A standard 10 student of St Stanislaus, Maliakal has a soft touch and an insatiable hunger for goals. ``Whenever I am on the field, I always think of scoring or creating scoring opportunities,'' he said.

``I admire Ronaldo for his cool head and swiftness in scoring great goals. I seek inspiration from that. I always think of placing the ball rather than hitting it with power.''

Maliakal proved his mettle in the semi-final and the final when his team, down against superior oppositions, went on to become champions.

With the support of a football loving family, Bejoy is now keen on taking up the sport as a profession. He is planning to go for trials at the Tata Football Academy (TFA), Jamshedpur, where he can hone his skills and possibly make a living out ofsport.

Cyril Gabriel, the St Stanislaus coach, opined: ``Bejoy has always come out a savior.''