Meet Mah Utd's brown-eyed boy
The city's top football club has a new recruit form England. Ishan Rawlley Singh is thrilled to be with Mahindra United

He looks the part. If he can play it too, Mahindra United might have just unearthed a Cristiano Ronaldo in the making. Ishan Rawlley Singh, Mah U's latest finding, is an 18-year-old 'phoren return' from the pommies' land. The comparison may seem too farfetched, but much like his idol Cristiano, Singh is a right winger with looks to match. Brown-eyed, fair skinned, he showed enough antics during half-time breaks of Mahindra's three outings to prove he is quite the showman. The balancing acts got the whistles going, as fans clambered up the fencing to get a closer look at the 'foreigner'. "I am Indian. I am from New Delhi," Singh said. However, the 'foreign connection' is unmistakable. "My paternal side is from Rajasthan. My mother is half English, half Himachali." Singh was in England for the last two years to take football lessons. He enrolled in Worcester Sixth Form College in the county town of the same name and trained at its academy. During his stay, he was scouted off to represent Pershore, a county club playing in the lower divisions. "The trip to England was to improve my game. I was lucky enough to play for the club, Pershore Town F.C." What made him come back home? "Last December, when I heard of the trials for Mahindra, I thought why not give it a shot and luckily for me the team officials liked what they saw," Singh said. And he is enjoying every moment of his stay at the club. "Every thing is very professional here. The coaching and training; special attention is being given to our diet. We train more than six hours a day. Singh has the biggies from Indian football, like Shanmugham Venkatesh and Abhishek Yadav, for company in the dressing room. But the young man seems comfortable. "It's been almost a month. All the guys have been very helpful, especially the seniors. I am always trying to learn all I can from them both on and off the field." Singh is one of the six 18-some things' in the team. Lihaz Koya, Keegan Pereira, Darren Caldero, Jayesh Suvarna, and Craig D'Souza, all Mumbai boys complete the sextuplet. Singh's first chance to play came in the Nadkarni Cup semi-final against Akbar Travels in the last 10 minutes of the game. The debut wasn't spectacular, but did a world of good to his confidence. "Of course the anxiety was there, but I didn't feel any pressure since we were comfortably placed. (Mahindra won the match 5-0)." Henry Menezes, the team manager pitches in with some good words. "I think he is skilled with the ball. Of course he needs to work hard and concentrate on his game. We are hoping he lives up to his potential." A Beyonce Knowles fan, Singh completed his schooling from Sri Ram in New Delhi. His tall, well built frame, makes Ishan Rawlley Singh a crowd puller. Cristiano would approve.