Thangaraj played domestic club football for both the Calcutta Football League clubs Mohun Bagan and East Bengal. He earned fame during his days with the "red and gold brigade" from 1965 to 1971, and captained the team in 1969–70.[8][9][10] He was the first choice goalkeeper for the club over the years.[11][12][13]
Club career
Thangraj was born in 1935 in Hyderabad State. He began his football career with Morning Star Club, and then moved to Friends Union Club of Secunderabad.[14] He joined the Indian Army in 1953 and began representing the Madras Regimental Centre where he played as a centre forward, but took to goalkeeping subsequently with great success.[15] Madras Regimental Centre won the Durand Cup in 1955 and 1958.[14] Thangaraj captained the Services team for its first-ever triumph in the Santosh Trophy in 1960.[14]
As a goalkeeper, he was simply unbeatable. He had a little weakness with ground shots but in the air, he was superb. He used to pluck the ball in the air from attacks or corner kicks. Even from penalties, at point-blank range, he would pull off miraculous saves.
— Gautam Roy, football historian, on Peter Thangaraj to the Olympic Channel.[16]
After leaving Services, Thangaraj played for Kolkata giants Mohammedan Sporting (1960–63, 1971–72), Mohun Bagan[17] (1963–65), and East Bengal (1965–71) and was a huge fan favorite at the time. He was part of the Bengal team, which won the Santosh Trophy in 1963. Later, he led the Railways in 1965 and won the Santosh Trophy for them. Along with the likes of Chuni Goswami and P. K. Banerjee, Thangaraj was one of the mainstays of the Indian team in 1960s and 70s.
International career
Thangaraj had an illustrious international career. His first stint with the Indian team was the Quadrangular Tournament held at Dacca in 1955. Under the coaching of Syed Abdul Rahim, he played for India both at the 1956 and 1960 Olympics, and represented India at 1958 Tokyo, 1962 Jakarta,[18] and 1966 Bangkok Asian Games.[19] India won the Gold Medal at the 1962 Jakarta Asian Games.
He represented India at the Merdeka Cup tournament held at Kuala Lumpur from 1958 to 1966. He also represented India at the 1964 and 1966 Asian Cup held in Israel and Burma respectively.[20][21] He was named the Best Goalkeeper of Asia in 1958, and awarded the Arjuna Award in 1967.Recognizing his contribution to Indian football, he was awarded the Arjuna Award by the government of India in 1997.[22] He twice played for the Asian All-Star team and was adjudged the Best Goalkeeper in 1967. Thangaraj retired from active football in 1971 and then took to coaching.[23][24]
Thangaraj was a devoted follower of Lev Yashin, and was later appointed as advisor of the football department/division of Bokaro Steel Plant.[14] He died in Bokaro (now in Jharkhand), on 24 November 2008 after a massive heart-attack.[14]
Legendary strikers of India, Chuni Goswami and P. K. Banerjee often credited his long kicks as source of some of their best goals in career.[14]
^Bhattacharya, Ayan (10 September 2023). "বাংলা ভাগের ক্ষত কিভাবে বিষিয়ে দিল মোহনবাগান আর ইস্টবেঙ্গলকে?" [How did the wound of the partition of Bengal poisoned both Mohun Bagan and East Bengal?]. inscript.me (in Bengali). Kolkata: ইনস্ক্রিপ্ট বাংলা নিউজ. Archived from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
^ abGhoshal, Amoy (23 November 2016). "All time Indian XI". sportskeeda.com. Sportskeeda. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
Further reading
Kapadia, Novy (2017). Barefoot to Boots: The Many Lives of Indian Football. Penguin Random House. ISBN978-0-143-42641-7.
