Harwood League: Mumbai’s oldest football league makes a comeback

It might seem strange that in a city like Mumbai, a football match has been hindered by the lack of a suitable field.

But if you ask the patrons of the Mumbai Football Association (MFA) why the Harwood League—Mumbai’s oldest football tournament, first played in 1902—hasn’t resumed post Covid-19, this is what they’ll tell you.

“The MFA were made caretakers of the St Xaviers ground in Parel when it was formed in 1983,” said Udayan Banerjee, MFA trustee. “While that has not changed, during the pandemic, the ground was used as a testing centre and then a vaccination centre. After that, it was dug up and two storm water drain holding ponds were constructed, and the ground left in a poor condition. There’s no way it can be used for football until it is repaired.”

Today the 16,000-square-metre plot is in disarray; the field is uneven, one part of the boundary wall has collapsed, the goal posts have been beaten down, debris lies around, alcoholics converge in the evenings and the entrance is akin to a public urinal. “The BMC asked us to repair it, but we didn’t destroy it, so why should we?” said Banerjee. “It will cost at least ₹25 lakh.”

With the loss of their main playground, the MFA manages its other leagues on grounds like Neville D’Souza ground in Bandra, or the RCF ground in Chembur. But when considering the possibilities for the Harwood League, it was left without options. A ground it was eyeing, the Cooperage Grounds in Nariman Point, proved too expensive.

When asked about sponsors for the game, Banerjee replied dispiritedly, “The local Mumbai games are not well publicised so they don’t attract many sponsors. The games are free for viewers but not many come.”

A change in the Harwood League’s fortunes came in the form of Nadim Memon, sports ground consultant and football player of yore. When the state of the Harwood League was conveyed to him, he took it upon himself to revive it. “The MFA approached me and told me about the problems they were facing in securing a ground,” he said. “So I decided to sponsor the games this season and help them out.”

Memon shies away from speaking numbers, but Banerjee delivers. “The rent being demanded of us for a 15-day tournament was almost ₹3 lakh. Memon was able to get it reduced by half!” he said. Responded Memon, “Football gave me my first job, that of playing for IDBI Bank’s team, at the age of 18. This is my way of giving back to the sport.”

The Harwood League has an impressive history to live up to. Its earliest games, beginning in 1902, were organised by the eponymous Colonel J G Harwood, who also founded the Western India Football Association (WIFA). The League was then taken over by a separate committee till a second iteration of the WIFA was formed in 1911. The games underwent a short break from 1916 to 1920, and then were back on track.

As per historical conditions, the earliest winners of the game were British army regimental teams—until 1942, when the Western India Automobile Association Staff team won. Indian teams have kept a strong tight hold on the winning title ever since.

Another trust in its history arose in 1990, when two versions of the League were organised simultaneously: one by the WIFA and the other by the Bombay District Football Association (later the Mumbai District Football Association (MDFA) or MFA). This continued till 1999, after which the associations solved their differences and the Harwood League streamlined into one.

Back in action, the latest season of the Harwood League started on September 21, with the final scheduled for October 5. Eight teams are contesting each other, some corporate teams, like one of Bank of Baroda, and some teams linked to government subsidiaries like the Mumbai Customs. “They employ footballers on a stipend. But the teams, especially those of corporations, are dwindling,” explained Banerjee.

Sorted with Memon’s sponsoring of the games this year, Banerjee says the games will be kept up hereafter, but the struggle of a suitable ground is yet to be tackled. “We have hope that the BMC will repair and restore the ground,” he said.

An official from the Gardens department of the BMC said that the ground was under the caretakership of the MFA, and the portion that faced upheaval due to the holding ponds for the storm water drains would be restored after the current monsoon.