On this day, 67 years ago Indian Football Team achieved an admirable feat that could not even be thinkable in the current scenario. The Blue Tigers defeated hosts Australia by 4-2 in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. Thus recording the biggest win for the nation at the tournament.
It wasn’t always the case in the 1950s, despite the fact that the gap in football between the two countries is only widening now. The Indian national football squad made history at home by upsetting the hosts and destroying their hopes of winning gold. They made Olympic football history by being the first country from Asia to go to the semifinals.
The Indian football team faced Australia following their first-round, as Hungary was not participating in the competition. India went on to upset the hosts 4-2 with the help of great coach Syed Abdul Rahim.
India’s Neville D’Souza scored a superb hat-trick in the triumph over Australia. His first two goals came in the first half. Samar Banerjee was the team’s captain at the time, and P.K. Banerjee, a great Indian player, was also a member of the squad. J. Krishnaswamy scored India’s fourth goal, capping off an incredible victory that would go down in history.
It was a display of guts and commitment by the Indians who were playing against the Australian players and the enormous crowd who were cheering them on. The intriguing game drew 7,413 people to Melbourne’s Olympic Park Stadium.
In the semi-final, India faced Yugoslavia, which was a difficult match. The Europeans were a dominant footballing team back then, defeating the Indians 4-1. India’s lone goal came from Neville D’Souza.
India faced Bulgaria in the bronze medal match. For Syed Abdul Rahim’s players, it was a sad finale to an otherwise remarkable Olympic campaign. India failed to earn a podium berth after a 3-0 setback to the Bulgarians, but they did make history.
The victory over Australia is always recognised as the time when Indian football finally emerged on the world scene. While the Indian national team is currently struggling to improve its FIFA rating and football quality, the 1956 victory against Australia remains a source of encouragement.
With all due respect to today’s players and coaching staff, India’s prior performances have been significantly superior to their current ones. The Indian football team will meet Australia in the AFC Asian Cup 2023 on January 13.
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