IndianFootball.Com Interview: LANEL THOMAS

IndianFootball.Com's PS Parameswaran had a chance to talk to SBT captain Lanel Thomas about his teams preparations for the the 2.Division National League.
The State Bank of Travancore from Thiruvananthapuram will be one of the favourites to make it to the final round of the 2.Division National League, when the league kick-offs next month.

How is your preparations at SBT going for the 2.Division NFL?

It is going very well. We have been really working hard for the past 2-3 weeks. The players are really in good mood. They are all gearing up well for the Second Division League.

Any injury worries in the camp?

Igni (Sylvester Ignatius) will be missing out the entire phase of matches. He will be also missing the Nayannar Football Tournament and maybe the Kerala State League and Kerala Club Championship.
Otherwise we have a fully fit squad. This is the first time we are having a full team without having much injury worries.

Any updates related on the Nayannar Football Tournament?

The tournament will be held on April / May 2007.We had some news that we will be in the same pool with East Bengal and Sporting Club de Goa (smiling).

How much will SBT miss Ignatius?

He was in tremendous form in the Don Bosco Tournament. He really won the tournament for us. So we really miss him.

Any new signings?

We have signed a forward from Nigeria and also trying to sign a stopper from the same country subject to International clearance. We are also trying to sign three players from Kerala State Electricity Board.

How important will be new signings?

It will do a lot of good for us. I was of the opinion that we should have done this year's ago. Then we should have reached a better position in the NFL.

How is Sethumadhavan's coaching style compared to Najeeb?

It is completely different. Both have their own style of coaching.

How important were the friendly matches against Viva Kerala?

They were good. We really enjoyed playing against them as preparation for the 2DNFL!

What is your message to the SBT fans?

We will work hard to ensure success and most importantly we need the prayers of the people, who love us.

the interview was conducted by PS Parameswaran (February, 2007)

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