A five-hour drive from Kathmandu, Bhote Odar is one of the few towns which provide access to transportation for the villagers living in the eastern part of Lamjung. The village of Salme in the Gauda Village Development Committee (VDC) is another five-hour uphill walk from Bhote Odar. This village of 35 households, mostly Gurungs, is proud of its football club, the Trishakti Star team, which was officially registered with the VDC 18 years ago.
“The Triskhakti Star was one of the first clubs to be officially registered,” says a nostalgic local Gyan Bahadur Gurung, 48, sitting in the dark, next to his son Khadka Bahadur Gurung, 19. Electricity came to Salme only five years ago, and even they have not been spared by the irregular load shedding typical in Nepal these days.
“Salme used to host the annual Shiva Ratri match, but this came to a stop during the insurgency years due to pressures from the Maoists,” adds Khadka, who is studying in Kathmandu and is currently home for Dashain. “It used to be the biggest tournament around here, and we had players coming from as far as Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Butwal.”
The rocky and steep terrains of the hilly region make it impossible to have a standard 11-size football ground (45-50m by 90-100m), so the fields in Salme and in the surrounding villages are all seven-size grounds.
“We have a total of seven players in each team—three strikers, three defenders, and one goalie,” explains Nikesh Gurung, also a local of Salme.
Salme’s football ground was created by digging and leveling out three terraces of farmland donated by its owner to the village. Although Salme’s annual tournament has been brought to a halt for now, another football tournament has been gaining much popularity in Lamjung in the past few years.
Each year during Dashain, a mela is held on Pit Danda, about two hours walk from Salme.
“The Pit Bazaar has existed for decades, but the football tournament began only seven years back,” says Nikesh. The Pit Bazaar Tournament was started by the Deep Shikhar Yuva Club of Biteni Village of Gauda VDC which is also nearly two hours walk from Pit Danda.
“When the Pit Bazaar Tournament started out, only six to seven teams participated. But this year, there was a total of 18 teams from all over Lamjung District,” says Khadka. “Unfortunately, Trishakti Star didn’t make it this time because we were late for registration.”
Any team from Lamjung can come to play at the tournament, and there are no qualification matches. Registration happens a day ahead of the starting date, and depending on the number of teams, it is either a knockout or a league. In the beginning, the first prize used to be a chicken, which was later upgraded to a goat, then to a buffalo; and now, it is in the form of cash. Each participating team is required to submit Rs 1,500 as entry fee, and the winning team walks away with Rs. 10,000 and the runner-up is awarded Rs. 5,000. This year’s annual Pit Bazaar tournament was won by Buddha Yuva Club of Bhote Odar who played against Shiva Shakti Club of Okhari.
“The age of players range from 16 to 30 years,” puts in Nikesh. “While most players are from villages in Lamjung, some teams also ‘buy’ players from other districts.” The Pit Bazaar Tournament is special because almost half of the players are young men who are studying in cities such as Pokhara, Kathmandu and Chitwan, and have come back home for the Dashain festivals, and now also for the much-awaited football tournament.
The echoes of ‘Goal!’ can be heard far into the distant hills of Lamjung, and even the torrential rains and the unpredictable mists do not deter these players. They have walked for hours to come to Pit Danda, and they will not go home without playing. Moreover, the work of the volunteers is praiseworthy as they never get tired of retrieving the balls every time they go off the edges and down the steep hills. And not to forget the spectators, too, who patiently wait for the ball to be brought back for the soccer match to resume.
Well, this is how they kick and dribble in the hills. And a swell time is had by one and all.