Durga looks to excel in big league

But the move has generated mixed feelings from the 23-year-old. He may be an aspiring star amidst a surfeit of match-winners with the defending I-League champions but consistently finds his name in the first XI as Nigerian Odafa Okolie’s strike partner.

“I really don’t know how it all happened. Kolkata clubs were the first to show interest in me but they wasted a lot of time in preparing the final contract. Otherwise,I never thought of playing in Goa,partnering the I-League’s top scorer,” Boro told Sportline.

The jump,in fact,has been bigger than the gap between the two clubs — Oil India have been trying to qualify for the I-League for the last two years without success while the Goan club are not only the top club in the country today but also defending champions.

Churchill Brothers manager Denzie Ferrao,the man behind the signing,says a glimpse of Boro on his television set back in Goa was enough. “I just watched him during a Federation Cup match on television. I didn’t waste time in approaching him but found Mohun Bagan and East Bengal were already present there. Fortunately,we got him and he’s now part of our long-term plans,” Denzie says,insisting on the four-year contract.

Boro,on his part,is delighted with an assurance of four years and feels it will give him more time to adjust in his new surroundings and improve his partnership with Odafe. His only disappointment is not having found the back of the net so far and missing the ongoing Durand Cup owing to an injury.

“As a striker,my job is to score and I haven’t done that so far. Playing besides Odafe did make me a bit nervous initially but I hope it will work out as we continue playing together. This is one thing I liked about this contract — Mohun Bagan and East Bengal were offering me only one-year contracts,which meant I would have had lesser time to adjust,” Boro says.

Though Boro is proud of helping his Nigerian partner score on at least two occasions,he now wants to emulate him and score himself. “Odafe’s scoring ability is far better. That’s the biggest difference I realised on the very first day of practice. There’s a lot to improve and I’m lucky that I have the league’s best striker to play with,” he says. “So far,I’m happy to have forwarded a couple of passes,both during the IFA Shield. You will always find him in a better position to score. I will also do that once I take that position from him.”

Odafe,however,seems least interested in giving away his position as not only Churchill’s but the league’s most effective and consistent scorer. “He’s very talented but tends to become a bit nervous and loses control inside the box. He needs more match practice for that and the shakiness will disappear very soon,” Odafe says.