Hiralal Mukherjee

Hiralal Mukherjee (14 October 1886 – 14 December 1962) was Indian professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He was a member of the "Immortal XI", of Mohun Bagan, that won the IFA Shield in 1911.[1]

Hiralal Mukherjee
Personal information
Date of birth (1886-10-14)14 October 1886
Place of birth Bengal Presidency, British India
Date of death 14 December 1962(1962-12-14) (aged 76)
Playing position(s) Goalkeeper
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1906–? Mohun Bagan
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Early life

On 14 October 1886, Mukherjee was born to a middle-class family in the erstwhile Bengal Presidency of British India. He grew up and had his early education in the Bagbazar locality of Calcutta (now Kolkata). At a young age, he lost his father and following which he moved to Howrah with his elder sister. Passing the entrance exam at the Howarh Zilla School in 1904, he got himself enrolled at the Bengal Engineering College (now Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology) in Shibpur. This was when he quit his studies and took to football as a profession. He was encouraged to take up goalkeeping by Sailen Basu, an official at Mohun Bagan, the club which Mukherjee first played for.[2]

Career

Mukherjee began his club career with Mohun Bagan in 1906. As a goalkeeper, he was known for his ability to storm into the tackles of the opposition strikers.[3]

He was part of the team that won the IFA Shield in 1911, when they beat East Yorkshire Regiment 2–1 in the final. The winning team was titled "Immortal XI" following the victory. This is viewed as a turning point in Indian football, as a team of Indian natives on bare foot had beaten a well coached British team. Mukherjee's best moment at the tournament came when he saved three penalties against Rangers Football Club in the second game of the tournament, a match that Bagan won 2–1.[1]

gollark: Well, yes, exactly.
gollark: Unfortunately, the ones satisfying this basically always tend to just be the ones with the lowest start population.
gollark: End population > start population.
gollark: *But*, generating an interesting one takes many, many runs, and *checking for* an interesting one takes one run.
gollark: Yes.

References
  1. "History Of Mohun Bagan (Part 1): The Success That Changed Indian Football". thehardtackle.com. 2 May 2010. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  2. "The Immortal XI". mohunbaganclub.com. Mohun Bagan. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  3. "Immortal XI – Remembering Green And Maroon Legends (From The Archives)". thehardtackle.com. 29 July 2011. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
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