Seven Sisters Love Football: 2009

KSC beats YDO 1-0 to enter CC Meet quarter final round

Imphal, December 13 2009: Crushing its way towards the final the Kuki Sporting Club (KSC), Lambulane defeated Youth Development Organisation (YDO), Kwakeithel in today's pre-quarter final match and entered the quarter final rounds of the 53rd edition of the Sir Churachand Singh KCSI, CBE Memorial Football Tournament, 2009 organised by the All Manipur Football Association at Mapal Kangjeibung, Imphal.

In today's match KSC beat goalless YDo with a solitary goal and entered the quarter final round while YDO after losing the match bowed out of the tournament.

It was an interesting match between the two teams trying to defeat each other to enter the quarter final.

Both teams displayed a very tough fight against one another right from the beginning.

However the solitary goal of KSC scored the in the 5th minute of the match when YDO players could not established a well coordination among them sealed the fate of the match.

The solitary goal of KSC which was scored in the 5th minute of the match was scored by Seijalal Haokip.

YDO players were disappointed wth the sudden goal of KSC which took them aghast.

But they recovered soon from the schock and tried their best to equalise the score.

On the other hand players of KSC too defended themselves against the various goal attempts of their opponent making it impossible to strike a single goal against them.

Both teams played the match in a very calm manner.

However hard they tried, YDO players could not equalised the score till the end of the match and lost it.

H Ahmun, S Bhogen of YDO and Seijalal Haokip of KSC were issued a yellow card each for their unsporting behaviour.

Among them, S Bhogen of YDO was issued the yellow card for kicking out the ball after the match was over.

In the next pre-quarter final match tomorrow, SSU, Singjamei and NEROCA, Sangakpham will fight for the quarter final round.

Historic football match of deaf footballer against normal players

Imphal, December 08 2009: The Manipur Deaf Sports Society will be hosting a historic football match between the Manipur Deaf (Hearing Impaired and Mute) Football Team and Nambul Mapal Veteran Football Team at the Sports Authority of India, Regional Centre, Takyel, Imphal on December 12 next at 8.30 am in the morning, stated a press release of th society today.

Manipur Deaf Sports Society is hosting the historic match as part of the Special Training Programme held at SAI, Sports Training Centre from November 12 last under the supervision of International footballer N Biren as chief coach.

The special training programme was organised in connection with the preparation of Manipur Football Team which will be participating in the upcoming 16th National Deaf Football Championships which is to be held at Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata from December 20 to 24 next.

International Athete A Janeshwar assisted Biren in the special training programme.

The society in their press release declared a list of selected footballers from five different districts of the state.

The selected players from Thoubal district are M Premjit from Kakching, E Nandakumar from heirok Part II, N herojit fro Khangabok, Th Ranjan from Thiyam Konjin, E Dhananjoy from Thoubal Haokha.

The selected players from Imphal East are Ph Robinchandra from Andro, L Boycha from Yourabung and Beelu Roy from Khurai.

The selected players from Imphal West are Y Romesh and H Naobi from Yumnam Huidrom, L Moni and L Bheigyachandra from Takyel.

The selected player from Ukhrul is Thengacha Naga from Riha.

While, James Kuki and Kaigoulen Changsen Khongsai from Senapati are also selected.

Sub-junior National Football Championship from tomorrow

Labels: Mizoram

Gurgaon, Dec 9 : The 32nd Sub-junior National Football Championship for Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy will be organised in Gurgaon from December 9 to 22.

The opening match between Haryana and Delhi will be held at Tau Devi Lal stadium in sector 38 at Gurgaon tomorrow.

The Championship will be inaugurated by Haryana Football Association president and Rohtak Member of Parliament Deepender Singh Hooda. The working president of the Association and Chief Parliamentary Secretary Rao Dan Singh would also accompany him. Teams from ten states including Maharastra, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Bihar, Tripura, Meghalaya, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Mizoram and Haryana are participating in the event.

Mizoram, being the last year's winner of this championship, and Haryana, being the host, have got direct entry into the final competition of the championship.

NEROCA, BYFY in CC Meet quarters

Imphal, December 05 2009: NEROCA, Shangakpham routed YOSC, Khurai today and along with BYFY, yairipok Bishnunaha advanced into the quarter final knockout round of the 53rd CC Meet football tournament being played at Mapal Kangjeibung.

While NEROCA emerged convincing winners, BYFY laboured to a 4-3 victory via the tie-breaker, the third time fate of team was decided from the penalty spot.

Kh Satish pounced on a sloppy collection by the YOSC custodian to slam home the NEROCA opener 23 minutes into the match before H Chakravorti headed in the team's second goal in the 48th minute.

K Premjit put the match beyond the Khurai side's reach with the third goal from a free kick in the 55th.Meanwhile, the BYFY win in the tie-breaker came after a keenly contested game against AIFA, Irengban ended in a 1-1 draw in normal period.

An L Thanil Meitei essay saw M Kiran head in yairipok's goal in the 18th minute but the advantage lasted for barely five minutes as JV Wangpaul restored parity for the Irengban side in the 22nd minute.

In the penalty shoot-out, BYFY's N Pritamjit, L Manglemba and K Nanaomi scored from the spot while Kiran's shot was saved by the rival custodian.

For AIFA, only S Jen and Wangpaul managed to put in past the BYFY goalkeeper as O Rakesh was denied by the keeper, K Rabi missed the mark and MS Horthing's shot sailed over the crosspiece.

Tomorrow's matches will feature NLYC (Churachandpur) versus ESU (Wangkhei) at 11.30 am while LSC will take on Citizens' Club, Soibam Leikai.

NISA win after scare

Team leads tally with 27 points after first leg of tourney

Manipur League

Not a fall guy: H. Premkumar of Manipur Brothers leaps over Ksh. Malemnganba of NISA at Mapal Kangjeibung on Friday. Telegraph picture

Imphal, Nov. 27: Manipur Brothers Sporting Union (MBSU) went down fighting 2-3 to North Imphal Sporting Association (NISA) in the last match of the first leg of the 4th Manipur State League 2009 played at Mapal Kangjeibung here on Friday.

After the first leg NISA led the table with 27 points, followed by Tiddim Road Athletic Union with 22 and Southern Sporting Union on 20.

The second leg matches are likely to start on the completion the 53rd Sir Churchand Singh Memorial Football Tournament.

Today’s match between NISA and Manipur Brothers Sporting Union lacked intensity and urgency with the North Imphal side taking time to settle down. The team, however, got its act together and scored the lead in the 34th minute of play from a corner kick with a leaping S. Johnson finding the net.

The North Imphal team, which frequented its rival territory at will, got their second goal through N. Rajesh Meitei in the 38th minute to take a 2-0 lead in the first half.

Manipur Brothers Sporting Union did have their moments, but most of their forays fizzled out as they lacked co-ordination up front.

In the second half, North Imphal further consolidated their lead by netting another goal in the 72nd minute. Th. Santosh ruffled the net for the 3-0 lead.

Manipur Brothers, now desperate for a break, gave North Imphal a scare as they pumped in two goals in the dying moments. However, their efforts came too late and they failed to salvage the match.

In the 80th minute, a goalmouth melee saw M. Romi Singh finding the net on his second attempt and in the 88th minute L. Boipu converted a penalty awarded for a handball inside the box. NISA, however, had the last laugh.

NISA qualify for Federation Cup final round qualifiers

Labels: NISA

Duliajan (Assam), Nov 22 : North Imphal Sporting Association (NISA) defeated Arhima Club of Meghalaya 2-1 in the extra-time to emerge champions in Group D (North-East Zone) knock-out phase and make it to the next round of Federation Cup football qualifiers here.

Arhima defenders gave NISA a tough fight in the first half till in the 44th minute when Mani Mohan Singh scored to give the lead for the Imphal club.

Down 0-1, the Meghalaya side tried their best to bring the match on an even keel and their efforts bore fruit when Stevenfield Lenong scored the equaliser in the 77th minute.

The 1-1 stalemate prevailed in the full time and it was in the eighth minute of the extra time that NISA converted a penalty to settle the issue.

Thomas Singh converted the penalty after an Arhima defender handled the ball.

Nagaland Police in semifinals

Labels: Nagaland

Seven times champions Nagaland Police entered the semifinals of the 18th Kohima Royal Gold Cup today.

Nagaland Police blanked Kuki Football Club 2-0 in the tournament opener today, played at the local ground, Kohima.

Policemen striker Asa netted the first goal in the 12th minute of the first half. Ninja made it 2-0 for the Nagaland cops striking in injury time of the second half.

Earlier in the 56th minute Tiasunep of Nagaland Police was awarded a yellow card for unsporting behavior by the referee.

Earlier the tournament was formally declared opened by the Nagaland Football Association President P. Atuo Mezhur.

In his address Mr. Atuo announced that the Nagaland FA would be conducting a state football league fro

10- men Churchill trounce Chirag 2-0, climb to top

Labels: Churchill Brothers

MARGAO: True to their reputation, defending champions Churchill Brothers stopped Chirag United Kolkata's unbeaten run with a hard fought 2-0 win in their 8th round ONGC I - League Football championship match at the Nehru stadium at Fatorda on Friday.

Churchill goals came through Ogba Kalu in the sixth minute and Odafe Okolie in the 65th minute.

Such was a dominance of Churchill brothers in both the halves on Friday and they could have romped home with much bigger margin had they utilised the chances before them.

Churchill, with this win, climb at the top of the ladder with 16 points from 8 outings with 4 wins and 4 draws. While Chirag United remained on same 15 points with 4 wins, 3 draws and a first defeat.

Starting at full steam, Churchill drew first blood as early as in the 6th minute of the first half through Kalu Ogba, whose header found the net following a good pass from Khanthang Paite.

The home team had another good chance to increase the lead in the 10th minute when Khanthang Paite initiated a move and sent an aerial pass to Felix, whose header missed the mark.

Soon after, Chirag came with a good move when Jayanta Sen iintiated a move and pass to Lalawmpuia, who moved the ball to Subroto Roy but he switched over the ball to better placed Gouranga Dutta, who failed to connect.

In the 52nd minute, Churchill were reduced to ten men when referee Mohd Kamil flashed a red card to Nascimento Silveira for hitting on the face of Chirag’s Jayant Sen.

Churchill consolidated their lead in the 65th minute through Odafe who foxed the Chirag defence well to unleash a right footer which found the net to make it 2-0.
Churchill had another chance to increase the lead five minutes before the long whistle but Paite wasted an easy chance a pass from Odafe.

Manipur lift T Ao football crown

Labels: manipur

DIMAPUR: Favourites Manipur lifted the inaugural Dr T Ao Football Trophy after defeating hosts Nagaland 2-0 in the final at DDSC stadium on Thursday.

Ngoubo Singh put Manipur ahead in the 27 minute when he found the net from a free kick. In the 52nd minute, Manipur captain Nilakumar scored the second goal for the winners.

The result was disappointing for the home crowd, who had gathered at the Dimapur District Sports Council (DDSC) stadium.

Manipur earned Rs seven lakh as prize money while the runners-up got Rs four lakh. The tournament witnessed participation from all the eight NE states.

Tripura, riding on Kiron Chattri's hat-trick had clinched the third place after defeating Meghalaya 3-0 on Wednesday.

Kiron was also the top scorer of the tournament with 14 goals while Manipur striker Malemnganba Metei scored eight and Nagaland's Sakutemjen scored seven goals.

The tournament was named after legendary Naga footballer Dr Talimeren Ao.

Nagaland governor Nikhil Kumar and chief minister Neiphiu Rio and Meghalaya deputy chief minister BM Lanong gave away prizes to the winning teams and individual players.

Dr Ao, who led the independent India's football squad in 1948 London Olympics, played for Mohan Bagun from 1942 to 1949 while studying at Kar Medical College, Kolkata.

The barefoot Olympian who captained the Bagan XI during 1947-49, was first Naga MBBS and retired as the state director of health and medical services.

East Bengal in Abel hands

Abel Hammond (left) celebrates with Yusif Yakubu at the Barasat Stadium on Thursday. A Telegraph picture

Calcutta: As promised by new coach Phillippe de Ridder, there weren’t any miracles in East Bengal’s I-League match against Lajong FC at the Barasat Stadium on Thursday. There were some surprises though, like in-form Abel Hammond sitting on the bench or Beikhokhei Singh and Mehtab Hossain at the centre of the park or Srecko Mitrovic as a wide man on the right.

And the end result was a satisfying 3-0 victory, which was enough for the spectators to go into a party mood. There were flares in the stands, chants at the aisles and beaming faces and warm hugs in the dressing room. Three wins on the trot and the turnaround from the abyss of October 25 is happening.

Hammond, who came in place of a limping Bhaichung Bhutia in the 25th minute put the hosts ahead 10 minutes before half-time. The second came late, Hammond again in the 90 th minute and the third one was in the injury-time through Yusif Yakubu.

East Bengal on Thursday looked good except for an odd 20-minute in the second half when Lajong were all over the red and gold brigade. At that time, the scoreline was 1-0 and an equaliser would have changed the very complexion of the game.

Take this one for example. Marlanki Suiting, after running Nirmal Chetri ragged, had only Abhijit Ghosh to beat. Probably in the excitement of scoring a goal the young defender volleyed over. There were some more close shaves for the East Bengal defence but in the end, the inexperienced Lajong players failed to make it count.

Agreed that Beikhokhei and Mehtab were in their elements on the day but the man who stole the show was central defender Uga Okpara.

Not only did his presence gave the Mehrajuddin Wadoos and Chetris the much-needed confidence, his guidance also helped the young goalkeeper Abhijit Ghosh to have a relatively good day in office. Just the other day new goalkeeper coach Atanu Bhattacharya was saying how important it would be for a rookie goalkeeper to have a confident back-four. It seems that in Okpara, East Bengal may have found an answer to the defence riddle. Once in the first-half, when S Tuboi was all set to bang it home, Okpara came from nowhere and lunged himself to avert the danger.

Now about the goals.

Syed Rahim Nabi freed Hammond on the left and no Lajong defender bothered to close him down, the Ghanaian volleyed home past an onrushing Gumpe Rime. A brilliant build-up, which was executed with great flamboyance.

The second came when Lajong had parked themselves on the rival half for that elusive equaliser. Wailadmi Passah made a mess of a loose ball and Hammond who was lurking nearby went all the way into the Lajong territory and stabbed it home. The third came within a minute. Substitute Subhas Singh’s pass found Yakubu, whose volley crashed into the far corner beating Gumpe all ends up.

This was East Bengal’s biggest win in the ongoing I-League and with the league taking a break till early January, this would provide De Ridder with ample time to prepare for the next round of matches.

TEAMS

East Bengal: Avijit Ghosh; Nirmal Chhetri (Subhas Singh, 67), Uga Okpara, Mehrajuddin Wadoo, Govin Singh, Srecko Mitrovic (Alvito D’Cunha, 53), Mehtab Hossain, B Beikhokhei, Syed Rahim Nabi, Bhaichung Bhutia (Abel Hammond, 25), Yusif Yakubu.

Lajong: Gumpe Rime, Michael Bassey (Ronald Zothanzama, 82), Waildami Passah, Zohmingliana Ralte, Marlanki Suting, Niwan Gatpoh, Samson Ramengmawia, Daniel Bidemi (Anil Gurung, 57), Boithang Haokip (Laldingliana Khiangte, 78), Seikhohau Tuboi, James Gbilee.

Referee: Dinesh Nair

MoM: Uga Okpara

Tripura beats Meghalaya for third place

Maharashtra Junior Girls trials

Western India Football Association (Maharashtra) today announced an open trials-cum-coaching camp from Thursday, November 12 onwards to select the Maharashtra state junior girls team.

The trials will be held at the Cooperage Stadium in Mumbai from 9:30 am onwards. The girls are asked to report to the team manager, Mrs Anjali Shah (Premier India Football Academy).

The 8th Girls Junior National Football Championship 2009/10 will be held in Orissa from November 24. Maharashtra is in Cluster VI and will play Haryana on November 25 and Mizoram on November 27.

Churchill prevail in Goan derby

Odafa Okolie makes Dempo Sports Club pay a heavy price for two defensive blunders

By Stanislaus D’Souza

Margao: Not for nothing is Odafa Okolie the most expensive player in Indian football. With a striker like him, opposition defenders have no room for error, especially when he has gone without a goal of his own making for over 80 minutes. The more frustrated he is, the hungrier he gets. And on Sunday the Churchill Brothers striker made Dempo Sports Club pay a heavy price for two defensive blunders, the defending champs turning a 1-2 deficit into a 3-2 victory in this seventh round I-League clash at the Nehru Stadium Fatorda.

Dempo looked to be cruising smoothly until their first major howler in the 81st minute, when Anthony Pereira pushed feebly to goalkeeper Tyson Caiado from 20 yards out despite having a few of his players within shouting distance. Odafa, who was nowhere in sight, noticed the feeble push and took the defence by surprise as they watched the ball with spectator interest, roll nonchalantly towards the waiting ’keeper. He pounced on it even as goalkeeper Tyson — who had a great game — rushed out to thwart, but the ball fell nicely at the feet of co-striker Felix Chimaokwu who dispatched it off in a jiffy.

Then, two minutes from the end, Odafa picked a Naoba Singh long ball and scored from close range, to bring the near-packed stadium on its feet. That was the moment of truth that Churchill was waiting for. They proved that the team had come of age and have the wherewithal to end Dempo’s domination over them in the I-League.

This was Churchill’s first win over Dempo in a National league clash in seven years.

It was a match Dempo should have won. Not that they played their best, but they had the opportunity to kill the match in the first half itself when the mercurial Ranty Martins came out of his shell to pump in two spectacular goals to wipe out Churchill’s 9thminute lead, achieved from a penalty scored by Odafa after Ogba Kalu was brought down in the box by Cresson Antao.

Dempo meant business right from kick-off when they took a sniff at the goal in the very first minute when Sunil Chhetri’s nod off Anthony’s cross went inches wide.

But Ranty’s double strike — a brilliant glancing header in the 22nd minute and a mesmerising overhead bicycle kick in the 32nd from promptings by Anthony and Marcus Peixoto respectively — had them yearning for more. However, Anthony blew away two golden opportunities between which Dempo goalkeeper Tyson came up with a brilliant save to thwart Odafa.

Ranty should have completed his hat-trick by the 57th minute, but he and Beto were a wee bit late in meeting Anthony’s curling goalmouth cross from the right after the crossover.

It took another miss by Dempo, when Chhetri sent Ranty’s square pass inches wide, before their defence faltered and succumbed to the pressure from a charged-up Felix and Odafe.

However, it must be said if Churchill managed to squeeze home it was probably because coach Carlos Roberto Pereira da Silva brought in the right changes at the right moment. He pulled out a woefully off-colour Khentang Paite as early as in the 37th minute, Nascimento Silveira (61st) and then Vashum (73rd). The advent of Charan Rai, Dan Ito and Lalrinfela breathed new life in the middle and took the game away from Dempo.

The same cannot be said about Dempo, whose midfield functioned only from the flanks. And with Beto not being his usual self and Climax Lawrence a mere passenger, the pendulum was bound to swing in their rivals’ favour.

Nagaland, Meghalaya chart wins on Day III

A Staff Reporter | EMN
DIMAPUR, NOV 6: Host team, Nagaland continued its winning streak sailing past a struggling Sikkimese team by two goals while Meghalaya bounced back to take two points beating Assam 4-1 on day four of Dr T Ao Trophy on Friday.

Meghalaya, who had suffered a set back in the opening match against the host team took early lead with the first goal coming off the boots of Sixbirth Marak (12) in the 21st minute. Plassing Myrthong (17) scored the second in the 25th minute.
Bishalang Khongwir (11) coming off the bench in the second half scored third goal in the 59th minute while Milton Kharsati (7) took the goal tally to 4-1 in the 83rd minute.
Assam’s Bijoy Buragohain (13) gave the team its consolation goal scoring in the final minutes of the first half. Assam, who have cruised past Sikkim 6-0 in the first match struggled to find form taking on Meghalaya. The main referee also cautioned Bulu Jidang (17) with a yellow card in the 68th minute.
Sikkim having lost to Assam in the opening match fighting to stay in the tourney went down to the host state 2-0 in the second match.
The host team who were held back to a goalless first half got its first opening with a header from Sakutemjen (9) in 55th minute.
Sikkim looking for an equalizer suffered further setbacks with the match official Tushar Kanti Guha awarding a penalty kick to the host team after the defenders fault host player, Sakutemjen (9), who made it an easy 2-0 lead in the 59th minute.
Meanwhile, in what may be viewed as unbecoming conduct, the host team pushing to open its account earlier displayed utter disregard to spirit of sportsmanship and discipline much to the amazement of thousands of spectators cheering for the team in the opening minutes of the second half.
Host team’s scorer of the day Sakutemjen (9) reacted to a Yellow card by charging the referee.
The situation could have turned ugly with Saku rushing towards the referee in a threatening manner but his teammates intervened and dragged him away.

Tripura makes it to the semis; Mizoram bows out

(Left) Arunachal Pradesh, in white, and Tripura in action during the ground-one match on Saturday at the DDSC stadium. (Right) Mizoram's jersey no. 6, Lallawmzuala goes for a shot during the second match with Manipur. (Morung photo)

Dimapur | November 7 : Manipur handed out yet another humiliating defeat to Mizoram netting in seven goals to Mizoram’s nil in the second match on Saturday, November 7. With today’s comprehensive win they are surely the favourites of the tournament. They also increased their tally of goals to a mammoth 24 in the three league games they have played so far.
For Mizoram it is the end of the road with only one win in the tournament over a lacklustre Arunachal side, drawing one with Tripura in their first league game and today’s crushing loss. Most people were expecting an intense game today with the local crowd in Mizoram’s favour. A win by Mizoram would have meant making it a little easier for Nagaland to find a place in the final four.
The balance of the match dipping over Manipur’s favour was evident in the first half itself when Manipur banged in two goals. The first came through Herojit Singh in the 18th minute while the second was scored by Ksh. Malemnganba Meetei in the 31st minute.
The game turned a bit ugly in the dying minutes of the first half when play was stopped for more than five minutes. The problem was not with the players but with the rather partisan crowd who were hooting for Mizoram. The crowd started to throw plastic water bottles into the field over a supposedly clear offside against Manipur which was unfortunately not noticed by the on field referee while one of the linesmen was already waving the offside signal. Play had to be stopped until the crowd settled down only through the intervention of the IRB. The referee blew the whistle for half-time only a few minutes later when play finally resumed.
The second half turned out to be a goal fest for Manipur as striker Ksh. Malemnganba Meetei (jersey no. 10) banged in goal after goal. He ended up scoring three taking his tally of goals in the match to four. As if the proverbial icing on the cake, his fourth and the team’s seventh came during injury time. The other two goals in the second half came through K Reagan Singh (jersey no. 10) and L Herojit Singh.
L Herojit Singh was yellow carded in the 31st minute right after the second goal was scored. For Mizoram it was a “yellow day” as five of their players were cautioned by the referee for rough play. Already sensing they are out of the tournament with the match yet to be over, they got physical in quite a number of occasions. It resulted in the unusually high number of yellow cards against them.
Earlier in the first match Tripura pummelled tournament minnows Arunachal Pradesh 11-2 and made it to the semi-finals on goal difference ahead of Mizoram. The star of the match was striker Kiron Chattri. The forward scored a record seven goals in the match. Manoj Ekka, Binod Kishore Jamatia, Rabindra Debbarma and Utpal Choudhury chipped in with a goal each.
For Arunachal it was their best result in the tournament in terms of goals scored. Their two goals were scored by Hari Kalou and Taba Rakesh increasing their tournament tally to 3. The statistics showed that both Mizoram and Tripura have one loss, one draw and one win each in their three league games. However, today’s awe inspiring performance by Tripura put them ahead of Mizoram. The two team's tally of goals are Tripura 14 overall, twice as much as Mizoram’s 7. Sunday will see Nagaland and Assam in a do or die game for both in the second match. Assam has one loss and one win in two games while Nagaland has two wins in as many matches. Their tally of goals stands at four each. A draw means the host will go ahead in the points table.
The first match will have Meghalaya face-off against young Sikkim. Meghalaya only need a draw to go through to the semis with one loss and a win so far, with Sikkim winless and yet to open their scores. It will be very interesting if Sikkim spring a surprise. There is a faint chance of them making it through, albeit they have to win by a huge margin and hope that the result between Assam and Nagaland is either a draw or Nagaland beats Assam.
Meanwhile in the raffle draw two lucky match ticket holders won an LG DVD player each. It was sponsored by LG Home Appliances & Nokia distributor – M/S Eastern Enterprises, Dimapur.

Dimapur Youth Club speaks for Naga talented footballers

Dimapur, November 3: Taking note of the recently concluded NSF Trophy, the Dimapur Youth Club (DYC) lauded the Excel United players and members for lifting the Trophy defeating Nagaland police in the final.

DYC in a press release said that this performance shows that there are lots of outstanding players even in the local clubs and teams other than police team in the state. It is indeed an eye opener not only to the sports governing body who select the players to represent Nagaland state many a times, is represented by the police team instead of selecting players from local club and teams with the point short notice and insufficient time to select and do the coaching.

However, the DYC said that selection of players from different district and general local clubs and team to represent the state might make some difference Nagaland junior players are doing well (state -U-14and 17) in the national level. Since the players are from different district and local clubs and teams.

For instance, the DYC added that in the forth coming North east Dr. T. Ao Trophy, till date no one knows who are the players going to represent Nagaland state team there are many Naga talented footballers dreaming to play for the state but are not given chance. The main problem is that there is no proper selection committee.

“Hence, most of the talented players are buried unnoticed. Most of the players play football as hobby, but some talented player longs to take upon football as their career. But they are helpless, no point of taking it as the career unless the very platform is provided to them by the sports governing body,” the Club added.

Further, making a clarification, the DYC added, “Hence the main notice of writing the matter is not to hurt any individual, group or department but to make the selection of players specially in the senior level for representing the state of Nagaland in the game of football let us open our eyes an make some changes, so that be marked in the map as one of the best football state in India.”

Lastly, the DCY called upon all to support the NFA so that they could come up for the betterment of Nagaland State football team (senior level) and also wishing the Nagaland football team “All the Best” in North East Dr. T. Ao.

Manipur State League football

Labels: manipur

Imphal, October 28 : Defending champion NISA, Thangmeiband scripted a solitary goal victory against USA, Khurai to remain on top of the points table in the 4th Manipur State League football tournament.

The NISA triumph in a seventh round match played today was fetched by L Ibotomba with a 75th minute goal.

In the other matches played at the same venue, H Chakravorti scored three goals in NEROCA's 9-1 thrashing of PYC, Phoudel while TRAU, Kwakeithel outplayed YWC, Thambalkhong 3-1 .

At Khuman lampak Main stadium where similar number of matches were played today, SSU (Singjamei) pipped MBSU, Wahengbam Leikai 3-2; AIM, Khabam also over-came MPSC 3-2 and ESU, Wangkhei downed TRUGPU, nambol by a solitary goal.

Serto trophy football/athletics

Imphal, October 27 2009: Kh Roshan Singh of Tera Khongsangbi claimed the top crown in the 15 kms marathon competition of the 3rd Mukta Serto Memorial Trophy cum Athletics Meet organised by Sagang Youth Club, Churachandpur district.

Second position of the marathon race was secured by Ajoy Singh of Thinungei with M Samuel Kom of Lukhumbi finishing third.

In the final of the football competition, FFC, Kumbi overcame NYSCO, Wangoo Naodakhong 5-3 via the tie-breaker.

Closing ceremony of the competition, participated by 20 teams, was held yesterday with Co of 7 AR Maj AK Pandey and lecturer L Thangpa as the chief guest and functional president respectively.

Capt J Mahesh, CO of 'A' Coy 7 AR, Sagang graced the occasion as the guest of honour.

India U-19 football team leaves for Dubai for training tour

Labels: football

NEW DELHI: A 23-member India Under-19 football team on Saturday left the country for Dubai for a training tour as part of their AFC U-19 qualifiers in Iraq next month.

The team though is yet to get clearance from the government for the November 5 to 15 AFC U-19 qualifiers in Arbil in Iraq as the External Affairs Ministry is mulling over the security aspect of the tour.

India have been drawn alongwith Afghanistan, Iraq, Oman, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia in Group C of the AFC U-19 qualifiers.

The Team:

Goalkeepers: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Jagroop Singh, Shaikh Mohd. Razakh.

Defenders: Abhishek Das, Vishal Kumar, Ravindra Kumar, Deepak Devrani, Inderpreet Singh, Daniel Albert Vales, Souvik Ghosh, Lalrozama Fanai, Akshay Vimal Kumar Mall.

Midfielders: Jonychand Thounaojam, Milan Singh, Bikramjit Singh, Shilton Sydbey D'Silva, Malsawmkima Chhangte, Amit Bisht, Lalrindika Ralte, Thirthankar Sarkar.

Forwards: Jeje Lalpeklua, Manandeep, Holi Charan Narzary, Malsawmfela.

Indian football team’s performance praiseworthy : Praful Patel

All India Football Federation president Praful Patel feels that India’s title win the ONGC Nehru cup 2009 paved the way for glory to football in the country. He was interacting with media after the Annual General Body Meeting of the AIFF on Tuesday night. He said that the performance of the Indian Football team is praiseworthy especially after the win in AFC Challenge cup 2008 which gave India qualification in the AFC Asian Cup 2011 after a gap of 24 years. He praised the Indian team led by Bhaichung Bhutia .He said that we have to build football from the sub junior and juniors level and take it seniors level.He thanked the Ministry of youth affairs & sports ,Govt of India ,BCCI ,sponsors ONGC and AIFF partners Zee Sports for their support to Indian Football. Mr Patel had a special word of praise for Subrata Pal and described him as marvelous goalkeeper .

Manipur lifts 1st All India Women's Football Championship

Labels: manipur

Gangtok, Oct 16 : Manipur lifted the first All India Women's Football Championship by defeating Orissa on a tie-breaker in the final match played at Paljor Stadium here today.

Manipur converted three of their five penalty shots while Orissa could convert only two and the final score read 3-2 in favour of the Northeastern team.

Earlier, both sides were locked in a goalless draw despite several chances that saw goal-bound shots rebounding from the bar four times during the match.

With the game ending 0-0, the match was decided over penalties where the Manipuri team prevailed over Orissa. The lady of the tournament was given to Susmita Mallik of Orissa.

Highest scorer of the tournament went to I Parmeshwari Devi of Manipur with ten goals.
The best player of the tournament went to Orissa goalkeeper Seeta Sharma.

Orissa to take on Manipur in final

Gangtok, Oct 13 (PTI) Orissa rode on striker Sasmita Malik's hat-trick to spank Sikkim 'Red' 3-0 and set up the title-clash with Manipur in first Pempa Dorjee Memorial All India Women's Football tournament at Paljor Stadium, here today.

Meanwhile, favourite Manipur defeated West Bengal 1-0 as midfielder Rani Devi scored the all-important goal for Manipur in the 64th minute to ensure their passage to the final.

The final would be played on October 15.

Manipur defeats Sikkim 'Red', enter semis

Labels: manipur

Gangtok, Oct 11 (PTI) Manipur today defeated Sikkim 'Red' 3-0 to top the Group A with nine points, while Group B match between Tamil Nadu and West Bengal was drawn 1-1 in the first Pempa Dorjee Memorial All India Women's Football tournament at Paljor Stadium here.

Prameshwari Devi (2) and S Rina Roy Devi (1) scored for Manipur, who have not conceded a single goal in three matches and scored 25 till now in the tournament.

Sikkim 'Red' and Assam, having three points apiece, will play against each other tomorrow in a crucial tie that will decide the second semifinalist from Group A, after Manipur.

Tamil Nadu and West Bengal shared one point each after they played out a 1-1 draw. Tamil Nadu established 1-0 lead in the 46th minute from a goal by Angal Adolfes.

Soma Seal struck the equaliser in the 69th minute.

Manipur enter semi finals at Girls National Football

Imphal, October 08 2009: Manipur trounced Uttarakhand 7-0 in the last Group A quarter final match of the 6th Sub Junior Girls National Football Championship at Haldwani today.

The win put Manipur on top of the group and will face the runners-up side of Group B in the semifinal on october 12 .

Anibala led the goal blitz against the hapless Uttarakhand girls completing a hattrick with goals in the 2nd, 4th and 6th minutes as Grace Dangmei (37th), Bijeta (38th), Rekha (40th) and Bhabini (62nd) rounded off the comfortable win with one goal each.

Manipur, thus, completed its quarter final campaign with an all-win record.

Manipur trounces rival in women's football tourney

Labels: All Manipur Football Association

Gangtok, Oct 8 : Title favourite Manipur today overwhelmed KFA Darjeeling 18-3 in a Group A league match of First Pempa Dorji Memorial All India Women``s Football Championship at Paljor Stadium here. Striker I Prameshwori Devi scored a double hat-trick, as Manipur women pulverlised the rival team scoring nine goals each in either side of the 90-minute match.

Devi``s teammate Ph Bina Devi also hammerd a hat-trick. Bem Bem Devi and substitute Ksh Naocha Devi also scored a brace each for Manipur.

Meanwhile, in Group-B league tie, Orissa defeated Tamil Nadu 2-0 with Susmita Mallik and captain Sradhanjali Samantary being the scorers, while Sikkim Green lost to West Bengal 0-3. Paromita Sit, Nosaba Alam and Sujata Kar scored for West Bengal.

In tomorrow``s fixture, Manipur will play Assam, while Sikkim ``Green`` will take on Tamil Nadu.

Manipur swept off West Bengal 7-0

Labels: manipur

IMPHAL, Oct 5 : Manipur crushed West Bengal 7-0 goals in the group A quarter final league match being played today at Haldwani, Uttarkhand in the ongoing 6th Sub-Junior Girls National Football Championship 2009.

Dangmei Grace, Binomala, D Grace, Romi, Bijita were the scorers of Manipur who could score at 11th, and 39th minutes of the match 39th, 40th and again Binomala scored at 34th, 48th and 65th minutes of the match.

Quarter final league match is also scheduled to play between Manipur and Pondicherry on October 6, 2009, said a release.

North Imphal maintain lead

Manipur League

An Eastern Sporting Union player (in green) attempts a sliding tackle in Imphal on Thursday. Telegraph picture

Imphal, Oct. 1: Defending champions North Imphal Sporting Association today brushed aside a lacklustre first session to humble Eastern Sporting Union by 2-0 goals in a match of the 4th Manipur State League played at Mapal Kangjeibung.

The victory helped them keep their top slot in the league table with 13 points to their name.

In the match today, Eastern Sporting Union displayed a lot of grit in the first half and held the North Imphal attacks at bay with some stout defending.

However, in the second half, North Imphal Sporting Association broke the shackles and captain N. Jimmy Singh came up with the first goal after anticipating a right flank pass from M. Bidyasagar in the 48th minute.

Their second goal came just two minutes later after L. Dewan Singh headed in a corner kick by N. Rajesh.

The goal margin for North Imphal should have been higher but Jimmy Singh missed a penalty kick awarded after the Eastern keeper brought down W. Denal inside the danger zone in the second half.

In another match, Manipur Brothers Sporting Union overcame North Eastern Re-Organising and Cultural Association by 2-1 goals.

The North Eastern team, without a win so far in the league, seemed to hold the upper hand, after the first half, with an injury time goal. Just before the half time whistle, North Eastern were awarded a penalty after M. Premchand Singh was fouled by a Manipur Brothers defender. Th. Surjit Singh made no mistake in guiding the ball into the net for the lead.

Manipur Brothers, however, geared up in the second half and got the equaliser from a corner kick conversion. L. Boipu Doungel aimed for the second post and S. Kishan Singh sliced the ball home in the 67th minute.

The side scored their second goal when Z.V. Reishing Zimik, running in the middle, made a short pass to forward H. Premkumar, who outran a defender, to bang home the winning goal in the 71 minute.

Southern Sporting Union held Anouba Imagi Mangal to a 2-2 goal draw in another match.

Water sport

Altogether 93 paddlers from six units are taking part in the 1st state-level Canoe and Kayaking Championship being held at Kangla Moat in Imphal. The participating units are Lalambung Makhong Youth Voluntary Association, Sendra Youth Club, Manipur Police Sports Club, Uripok UCAL, Santi Club Moirang and Heingang HKSU.

Churchill held by Mahindra

Mumbai: Churchill Brothers didn’t start their I-League campaign in a very creditable fashion as they were held 1-1 by Mahindra United in the season opener at the Cooperage ground here on Thursday.

The defending champions actually escaped a loss as Mahindra failed to take advantage of the last half hour of the match when the Goans were down to 10 players following the sending-off of goalkeeper Arindam Bhattacharya.

Both goals were scored by foreigners, Svetozar Mijin and Dan Ito, on their I-League debut for Mahindra and Churchill respectively.

Mijin pounced on a loose ball inside the box to put Mahindra ahead in the26th minute but the lead lasted just seven minutes as the visitors found the equaliser through Ito who punched in a brilliant cross from Thokchom Naoba Singh from the right.

But Mahindra could have scored a few more easily. Mohammed Rafi had the easiest of chances when the ball continued to roll after Bhattacharya handled it outside the box but lost control. The Kerala youngster, however, chose to appeal instead of latching on to the ball and slotting it into the net. “I was not thinking much,” Rafi admitted later.

There were a couple of opportunities towards the end when Churchill’s reserve custodian Lalit Thapa went out of position while trying to collect the ball but the Mumbai outfit couldn’t take advantage. Then, substitute Thoi Singh’s header went just over the bar. But definitely Mahindra were the superior team.

The only worry for Mahindra could be the fitness of Steven Dias who was taken out of the field on a stretcher on the hour mark, immediately after making a typical cross that was fisted away by Bhattacharya. But coach David Booth said that he just suffered from cramps.

Teams

Churchill Brothers: Rowilson Rodrigues, Felix Chmaokwu, Thokchom Naoba Singh, Ogba Kalu Nnanna, Odafe Okolie, Khan Thang Paite (Lalit Thapa 64’), Reisangmi Vashum, Dan Ito (Nascimento Silveira 75’), Robert Lalthlamuana (Naveen Kumar Sudhakaran 45’), Arindam Bhattacharya.

Mahindra United: Subhashish Chowdhury, NP Pradeep, KN Ajayan, Svetozar Mijin (Bhola Prasad 83’), Mohammed Rafi, Denzil Franco, Ravanan Dharmaraj, Kali Alaudeen Nisthar, Muritala Ali (Thoi Singh 72’), Steven Dias (Paresh Shivalkar 62’), Debabrata Roy.

Referee: Pratap Singh

Another season of I-League begins with Churchill facing Mahindra

New Delhi, Sep 30 (IANS) The expanded I-League with fourteen teams and a record 182 matches to be played across 26 rounds will kick-off Thursday with defending champions Churchill Brothers taking on Mahindra United at the Cooperage in Mumbai.

The third season of the I-League will be the biggest since its inception as the National Football League (NFL) in 1996-97 and this time it will truly reflect why it is called a national league.

This time the league has moved ahead from being played only in Kolkata, Goa, Mumbai and Ludhiana. It will now go down South to Kochi in Kerala with Viva Kerala’s promotion and for the first time there will be representation from North East, now the powerhouse of Indian football, with Shillong’s Lajong Football club.

With more teams and matches, the I-League will be the best platform for home grown players.

While some clubs are heavily banking on overseas imports, others are content with the local talent. So the third edition of the I-League will prove whether Indian clubs can win titles with bare minimum foreign players.

This time the Asian Football Federation (AFC) has allowed clubs to recruit four overseas players, including one of Asian origin. The new rule will however challenge the Indians to prove that they are equally talented to win matches.

The success of Goan clubs especially Churchill Brothers and Dempo Sports Club have shifted the focus from Kolkata, which is now losing its status as the epicentre of Indian football.

The last time a Kolkata club won the national league, rechristened as the I-League in 2006, was in 2003-04 when East Bengal won their third title.

But since then much has changed and Goan clubs have surged ahead with their professionalism.

For the last three years, Dempo (2006, 2007) and Churchill Brothers (2008) have dominated the I-League. Last year, three-time national league winner Mohun Bagan came close but lost to Mahindra United to finish second.

This time Mohun Bagan have showed some prospects and made the two back-to-back finals in the IFA Shield and Durand Cup, but on both occasions finished runners-up to the formidable Churchill Brothers.

While Mohun Bagan can take some heart from finishing second, all is not good for East Bengal. The three-time national league champions made a horrendous start to the season with four consecutive losses, something that has happened rarely in the club’s 99-year old history.

With fingers being pointed at the wrong selection of foreigners, East Bengal coach Subhash Bhowmick can only hope the return of national captain Bhaichung Bhutia, who got interim relief from the All India Football Federation (AIFF) to play in the league, can lift the team’s spirit.

But all eyes will be on Churchill’s star-striker Odafe Onyeka Okolie, who reportedly settled for $200,259 annual bonanza, a figure unheard of in Indian football. The prolific goal scorer has set high-benchmark at Churchill Brothers and the club’s chances of retaining the title will again centre on the 26-year-old Nigerian’s performance.

Among Indian players, Mahindra United striker Mohammad Rafi will be the player to watch out for. The Kerala boy has scored six goals in Shield and the Durand and if he continues in the same vein, a call from national coach Bob Houghton won’t be too far.

Bishnupur emerge overall champions

School Sports Meet

Imphal, Sept. 30: Bishnupur district lifted the overall team champion’s title of the 2nd Annual School Sports Meet that concluded at Khuman Lampak Main Stadium today. Imphal West finished runners-up.

In the senior boys’ badminton doubles, A. Alopson and Kh. Somen of Bisnupur triumped over R. Kamei and C. Kamei of Tamenglong for the champion’s title. Chandel district team fetched the third spot.

S. Chuni and K. Roji of Chandel won the senior girls’ badminton doubles title while Rebika Devi and Puja Kamei of Imphal East were runners-up. Tamenglong district finished third. In the junior boys’ event, Karnajit Singh and Amison Singh of Bishnupur district won the title while Manitomba Singh and Roshnikumar Singh of Imphal West claimed the runners-up title. Ukhrul district got the third spot.

In the junior girls’, the pair of Y. Dhanapati Devi and Bijaya Devi of Imphal East was crowned champions while W. Anari and Daimawar of Chandel were runners-up.

In the kho kho event, Imphal East claimed the champions’ title while Thoubal district were the runners-up. Churachandpur district came third.

An 8km marathon on the theme Run for Education was also held to mark the occasion.

Earlier, Bishnupur district made a clean sweep of the football and volleyball titles.

In the senior boys’ volleyball final on Monday, Bishnupur beat Tamenglong.

Bishnupur claimed another title by winning the football event, beating Senapati district by 2-1 goals in the final.

North Imphal in driver’s seat

Labels: Imphal

Manipur League

Imphal, Sept. 29: North Imphal Sporting Association is sitting pretty at the top of the team tally with 10 points in the fourth round of the first leg of the 4th Manipur State League.

Manipur Police Sports Club is placed next with nine points. Southern Sporting Union, Tiddim Road Athletic Union, Manipur Brothers Sporting Union, Anouba Imagi Mangal and Tiddim Road Unique Gamy Players Union are locked with seven points each. Eastern Sporting Union has garnered six points, while Youth Welfare Club and United Sporting Association have four points each.

North Eastern Re-Organising and Cultural Association, along with Phoudel Youth Club, are yet to register any victory and are at the bottom of the tally with no points.

Manipur Police Sports Club made mincemeat of United Sporting Association in their fourth game today, routing the latter 4-0 at Mapal Kangjeibung. The policemen came down hard on their opponents from the very beginning of the match and pumped in three goals in the first half itself to push their opponents on to the backfoot.

Md Zia-ul Haq netted the lead for the cops in the 16th minute and forward I. Nilakumar Singh consolidated the lead with another goal in the 23rd minute to dominate the proceedings. The policemen kept up the pressure and their third goal came in the 39th minute with Zia-ul Haq ruffling the net.

Though the second half was a lacklustre affair, the silence was broken in the 87th minute as Nilakumar shot home a stunner for the policemen for the 4-0 victory.

In other matches, Manipur Brothers Sporting Union blanked Tiddim Road Athletic Union by 2-0 goals and Tiddim Road Unique Gamy Players’ Union came up with a 3-1 victory against Phoudel Youth Club.

L. Boipu Doungel scored the first goal for Manipur Brothers in the 31st minute while teammate Z.V. Reishing Zimik scored the winning goal in the 47th minute.

Though Phoudel had a luckless run so far in the league, they managed to give Tiddim Road some fight on the greens.

Tiddim Road, however, managed to pull off a comfortable win ultimately. S. Surchand Singh opened their account in the 21st minute and Kh. Naoton Singh fetched another goal in the 35th minute. Later in the second half, L. Ratan Singh found the third goal for his team in the 73rd minute for the 3-1 win.

58th edition of Bordoloi Trophy held in Assam

Labels: assam

The 58th edition of 'Bordoloi trophy', one of the most awaited football tournaments of the year for all sports lovers in the northeast especially in Assam, was recently held at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium in Guwahati.

Named after the first Chief Minister of Assam, Gopinath Bordoloi, the tournament has gained enormous popularity in the northeast, as 14 teams from Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland participated in the tournament including a team from Senegal as well.

Organisers are now trying to bring back the past glory of the tournament by bringing international teams to compete in the tournament.

In the past, teams from Russia, Uzbekistan, and Bangladesh have participated in the tournament.

"We feel good to have teams coming from outside the state as we get to learn from them and gain experience. Observing them play, we can learn other qualities as well," said Mrityadev Swargiyari, a player from Assam.

Meanwhile, Tia Ao, team manager of Nagaland Police, claimed that their team has lots of experience, and said: "Playing here we get lots of experience. If we play in our hometown, we don't get much exposure. Playing with various skilled teams we will get experience."

Football enthusiasts from across the northeast came to cheer the participants, as the Assam State Electricity Board team emerged the champion in the tournament beating the Nagaland police team by 3-2.

Over the years, Bordoloi Trophy has been playing a major role in providing a platform for local players from the region to expose their talent and compete with international teams as well.

Motbung Youth, Ngathan shine

Community Football

A Ngathan player (in red) tries to shake off his Star XI opponent on Manipur University campus at Canchipur on Friday. Telegraph picture

Imphal, Sept. 25: Motbung Youth Club, Senapati today edged past Kuithang Youth Club, Tamenglong by a solitary goal in the Inter-Community Football Tournament on Manipur University campus at Canchipur.

Both teams played their hearts out in the first half but failed to score.

However, in the second half, the Motbung Youth team adopted an attacking strategy. Henjoy Thang of the Motbung Youth team proved to be a match winner as he scored the lone goal in the 56th minute for the victory.

In another match, Ngathan Youth Club, Churachandpur defeated Star XI, Senapati, by 4-1 goals via penalty shootout.

The wet outfield made it difficult for the players of either team to control the ball.

Both the teams failed to score within the regulation time and the match had to be decided by a penalty shootout.

In the subsequent decider, Lalrem Lun, Daniel, Jamthei Lal and Van Thang converted theirs respective kicks for Ngathan Youth Club, while Lanring Pou put home the only goal Star XI after teammates Ringson and Pangai failed to score.

Imphal annual sports: Altogether 719 students will compete in the second annual sports meet to be held at Khuman Lampak Sports Complex from September 26-30.

The meet will see them take part in disciplines like football, volleyball, kho kho and badminton. Mukna and athletics, however, will be the main events in the meet, which will be organised under the directorate of school education.

Manipur State league football

Imphal, September 22 2009: SSU, Singjamei, TRAU (Kwakeithel) and ESU (Wangkhei) defeated their respective opponents in first round matches of the 4th Manipur State League football tournament today.

Riding on goals from Md Sahidur Rahman (11th) and AS themreishang (30th), SSU blanked NEROCA, Shangakpham 2-0 at Mapal Kangjeibung with ESU also scripting win over PYC, Phoudel by the same margin after Kamneithang Khongsai found the target at the quarter hour mark and kh Saveson doubled the advantage in injury time.

In another match at the same venue, NISA (Thangmeiband) salvaged a draw when Ksh Malemnganba struck in the 73rd minute to neutralise Md Riyaz Khan's 37th minute goal for YWC, Thambalkhong.

The match between MBSU, Wahengbam Leikai and USA, Khurai also ended in a 2-2 draw with M Romi (3rd) opening the MBSU goal and Y Hemanta deflecting in a header to his own net for the Wahengbam leikai side to establish 2-0 lead.

However, USA rallied on M Angangcha's 42nd minute header and Y somendro's goal in the 69th minute of the match at Mapal Kangjeibung.

Playing against AIM (Khabam) at mapal Kangjeibung, L Lolendro curled in a free kick from the top of the rival box in the 50th minute to fetch 1-0 victory for TRAU.

The sixth match of the day featured MPSC and TRUGPU, Nambol at Khuman Lampak Main stadium wherein the police side emerged winners at 2-0 .

M somochandra netted the MPSC goals in the 15th and 82nd minutes.

Mohun Bagan Crushes ONGC By 5-1 In Durand Cup

Labels: mohun bagan

Mohun Bagan established a 5-1 victory over ONGC in their opening quarter final league match of the 122nd Durand Cup football tournament, played on Wednesday.

After their IFA Shield final loss to Churchill Brothers, Mohun Bagan has showcased a solid performance at the 17th Durand Cup title at the Ambedkar Stadium.

Bagan could have won by a bigger margin, but Jose Barreto missed a penalty. The Brazilian, however, made up for the loss scoring a brilliant goal in the 43rd minute in the group two match of the tournament.

Mohun Bagan controlled the match right from the start as Chidi and Barreto combined well to unnerve the ONGC defence. ONGC striker’s Baba Tunde and Lalsangzuala didn’t get much support from the half-line. Tunde, however, managed to score the solitary goal in the 82nd minute.

The 16-time champions took the lead in the ninth minute after an unmarked Surkumar hit from a rebound off James Singh's perfect flag-kick.

Nigerian Chidi doubled the score seven minutes later. Mohun Bagan went into the break with a 3-0 lead.ONGC failed to revitalize even after the breather. Lalsangzuala well-directed shot was saved by goalkeeper Sangram Mukherjee.

Chidi netted again in the 82nd minute from Shanta Kumar's precise pass. Surkumar struck again in the dying minutes with a long ranger to complete the tally.

Naga cops race into final

Bordoloi Trophy

An OIL player (in yellow) and his Nagaland opponent tussle at Nehru Stadium in Guwahati on Wednesday. Picture by Eastern Projections

Guwahati, Sept. 16: Nagaland Police today created Bordoloi Trophy history by entering their maiden final, upsetting a lacklustre Oil India Limited (OIL) by a solitary goal in the second semi-final at Nehru Stadium here this evening.

The only goal of the match came through a header by Nagaland Police’s 25-year-old striker Saku in the 60th minute after OIL custodian Prandeep Dutta failed to clear a long-ranger shot. Saku, lurking beside Dutta, headed the ball home effortlessly.

They will now face former champions and favourites Assam State Electricity Board (ASEB) in the final on September 18.

OIL only have themselves to blame for not winning the game. Playing in the 4-4-2 formation, OIL had the better of exchanges in the first half, slowing down the game to upset the rhythm of their opponents.

Their strategy was working till Saku made the most of the casual collection by the OIL custodian.

They stepped up the tempo but their rivals were faster, strengthening their defence in no time.

E. Ratan Singh, the Nagaland coach, was a happy man. “It’s a great feeling to be in our first final. We were lucky. My boys gave their heart and soul in the match,” he said, swamped by jubilant Naga youths who stormed the field to savour the moment with their team.

Akon Sonowal, manager of OIL, blamed the four missed chances in the first half for the ouster.

Nagaland cops enter semis

Labels: Nagaland

Bordoloi Trophy

Md. Sporting (in black) and Nagaland Police tussle for the ball at Nehru Stadium in Guwahati on Monday. Picture by Eastern Projections

Guwahati, Sept. 15 : Nagaland Police this evening booked a semi-final berth in the Bordoloi Trophy, upsetting favourites Md. Sporting of Calcutta 3-0 in the tiebreaker at the Nehru Stadium here after regulation time ended in a goalless draw.

The Calcutta team played a listless game with captain Jothi Kumar missing two close opportunities. Dipendu Biswas and Gautam Thakur also squandered chances.

The Nagaland policemen played a fast and co-ordinated game but could not score.

However, they found their saviour in goalkeeper Zuthungo, who made three consecutive saves to send the Calcutta outfit out of the coveted meet. Nagaland police will take on Oil India Ltd in the second semi-final on Wednesday.

Tomorrow, ASEB will play Peerless in the first semi-final.

Women’s football: Kangchup Road Youth Physical and Sporting Association prevailed upon Naharol Yaipha Thourang Club by 3-2 goals in the AMFA Senior Women Football Tournament, 2009 played at Mapal Kangjeibung today, reports our sports correspondent from Imphal.

Fed Cup starring Salman

Actor’s presence as AIFF ambassador confirmed

A STAFF REPORTER

Salman Khan. (Reuters)

Guwahati, Sept. 13: For soccer lovers of Assam, the eautiful game” could not have been more glamorous.

Bollywood hunk Salman Khan will be in the city when it hosts the final of the elite Federation Cup — one of most prestigious football tournaments of the country — in December.

Salman’s scheduled presence was confirmed by Assam Football Association secretary Ankur Dutta who told The Telegraph today: “The filmstar has become the All India Football Federation’s brand ambassador. And he will definitely be present during the Federation Cup final which happens to be one of the most elite events of the AIFF.”

The actor’s presence will be a big boost to the game which, despite its popularity in this part of the country, fails to attract crowds to the tournaments; even one of the stature of Bordoloi Trophy is played virtually to empty stands.

Altogether 16 teams, including I-League teams like East Bengal, Churchill Brothers, Mohun Bagan, Dempo, Vasco SC and Mahindra United will take the field during the tournament which is going to be hosted by Assam after a gap of over 30 years.

Incidentally, Salman’s presence had ensured a capacity crowd at the Ambedkar Stadium in Delhi last week during the final of the Nehru Cup.

The AFA expects the same in the Federation Cup final, tentatively slated for December 30 or 31. The fixture is yet to be finalised.

“Be it Fed Cup or any club football tournament, I’ll make it a point to be among the crowd in the final as Salman Khan will be there. I’ll try for an autograph. I’ve seen all his films but never seen him off-screen,” said 13-year-old Ankita Bora of Jorhat, who is a die-hard fan of the star, but not really interested in football.

“It is not only Salman Khan who is going to be the crowd-puller. The participating teams are themselves stars in their own rights with almost all the giant footballers of the country, including the mercurial Bhaichung Bhutia, in their ranks. The star’s presence will be the icing on the cake,” Dutta said.

“This is an opportunity for us to watch all the football icons of the nation on the same turf. I’ll not miss a single match of the tournament,” Ranjan Basumatary, a young footballer of the city, said.

“We were first awarded the Santosh Trophy tournament in the executive council meeting in New Delhi recently. However, we insisted on the Fed Cup because it has glamour. All the teams are elite outfits of the nation,” the AFA secretary, who is also an AIFF vice-president and the chairman of the Federation Cup committee, added.

IFA Shield: Churchill beat AI in shootout, enter final

Labels: Churchill Brothers

Kolkata: I-League champion Churchill Brothers struggled past Air India 5-3 in a penalty shootout to enter final of the 114th IFA Shield in a rain-soaked encounter at the Yuba Bharati Krirangan here today.

After even extra-time play failed to break the 1-1 deadlock, Churchill scored 4-2 in tie-breaker with the winning goal coming through Nacimento Silveira, whose shot deceived Air India keeper Arnab Das Sharma.

Other Chruchill scorers in the shootout were Ogba Kalu Nnanna, Sudharkarn Naveen Kumar and Gourmangi Singh, while Reisangmei Vashum's shot was saved by Sharma.

For the Mumbai outfit, Harpreet Singh and Vijith Shetty found the net but Kailash Patel hit the bar and Tapan Maity's effort was far wide as their side crashed out.

Initially, the Airmen secured an early lead through an own goal by Chuchill defender Rowilson Rodrigues in the 14th minute.

Churchill failed to convert nine corners and as many freekicks in first-half, with Air India holding on to their lead till 76th minute of the game.

Vashum had a forgettable outing in the first half but the medio brought Churchill back into the game through a spectacular goal in the 76th minute.

Airmen went one-up when Churchill defender Rodrigues' outstretched leg made the ball loop over their custodian Arindam who stood dejected in frustration.

Having conceded goal early into the first-half, the Goa outfit went under more pressure and dished out a lacklustre show till the breather.

Vashum missed an easy freekick in 21st minute, failing to get his boot to the ball.

But the Airmen's attack was lacking the penetrating power to make further inroads as Churchill had a better possession.

After the changeover, Air India held on to their 1-0 lead and when it all seemed that they would progress into the final, Vashum from the edge of the box lofted the ball over goalkeeper's head into the net.

Spotting Air India custodian Arnab out off line, Vashum chipped the ball over with his sharp left-footer to bring in the equaliser.

After 10 minutes, the Goans looked to settle the issue when Durga Boro launched a shot from near the goal but the Air India custodian stood in between, clearing the ball superbly.

Both teams had few chances in the extra time, but they failed to take capitalise on those, stretching the proceeding to the penalty shootout.

Assam Rifles beat Simla Youngs 4-1

New Delhi, Sep 8 (PTI) Assam Rifles put up an all-round performance to beat Simla Youngs 4-1 in the qualifying round of 122nd Durand Cup football tournament here today.

The Riflemen surged ahead in the second minute of the match through striker Thoi Thoiba Singh, followed by another goal by Meikingai Kamei in the very next minute.

Assam Rifles swelled the lead in 13th minute via Akum Ao.

Hirojit Kumar (90th) was the other scorer for winning party, while striker Samson Oyeleke (82nd) produced the consolation goal for Simla Youngs.

Mizoram, GTC in final four

Labels: Mizoram

GTC challenge trophy

Guwahati, Sept. 7: Mizoram XI and hosts Gauhati Town Club entered the semi-finals of the 2nd Airtel GTC Challenge Trophy football tournament at Judges Field here.

In the first two quarter-finals played under floodlights on Sunday evening, Mizoram XI got the better of Arhima, Shillong, 5-4 via tie-breakers and GTC too edged past Oil India FC, Duliajan, 6-5 in a similar fashion.

The first quarter-final match between Mizoram and Arihima ended in a goalless draw at the end of regulation time. As the match went into the shootout, Mizoram emerged winners. Sama Hwamte, Laldampuia, Samuela, Lalchhawnkima and Lalhon Chanunga scored for Mizoram XI in the penalty shootout while for Arhima, Dapbar Bareh, Kenol, Engeneson and F. Ranel found the net.

The second quarter-final match between GTC and Oil India FC too was an encounter which kept the spectators on the edge of their seats. Oil India surged ahead in the 25th minute when F. Wary scored off a rebound from the GTC woodwork. In the second half, the GTC men exhibited power, finesse and character as they equalised in the 70th minute through Langka Basumatary.

In the tie-breakers, GTC goalkeeper Dulu Gogoi foiled the very first kick from Minto Boro of Oil India.

All five kicks by the GTC men from the penalty mark were converted. The end result read 5-4 in favour of GTC.

Those who scored for GTC in the penalty included N. Basumatary, Lakhyajit Konwar, Tomba Singh, Disister Marak and Janap Deuri. For Oil India, R. Routa, M. Thangjom, J. Basumatary and B. Sonowal converted their shots.

GTC will play their semi-final on September 10 against the winners of the ASEB-Sunrise tie while Mizoram XI will play theirs a day earlier against the winners of SSA and Army Green.

The final is scheduled for September 12.
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ASC beat ND Heroes in Durand Cup

Labels: Durand Cup

NEW DELHI: Assam Rifles blanked MEG Bangalore 3-0 while ASC Bangalore beat local side New Delhi Heroes 2-1 in the qualifying round matches of the 122nd ONGC Durand Cup football tournament on Friday.

Both Assam Rifles and ASC Bangalore moved to the next round.

In the first match of the day, Assam Rifles scored through C Lalrin Kima (28th minute), V Abel Sema (52nd) and Bulu Jigdung (89th).

In the second match of the day, Tirunavukarasu (33rd and 46th) scored two goals for ASC Bangalore while Manoj Joshi reduced the margin for New Delhi Heroes in the 68th minute.

On Saturday, Army Juniors take on Ahbab FC Delhi in the first match while the second game is between Air Force XI and Oil and Natural Gas Corporation.

Salman Khan to promote Indian football

Labels: Salman Khan

NEW DELHI: Bollywood actor Salman has been roped in as the brand ambassador of Indian football by the All India Football Federation to promote the game in the country.

Salman, who was present at the Ambedkar Stadium on Monday night to watch India's Nehru Cup title victory over Syria, has agreed to promote the game, AIFF acting president Praful Patel said.

"Salman is a national icon. He had come to us and said he wants to promote football. So we have made him our brand ambassador. It is not going to incur any cost to us and he had approached to us voluntarily," Patel said.

"We have to see how he can help promote football in the country," he added.

Salman, who had shown interest in buying an Indian Premier League side when the league will be expanded to 10 teams in 2011, took a walk at the periphery of the pitch waving to the crowd who filled up the 20,000 capacity Ambedkar Stadium to the brim.

Kuki graze past Dimapur

Labels: Dimapur

Imphal west Soccer

A Progressive Youth player (in blue) tries to get past the XI Star goalkeeper in Imphal on Sunday. Telegraph picture

Imphal, Sep 1 : Kuki Sporting Association, New Lambulane, had a narrow 3-2 win against Dimapur Road Athletic Organisation in the Imphal West Super Division Football League Tournament played at Thangmeiband ground.

Kuki Sporting took the early lead in the 7th minute of play as Helun Haokip scored to dominate the proceedings. They enjoyed the lead for a stretch, however Dimapur Road player Th. Premanda Singh netted the equaliser in the 37th minute.

Both the teams adopted more aggressive tactics as the first half drew towards an end. Finally, Kuki Sporting player Roshang Liana ruffled the Dimapur net for the lead one minute in the injury time.

The game in the second half took a fiercer turn with the Dimapur men desperately seeking the equaliser. They were awarded a penalty in the 68th minute and R. Roman Kom made no mistake in finding the net to make it 2-2.

The Kuki men were determined to save their end occasionally launching swift counterattacks, and in one such move, Helun Haokip scored his second goal in the 69th minute to take the lead again much to the side’s relief.

In another match, Sagolband United blanked Yaiskul Athletic Club by 4-0 goals.

Imphal East First Division: United Progressive Adult Association had 5-1 goal victory against Social Welfare Congress in the M. Ibobi Singh Memorial First Division Football League Tournament played at Khuman Lampak Main Stadium.

XI Star Sporting Union held Progressive Youth Association with 1-1 goals in the Maharaj Ghanendrajit Super Division Football League Tournament played at Khuman Lampak Main Stadium.

Senegal team for GSA tournament

Guwahati, Aug. 31: A team from Senegal will be one of the main attractions in the Guwahati Sports Association’s flagship event, the 58th Bharat Ratna Lokapriya Bordoloi Trophy football tournament, starting at Nehru Stadium here on Friday.

Announcing the participation of the foreign outfit, GSA general secretary Munin Nobis today said the team would be three time Senegal national champions Association Sportive Des Douanes (AC Douanes).

The team comprises five Senegal national players — Babcar Ndour, Karamba By Diallo, Ibrahima Faye, Ousmane Sarr and Baye Demba Mbengue.

The 15-member team will land here on September 13 and play its first match from the quarter-final stage on September 14. Prior to it, AC Douanes will be playing in the IFA Shield in Calcutta and after playing in the Bordoloi Trophy Tournament, they will participate in the Governor’s Gold Cup tournament in Sikkim.

“Since affording a team from Africa would cost us over Rs 60 lakh, it has been made easy by sharing the expenditure among three organising bodies now,” said Nobis. The GSA will have to bear a total cost of around Rs 12 lakh for the team.

The ONGC is sponsoring Rs 15 lakh in the Rs 30-lakh budget event while the GSA is yet to get any official commitment from the other prospective sponsors like Oil India Ltd, Numaligarh Refinery Ltd, Indian Oil Corporation Ltd and others.

“We hope the foreign players will be a crowdpuller because Senegal is already a force to reckon with in the international football arena,” GSA president Pulak Goswami said. The team will be playing a maximum of three matches in the tournament.

Apart from the Senegal team, the other participants in the tournament will be Md Sporting (Calcutta), Mizoram XI (Mizoram), Assam Regim-ental Centre (Shillong), Army Green FC (Shillong), Nagala-nd Police (Dimapur), Langs-ning SC (Shillong), Oil India FC (Duliajan) and the local teams Assam State Electricity Board SC, Assam Police Blues, Food Corporation of India SC, Dynamo Club and GSA first-division league champions Gauhati Town Club.

Kuki crumbles in first half

Labels: Kuki

- Kuki crumbles in first half

OUR SPORTS CORRESPONDENT

Memorial football

Hot Chase: A XI Star player (in red) sprints after the ball at Eastern Sporting Union ground in Imphal on Friday. Telegraph picture

Imphal, Aug. 28: Youth Development Organisation registered a 2-1 victory over Kuki Sporting Club, New Lambulane, in the 10th S. Birendra Singh Memorial Super Division Football League Tournament at Thangmeiband Athletic Union ground here today.

Youth Development Organisation drew first blood with Singba Kabui ruffling the net in the 17th minute to take the lead. The Kuki players got another shock when M. Ronel Meitei scored the second goal just two minutes later.

The first half ended with Youth Development dominating play.

In the second half, the tempo was at its challenging best as Kuki Sporting Club went on the attacking mode, while Youth Development were consolidating their defence and initiating quick counter attacks too.

Minutes away from the final whistle, Kuki Sporting Club launched a last effort and Jonathan finally found his mark in the lone minute of injury time.

In another match, Sagolband United defeated Dimapur Road Athletic Organisation by 2-0 goals.

Thangmeiband Athletic Union, in yet another encounter, blanked Yaiskul Athletic Club 3-0.

Imphal East football

United Progressive Adult Association scooped a 2-1 goal victory over Friends Union Club in the M. Ibobi Singh Memorial First Division Football League played at Eastern Sporting Union ground.

XI Star Sporting Union blanked Youth Organisation and Sporting Club by 3-0 goals in the Maharaj Ghanendrajit Memorial Super Division Football League played at ESU ground.

Progressive win tough tie

Labels: football

United Pukhao lose steam in second half

MEMORIAL FOOTBALL

A Progressive Youth player (in blue) engages in a tackle with a United Pukhao opponent at Khuman Lampak Main Stadium in Imphal on Thursday. Telegraph picture

Imphal, Aug. 27: The Progressive Youth Association players today sighed with relief after defeating United Pukhao Sporting Association by 3-2 goals in the Maharaj Ghanendrajit Memorial Super Division Football League Tournament played at Khuman Lampak Main Stadium.

The Progressive players started with a bang today after K. Bungthoi provided the early lead in the 6th minute of the match. Md Manir Khan consolidated the lead just three minutes later.

The United Pukhao men, however, fought back strongly and in the 22nd minute they came up with a surprise goal after Joseph Khongsai, running on the left flank, passed on the ball to N. Rustam Singh, who sent in a powerful shot to make it 1-2 in the first half.

United Pukhao regained their momentum in the second half. They got some easy chances to level the score, but they squandered those opportunities with some loose shots. Their persistence was, however, rewarded in the 57th minute after Th. Nodiachand’s shot got deflected from the crosspiece and S. Naocha Singh struck home to net the equaliser.

The Progressive side, in a quick counter attack, scored the winning goal after Bungthoi on the right goal-line sent a narrow cross to Md Abung, who, with a diving header, ruffled the net in the 66th minute.

In the M. Ibobi Singh Memorial First Division Football League, Khetri Iril Mapal Youth Club blanked Rising Athletic Union by 3-0 goals.

Imphal West football

Dimapur Road Athletic Organisation defeated Youth Development Organisation by 3-1 goals in the 10th S. Birendra Singh Memorial Super Division Football League played at Thangmeiband Athletic Union ground. In another match, Kuki Sporting Club, New Lambulane, stunned Yaiskul Athletic Club 4-1.

Houghton delighted at India's Nehru Cup performance

Labels: Houghton

India coach Bob Houghton was impressed with his team's 3-1 win over Sri Lanka in a crucial ONGC Nehru Cup football round robin game at the Amedkar Stadium here Wednesday evening.

"It was a very good game and we played extremely well. We dominated all throughout 90 minutes," Houghton said. The Englishman said that the only blemish was Dinesh Ruwanthilake’s header in the 62nd minute. “It was a silly mistake by the boys. Otherwise they played an unblemished game,” he said. Houghton was all praise for his man of the moment Steven Dias and newcomer Anthony Pereira. Dias, playing on the right half, created nine chances for India and he struck in the 85th minute to complete the tally. The coach also said that Sunil Chettri’s header in the 13th minute, which was ruled off-side, looked legal to him. "To me it appeared as a genuine goal. It would have given some confidence to the young boy," he said. There were some concerns for the coach, though. It was the left-flank that was troubling Houghton. He feels that left-back Mahesh Gawli isn’t enjoying his position in the national team. “Mahesh plays as central defender for his club and it seems that he is not enjoying his role as a left-back. I feel he would have been one of the best defenders in Asia had he played on the right. I have tried to do that but Mahesh only enjoys playing as a stopper. I feel he had the talent to play in Europe but now it is too late for him,” he said. Houghton said that he would be eagerly looking for the outcome of the Thursday’s match between Syria and Lebanon. "We have a good chance of making the final. But everything will depend on tomorrow’s match. It could change the equation for us,” he said.

Guite guides team to victory

Labels: Guite

Athletic Brothers edge past Citizen Club

Memorial Football

A Citizen Club player (in red) tries to get past the Athletic Brothers defenders at Khuman Lampak Main Stadium in Imphal on Wednesday. Telegraph picture

Imphal, Aug. 27 : Hemin Guite’s solitary shot at the nets was all that Athletic Brothers Association needed today to defeat Citizen Club in the Maharaj Ghanendrajit Memorial Super Division Football League Tournament played at Khuman Lampak Main Stadium.

The first half proved to be a lacklustre affair with most of the action limiting itself to the midfield. The second half saw Athletic Brothers Association score the lone goal just minutes into the session.

Making a swift attack on the onset of the whistle, Henkhohao Vaiphei, running on the left, made a cross to Guite in the middle, who unleashed a stunner to ruffle the net in the 41st minute.

In a match of the M. Ibobi Singh Memorial First Division Football League, Social Welfare Congress edged past Super Sporting Club by 2-1 goals.

Both the teams failed to capitalise on the opportunities they got during the first 35 minutes of play.

Resuming in the second half, the Social Worker players drew first blood when S. Ranjit Singh scored in the 37th minute. Their euphoria, however, did not last long as Super Sporting Club player Himat Singh found the equaliser in the 49th minute after he anticipated a well-guided cross from Md. Hanan.

The winning goal for Social Worker Congress came in injury time (2 minutes after 70 minutes of play) from a corner kick taken by Ch. Dinakumar, which was headed into the net by S. Ranjit Singh.

Imphal West football

North Imphal Sporting Association moved into the super league round of the Third Division Football League by defeating Youth Development Club by 6-0 goals at Thangmeiband Athletic Union ground here today.

L. Sanahal (5, 35), K. Bikash (20, 47), Youngman (19) and W. Bikram (49) were the goal scorers for North Imphal today.

Kangchup Road Youth Physical and Sporting Association had a solitary goal victory against South Imphal Cultural Organisation in the 16th L. Sangita Devi Memorial First Division Football League Tournament played at Thangmeiband.

Kakching football: South Eastern Sporting Union inflicted a humiliating 10-1 defeat on Juvenile Association in the 2nd K.K. Memorial First Division Football League Tournament played at Kakching.

'Bring your bats... but don't bring your kids': Thugs planned West Ham v Millwall rampage on internet chatrooms

Labels: West Ham

Hooligans behind violent clashes at a match between West Ham and Millwall today boasted about the rampage which ended in one fan being stabbed.

Evidence has emerged showing thugs organised the riots at the Carling Cup match on internet chatrooms. One message said: 'Make sure you bring your bats and don't bring your kids.'
Police are scouring CCTV footage of the brawls at West Ham's Upton Park stadium in east London in a bid to pinpoint the perpetrators.

As they began their investigation, fans gloated about the fighting which saw one man stabbed in the chest and more than 20 others injured.
One wrote on Millwall Online under the headline 'Someone stabbed': 'Let's just pray that whoever it is pulls through ok.. unless they're a West Ham ****, then let them die.'
Bloody: A fan covered in blood is removed from the pitch by police at the game between West Ham and Millwall where violence broke out inside and outside the stadium

Bloody: A fan covered in blood is removed from the pitch by police at the game between West Ham and Millwall where violence broke out inside and outside the stadium

Bloody: A fan is removed from the pitch by police at the game between West Ham and Millwall

Trouble: West Ham's Jack Collison encourages fans to leave after a pitch invasion following their late equalizing goal against Millwall

Face-off: West Ham's Jack Collison encourages fans to leave after the pitch invasion

Pointing the finger: Stewards and police keep Millwall fans from spilling over into the West Ham area

Fury: Stewards and police stop Millwall fans spilling over into the West Ham area

West Ham supporters also praised the violence. One said: 'Nights like last night make me want to go back to Upton Park more regularly... the passion and atmosphere.'
Another fan who had clearly already been barred from the ground wrote: 'Broke my banning order restrictions... am confident of getting away with it.'

Questions are being asked about the numbers of police at the fixture, which fans had predicted would attract hooligans from both sets of supporters.

And it is feared the ugly fighting could harm the Football Association's bid to host the 2018 World Cup which will be decided next year.
The fighting began shortly after 6pm as thousands of fans made their way to the ground and descended into running battles with up to 1,000 riot police.

The violent scenes were still being played out six hours later, well after the match had been won by West Ham 3-1.

Tensions completely boiled over when West Ham took the lead in extra time and around 60 fans raced on to the pitch as vicious chanting echoed around the stands.

Supporters fought with police and stewards and play was suspended. Bricks and bottles were thrown at officials and police and at least 10 people were arrested.

Chaos: Fans invaded the pitch during the match which had to be temporarily suspended in extra time

Menace: Police officers in riot gear monitor fans on Priory Road, outside Upton Park where a huge brawl broke out between rival fans earlier

Menace: Police officers in riot gear monitor fans outside the ground at Upton Park

One Millwall fan said: 'It was like a war zone outside the stadium. I brought my kids with me and they've seen some violence that is indescribable.'
The 44-year-old man was stabbed in the chest just yards from the ground and is today in a stable condition in hospital.

Two other fans had to be taken to hospital for treatment to less serious injuries after what police called 'large-scale' violence.
Millwall and West Ham have one of the longest-standing rivalries in English football but have rarely been in the same division and have not played each other since 2005.
A West Ham fan said the violent scenes 'seemed to belong to another era'. Scotland Yard said they were 'pre-planned and organised'.
John Whittingham, 35, a caretaker who lives near the ground, added: 'There were lots of scuffles and fights before the game. I saw a couple of people with bloody faces.

'People were throwing bricks but I haven't got a clue where they were finding them. Some people were trying to rip bollards off the pavement. There were also some fires lit.'

Mayhem: Fans storm the pitch at the end of the Carling Cup match

Violent: A picture taken outside a pub near Upton Park showing violent clashes between fans and riot police

Running battles: Riot police try to control hundreds of fans outside a pub

Pitch battle: A fan receives treatment after being hit by a bottle

Among the spectators in the ground was actress Jaime Winstone, who is engaged to Lily Allen's brother Alfie.

Miss Allen begged on social-networking website Twitter: 'Millwall-WestHam, stop fighting, my Jaime is there. If anything happens to her... I don't know, just stop it!'

Police and stewards had battled to keep the two sets of fans apart during the game as they taunted one another as news of the fighting outside filtered through.

But when the game ended, hundreds of fans invaded the pitch again and had to be forcibly removed.

A 56-year-old man said: 'There were a lot of lunatics around. The thing is, between these two sets of fans, it's hatred. The teams haven't played each other for so long so I suppose it was always going to kick off.'

VIDEO: Watch one fan's footage of INSIDE the ground

The manager of a nearby kebab shop said: 'All hell broke loose, it was very frightening. It's not every day you see stuff like that. There were West Ham fans on one side and Millwall on the other. They were being kept apart by the police.

'There were West Ham fans for as far as you could see along the street. Bottles and bricks were being thrown from the back and some were hitting West Ham fans at the front. There were loads of people with blooded faces.'
Another man, aged 19, who did not want to be named, said: 'People were chipping bricks off buildings and throwing them at police. I saw one officer getting kicked as he was on the ground.'

A man receives treatment after clashes with rival supporter

Enlarge

Millwall fans taunt West Ham supporters during last night's match

Enlarge

West Ham fans run on to the pitch after their side equalised

One West Ham fan said his tube train had stopped just before Upton Park at 7.20pm and did not move for around 15 minutes.
'Tempers flared on board as kick-off approached, people tried breaking open the doors,' he said.
'The atmosphere was tense in surrounding streets, the police helicopter was up and riot police were everywhere. It was only a matter of time before it all kicked off.'
Home Secretary Alan Johnson described the riots as 'disgraceful' and insisted tough legislation would ensure there was no return to the old days of hooliganism.
'Anyone who thinks that thuggery has any place in modern-day football is living in the dark ages and will bring only shame upon themselves and the teams they support,' he said.
Chairman of the Football Supporters Federation Malcolm Clarke was meeting with Football Association boss Ian Watmore today to discuss the riots.

'It's not a good start to the season and it's important a full investigation is done, and the FA are going to do this with all parties to see exactly what caused this. But I think at this stage we must keep it in perspective.

'Certainly over the last 20 years the amount of football violence has radically reduced. It's too early I think to start drawing too many long-term conclusions, but obviously this was a very serious incident,' he said.

A spokesman for the FA said: 'We absolutely condemn all of the disorder that has occurred at Upton Park this evening both inside and outside of the ground.

'We will be working with all parties, including the police and clubs, to establish the facts surrounding tonight's events. We strongly expect all culprits to be banned from football for life. They have no place in our game.'
Riled up: Fans and stewards clash

Pent-up: Stewards try to keep angry fans at bay as they start to emerge from the stands

Out of control: A steward with his arm in a sling is ushered away by riot police inside the ground

Out of control: An injured steward with his arm in a sling is ushered away by riot police inside the ground

West Ham boss Gianfranco Zola also spoke of his shock, saying: 'It's certainly not good for football. I was completely shocked. Totally. I knew it was a game that meant a lot for the two sets of supporters, but I didn't imagine it like this.

'What can I say? I'm a sport man. I love the game. I love to go on the pitch and try and make it exciting for the supporters and enjoyable for everybody to watch. This was beyond my powers.'
Millwall boss Kenny Jackett added: 'There were no Millwall fans on the pitch. They stayed where they were supposed to. There were a lot of people on the pitch. The lads gathered together and came to the sides, as they should have.

'I wasn't aware of the stabbing outside the ground. I'm very sad to hear that. We've got a passionate game in this country, but when it oversteps the mark then things have to be done.'
The clashes are the worst violence between the clubs for decades. Formed by rival dockers in London's East End in the late 19th century, the two have long been known for their rivalry.
Millwall were formed in 1885 on the Isel of Dogs, and drew a lot of their support from the island and surrounding areas such as Poplar, Bow, Stepney, Wapping and also south of the river in Southwark.

Meanwhile, East End shipbuilders and ironworkers got a factory team together which became Thames Ironworks FC.

Millwall and Thames Ironworks often met in heated league and cup games, and a rivarly developed.
Thames Ironworks eventually became West Ham and the rivalry was set.

In the 1960s, it even crept into London's two most notorious gangs: The Krays, who hailed from the East End and supported West Ham; and the Richardsons, from south of the river and followed Millwall.

Two clubs and a very bitter history

West Ham and Millwall, both originating in London's East End, have one of the most bitter and longstanding rivalries in English football history.
It started in the early years of the 20th century between rival dockers at two London shipyards on either side of the Thames.

Millwall, formed in 1885 by dockers and shipbuilders on the Isle of Dogs gained support in the surrounding areas and were then the best team outside the FA, nicknamed the 'Lions of the South'.
When a rival football team was formed by dockers at Thames Ironworks, the two became vicious enemies. They were rivals for the same contracts and the players lived in the same locality.
Tensions reached their peak in the 1920s when Thames Ironworks moved to a new home and adopted the name West Ham United.

As Millwall struggled, West Ham's star was rising. Fighting broke out during the 1926 general strike when the West Ham dockers were on strike while Millwall carried on working.
Although troubles subsided for a time as the two teams didn't meet, the seventies and eighties brought a fresh wave of violence. The hostilities continued as 'firms' associated with the clubs began fighting.

West Ham gained notoriety for its association with the Mile End Mob - a gang of football hooligans named after a particularly tough area of the East End of London.

The club was also linked to the Inter City Firm whose members deliberately wore non-football clothing and travelled to games on 'Inter City' trains rather than tightly-policed 'football special' charter trains.
The 2005 film Green Street (Hooligans) depicts an American student who becomes involved with a fictional firm associated with West Ham, with an emphasis on the rivalry with Millwall.