Would you believe it that one of India’s oldest hockey tournament was played recently at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium? And it was its 96th edition? Strictly speaking, it ought to be the 126th, for it was first played for in 1901, but two World Wars and much else in between caused some breaks in the tradition. It began life as the MCC All India Hockey Tournament and is today known as the MCC Murugappa All India Hockey Gold Cup Tournament.

The Hockey Ground, Madras Cricket Club

Hockey’s Early Days in Madras

The Madras Cricket Club, established in 1846, was the venue where many sports that we take for granted today were first played in our city. Hockey was one among them. It made its appearance late in the 19th century, chiefly as a game for cricket players to keep fit during the off-season.

‘Playing hooky’, which meant going away from your official duties, was an expression that came about due to this. Interestingly, hockey or hooky was initially played in Madras without any knowledge of the rules of the game. The first records of it in the city date to 1894.

The First Tournament: 1901

The Madras Hockey Tournament, played for “the Silver Cup presented by the Madras Cricket Club”, was the forerunner of what became the MCC All-India Hockey Tournament. The first announcement of this trophy appeared in the *Madras Mail* on July 20th, 1901.

The very first of its kind in South India, it commenced on July 22nd. Here again, as in cricket, we find the Madras United Club doing its bit to get Indians to play the game. The MUC’s XI, South India’s first ‘native team’, took to the field against the 25th Battery, Royal Field Artillery, from Bangalore.

The MUC, judging by the report of the match, appears to have known little of the game and was trounced 15-0. The next day, the MCC ‘A’ team played the eventual winner of the tournament, the Durham Light Infantry, with a detailed report of the match being carried by the *Madras Mail*. Newspaper reports referred to ‘dangerous play’ being a feature of the game.

Growth of Hockey in Madras

By the 1920s, the game had come into its own, especially with RC Summerhayes of Burma Shell, and a hockey blue from Oxford, taking special interest. He got the legendary MJ Gopalan interested in the game.

By the 1930s, Anglo-Indian teams of Madras were taking the game to new heights. The Madras Hockey Association came into being in 1931. When it came to Indian participation in the Olympics, Madras produced its share of hockey players by way of R Francis, Munir Sait, V Baskaran, VJ Philips, VJ Peter, and Krishnamurthy Perumal. We can also include Charles Cornelius here, though he played mainly for Punjab.

The MCC-Murugappa Partnership

The MCC All India Hockey Trophy was one of the big attractions during that golden era for the game. Teams from all over the country came to participate. But even then, there were breaks despite best efforts. The Murugappa Group, with its Murugappa Gold Cup instituted in 1962 to commemorate the 60th birthday of AMM Murugappa Chettiar, joined the MCC in 1996, and since then, the game has seen a fresh lease of life.

The semis and finals of the tournament took place on the 19th and the 20th of this month. Initially played at Chepauk in the MCC’s B Ground, it has in recent times moved to the Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium.

Modern Touches to a Grand Tradition

For the first time this year, an overseas team from Malaysia participated. There was also a third umpire to refer to. Finally, ten trees were planted for every goal—a lovely blend of sport and sustainability.

This article is a modified version of one that appeared in The Hindu –https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/madras-and-india-oldest-hockey-tournament/article69814170.ece

My book, Chennai, A Biography can be ordered-https://sriramv.com/2021/12/27/how-to-buy-autographed-copies-of-chennai-a-biography-from-outstation/