PANAJI: The promo of 'Champion of India', a documentary made on the time Zoran Djordjevic spent at Churchill Brothers SC, provides mind-blowing insights.

The Serbian arrived in Goa as a relative unknown in the monsoon of 2008 and no sooner he stepped inside the Varca residence of the club's owners, the message was loud and clear. Win the title, nothing else matters here, he was told.

That message was never lost on Zoran, and with just one match left to be played, club president Joaquim Alemao made an unexpected visit to the club's training ground in Varca. "We are runners-up four times. We must become champions," Joaquim told the players.

Standing next to the club president was Zoran, who responded instantly.

"Over there is a cemetery. If we don't become champions, you can leave me there," he told Joaquim, while club secretary Ciabro Alemao, now no more, chuckled in the background.

None from the football-crazy Alemao family had to remind Zoran of his crazy words. The Serbian coach indeed lived up to his word as Churchill Brothers finally won the 2008-09 I-League , earlier National Football League (NFL).

It was a triumph - achieved on this day exactly 10 years ago - that remains close to the heart of the club. Scarred by repeated failures, including losing the title on the last day when a simple victory would have made them champions on two previous occasions, Churchill wondered if someone would pip them to the post again.

That didn't happen.

"We were the most consistent team in the combined history of NFL and I-League but never the champions. We had plenty of disappointments. We lost the title on the final day twice and the previous year we lost the title (to Dempo) on goal difference. When we finally became champions, it was such a relief," said club owner, Churchill Alemao.

There was plenty of drama all through the league.

Sporting Clube de Goa began the strongest, winning six of their first seven matches but somehow lost their way with Mohun Bagan now the new favourites.

Churchill were slowly but surely climbing their way to the top. Odafe Okolie was in fine form, best dramatized by his six goals in Churchill's 9-1 thrashing of Vasco in the 16th round. Then he dethroned Mohun Bagan 3-1 after being a goal down at the Nehru Stadium in Fatorda.

The title seemed closer than ever before but an upset in Mumbai pegged them back again. The controversial loss - thanks to a goalkeeping blunder from Arindam Bhattacharya - raised eyebrows with several club officials, including the coach, suspecting match-fixing.

"You are a moron. Why didn't you change when I was asking you to replace the goalkeeper," Zoran asked one of the club official, angrily. The official responded with a volley of abuses.

In the end, it all came down to just one game. Like in 1997 (Indian Bank 3-3) and 2002 (Mohun Bagan 0-1) when Churchill surrendered the title on the final day, there were fears all around, but this team, led by the terrific Odafe, was cut from a different cloth.

This time they took precautions. The erring goalkeeper was kept in cold storage and Odafe was promised a fortune, if he could add to the team's 53 goals in 21 matches. He delivered as Churchill held their nerves to thrash Mohammedan Sporting 6-2 and win their first national title.

