Rama Singh: Players need to be encouraged to win SAFF

Rama Singh, the first captain of the Nepali women's national football team, said that Nepali women players should be encouraged as much as possible to perform properly in the SAFF women's championship that is to be held in Nepal. In an interaction held today at the Nepal Sports Journalist Forum, Singh talked about how Nepali women athletes should be provided with the necessary resources and encouraged.

After the International Football Federation (FIFA) banned India's Football Association, the first captain Singh said that although Nepal's chances in the SAFF women's championship have increased, success will not be achieved unless the players are encouraged.

Sigh also played volleyball while studying on campus. In 1983, when women's football started in Nepal for the first time, she was selected.

She was the captain when Nepal played AFC Cup women's football for the first time in 1986 in Hong Kong. At that time, many players did not even get football boots and other facilities.

During the beginning of women's football in Nepal, football teams were formed in Kathmandu as well as in Dharan and Pokhara. Among the players who played women's football at that time, 3 are currently in the post of Deputy Inspector General of Police DIGP of Nepal Police. They are Mira Chaudhary, Kiran Rana, and Kiran Bajracharya.

In Hong Kong, Nepal had to come back after conceding a total of 12 goals in different matches. They were criticized in the Nepali media but no one talked about the limited facilities the players had received at that time.

She played her last match against Karnataka in 1987 in Lucknow, India. In that final match, Nepal won by 3 goals. In which she was also able to score a penalty goal. In the friendly match with Darjeeling in Kathmandu, the match ended with a draw on the first day, the stadium was full on the second day of the match at Dashrath Stadium, from which the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) raised a lot of money.

At that time, it was difficult for Nepali women to get a house permit first, and there were no facilities for sports either. Singh felt that there was a lack of necessary resources while practicing in the stadium as well. But they had the feeling that they should play for the country.

Like in football, Rama Singh's name is also popular in the media sector. She was the first Television News presenter on Nepal Television.

She has returned to Nepal after living in America for 11 years. Her goal is to provide as much support as possible to the development of Nepali women's football. Similarly, she plans to move into the media sector as well.