PALAKKAD: Several persons were injured, none of them seriously, when the gallery for the sevens football charity match held to collect funds for the family of deceased former Santosh Trophy footballer R Dhanraj came down at the synthetic football turf at Nurani here on Sunday evening. Around 20 persons, who were hurt in the mishap which occurred around 8.45pm, have been admitted to the various hospitals nearby.
The match featuring Baichung Bhutia XI and I M Vijayan XI was organised by the district football association. And barely minutes before kick-off, the gallery on the eastern side of the maidan, which seated around 1,000 spectators, collapsed resulting in the match being called off. Dhanraj had passed away in the midst of a football game at Perinthalmanna in Malappuram on December 29. The yesteryear soccer star had complained of chest pain while the half-time approached. Though Dhanraj was rushed to a hospital, his life could not be saved.