:: about USC ::
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Around the 1940s and 50s, the then youngsters of Kayalpatnam were playing various games, more
popularly football, in any open space they could find around this village. As the village grew, and open
spaces were taken by residential buildings, they congregated around an open disused pond, the "Pakeeran Kulam"
(Fakir's Pond), which they covered up with debris from demolished houses, filled it with sand, and used it as
their playground. And they formed themselves into a single entity and named it "UNITED SPORTS
CLUB".
The Club was registered in 1955 under the Socities Registration Act, and was affiliated to the (then)
Tirunelveli District Football, Volleyball and Badmintion Associations. The patta lands around the lake was
bought and a large ground of about 4 acres was formed. Separate grounds and courts for various sports were
carved out, along with a children's playpen, recreation pastime for the elderly and a health club and
gymnasium for all.
Tournaments in various sports were conducted at the local and district levels, especially in football, the most
popular sport, which developed from District level to State level. M/s Dharangadhara Chemical Works Ltd,
Sahupuram, situated nearby, sponsored the early tournaments with the "DCW Shield" for the winners.
Tournaments were also conducted in Badminton and Volleyball, and more recently, in Cricket, which has become the
craze of modern youth, with the active support of the respective District Associations.
On National Holidays, we conduct various games involving local and regional sportspersons. On Republic
Day (January 26), we conduct a 32 km. cycle race in the morning and a Kite show in the afternoon. On Independence
Day (August 15), we conduct a 10km. mini marathon.
In 1974, the Football Tournament was upgraded to the National Level, with the kind permission of
the All India Football Federation and Tamilnadu Football Association, and two new trophies were
instituted; the MOULANA ABULKALAM AZAD CUP for the Winners and the LKS JEWELLERS, TIRUCHY, CUP for the
Runners-up. Notable winners of these trophies were Army Service Centre, Hyderabad and Sikh Regimental
Centre, Meerut (1974); Punjab Special Police, Hoshiarpur (1976); Madras Sporting Club, Chennai (2003);
Keltron Footbal Club, Cannanore (2004); Integrated Coach Factory (ICF), Chennai (2005); and Madras
Engineering Group, Bangalore (2006).
Since the playground was an old disused pond, it became inundated during the rainy seasons, for which we had to
suspend all sporting activities for three years (2000 - 2002) and we carried out a major renovation work;
raising the whole ground for about two feet, and relaying it with red gravel. The Azad Trophy Football
Tournament was resumed in 2003.
Apart from Sports, the club members are also engaged in various other fields, mainly education, health and
medical care, social activities and calamity assistances.
In education, we actively co-operate with the management, staff and students of the LK Group of schools,
to whom we lend freely the grounds for their sports, and from whose alumni we draw our young talent. For the past
12 years, we conduct the LK LEBBAI THAMBY MEMORIAL Football Tournament for Schools, in memory of the
school's founder and one of our earlier patrons. We also provide educational assitance and scholarship to poor
and needy students.
In the health and medical fiels, (i) we have conducted free Eye camps with the active co-operation of the
Aravind Eye Hospital, Madurai and Tirunelveli, where we sponsor cataract operations to hundreds of the
indigent (ii) free General Medical Camp, sponsored by M/s Dharangadhara Chemical Works Ltd, Sahupuram
(iii) free Heart-care Medical Camp, where people with heart problems were diagnosed and proper treatment
advised, and in case of the indigent, sponsored by us.
In the social field, we participate in all sorts of activities involving our local populace, without distinction
of religion, caste or creed. During times of calamities of various nature, (i) our members rise to the occasion
we organised a local collection funds for the National Defence Fund; (ii) in 1965, during the Indo-Pak
War, heeding to the call of our then Premier Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri, we organised and actively
campaigned for donation of gold ornaments from the local public towards the National Gold Bond Scheme;
(iii) in 1977, when cyclone struck the coasts of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, our members then
residing in Bombay (Mumbai), collected through their friends and business associates, and also by
screening the then latest film, THE DAY OF THE JACKAL, a sum of Rupees 1.5 lakhs, and donated through the
Maharastra Government; (iv) For the Gujarat earthquake of 2000, we collected locally and donated through
the Government of Tamil Nadu, Rs.50,000; (v) During the Tsunami Disaster, we have collected and are continuing to collect money and material for rehabilitation for the survivors.
In 1967, we constructed at the southern end of our ground a pavilion and balcony for general use, named
after Mr.D.A. Peter, local School Physical Education Teacher, and the ever-active Organiser of all our
sports activities and functions, who met his sudden and untimely demise in a road accident in 1964. In this
D.A. Peter Pavilion, we have located our club office, and a library. A lot of dignitaries, national and
state leaders have come to our club and addressed the public from the balcony. Notable among them are: His
Excellency President Shri R.Venkatraman (when he was Union Defence Minister in 1980), Honourable Prime Minister
Shri Rajiv Gandhi, in October 1988, Thiru M. Karunanidhi (1973) and Thiru M.G. Ramachandran (1983), Chief
Ministers; and various State Ministers, District Collectors and Superintendents of Police during their
presiding over our sport functions.
The Annual All India Football Tournament for the Moulana Abulkalam Azad Trophy is the pinnacle of all our
activities, when leading teams from all over are invited to participate, with their travelling and daily
allowances being met by us; the revenue for which is borne by our members who contribute their mite for
the successful conduct of this competitive sporting event. Even then, these are being conducted under stringent
financial restraints.
We therefore make our fervent appeal to the sports-loving business community and corporate business and
financial institutions to take up co-sponsorship of at least a part of our expenses, mostly the travel and
daily allowances of the participating teams, and the awards to the eventual Winners and Runners-up
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