Gilbertson Sangma (born 12 April 1955) is a former
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
n
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...
. He played as a
striker.
Sangma was regarded as "Man with golden boot" by the leading daily ''
Hindustan Times
''Hindustan Times'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper based in Delhi. It is the flagship publication of HT Media, an entity controlled by the KK Birla family, and is owned by Shobhana Bhartia.
It was founded by Sunder Singh Lyall ...
'' because of his skill, agility and stamina.
Playing career
Sangma received early lessons of football at the Assam Police Reserve in
Dergaon
Dergaon (IPA: ˈdɜːˌgɑ̃ʊ) is a town and a municipality in the Golaghat district of Assam, India.It is 282 km from the state capital Guwahati.
Hemchandra Barua, the compiler of ''Hemkosh'' (the earliest Assamese-English dictionary) ...
.
Assam
In 1973, he began his senior career in the Inter District Football Championships by representing Golaghat. He was selected immediately in the
Assam state team for the
Santosh Trophy
The Santosh Trophy, officially known as Hero Senior Men's National Football Championship due to sponsorship ties with Hero MotoCorp, is a state-level football competition contested by the state associations and government institutions under ...
.
In
1974–75, he scored the goal that knocked out the defending champions
Kerala
Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...
and took Assam to the quarter-final. He represented the state team in seven seasons from 1973 to 1980 in Santosh Trophy.
Assam Police
After joining the
Assam Police
The Assam Police is the law enforcement agency for the state of Assam in India. A regular police force was initiated in Assam by the British after the Treaty of Yandaboo to maintain the law and order. It functions under the Department of Home A ...
he became a regular player of the
Assam Police AC since 1972.
In 1981, Sangma guided Assam Police AC to win the
Bordoloi Trophy
The Bordoloi Trophy, also known as the Bharat Ratna Lokopriya Gopinath Bordoloi Trophy, is a premier annual Indian football tournament held in Guwahati and organized by Guwahati Sports Association (GSA). The tournament was first started in 1952 ...
, where he scored the winning goal in final against the mighty
Dempo SC
Dempo Sports Club, or simply known as Dempo, is an Indian professional football club based in Panjim, Goa, that competes in the Goa Professional League. The club is owned and sponsored by the Dempo Mining Corporation Limited. Popularly known a ...
of Goa. He helped the team to lift several trophies including coveted Bordoloi Trophy,
Independence Day Cup
The Independence Day Cup is an Indian football tournament held in Nagaon, Assam
Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The ...
and
ATPA Shield
The Assam Tea Planters' Association Shield, commonly known as the A.T.P.A. Shield, is an annual Indian association football tournament held in Jorhat, Assam and organised by Jorhat District Sports Association (JDSA). It is one of the esteemed an ...
.
International career
In 1975, Sangma was picked in the
Indian team for three International friendly matches in
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
and
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
.
Personal life
Sangma retired from Assam Police as a top official. After retirement, he is regularly associated with different local football activities in Guwahati.
References
{{reflist
Indian men's footballers
1955 births
Living people
People from Dibrugarh district
Footballers from Assam
India men's international footballers
Garo people
Men's association football forwards