Services beat Tamil Nadu to emerge Santosh Trophy champions

Members of the Services team celebrate their 3-2 win over Tamil Nadu in the Santosh Trophy final in Cuttack on Monday. 	—DC
Members of the Services team celebrate their 3-2 win over Tamil Nadu in the Santosh Trophy final in Cuttack on Monday. —DC
Services are the new national football champions. They held their nerve to defeat Tamil Nadu 3-2 in the final of the 66th Santosh Trophy at the Barabati Stadium here on Monday. This is Services’ second title, with their maiden championship coming in the 1960-61 season.

Sanju Subba, Subrata Sarkar and V.V. Farhad scored for the champions while Santha Kumar and M. Ramesh managed to reduce the deficit for Tamil Nadu. The final was delayed by half-an-hour after unseasonal rains lashed Cuttack early in the evening which resulted in the pitch turning sluggish.
Services struck a psychological blow on Tamil Nadu by scoring the opener deep in first-half injury time. A lapse in concentration proved costly for TN. After receiving a pass with his back to the goal on the right, Services striker Sanju Subba didn’t waste any time to pull the trigger on the turn. While Sanju had a clear view of the target, TN goalkeeper Akhil Soman was unsighted by his defender K. Sathish.
Though the young custodian, leaping to his right, got a fingertip to the ball, he couldn’t stop it from going in. The goalie’s positioning wasn’t all right. Services doubled the lead early in the second half. It was all down to Akhil’s blunder this time. The Tamil Nadu custodian failed to collect Z.V. Horin’s low shot and Subrata Sarkar pounced on the rebound to make it 2-0.
Manipur’s third was also a gift from their opponents. TN centre-back K. Sathish, chasing a loose ball inside his area, failed to hold off Farhad. Akhil also unnecessarily left his line and was punished by Farhad whose effort rolled into an empty net. The third broke Tamil Nadu’s back.
Tamil Nadu took time to open up. Their first productive move came in the 22nd minute when striker U. Jayakumar dribbled his way on the left side and tried to slot the ball on the far side, but Manipur goalie A.K. Balwant pushed the shot wide.
With a minute left for the interval, midfielder L. Charles Anandraj came close for TN with an angled header off a corner. Once again Balwant was equal to the task.
Tamil Nadu launched a valiant comeback after falling 3-0 down. As a last throw of dice, TN coach Syed Sabir Pasha sent in forward M. Ramesh for Jayakumar. The move paid dividends as the stocky forward scored Tamil Nadu’s second in the dying minutes.
Earlier, Tamil Nadu had earned a lifeline when substitute Santha Kumar’s shot went in after a deflection from Manipur defender P.S. Sumesh in the 82nd minute. The winners received a cheque for Rs 5 lakh and the runners-up were richer by Rs3 lakh.
Result: Final: Services 3 (Subrata Sarkar 45+2, Subrata Sarkar 49, VV Farhad 67) bt Tamil Nadu 2 (Santha Kumar 82, M. Ramesh 89).
Sabir justifies late introduction of Ramesh
Tamil Nadu went down fighting against Services in the Santosh Trophy final. Not taking away anything from the champions, one felt that Tamil Nadu lost the plot. There was a tactical error that might have cost Tamil Nadu dearly.
The decision to send in striker M. Ramesh in the 78th minute stood out like a sore thumb. The experienced striker should have been sent in immediately after Tamil Nadu conceded their third goal in the 67th minute.
Defending his decision, TN coach Syed Sabir Pasha said: “Sending Ramesh early was a bit risky. Ramesh was initially my first change but I held him back after seeing my centre-half struggling for pace. So, I opted to go for midfielder L. Stegin for John Paul and then sent in L. Shanta Kumar for R. Nirmal Kumar. By strengthening the forward line, there was a risk of giving away a couple of more goals.”
But if that was the case, Sabir should have opted to make a triple-substitution. Ramesh scored in the dozen-odd minutes he was on the pitch. Who knows he might have equalised too if only he had a little more playing time. And, how does it matter losing by a 0-3 or a 0-6 margin? A loss is a loss, irrespective of the score-line.
Going by the instinctive decisions Sabir has been taking in this tournament, one might have thought that he would pull a rabbit from his hat and send in the rookie midfielder Amal Pai in place of an ineffective Charles Anandraj.
Sabir added that the sluggish condition robbed his team of the title. “The ground was in pathetic condition. My boys are not used to these conditions. Services are definitely strong in slippery outfield as they are physically stronger. If the ground was dry, the result might have been different,” he said. “It is disappointing to come this far and lose. In retrospection, I am proud of the way we played throughout the tournament.”
Meanwhile, Services coach Sajith Kumar was a contented man. “We have done it. It took a while coming but I am happy that we were able to pull it off. There were no individual heroes in my team; rather it was a complete team effort. I was a little worried in the dying minutes when Tamil Nadu launched a late rally,” added Sajith.
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Red card offenders referred to AIFF

The five players, who were expelled in Monday's Group D quarterfinal league encounter between Mizoram and Tamil Nadu for violence in the Santosh Trophy, have been referred to the All India Football Federation disciplinary committee.
The five players — Mizoram's Lalchhawnkima, Lalrinfela and F. Lalrinpuia and Tamil Nadu's V.R. Murugappan and R. Naveen Kumar who were red-carded by Tripura referee Satyajit Debray — were handed a one-match suspension by the preliminary enquiry committee constituting match commissioner A.K. Mamukoya and referee assessor R.D. Sow.
The respective team coaches and managers were also present in the hearing, where the expelled players tendered unconditional apology for their behaviour.
After ordering the one-match ban for each of the players, the enquiry committee has sent its reports and findings to the AIFF.
The disciplinary committee of the AIFF is expected to meet in a couple of days where it will decide on further action against the players on merit of their offense.
It was made known that the AIFF has received video footage of the violence apart from the reports of the match officials.
While Mizoram has bowed out of the tournament, Tamil Nadu is in with a good chance of qualifying to the semifinals. Hence, the disciplinary committee meeting will be convened soon, said an AIFF official.
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Mizoram holds Railways

MIDFIELD ACTION: David Ngaihte (right) of Delhi attempts to foil Tamil Nadu’s L. Charles Ananda Raj in their Group ‘D’ quarterfinal match on Saturday. Photo: Ashoke Chakrabarty
MIDFIELD ACTION: David Ngaihte (right) of Delhi attempts to foil Tamil Nadu’s L. Charles Ananda Raj in their Group ‘D’ quarterfinal match on Saturday. Photo: Ashoke Chakrabarty
Mizoram twice returned to erase a goal's deficit before holding last year's semifinalist Railways 2-2 in the opening match of the Group ‘D' at the Kalinga Stadium on Saturday.
Railways started on a more authoritative note and utilised its territorial dominance to find the lead off Gurpreet Singh in the 15th minute. Mizoram, the cluster-VI qualifier, regrouped well to find the equaliser off a counter-attack in the 40th minute off its midfielder V. Laltanpuia.
Undaunted by the equaliser Railways kept on attacking and regained the lead in the injury-time of the first half. The seasoned P.C. Riju, who won the golden boot (highest scorer) in the 2009 edition while turning out for his native state of Tamil Nadu, showed his effectiveness inside the box once again as he finished with a rasping drive to beat the Mizoram custodian F. Vanlalhruaia all ends up.
Just as Railways looked to relax on the lone goal lead in the second half, Mizoram stung back with the equaliser for the second time. Forward F. Lalrinpuia found the mark from a goalmouth melee to give Mizoram the equaliser, which the north-eastern side preserved till the end.

Karthick scores

Super-sub S. Karthick helped Tamil Nadu manage a late winner to overcome Delh's challenge 1-0 in another Group D match. The diminutive winger, who was introduced in the 73rd minute, ended Tamil Nadu's woes by finding the target soon after entering the field.
Despite playing more cohesively, Tamil Nadu struggled to find the target. With the midfield remaining prolific in its creative zone, Tamil Nadu attacked regularly but struggled to find the mark as Delhi crowded its defence.
Both A. Reagan and M. Ramesh appeared to run out of ideas against a pack of Delhi defenders blocking the goalmouth. The few attempts that they managed were cleared efficiently by Delhi custodian Vikrant Sharma.
Following a barren first session, Tamil Nadu played with more thrust after the break but found little success. With the match heading towards a draw, Tamil Nadu coach Syed Sabir Pasha introduced Karthick in the place of S. Santa Kumar. The young Indian Bank player, who impressed with his speedy runs, scored in the 76th minute. Positioning himself well, Karthick quickly reached a rebound after Sharma, who charged in to save, blocked an attempt from midfield colleague Dinakaran. Karthick made no mistake with his angular shot that found the back of the net.

Easy for Services

In the opening Group C match at Cuttack, Services proved its superiority by drubbing the cluster-VII qualifier Haryana 4-0.
Services found an early goal through Z.B. Horin, but its real offensive came midway through the second session when Subrata Sarkar doubled the lead in the 67th minute.
Later, V.V. Fahrid fired home two gals in a span of nine minutes (74th and 85th) to ensure a big win for Services.
In the other Group C tie, host Odisha made a perfect start, blanking Chhattisgarh 4-0. Gokul Oram was the star for the host, performing a hat-trick. Antu Murmu completed the tally for Odisha.
The results:
Group C: Services 4 (Z.B. Horin 8, V.V. Fahrid 74, 85, Subrata Sarkar 67) bt Haryana 0; Odisha 4 (Gokul Oram 45+1, 81 & 90, Antu Murmu 66) bt Chhattisgarh 0.
Group D: Railways 2 (Gurpreet Singh 15, P.C. Riju 45+2) drew with Mizoram 2 (V. Laltanpuia 40, F. Lalrinpuia 50); Tamil Nadu 1 (S. Karthick 75) bt Delhi 0.
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Indian Football : The Future Lies In North Eastern India

With Lajong FC and United Sikkim in top division of Indian football and clubs like Royal Wahingdoh and Aizawl FC knocking at the doors, North Eastern India is the new hotbed for talents.
As United Sikkim Football Club, co-owned by the legendary Bhaichung Bhutia, qualified for next season’s I League by winning the I League division 2 title last month, a new chapter was written in the history of Sikkimese football. Having topped the charts with 22 points, the Gangtok-based club ensured that the nation’s top division clubs would get their first ever taste of football at the scenic Paljor Stadium next season. United Sikkim’s promotion is of great significance for the state and its budding footballers. Having produced some of the finest footballers of the country, Sikkim has long suffered from the exodus of talented footballers to other regions. However, with the emergence of United Sikkim, this issue may finally be laid to rest.
Scenes from Shillong Premier League

Hundreds of miles away, in Shillong, thousands of Shillong Lajong supporters would be looking forward to the next season, full of hope, with fresh investment coming into the club in the form of a Dubai-based MNC, Anglian Holdings. Despite a rather forgettable season for the Indian Reds, in which they finished a lowly tenth, Lajong would be keen to do much better in 2012-13. In stark contrast, their local rivals Royal Wahingdoh FC would be left licking their own wounds after having agonizingly missed out on promotion into the I League. After dominating the early stages, the club made a suicidal gaffe in a game against eventual I League qualifiers, ONGC, playing 4 foreigners in the match, as against the stipulated 3. This proved costly, as Wahingdoh, who had won the game 4-1, were penalized 3 points, which were awarded to ONGC. They ultimately finished fourth in the final standings.
Two other Shillong-based outfits, Ar-Hima FC and Langsning FC, failed to get past the preliminary stages. Aizawl FC, who had turned professional this year, did extremely well to reach the final round. The club from Mizoram’s capital city, however, came up short in the final stages. Luangmual FC, another club from Aizawl, bowed out in preliminary round.
Football in Manipur

Gauhati Town Club and Green Valley, the Guwahati-based clubs, couldn’t reach the final round either. Thus, 8 out of the 23 clubs, that took part in this season’s I League Division 2 tournament, were from the North-Eastern part of the country. However, controversy marred the tournament, as the management of Gauhati Town Club, one of the oldest sports institutions in the country, found its players guilty of taking bribes from unknown sources in order to lose games in the preliminary round at Cuttack. This scandal forced the club authorities into disbanding its current football team, terminating the contracts of 18 of its players. A club with the rare distinction of being state-owned, GTC won’t be taking part in any football events for the next three years. Despite this scandal, one must give credit to the rest of the clubs from the North-East region for fighting shoulder to shoulder with the other teams in the tournament.
The ‘forgotten frontier’ as it is often termed as, the North East India has had its fair share of problems over the years. Factors such as insurgency and natural calamities, combined with negligence of the central government and ignorance of the country’s mainstream media towards the region, have ensured that the development of this region progresses at a very slow rate. The North-Eastern society, with due course of time, found solace in sports activities - with football, in particular, gaining popularity among the masses. As the craze for the sport grew in the region, attendance at local football games soared. Spectators would throng the stands to watch 22 men slug it out on the field. To meet this rising craze, Nurul Amin, one of the pioneers of Assamese football, initiated the ‘Independence Cup Football Tournament’ in 1949 at Nagaon, with top clubs taking part in this yearly event.
However, with football no longer being confined to villages and small towns, there arose a need to initiate such tournaments in the bigger towns and cities as well. Keeping this in mind, the Bordoloi Trophy, named after the first Chief Minister of Assam ‘Lokapriya’ Gopinath Bordoloi, commenced in Guwahati in 1952 at the historic Judges Field. In a few years’ time, the Bordoloi Trophy became the most popular tournament of the region, with major clubs from all over the country taking part in it.
It was not merely a football tournament, but a festival of sorts. Thousands of spectators would come to cheer on their local clubs. Whenever either of the Calcuttan giants, namely East Bengal or Mohun Bagan, played a game against one of the local clubs, there would always be a special atmosphere among the crowd. Despite a change of venue in 1961, the popularity of this tournament didn’t wither away. In fact, rising awareness towards football in the region meant that there would be a further rise in the crowd attendance over the next few years.
Indian Football
T Ao Trophy, Dimapur

The late 70s brought with it a rise in the popularity of cricket in the state of Assam (along with the rest of the country of course). Incidentally, it was around this time that the crowds started disappearing from the stands in Bordoloi Trophy games. In the newly formed states of Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram and Nagaland, areas largely untouched by the cricket fever, the popularity of football, however, plummeted. In Manipur, in particular, football fanaticism reached new heights. Despite growing unrest in the state, football blossomed in Manipur. Women didn’t shy away from the football grounds either.
The 90s ushered in a golden era for women’s football in Manipur, with the ladies attaining unprecedented success at the national stage. When the India Women’s Football Championship began in 1991, Manipur were one of the powerhouses of women’s football in the country. Nobody, however, would have imagined them to dominate the tournament in the coming years the way they did. Until 2011, they went on to win 16 of these championships, missing out on only three occasions.
The men didn’t lag behind either, with top division clubs vying for their signatures, and some of them making it to the national side too. Mizoram and Nagaland, on the other hand, made giant strides during this time, making light of the lack of decent facilities for footballers; while Sikkim presented India with Bhaichung Bhutia.
The region’s progress in the football field has further escalated in the third millennia, with Renedy Singh, Surkumar Singh and Bhaichung Bhutia becoming core members of the national side. The commencement of the Shillong Premier League in Meghalaya’s capital city, has, over the years, gained tremendous popularity among the locals. The thousands of fans that come over to watch their clubs play, stand witness to this fact.
Shillong Lajong FC, the regional powerhouses, have raised the bar for the other clubs from the region, with their elevation into the top division of the I League. Moreover, their dream run into the final of the 2009-10 Federation Cup has further boosted their support throughout the region.
As things stand, the northeastern states continue their forward progression in the football field. Manipur, Meghalaya and Mizoram can boast of a strong following of their local league games. In Nagaland, meanwhile, the introduction of the Nagaland Premier League this year, has got everyone excited in the state. Initiated by the Nagaland Football Association, this ten team event is a new beginning in Nagaland’s football history.
Assamese football too, has come a long way since its downfall began in the late 70s. A successful campaign in the 2007 National games, where the team won the gold, has revived hopes for the football aficionados in the state. Steps have been taken to resurrect the Bordoloi Trophy, with foreign clubs being invited to take part in the tournament in recent years.
North East
Nagaland Premier League - Breaking New Grounds

On 13th November, the Indian national team played its first ever game in the northeast. Playing against Malaysia in Guwahati, the blue tigers, backed by some 20000 vociferous fans, drew 1-1 against the South East Asian nation. With things calming down in the region, as the central govt. holds peace talks with various armed rebel outfits, it wouldn’t be a surprise if northeastern cities become a regular venue for holding games involving the national side.
Northeastern football has come a long way since Nagaland-born Talimeren Ao first captained the country post-independence. With many northeastern players becoming important members of the blue tigers in recent years, one can only expect bigger things from the region in the future. Perhaps, Tripura and Arunachal Pradesh, states suffering from below par facilities, will join in the football movement sooner than later.
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Article written by THT Guest Author Bhargab Sarmah

source: http://www.thehardtackle.com/2012/indian-football-the-future-lies-in-north-eastern-india/
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