This Manipuri footballer in India's U17 team is dribbling towards his goals, but can't stop worrying about his family

The family's meagre income has Jeakson Singh worried quite often but the midfielder shoves it away by focusing on the pride he feels in representing India
Jeakson Singh has always dreamt of representing India and has trained under his father as a young boy
Jeakson Singh has always dreamt of representing India and has trained under his father as a young boy

Not all stories start easy, and for this Manipuri defensive midfielder whose dream has been representing India, his battles lie both on and off the field. Jeakson Singh's family depend on the meagre income of his mother, who sells vegetables in Imphal located 25 km away. His father Konthoujam Deben Singh was part of the Manipur police but quit after suffering a stroke in 2015.

Jeakson's elder brother Jonichand Singh also contributes to the income and is himself a player for Peerless club in Kolkata Premier League, but there is not much of a difference to their family income situation.

Jeakson,  part of the 21-member Indian team, hails from Haokha Mamang village in Manipur's Thoubal district. "When I left home for Chandigarh in 2010, it was alright. But my father had a stroke (in 2015) and cannot properly look after the family now. My mother sells vegetables at Khwairamband Bazar (in Imphal) with my maternal grandmother and that is the family income as my father had to leave the job when his illness started," Jeakson said.

I have been dreaming of playing for India since childhood and my life has changed. I am looking forward to wearing the India jersey in this World Cup. But I am worried about the condition of my family

Jeakson Singh, FIFA U-17 Indian player


Not just the financial issues, Jeakson also had to face the disappointment of being rejected by the national selectors in 2015 when he was with an academy in Chandigarh. But his will brought him back into the Indian team for the U-17 World Cup which begins on October 6.

"I was initially with the Chandigarh Football Academy and I appeared for the trials in 2015 but could not make it to the India team. I did not lose heart and kept on thinking that I will one day make," Jeakson said.

Jeakson then joined Minerva, another Chandigarh-based academy and went on to lead them in the national U-15 and U-16 titles in 2016 and 2017. This further led to Minerva being invited to play friendly matches against the India U-17 team in Goa in March.

"The chance came when Minerva was invited to play friendly matches in Goa against the India U-17 side. We beat India U-17 team 1-0 and after that three others and myself from Minerva were selected for the India camp at the AIFF Academy in Goa," said the defensive midfielder.

Luis Norton de Matos who recently took over as head coach lost no time in picking four players, including Jeakson, into the India team. The six-footer is the tallest player in the India U-17 World Cup team and says his side will show the world that they can also compete against the best in the world.

People think the level of Indian football is very low, that is a wrong notion. We are not that low. We want to show the world that we can play at the highest level

Jeakson Singh, FIFA U-17 Indian player


"We have full confidence in our capability. We had gone to Europe for training and competitions. Then we played in a four-nation tournament. We have prepared very well for the tournament," he said.
Jeakson and the Indian team captain Amarjit Singh are first cousins and they started playing football together under the tutelage of his father. They both went to Chandigarh in 2010 when they were in class V. Amarjit was selected to train at the AIFF Academy in 2015 while Jeakson had to wait for two more years.

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