Umbrellas used as makeshift brace for injured footballer in Kolkata League

What was supposed to be just another football match turned into a moment of shame for Kolkata football.

During a Calcutta Football League (CFL 2025) fixture between Mohun Bagan Super Giant and Railway FC at the Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay Stadium in Barrackpore, a shocking incident unfolded that has ignited a firestorm of criticism around the league’s medical preparedness and professionalism.

Midway through the fiercely contested match, Railway FC midfielder Tarak Hembram suffered a serious knee injury following a hard tackle from a Mohun Bagan defender.

The impact left Hembram in visible pain and unable to stand or walk. What followed, however, was not just a medical emergency, it was a public display of the deep infrastructural void in Indian football.

With no qualified doctor present on Railway FC’s bench, a mandatory requirement under league regulations the team’s physio performed a basic on-field assessment and called upon Mohun Bagan’s medical team for assistance.

But with no proper equipment available, an improvised and highly questionable solution emerged: two umbrellas were tied around Hembram’s injured leg using bandages to immobilize it before he was taken off the field.

Images and videos of the player’s leg braced with umbrellas rapidly spread across social media, triggering a wave of outrage and ridicule.

According to multiple sources, no team doctor was listed on the Railway FC lineup for the match, in clear violation of IFA’s own guidelines. While an ambulance was reportedly stationed at the venue, it was not immediately used to transport Hembram.

Instead, a secondary ambulance was arranged sometime later a move that has only deepened the criticism of the handling of the incident.