Gavin dealt a cruel blow

Ferreira is not alone in his misery. The feuding has deprived at least six other potential automatic choices of places in the squad.

Ferreira’s club, Mahindras have thrown their weight with HAM who conducted their own selection trials in Bandra. Along with another Super League outfit, Western Railway, Mahindras have not renewed affiliation with BHA.

Secretary KL Passi declared that clubs not affiliated to the BHA could not send players to the trials which concluded on Monday. Later, however, Passi made an exception in the case of Mahindras’ international stars Ferreira and centre-forward Dhanraj Pillay.

Pillay is playing club hockey in France and could not return for the trials. Ferreira, Pillay’s teammate in Mahindras as well as French club FC Lyon, chose not to attend the trials at the Mahindra Stadium for reasons that can easily be understood.

Ferreira told Express Newsline today: “I had not received written communication from the BHA about my invitation to the trials. My father was informed on telephone by Kuldip Singh, coach of the squad.

“I am aware of the crisis Mumbai hockey finds itself in and that Mahindras along with Western Railway had chosen to disaffiliate themselves from BHA,” Ferreira said.

“I naturally had to speak to my employers Mahindras about it as it’s under their patronage that I play hockey. But Mahindras themselves did not receive written communication from BHA. So, you see, there was no way I could have attended the trials,” Ferreira explained.

The crisis has also taken its toll on talented left-half Calistus D’Souza (Western Railway), Rajinder Singh, Nanjappah, Sridhar Murthy, Farouq Ummer and Junior World Cup star, goalkeeper Jagdish Ponnappa (all Mahindras) who assisted Bombay teams at the National Championships and National Games earlier this year.

The Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) had reportedly issued a directive to BHA and HAM, urging both sides to mend fences in order to send the best possible team to the Federation Cup. The IHF subsequently accepted the team chosen by BHA as the representative Bombay side at Hyderabad.

The IHF also reportedly instructed that HAM executive members Olympians Joaquim Carvalho, Merwyn Fernandes and Gurbux Singh be inducted onto the panel of selectors. The BHA have apparently have ignored the directive.