Mariappa Kempaiah

An industrious midfielder who could play either in the middle or on the right, Mariappa Kempiah made his debut for India against Sri Lanka in 1953 and from then on was a mainstay of the national team for the better part of a decade. He played on two Indian Olympic teams, the 1956 version that lost the bronze medal match against Bulgaria and the unsuccessful team that left Rome winless in 1960. Kempiah also played for India in the 1958 Asian Games in Tokyo but again had to be content with a fourth place finish.

At club level he played for Banglalore Muslims before periods with the Calcutta clubs, Mohun Bagan and East Bengal, two of the giants of Indian soccer. He also played for Mysore in the inter-provincial Santosh Trophy.