Pem Dorji was an

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

n former

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

from

Sikkim Sikkim ( ; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Koshi Province of Nepal in the west, and West Bengal in the ...

who played as a defender and represented the

India national football team The India national football team represents India in men's international Association football, football and is governed by the All India Football Federation, the governing body for Football in India, football in India. It is a member of FIFA, ...

in international tournaments including the

1984 Asian Cup The 1984 AFC Asian Cup was the 8th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international association football, football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were hosted by Singapore between 1 Decemb ...

. He also played for the major Calcutta clubs

Mohun Bagan Mohun Bagan Super Giant, commonly referred to as Mohun Bagan, is an Indian professional football club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. Founded in 1889, it is one of the oldest football clubs in Asia. The club competes in the Indian Super League, ...

East Bengal East Bengal (; ''Purbô Bangla/Purbôbongo'') was the eastern province of the Dominion of Pakistan, which covered the territory of modern-day Bangladesh. It consisted of the eastern portion of the Bengal region, and existed from 1947 until 195 ...

, Mohammedan Sporting.

Early life and career

Born in 1959 in a small hamlet of Ben in South Sikkim to parents Ganesh Kumari Gurung and Gyampu T Chingapa, Pem Dorji completed his education from Pelling Senior Secondary School in West

. From his early childhood days, Dorji started playing football. His passion for the game made him the part of the first Sikkimese football team which played at the National Championship at

Coimbatore Coimbatore (Tamil: kōyamputtūr, ), also known as Kovai (), is one of the major Metropolitan cities of India, metropolitan cities in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Noyy ...

in 1976. The game passaged his entry towards the world of football as a professional player. Dorji played predominantly as a defender and midfielder and scripted many memorable performances during a career which stretched almost for a decade.

Club career

Dorji started to play for the renowned football club of India, Mohammedan Sporting Kolkata from 1980 and in 1982 in

Calcutta Football League The Calcutta Football League (CFL) is a ladder-based football competition in the Indian state of West Bengal, organised by the Indian Football Association (WB) as part of the state leagues. It is the oldest football league in Asia. The CFL ...

and won the league in 1981. Dorji dawn with colours for various clubs including Mahendra Police Club of

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...

-giants

East Bengal Club East Bengal Club, commonly referred to as East Bengal (), is an Indian professional multi-sports club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. It is best known for its professional men's association football, football team that competes in the Indian ...

and

Mohun Bagan AC Mohun Bagan Athletic Club is an Indian professional multi-sports club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. Founded in 1889, it is one of the oldest multi-sports clubs in Asia. The club has various sports departments like association football, footb ...

alongside

Food Corporation of India The Food Corporation of India (FCI) is a public sector company. It is under the ownership of Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, formed by the enactment of Food Corporation Act, 1964 by the Parliament of India. Its t ...

. He was also an important part of the Sikkim football team during their

Santosh Trophy The National Football Championship for Santosh Trophy, or simply Santosh Trophy, is an inter-state national football competition contested by the state associations and government institutions under the All India Football Federation (AIFF), th ...

campaigns.

Personal life

Dorji was married to Pushpa Yonzon and the couple have two children Zennyla Bhutia and Marco Bhutia. Dorji died at a age of 42. He was battling with cancer for long. An incurable disease took his last breath in a nursing home in

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

, on 18 October 2001.

International career

He became the first

ese to captain the

in the Pre-Olympic tournament held in

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

. Gradually, Dorji represented India in various International matches. He played at the Chinese Great Wall Cup in 1984, and won the prestigious medal for the country. He later represented India at the South Asian Football Federation Games and further played the famous

AFC Asian Cup The AFC Asian Cup is the primary association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), determining the continental champion of Asia. It is the second-oldest c ...

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

in 1988. Dorji represented India in the Jawaharlal Nehru Gold Cup in 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, and 1988 alongside

Bangladesh President's Gold Cup The Bangladesh President's Gold Cup () was an international football tournament held annually from 1981 to 1993 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It succeeded the Aga Khan Gold Cup which was held in a similar format. The tournament has seen both the national ...

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; , ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the capital city, capital and list of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh. It is one of the list of largest cities, largest and list o ...

in 1983, 1984 and 1987.

Honours

Mohammedan Sporting *

: 1981 *

Rovers Cup The Rovers Cup was an annual football tournament held in India, organized by the Western India Football Association. Incorporated in 1890, it was the third oldest tournament in India after Trades Cup. History Rovers Cup was incorporated by s ...

: 1980; Runner-up 1981 & 1982 * Federation Cup: Runner-up 1981–82 *

IFA Shield The IFA Shield is a football competition organized by the Indian Football Association, the football governing body in the Indian state of West Bengal. The IFA came into existence in 1893, and was named after the association. The IFA Shield to ...

: Runner-up 1982 *

DCM Trophy The Delhi Cloth Mills Trophy, known simply as D.C.M. Trophy, was an invitational football tournament in India. It was held annually in New Delhi and was organised by the Delhi Cloth Mills tournament committee. It was India's first football tourn ...

: Runner-up 1982 Individual * Roll of Honour by the

Government of Sikkim The Government of Sikkim also known as Sikkim Government or State Government of Sikkim, is the administrative executive authority of the Indian state of Sikkim and its Districts of Sikkim, 6 districts, created by the Constitution of India, Natio ...

in 2002.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * *

External links

Pem Dorji
(stats) at

RSSSF The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation (''RSSSF'') is an international organisation dedicated to collecting statistics about association football. The foundation aims to build an exhaustive archive of football-related information from around ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dorji, Pem Living people 1959 births Indian men's footballers India men's international footballers Footballers from Sikkim People from Namchi district Men's association football defenders Mohammedan SC (Kolkata) players East Bengal Club players Mohun Bagan Super Giant players Calcutta Football League players Nepal Police Club footballers Indian expatriate men's footballers Indian expatriate sportspeople in Nepal Expatriate men's footballers in Nepal 1984 AFC Asian Cup players