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D. Venkatesh of B Mars team collapsed while playing the match on Wednesday.

Tragedy struck the BDFA ‘A' division football league on Wednesday afternoon when D. Venkatesh, a 23-year-old footballer with the Bangalore Mars, died after collapsing on the ground.

He was stretchered off the pitch before being taken by an autorickshaw to the nearby Hosmat hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival.

No ambulance

Although an ambulance is on standby at I-League games, there was none present here, eyewitnesses claimed. “He came on with five minutes or so left on the clock but just collapsed soon after,” said A. Lawrence, referee for the match.

“He was treated on the field; I asked for the stretcher to be brought on and he was carried off.”

A distraught R. Dhanraj, Venkatesh's father, said his son was fine when he left home in the morning and maintained that he had no history of serious illness.

Furious crowd

Although the match in question was completed, the Super Division fixture that followed it had to be abandoned midway after an angry crowd, upon hearing the news of the player's demise, hurled chairs and other projectiles onto the ground.

Compare to the first class pitch-side treatement received by Fabrice Muamba in the English premier League.