Little was known about the colts from Ibrahim Hyderi, Mauripur, Manghopir and Lyari -- areas infamous for poor law and order situation -- before they made the nation proud with their excellent performance in the Street Child World Cup in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

They clinched the third position in the event with impressive showings in most of the matches. The colts made headlines following their thumping 13-0 victory against former champions India in their first match.

They went on to record a 2-0 win against Kenya, 3-0 against Mauritius and a 1-1 draw against the US to top their group.

In quarter-finals, they defeated Philippines 3-2, but lost to Burundi 3-4 in the semi-finals. They pulled off a 3-2 victory on penalties against the US in the third place play-off.

Tanzanian kids clinched the title of the tournament after beating Burundi 3-1 in the summit clash.

Our kids returned to Pakistan to an enthusiastic welcome by the nation. Many politicians went to receive the children. They even had a meeting with PPP’s Patron-in-Chief Bilawal Zardari, who announced cash prizes for them.

The kids played brilliantly in Brazil and they rightfully received the warm welcome and the cash rewards. But they deserve much more from the nation and much better. These talented players shouldn’t have at first place been on the streets!

Players like them should have been studying in schools and playing in clubs.

These kids not only won bronze medals in Rio de Janeiro but their impressive showings also exposed the hypocrisy of the local politicians, who tried to cash in on their achievement.

The government should have helped channel such talent into the national fold and eventually into the national squads.

Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) chiefs must be scratching their heads now as they failed to find talent, although it is in abundance in the country.

Over the years much of the talent of the country must have been lost on the streets. The only thing they could do for the boys was cash prizes. And that, too, after they had achieved something on their own.

The credit actually goes to NGOs like Amos Trust, who initiated the Street Child World Cup, and Azad Foundation, who prepared and sent the team to Brazil.

All of the boys -- Sameer, Abdul Raziq, Aurangzeb Baba, Salman Husain, Owais Ali, Faizan Fayyaz, Mohammad Shoaib, Mehr Ali and Rajab Ali -- want a secure future.

They and their parents want the government to give them secure jobs, good training, good coaches and an infrastructure where they could polish their talents and make their presence felt to the world.

These wishes are understandable if we observe the humble background of these players. They have to fight for survival every day in this pathetic system of ours.