Inder Singh (born 23 December 1943) is an Indian former
football player and captain, manager and administrator. He played for Leaders Club (Jalandhar),
JCT Mills
Jagatjit Cotton & Textile Football Club (formerly known as JCT Mills FC; abbreviated as both JCT FC, or simply JCT) was an Indian professional football club based in Phagwara, Punjab. Founded in 1971, the club was sponsored by Jagatjit Cotton ...
and the
Indian national team as a
forward. He began his senior professional career with Leaders Club in 1962 and moved to JCT Mills in 1974. Playing for
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...
in the
Santosh Trophy, he finished the 1974–75 tournament with 23 goals, a record that still stands.
He was included in the Asian All Stars XI team in 1967 and 1968. He retired as a player in 1985.
He had a successful managerial career with Mills from 1985 to 2001, following which he was associated with Mills as an administrator from 2001 to 2011. In 1969, he received the
Arjuna Award, in recognition of his contribution to Indian football. Nicknamed "bullet train" by the Japanese for his speed on football field, Singh stuck to his roots and played for the country, declining the offer of representing
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
in 1973.
Early life
Singh was born on 23 December 1943, in
Phagwara
Phagwara is a city and municipal corporation in Kapurthala district in Punjab, India. It lies on National Highway 44 and located 40 kilometres from Kapurthala, the district headquarter, away from Chandigarh, away from Jalandhar and from N ...
, in the erstwhile
Punjab Province of
British India
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
. As a student of Government High School, Phagwara, he played for the school at various tournaments, including the All-India School Games in 1960 and 1961. He finished as the top goal scorer and was awarded the 'Best Player' award.
Club career
Leaders Club
Impressed with his talent, Singh was selected by Leaders Club,
Jalandhar
Jalandhar is the third most-populous city in the Indian state of Punjab and the largest city in Doaba region. Jalandhar lies alongside the Grand Trunk Road and is a well-connected rail and road junction. Jalandhar is northwest of the state ...
, as its guest player.
He would play exhibition matches for the club and other tournaments as a guest player, until he was signed by the club when he passed out of school. In his first season with the club in 1962 as a senior player, he played in the DCM Trophy in
Delhi
Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...
. The tournament had established and stronger team like
Salgaocar, Mysore XI,
Mohammedan and Mafatlal Mills playing. Leaders finished the tournament in third place losing only to Mafatlal Mills in the semifinal. For the third place, they beat Mysore XI 4–1. Singh finished as the top scorer for his club. Leaders managed to reach the finals of the Trophy a further four times; 1966, 1967, 1968 and 1971, but lost in the final each time.
JCT Mills
In 1974, Singh left Leaders to join another
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...
-based club,
JCT Mills
Jagatjit Cotton & Textile Football Club (formerly known as JCT Mills FC; abbreviated as both JCT FC, or simply JCT) was an Indian professional football club based in Phagwara, Punjab. Founded in 1971, the club was sponsored by Jagatjit Cotton ...
. He had a successful spells with Mills, winning two
Durand Cup
The Durand Football Tournament, commonly known as Durand Cup, is an annual domestic football competition in India which was first held in 1888 in Shimla. Hosted by the Durand Football Tournament Society (DFTS) and All India Football Federation ...
tournaments, in 1975 and 1983, and reaching the finals five times. Playing last for Mills, he retired from professional football in 1985.
Santosh Trophy
Singh played for his home state of
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...
in the
Santosh Trophy. He had a hugely successful 1974–75 Santosh Trophy season with Punjab winning the title. The team managed by legendary
Jarnail Singh, finished the tournament having scored 46 goals, with Singh scoring 23 of them, a record that still stands. The team beat
Bengal
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
in the final 6–0, with Singh scoring a hat-trick.
International career
Singh made his debut in the
Indian national team in 1963. He was selected to play in the
1964 AFC Asian Cup
The 1964 AFC Asian Cup was the 3rd edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were held in Israel from 26 May to 3 June 1964.
The tournament ...
in
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the ...
. In the first game against
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...
, India won 2–0, with Singh scoring for the second goal in the 57th minute. Scoring his second goal against
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
in India's 3–1 victory, he finished as the tournament's joint top scorer with two goals and India finished second. He was awarded the 'Best Right-out' at the tournament. He was part of the team at the
1966 Asian Games in
Bangkok
Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...
, finishing the tournament with one goal as India failed to defend its gold medal from the
1962 Games.
Singh found considerable success at the
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
n tournament,
Merdeka Cup
Merdeka Tournament or Pestabola Merdeka is a friendly football tournament held in Malaysia to commemorate the Independence Day. The competition bears the Malay word for independence. As of 2022, it has been held 40 times, and decreasingly in ...
. Making his first appearance in 1964, he finished with two goals, against
Cambodia
Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailan ...
and South Korea. India finished as runner-up in the tournament. In 1967, he was included in the Asian All Stars XI team that played
Arsenal in
Kuala Lumpur
, anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera''
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, pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia
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. After missing out for two editions, he came back in 1968 and finished with three goals. He was made the captain for the first time in its 1969 tournament, where India were knocked out after the group stage games, and Singh finished the tournament with a lone goal that came against
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
. Following an injury he sustained during its 1970 tournament, he sat out of the team for a year. He returned at its 1973 tournament as India's captain and scored a brace over
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 b ...
, with India finishing sixth. Impressed by his performances at the tournament, he was asked to play for the
Malaysian national team, by the then Malaysian Prime Minister
Tunku Abdul Rahman
Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah ( ms, تونكو عبد الرحمن ڤوترا الحاج ابن سلطان عبد الحميد حليم شاه, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset; 8 Febru ...
. Singh politely refused the offer saying he would play only for Punjab and India. He made his last appearance for India in 1975.
Career statistics
Selected international goals
Post-playing career
Following his retirement of professional football as a player in 1985 with
JCT Mills
Jagatjit Cotton & Textile Football Club (formerly known as JCT Mills FC; abbreviated as both JCT FC, or simply JCT) was an Indian professional football club based in Phagwara, Punjab. Founded in 1971, the club was sponsored by Jagatjit Cotton ...
, he went on to manage the club for 16 years, untill 2001.
During his tenure, the club went on to win the
Federation Cup twice in 1995 and 1996. The club also clinched
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
title in the inaugural season of
1996–97. JCT also won
IFA Shield
The IFA Shield is an annual football competition organized by the Indian Football Association. The IFA is the governing body of football in the state of West Bengal, came into existence in 1893. Named after the association, the IFA Shield to ...
in 1996, first club outside Kolkata to do so. They later participated in
Asian Club Championship
The AFC Champions League (abbreviated as ACL) is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's top-division football clubs. It is the most prestigious club competitio ...
in
1996–97 and moved to second round before losing 1–2 aggregate to
New Radiant
New Radiant Sports Club is a Maldivian professional football club based in Henveiru – Malé, Maldives. The club was founded on 19 August 1979 by Ahmed Waheed and his friend Ahammadhanik. New Radiant has won all domestic competitions bei ...
of Maldives. Following his spell as a manager of his former club, he was made the Honorary Secretary of the
Punjab Football Association
Punjab Football Association (PFA), formerly the North-West India Football Association, is the state governing body of football in Punjab, India. It is affiliated with the All India Football Federation, the sports national governing body.
Pu ...
, a post that he held from 2001 to 2011.
Honours
India
*
AFC Asian Cup runners-up:
1964
Events January
* January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved.
* January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarc ...
*
Merdeka Tournament
Merdeka Tournament or Pestabola Merdeka is a friendly football tournament held in Malaysia to commemorate the Independence Day. The competition bears the Malay word for independence. As of 2022, it has been held 40 times, and decreasingly in ...
runner-up: 1964; third place: 1970
Punjab
*
Santosh Trophy: 1970–71, 1974–75, 1980–81
Individual
*
AFC Asian Cup top scorer:
1964
Events January
* January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved.
* January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarc ...
*
Santosh Trophy top scorer: 1974–75 (with 23 goals; Record)
Awards
*
Arjuna Award: 1969
*
AFC Asian All Stars: 1968
* Delhi Sports Journalists Association: 1974
* Pride of Phagwara Award: 2003
See also
*
History of Indian football
*
History of the India national football team
The history of the India national football team dates back to the 1920s. They have never played in the FIFA World Cup, World Cup although they qualified in 1950 FIFA World Cup, 1950. They have had no entries in the tournament from 1950 onwards. I ...
*
List of India national football team captains
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
Inder Singh – Indian Football Hall of Fame(archived on 17 May 2021)
at the
RSSSF
The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation (RSSSF) is an international organization dedicated to collecting statistics about association football. The foundation aims to build an exhaustive archive of football-related information from around th ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Inder
Indian footballers
Indian Sikhs
India international footballers
1964 AFC Asian Cup players
People from Kapurthala district
Footballers from Punjab, India
Recipients of the Arjuna Award
1943 births
Living people
Footballers at the 1966 Asian Games
Association football forwards
Asian Games competitors for India