring program to help Maryz kidz identify earlier on in life
the kinds of opportunities available to them (perhaps even net-based
message-boards, since our alumni are SO fond of checking their emails....!)
** starting up a donation/fund to help retired Maryz teachers in their later
years (how many of us even bother to check in on how our ex-teachers are doing
these days (I know I have; have you?); do we even know how many of them are
alive yet???)
** scholarships for teachers' (and staff's - e.g. peons, bus drivers, etc.)
kids (or their recommended kids) to go to school / study abroad / get vocational
training
** scholarships / prizes in the names of teachers & others we've loved and
respected in the past, who are no more (Simoes, Chaudhary, Parmu, Pardo, Riba,
.....)
** travel allowances (even gifts of scooters, etc.) for teachers who live far
away and commute long distances to get to school every day (or ANY other
incentives that would continue to attract and retain the best teachers to work
at our school);
** reverse-excursion programs for students with other schools in the States or
elsewhere;
** regular presence of ex-students (even one!) at key school functions (such as
the Annual Prizes ceremony, Giles or Harris-shield or BookBinder trophy finals,
or even Teacher's Day celebrations), and speak about the community;
** a phone call once in a while to the PTA or to the Principal to understand
what their needs are, and putting them in touch with people within our combined
network who might be able to help;
** setting up local chapters of Maryz alumni, like so many of the US
schools;
.... and so on. It doesn't take much to think about this, and perhaps with a
little more effort we could hone in on doing at least a couple of these
properly. I know there are some initiatives on these fronts, but I think the
community as a whole would do well to at least make one attempt to understand if
they can help at all.
If you're asking why I haven't done anything myself if I feel so strongly about
this, you're right... mea culpa, I should have, and I seem to have hidden behind
the veil of not being local any more (like many of the rest of us ; out of
sight, out of mind, etc. I recognise we all need a little motivation, and not a
little sharing with like-minded people, to kick these things off. And of course,
we all have to deal with our own crap day after day, so there's a
"share-of-mind" issue to deal with too.
Funnily enough, though, these last few messages have made me realise how far
we've come since our school days, but also how little we as a community seem to
have given back (I know there are individuals out there who are solid exceptions
to this, and many more who care but are perhaps not plugged in or do not have
the platform to be able to do anything).
So the next time any of you wants to unsubscribe, maybe you should ask
yourselves if you can spend even a fraction of that time reaching out to other
Marians who can perhaps help you do something more constructive. I think if we
can donate even the price of one Friday beer (or one "Coke", for the more
creative users amongst us) back to the school or school-related programs each
year, the amount would be staggering.
Pranav Mulani has obviously spent A LOT of his own time and money setting up
this messaging service for us... and all we can do is to abuse his efforts!
Shame on us.
If any of this strikes a chord with any of you, then send me an email back,
and let's see if we can do something constructive (we at least have to try, I'd
think......). No promises, no questions asked. If something comes out of it,
great. If not, that's fine, too. The school and it's core legacies will survive
forever, independent of this group and its inactivity, and I for one will
forever be a proud Marian, no matter WHAT kind of acid people are on these
days.
And I DEFINITELY know where my "delete" key is ....so please DO NOT
unsubscribe me.
Chao.
Ob E. Lix
JAAI WEST ZONE CONGRESS - GOA
“IN SEARCH OF TOLERANCE AND UNDERSTANDING” was the theme of the First West Zone
Congress held at Loyola High School, Margao, Goa, on the 2nd and 3rd December
2000 and was attended by around two hundred Jesuit Alumni from the Jesuit
province of Goa, Pune, Gujarat and Mumbai. St. Mary’s was represented by
Principal, Fr. Evarist Newnes, Mr. Adil P. Irani (President St. Mary’s Alumni
Association I.S.C.).
The Goa Congress was inaugurated by ex-Chief Minister of Goa and an alumnus
of Loyola High School Mr. Francisco Sardinhia. The keynote address was delivered
by Bishop Philip Neri Ferrao, Auxiliary Bishop of Goa and Daman on the “Culture
of Dialogue”. The second day was divided into four sessions followed by
workshops on the topics “Tolerance and Understanding”. the Jesuit Perspective
(Fr. Savio Rodrigues S.J.), “The Obstacles to Tolerance” (Mrs. Joan Rebello),
“Human Relationships” (Mr. Agnel Crasto). The plenary session was conducted by
Mr. Gerson Da Gunha (St. Mary’s School ) who was the chief moderator, with a
view to getting each of the alumni of the four provinces to formulate an agenda
for the next one year on a short term and for the next three years till the next
West Zone Congress.
At the concluding session the new Zonal council was presented. Miss Devyani
Nawab, Mr. Conrad Gonsalves and Mr. Surjit Singh Arora were re-nominated to
represent the West Zone on the Governing Council to be constituted at the
conclusion of the 3rd National Jesuit Alumni Congress in November 2001.
The West Zonal Council for the next term is :
Chairman : Manoj Singaypuri (Gujarat)
Vice-Chairman : Abitio Quadros (Goa)
Secretary : Denver D’Souza (Mumbai)
Treasurer : Susan Sherra (Mumbai)
Members : Adil Irani (Mumbai) (St.Mary’s School I.S.C.)
Province Co-ordinators : Fr. Laurie Ferrao S.J. (Mumbai)
Ex-Officio : Devyani Nawab
( submitted by Adil Irani )
JAAI MILAN
St.Mary's Alumini Association is a constituent of the Federation of Jesuit
Alumni Associations
of India (JAAI)
JAAI Milan has been designated as the 3rd National Congress of JAAI and shall be
held in
Bombay at St.Stanislaus High School from November 23rd to 25th, 2001 .The JAAI is
committed to making a difference with regard to the many social issues and problems facing
our country by using the excellent commitment and value systems that have been shaped through
Jesuit education.
If any alumnus would like to know more about/participate in JAAI Milan, do let
me know.
Robert Lawrence ( e-mail : rlawrence@hotmail.com )
SOME PRESS
{ An Interview of Mr. Azim H. Premji (Chairman & Managing Director, Wipro) }
The philosophy of high thinking rather than high living taught Premji the value
of money early on. His schooling at St. Mary’s School, a Jesuit-run institution,
inculcated discipline and middle-class values. Chartered accountant Percy
Treasuryvala, who lived next door, remembers his childhood friend and neighbour
as being serious and quiet but with a passion for the outdoor. Often, the
friends would drive up to Mahabaleshwar, a tiny hill station near Mumbai, take
long walks and return home.
Premji’s mother, Gulbanoo, is a qualified doctor. Now in her mid-80’s she
lives alone in south Mumbai. Long-time family friends say that she’s been a
bulwark over the years. “She groomed him and protected him when he was young,”
says Ravi Mody, CEO, Surat Beverages, another childhood pal. After his father
died, she was chairman of the company until Premji was ready to take over.
( The abovementioned is an excerpt from an Article that appeared in " Business
India " December 11 to 24, 2000 issue. )
THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY'S
Mazgaon-based St Mary's ISC gears up for the forthcoming inter-school
football season
Time 7.30 am.
Date : June 19, 2001
Venue : St.Mary's ICSE, Mazgaon.
Event Probably small for the readers, but big for the boys who are working hard to get selected into the schools football team.
Total number of students present : 189 in all, belonging to different age groups ( from under-8 to under-16)
Exercise No. 1 : Nine cricket stumps fixed parallel and at an equidistant.
The challenge for the under-8 boys was to dodge these stumps to and fro.
STANDING fourth in the queue where the boys were asked one-by-one to follow the exercise, Darsha Bhagat was somewhere towards the end.
Finally arrived the aspiring footballer's turn. Enthusiastic Bhagat set off to display his talent. One -by-one he knocked down all the stumps that stood as a challenging barrier. The boys behind laughed as he made nine blunders in a row. That did not really bother him though. He completed the exercise without an iota of embarrassment.
Bhagat is just one of the 189 very enthusiastic boys who want to don their school colours no matter what, in the forthcoming inter-schools football event that commences in the midweek of July.
Last year St.Mary's were not so good as far as results went. They were out early in the league and knock-out tournament. Only the under-12 team finished runners-up to St.Stanislaus in the under-12 category, while the under-10 'A' team showed some prowess
to reach the semi-finals.
The quest is on this year to win the titles or at least reach a decent place in all age categories. "It is not that the boys did not play well last year. It is just that we didn't win titles. But this year we plan to do much better. We are counting a lot on the under-14 team, " said coach Leroy Nunes, who along with his brother Shawn take care of under-10 and under-8 team.
On the other side of the ground, the under-14 team first ran a few warm-up laps to loosen their body before getting into actual football training sessions. Among them was last year's under-12 captain Jehangir Tara, who received a red card during the final against Stanislaus only to lose the match 4-0 when he handled the ball. " It was totally unintentional . It was just a reflex action, and the referee punished me with marching orders. The entire team was demoralised, "Jehangir recalled.
Nevron D'Souza was a part of the losing finalists too. " We will not repeat last year's performance. We can take on any team this year, " asserted D'Souza. But more than the statement, it was the unsaid words and the confident smile that showed the determination.
But even with such a heavy turnout this year, Mary's will have to take utmost
care in selecting the boys. They had four teams in the under-8 and under-10
category last year. But according to the new MSSA rules only two teams will be
allowed.
It was better off last year. At least all students got a chance to play. To tell these boys that they aren't playing in the team is disheartening. I personally feel MSSA shouldn't stop the boys from playing. Let them have fun," Leroy opined.
MSSA do face a lot of problems only in making the fixture, leave aside the organising part. But it's their prerogative to take the right decision.
And as far as boys are concerned, cheer up ! There's always a next time, next
year.
(mufeed@mid-day.com)
(The abovementioned Article appeared in Mid-Day, Friday June 22, 2001. )
ST. MARY'S ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
presents Annual Dinner 2001
Date : 2001
Time : 7:30 p.m.
Venue : St. Mary's School (ISC)
Mazgaon, Mumbai
Come all your Marians with your better halves and have a ball with old memories
and lots of fun.
Invitations for the function are available with below mentioned Committee
Members.
Name Residence Tel. Office Tel.
Adil Irani 3628565 -
Keki Master 4150759 2047323
Sushil Sukhwani 3670486 2003055
Noshir Dastur 2845565 2661734
Fali Mehta 3871298 2671566
Deepak Mehta 3862705 4376281
Bimal Goculdas 3630709 2852234
Khoorshed Doctor 3616783 4935211
Robert Lawrence 6430763 4926183
Shyam Balsekar 4923084 3095381
Ajay Parikh 4981811 2651632
Medhi Jalali 3670597 2614278
Dinesh Advani 3646709 3631311
Kavi Desai 3693145
Rahul Divan 3679564 2660216