29. February
8th National League - Calcutta: East Bengal Club 3-1 Salgaocar SC - Goals: 1-0,2-1 Baichung Bhutia (5',45'), 1-1 Bello Rasaq (40'), 3-1 Subhas Chakraborty (53').
Defending National League champions East Bengal Club made a successful start to their second phase campaign with a 3-1 victory against Salgaocar SC at the Saltlake Stadium, Calcutta. The entertaining match saw a brace from India captain Baichung Bhutia and three red cards given on the day. Also East Bengal's magic attacking triangle of Baichung Bhutia, Mike Okoro and Cristiano Junior was in action again and the trio has not only become a worrying factor for India but Asian defences. Today Baichung spearheaded the attacks with Okoro and Cristiano operating from a deaper position.
East Bengal took an early 5.minute lead, when Salgaocar keeper Rajat Ghosh Dasdidar couldn't hold on to a powerful shot from Mike Okoro, Baichung had the presence of mind to follow the ball-up and shot home. Only two minutes later referee Saji Kurian saw a scuffle in the box as an East Bengal corner was awaited. Deepak Mondal lay on the ground after being hit by Salgaocar striker Felix Ibrebru but as the referee correctly saw Deepak also had hit Ibrebru, both players were send off. Both sides were weakened by the expultions but especially Salgaocar were hit hard as their only sharp striker was no longer around, while East Bengal tried to fill the gaps that Mondal left behind. Salgaocar's midfield was controlled by Dharamjit Singh and it was a Dharamjit corner in the 40.minute which Nigerian Bello Rasaq headed in for the equaliser. And then two minutes before the breather Salgaocar even had the chance to go ahead but their new striker Jules Aliba from Chad missed a golden opportunity. And this miss was punished on the bring of half time as Junior put Baichung through to score past Ghosh Dasdidar. After the breather East Bengal's domination was complete and the third goal seemed only a question of time. In the 53.minute Mike Okoro gave a pass to youngster Subhas Chakraborty, who wanted to send a pass into the box but the ball took such a deflection from Roberto Fernandes that the ball went into the net past a helpless Ghosh Dasdidar. But then came the incidence for which the referee correctly pulled the third red card. In the 70.minute Salgaocar's Nigerian defender Bello Rasaq elbowed Baichung Bhutia in his face, with Baichung's forehead received three stiches afterwards and left the referee with no option. Thereafter Salgaocar pulled back with only nine players on the field to avoid further damages. Then five minutes from time East Bengal coach gave Brazilian Douglas da Silva his comeback, which was applauded by the good Sunday crowd as Baichung left the field.
EAST BENGAL: Sangram Mukherjee, Deepak Kumar Mondal, M Suresh, Surkumar Singh, Malswam Tulunga (Chandan Das), Subhas Chakraborty, Mike Okoro, Mahesh Gawli, Bijen Singh, Baichung Bhutia (Douglas da Silva), Cristiano Junior.
SALGAOCAR: Rajat Ghosh Dastidar, Prashant Jaggi, Bello Rasaq, Roberto Fernandes, Gurjinder Singh (Bernard Pires), Ragui Singh (Samson Singh), Jatin Singh Bisht, Climax Lawrence, Dharamjit Singh, Felix Ibrebru, Jules Aliba (Freddy Mascarenhas).

8th National League - Goa: Dempo SC 1-1 Vasco SC - Goals: 1-0 Sunday Seah (65'), 1-1 Amaechi Nwabunwanne Tochukwu (71').
In a National League Goan derby, league leaders Dempo SC were held to a one-all draw by Vasco SC at the Nehru Stadium, Margao. For Dempo it was their fourth draw in their last five matches, in which they also have remained winless handing the NFL's top position to defending champions East Bengal. Vasco meanwhile remain the champions of drawing matches, their eight draw in 13 matches.
The match mainly remained confined to the midfield with both sides working hard to gain control of the centre-field. Vasco had more of the chance but failed to capitalise on them. It was evident that Dempo missed the services of defenders Majekodumni Bolaji, Sameer Naik and medio Mohammed Gaffar.
After a goalless first half Dempo went ahead in the 65.minute when Liberian striker Sunday Seah volleyed home a Clifford Miranda cross. But the joy was short-lived, six minutes to be precise, as Vasco's Nigerian striker Amaechi Nwabunwanne Tochukwu scored from a long pass off Levy Coelho.

13.Dutta Ray Trophy (Under-21) Trophy - West Zone Qualifiers: Goa 7-0 Maharashtra
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group B: Western Railway, Mumbai 2-0 Metro Rail, Calcutta - Goals: 1-0 Subhas (16'), 2-0 Polly Cherian (26').
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group B: Diesel Locomotive Works, Varanasi 6-1 South-West Railway
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group B: South-East-Central Railway 3-1 North-Eastern Railway, Gorakhpur
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group C: Central Railway 0-0 Northern Railway, Delhi - Goals: none.
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group C: Northern-Frontier Railway SC, Maligaon 2-1 East Coast Railway
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group C: South-Central Railway, Secunderbad 2-0 Chittaranjan Locomotive Works, Calcutta - Goals: Salash (49'), 2-0 Roshan.

Note-1: Tomorrow Baichung Bhutia and Renedy Singh will be donning a new role as ramp models, something totally different from what they normally do that is playing football. Along with women's hockey captain Surajlata Devi and swimming icon Bula Chowdhury plus some of India's top models including Rahul Dev, Madhu Sapre, Kelly Dorji and Nayanika Chatterjee, the Indian football duo will be ramp models to promote 'Indian linen' made out of bamboo in a fashion show at a Delhi hotel on Monday. The effort is part of the ongoing World Bamboo Congress and aimed at promoting the plant for employment generation, eradication of poverty and social upliftment.

Note-2: The All Assam Football Players' Association is standing besides the injured goalkeeper Shankar Barman and has appealed to the sports loving peoples of Assam to contribute so that he can return to the field and begin playing football again. The Assam State Electricity Board keeper needs an operation but due to acute financial problems, he has been unable to get it done for the last year. The AAFPA secretary Hem Das today said that they will try their best to bring Shankar into the field as early as possible.

28. February
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group A: Southern Railway, Chennai 1-1 Integral Coach Factory - Goals: 1-0 Mazid, 1-1 Jagan.
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group A: South-Eastern Railway, Calcutta 5-0 Railway Board SC, Delhi - Goals: 1-0,4-0,5-0 Balai Mondal (12',62',89'), 2-0 T Chakraborti (31'), 3-0 S Chakraborti (40').
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group B: South-East-Central Railway 3-2 Metro Rail, Calcutta
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group C: Northern Railway, Delhi 1-0 Chittaranjan Locomotive Works, Calcutta - Goal: 1-0 Sham Kumar (85').
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group D: North-Central Railway, Allahabad 4-1 East-Central Railway, Hajipur
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group D: West-Central Railway, Jabalpur 2-0 Eastern Railway SC - Goals: 1-0 A Biswas (80'), B Majumdar (90+').

Note-1: Following By Rajarshi Ghosh, Calcutta:
The second phase of the 8th National League started saturday a week back. At the end of the first phase, the most interesting feature that could be be seen was that for the first time in the NFL's history all the teams were close to one another on points.
But I will focus on the Calcutta clubs below. Four Caclutta clubs are playing in this year's league. Other than East Bengal Club, who were placed second, rest of the three clubs - Mohun Bagan AC, Mohammedan Sporting Club and Tollygunge Agragami - all were having a devastating first phase NFL. After the first phase Mohun Bagan was placed 9th with 14 points, Tollygunge Agragami 10th with 10 points and Mohammedan Sporting 11th spot with 9 points.
Mohun Bagan's position after the first phase is shocking to everyone in India. The three times champions had shown their worst performance in NFL. Mohammedan Sporting is new to the NFL, however they had the tendency of showing inconsistency, which is why they are at placed second from the bottom. Regarding Tollygunge Agragami, we saw in the past that they finish at the lower portion of the table in the first phase, but bounce back in the second phase.
Now the question is will these three clubs would be able to put them in better position at the end of the marathon NFL or will they be relegated to second division.
First we should focus on Mohun Bagan AC. It was some awful moment, when Jose Barreto left Mohun Bagan. It gave a huge set back to the players and the club as they were heavily depended upon Barreto. However, after his departure, players had their responsibility to prove that they can win the remaining matches without their star player. After the match against JCT, Mohun Bagan players understood that they would have to play without Barreto; as a result they showed that they have the strength to fight. They won against Dempo SC in their home match and gave a tough fight against arch-rival East Bengal before they lost by 2-1. But there have also been some injury problems in the team for which the break was useful as nearly all have recovered. The good news for Bagan fans was Ashim Biswas's return to form. This would do a lot of good for Mohun Bagan in the forward line. They have included Zimbabwean midfielder Noel Tafadzwa Kaseka for the rest of the league. But the inexperienced team will have to work hard, if they will want to move-up the league table and have to look out for the duo behind them,
Mohun Bagan have four away matches left. Among them they would get tough matches against Dempo SC, Vasco SC and JCT Mills. They should have an easy match against Indian Bank. However, in the remaining 6 matches at home they are expected to do well.
Regarding Mohammedan Sporting, we all know that there is lack of consistency among them. Every time they start well but somehow lose their way at the middle. Another important problem for them is they don't have the finish. Mohammedan Sporting have experienced players like Dipendu Biswas, Hassain Mustafi and Madhab Das. There are also many young talented players in the team. What they need is to get back in touch but new coach Jamshed Nassiri is working on it. This is the only thing that would take the team to the better position in the league. As every other team they also had injury problems. The players would have to handle the pressure of their fans. Players like Dipendu, Mustafi and Syed Rahim Nabi all have quality in them, what they need are to make the accurate finish. Among the four Calcutta clubs, Sporting have the toughest away matches left. They would face Vasco SC, Churchill Brothers, Dempo SC, Sporting Clube and JCT Mills. Unless and until they fight out of their skin, they would not be able to beat the Goan teams . So if Sporting bounces back superbly then they had a chance of getting at the top 10, otherwise they had the fear of being relegated to the 2.Division.
Tollygunge Agragami is the only Calcutta club who do not have any pressure from fans. This is the advantage which would give the players some bit relief while they start into the second phase. Tollygunge have quality players like Amit Das, Akeem Abol Alem, Isiaka Awoyemi, Ebi Bar Bar. They were having the same problem like Mohammedan Sporting. They are starting well but losing their way at the middle. But after bringing Sheikh Habeeb Ali from George Telegraph, Tollygunge got back the touch they eagerly needed but still lost their match against Churchill Brothers.
The important aspect of Tollygunge is that they had played all their away matches in Goa. This is an advantage that Tollygunge is getting as every team had problem while playing at Goa. It is tough for any team to earn points at Goa against the Goan teams. Tollygunge have three away matches left, Indian Bank, Mahindra United and JCT Mills. So in the remaining 8 home matches they had every chance of earning points. Though teams like Dempo SC, Mohun Bagan and East Bengal Club are the opposition for them at home, but they can do well from where they are standing, as we all know that in a few occasions Tollygunge had been at the lower of the table after the first phase and bounced back in the second. If all goes accurately for Tollygunge Agragami, then definitely they would be able to finish at the top 7 of the National League 2003-04.
Lets see if Rajarshi's predictions come true...

Note-2: Might East Bengal soon lose some of their top players to clubs from SouthEast Asia???
If East Bengal's performances against SouthEast Asian opposition are an indicator, then there is a likelihood that some of their top performers will soon get offers from clubs in Singapore, Malaysia, maybe even Indonesia and Thailand.
And the first one has a concrete offer. Nigerian-born Polish citizen Mike Okoro, who actually is a striker but is currently successfully playing as an offensive midfielder, has received an offer from Singapore S-League club Geylang United, an opponent of East Bengal in the AFC Cup, for the next season. Okoro hasn't made-up his mind yet and has told Geylang officials to contact him after the end of the Indian season as he wants to concentrate on East Bengal at the moment but is open to offers from other leagues.
For East Bengal this could mean they would have to spend more money to keep players at the club...

Note-3: East Bengal is currently having it's most successful phase in Asian club football. Six wins in a row is something new for an Indian club at that level of Asian competition. But it seems to have become a ritual that someone either from Mohun Bagan and Mohammedan Sporting comes and claims to have done whatever East Bengal has done, before them.
Mohun Bagan secretary Anjan Mitra at the club premises yesterday claimed that Bagan had won 7 international matches in a row under Subrata Bhattacharya. Mitra said that this 'glorious' fact of Bagan's achievements hadn't received the appropriate publicity which East Bengal is getting now.
Good that we have such a large database at indianfootball.com. And according to our database Anjan Mitra's claims are wrong. Bagan have won six matches against foreign teams, as I would call it, as four of the wins were at All-India tournament - IFA-Shield, Sikkim Governor'S Gold Cup and the Bordoloi Trophy.
The wins were: a 2-1 against Pakhtakor FC, UZBEKISTAN and a 1-0 against Badda Jagarani, BANGLADESH in the IFA Shield 1999; a 4-0 against Raj Pracha SC, THAILAND in the Bordoloi Trophy 2001 final; a 4-0 against Arambagh KC, BANGLADESH in the Sikkim Governor's Gold Cup 2001 final plus two Asian Champions League Qualifiers Round 1 wins against Saunders FC, SRI LANKA - a 2-0 away and 5-1 home victory. The streak was stopped with a 2-2 against Club Valencia, MALDIVES in the Champions League Round 2 home match.

Note-4: An oHerald report: The Goa FA youth development committee will meet on Saturday March 6, at 11.30, at the GFA office, Panjim. The meeting, to be attended by physical education teachers and headmasters of six schools, is likely to ratify the decision of adoption of the six schools under a scheme envisaged by the then committee headed by Schubert Furtado. Sources informed that the headmasters and PE teachers of the six schools have been called for the meeting to work out modalities for the smooth implementation of the scheme. This is the third meeting of the new-look youth development committee in the last seven months, ever since the new chairman Antonio Botelho took over from Schubert Furtado. The meeting is also likely to discuss plans for the youth development programme. The meeting is also likely to discuss plans to restart the GFA Football Academy which has since closed down.

27. February
8th National League - Ludhiana: JCT Mills 2-2 Churchill Brothers SC - Goals: 0-1,0-2 Benjamin Ansah (?',14'), 1-2 Baldeep Singh (15'), 2-2 Harvinder Singh (37').
JCT Mills had to come back from two goals down to score a two-all draw against Churchill Brothers SC in a National League match at the floodlit and well-filled Guru Nanak Stadium, Ludhiana. In the last match Churchill Brothers had come back from two goals down against Tollygunge to win 3-2, today they gave away a two goal lead but at least took one point home to Goa.
JCT made the first move of the match but thereafter it was Churchill Brothers to took over the initiative and scored two goals even before the match had reached the quarter hour mark and on both occasions it was Ghanian striker Benjamin Ansah who scored for the Goans. But only a minute after the second goal JCT reduced the margin through a volley from youngster Baldeep Singh beating Churchill keeper Mark Mascarenhas hands down and then only 15 minutes had been played. The goal was a lifeline for JCT and thereafter they pressured Churchill Brothers. And in the 37.minute a solo effort from Harvinder Singh fetched JCT the equaliser after the striker broke free on the left and shot into the far corner of the net. Both teams had chances thereafter but didn't score so that the match ended in a deserving draw.

8th Assam Club Championships - Final: Oil India Limited 3-0 Assam State Electricity Board - Goals: 1-0 Bhim Kanta Sonowal (25'), 2-0 Birjab Mushahary (32'), 3-0 Mrinal Boro (82').
Oil India Limited defended their title won last season!

60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group B: Western Railway 5-0 Diesel Locomotive Works, Varanasi
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group C: Central Railway 3-1 Northern-Frontier Railway SC, Maligaon - Goals: 0-1 Janak (22'), 1-1 Kasif Jamal (30'), 2-1 Shanta Kumar (52'), 3-1 Adil Ansari (70').

Note-1: India chief coach Stephen Constantine is in favour of sending an experimental under-20 squad for the much-delayed but fast-approaching ninth edition of the South Asian Federation Games, slated to be held at Islamabad, in Pakistan next month.
The seven-Nation regional championship - which India has hosted twice - will run between March 29 and April 7, although the SAF Games football event will start from March 26, three days before the formal opening ceremony of the mega event.
With India slated to take on Oman in a 2006 World Cup qualifying match in Kochi on March 31, the seniors will, in no way, be available for the event.
"The best and most sensible thing to do is send the junior under-20 football team," Stephen Constantine said. "My feelings for the SAF Games are well-documented. While it might be of paramount importance to teams like Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan, I cannot say the same thing about India," the Englishman added.
According to Constantine, the best thing was to pick the squad for the SAF Games with primarily those players who toured the national squad for the Milk Cup (Ireland) and BIMST-EC Cup (Thailand). The juniors did more than what was expected of them in both the International tournaments.
"It will be a great learning experience for the juniors. They would get to play at least three games away from home and that too in Pakistan. The exposure would do a world of good to the juniors."
Meanwhile the security aspect for the 400 strong Indian contingent is a question the Indian Olympic Association President Suresh Kalmadi has asked, after a lot of hype has been created around the Indian Cricket teams security and the unprecidented security going to be given to the cricketers.
Kalmadi said in a press release, "I feel concerned and would like to know whether adequate security measures have been taken for the large Indian contingent and delegation of Olympics disciplines which is going for the SAF Games at the same time."
But a more worrying factor for Kalmadi is that the 9.SAF Games

Note-2: The trials for the India U14 team for the AFC U14 Football Festival - South Asia zone to be held in April started today in Goa. 47 boys from across India aged 13 and 14 are attending the trials. The boys did their first days workout under the watchful eyes of Dempo coach Armando Colaco, Sporting Clube de Goa coach Peter Vales and SAG coach Mariano Dias.Also present was India chief coach Stephen Constantine.

Note-3: The Goa FA will shortly form a three-member Inquiry Committee to examine closely the happenings in the now infamous Black Monday - 118 goals in two Second Division League matches.
Having suspended a total of 70 players and 20 officials spread across four teams - Curtorim Gymkhana, Sangolda Lightning, Wilred Leisure and Dona Paula SC - for a year, the GFA has now constituted the panel that would see whether any individual cases could be considered.
The four-member panel will be finalised on Tuesday, March 2 when the executive committee of the GFA meets at its headquarters, in Panjim.
"The inquiry committee will try to examine how and why such a thing occurred. The match-fixing episode will always remain a sad blot on Goan football but we need to take measures to curb such practices," GFA secretary Savio Messias said.

26. February
8th National League - Goa: Dempo SC 2-2 Mahindra United - Goals: 1-0 Clifford Miranda (44'), 1-1,1-2 Abhishek Yadav (68',78'), 2-2 RC Prakash (86').
10-men National League leaders Dempo SC had to score a late equaliser to get a two-all draw against strong contenders Mahindra United at home at the Nehru Stadium, Margao. Dempo controlled affairs in the first half and deservingly went into the lead in the 44.minute through a Clifford Miranda header but in injury time they lost their dependable Nigerian defender Majekodunmi Bolaji. Bolaji went for an aerial ball with Mahindra youngster Jinto Jose, nothing special but Bolaji stuck with his foot Jinto on his forehead, unintentionally but the referee directly gave him the red card. In the second half Mahindra woke-up and utilised the one man advantage. A double strike from Indian international striker Abhishek Yadav turned a 0-1 deficit into a 2-1 lead for Mahindra. The first goal Abhishek scored in the 68.minute with a header from a Jules Alberto cross, while 10 minutes later Abhishek put in a cross from Shanmugam Venkatesh. But Dempo had the last laugh as they equalised four minutes from time when substitute Alex Ambrose cross was headed-in by RC Prakash.

8th National League - Calcutta: Mohammedan Sporting Club 1-0 Indian Bank - Goal: 1-0 Dipendu Biswas (73').
National League debutants Mohammedan Sporting Club scored an important lone goal victory against bottom of the league Indian Bank at the Saltlake Stadium, Calcutta. In a fight to avoid relegation both sides were desperate to get the three points from today's match, seen as a six point match for both sides to avoid the drop. For Indian Bank the loss, the 11th in 13 matches meant that they can now slowly start to plan for the 2.Division NFL next season, as it becomes more and more unlikely that the team will stay in the NFL, only a miracle or wonder would help now. For Sporting meanwhile the penalty victory meant they now have 13 points and left the relegation places for the first time in weeks.
It was a match that didn't deserve a winner with the Bankmen from Chennai even having the better chances in the match, but it was the referee who in the end decided the match in favour of Sporting with a doubtable penalty. Sporting's Nigerian on loan striker Chidi Edeh got a pass from Sheikh Sanjeeb into the area and was run down by Indian Bank keeper Sebastian Netto who tried to block the ball but in the process also brought down Edeh. One referee gives a penalty, another one wouldn't. Dipendu Biswas walked-up to the spot and scored in the 73.minute and the Bankmen resistance was broken.
Another one of those incidences happened today at the ground, which throw a bad light on Indian football. Fourth referee Saji Kurian was walking to the dressing room for halftime but on the way into the inside of the Saltlake Stadium was hit by a missile from Sporting fans. Kurian suffered a deep cut but he continued his duties with a bandaged head in the second half. Sad to hear that such things keep happening.
Also today the first NFL dope tests were carried out after the match. The tested players were Sporting's Chidi Edeh and Indian Bank player Anthony Noel. The result would be known in 10 days.
MSC: Amar Deb, Syed Hussain, Godwin Abu Bakar, Madhab Das, Amandeep Singh, Bungo Singh (Sheikh Sanjib), Bhuvan Krishna Joshi, Okoli Onyeka Odofa, Syed Rahim Nabi (Amjad Ali Khan), Dipendu Biswas (Hamza Zaheer Abbas), Chidi Edeh.
INDIAN BANK: Sebastian Netto, Kamaldeen Fuard, Anthony Noel, Joseph Anandavasan, T Roopesh, Amjad Hussain, Ravanan, Mohammed Rawme (M Sudheesh, K Aseem), Raveendran (KG Joseph), Kasun Nadika Jayasuriya, Syed Sabir Pasha.

8th Assam Club Championships - 3rd Place Playoff: Everest Club, Karbi Anglong 1-4 Assam Police Blues

Note-1: "Kid footballers shake a leg during play", an Indian Express report by Raghvendra Rao:
Music heals. At this training camp in Gurgaon, it is also helping play football better. Because Russel Mason is using the ancient Brazilian martial art technique of Capoeira to train footballers.
Mason, a UK-based coach from the UEFA, says: "Till a few years ago, soccer was just about brute force. Now, it is much more about technique. It is here that incorporating martial arts like Capoeira has become crucial. The Brazilians were the first to practise this martial art in their game."
The Capoeira movements being tough, music is coming handy. "Music not only influences one's senses, it also makes it easier to motivate players," says Mason as he works on 40 school children at a day-long session organised by Delhi's Super Soccer Academy.
The method is simple: play rhythmic music and demonstrate matching Capoeira body movements that the players can use on the field. "Teaching difficult manoeuvres is easier with music," says Mason.
Mason says one can see lot of aggression in football matches in England, which is where Capoeira helps. It teaches controlled aggression. He tells trainees that a thin line separates foul play from controlled aggressive movements.
"With music, I want to make the players more agile. Practising certain skills and techniques with music, one is more likely to recall and use them on the field," he says.
Mason, who played for Bromley and Bedford teams in England before turning coach, recalls his days as an average player. But as a coach, he has worked on players of top professional English clubs such as Fulham, Aston Villa, Southampton, West Ham United, Charlton Athletic, Crystal Palace and Norwich City.
Bill Adams, who runs Super Soccer Academy, says: "As a conditioning coach, Mason has been travelling around the world helping organisations develop young players. He was coaching at Athletico Madrid last month."

25. February
AFC Cup 2004 - Group E: East Bengal Club 4-2 Negri Sembilan - Goals: 1-0 Mike Okoro (9'), 2-0,4-2 Cristiano Junior (31',75'), 2-1 Rajan Al Koran (45+'), 2-2 Shahrizan Bin Mohammed (62'), 3-2 Baichung Bhutia (66').
East Bengal Club scored a thrilling 4-2 victory in the AFC Cup Group E match against Malaysian FA-Cup winners Negri Sembilan at the Saltlake Stadium, Calcutta. East Bengal's initial spell of attacking football brought them a two goal lead, complacency allowed the Malaysians to get back into the match and draw the match just after the hour mark, but then another barrage of attacks enabled East Bengal to walk away with a 4-2 win. The attacking line of India captain Baichung Bhutia, Brazilian Cristiano Junior and Nigerian Mike Okoro was exceptional today with the three scoring the four home team goals.
East Bengal took a 9.minute lead when Mike Okoro slotted home, after getting a pass from Baichung Bhutia. After the goal Okoro took off his jersey to show the T-Shirt he was wearing, which had the picture of fellow former Nigerian footballer Lawrence Enyilord. Afterwards Okoro dedicated the goal to Enyilord. At the half hour mark Baichung was brought down by the Negri keeper Cajetan Opraugo in the area and Brazilian striker Cristiano Junior scored of the resultant penalty. East Bengal continued with their pressure but in first half injury time Negri Sembilan pulled one goal back through a Ranjan Al Koran shot. After the break the Malaysians pressed for the equaliser and also got that just after the hour mark as substitute Shahrizan Bin Mohammed 25 yard freekick beat East Bengal keeper Sangram Mukherjee. While East Bengal had become complacent after scoring two goals, the Malaysians got carried away and became too offensive neglecting their defence and they had to pay the price. Lucky for East Bengal. It needed a Baichung-typical spectacular goal to bring back the lead for East Bengal. In the 66.minute a Subhas Chakraborty cross was headed-in by Baichung in flying athleticism and it was left to Brazilian Cristiano to finish off the scoring in the 75.minute.
With their second win in as many matches of the AFC Cup Group E, East Bengal Club now head the table with six points and now meet the minows of the groups Maldivian Island FC away and then home in April.
East Bengal also created a new records for Indian clubs in Asia as they won their sixth international club match in a row, while the old record was also held by East Bengal of five wins. That was way back in 1985 in the Asian Club Championships in Sri Lanka at the south Asian qualifiers, so the current win streak has to be rated higher as all wins came against SouthEast Asian sides.
EAST BENGAL: Sangram Mukherjee, M Suresh, Deepak Kumar Mondal, Mahesh Gawli, Sasthi Duley, Alvito D'Cunha (Bijen Singh), Debjit Ghosh (Chandan Das), Mike Okoro, Subhas Chakraborty (Malswam Tulunga), Cristiano Junior, Baichung Bhutia.
NEGRI SEMBILAN: Cajetan Opraugo, Khairul Bahrum, S Prandaman, Derma Raju, Rajan Al Koran, Syaiful Sabtu (Shahein Sajadi), Anuar Jusuh (Shahrizan Bin Mohammed), Ching Hong Aik, Mohammed Ekpoki, Duke Efyong (Suharmin Yosof), Efendi Malik.
Referee: Panya Hanlumyaung (Thailand).

8th Assam Club Championships - Semifinal: Everest Club, Karbi Anglong 1-6 Assam State Electricity Board
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Final: Manipur 0-0,6-5 West Bengal (on penalties) - Goals: none.

Note-1: Might the 2006 World Cup Asian Group 3 qualifying match INDIA Vs Oman on March 31 have to be shifted away from the Nehru Stadium, Kochi?
This is a likely scenario at the moment which the AIFF has to look into. AIFF secretary Alberto Colaco has flown down to Kochi to inspect the facilities at the Nehru Stadium. According to indianfootball.com sources the ground at the Nehru Stadium is said to be in bad shape and another worrying factor for the AIFF seems to be the Kerala FA, which is said to face internal problems and infights after the death of secretary Sugunan in mid-January.
Alternatives seem to be the Nehru Stadium, Margao in Goa and the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bangalore. The Sree Kanteerava Stadium could surely be a great alternative as the last World Cup qualifiers in 2001 showed. I personally had been down in Bangalore for the 1-0 win against UAE on April 8, 2001 and the 25,000 person strong crowd was incredible. One just has to ask the players...

Note-2: The Tata Football Academy had invited 225 children from across India to a four day preliminary round of trials in Jamshedpur from February 22 until today to pick a fresh batch of boys. The children aged 13/14 had been scouted by the TFA coaching staff at the Sub-Junior Subroto Cup in Delhi last year and elsewhere across India.
38 children have been asked to report back to a second round of trials and they would likely be joined by the India under-14 boys, who would be invited to the trials.

24. February
8th Assam Club Championships - Semifinal: Oil India Limited 3-2 Assam Police Blues
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group D: Rail Coach Factory 1-0 North-Central Railway, Allahabad - Goals: 1-0 Manjinder Singh.
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group D: Eastern Railway SC 3-0 East-Central Railway - Goals: 1-0 Sandeep Kumar (3'), 2-0 Kuntal Biswas (68'), 3-0 Mazumdar (89').
60th Inter-Railway Trophy - Preliminary League - Group D: West-Central Railway, Jabalpur walkover RDSO, Lucknow

Note-1: East Bengal Club hope to keep the momentum going in the AFC Cup group stage, when they face Malaysian FA-Cup champions Negri Sembilan at the Saltlake Stadium, Calcutta tomorrow afternoon. The ASEAN and NFL champions had a successful start two weeks ago away in Singpore and with a win tomorrow they could cement their place at the top of the Group E, which Negri Sembilan holds at the moment. And with matches against the weakest team of the group, Island FC from the Maldives coming thereafter, the chances would be good.
Meanwhile Negri Sembilan coach Kukuswami Devan (Sounds Indian, doesn't it?) had from the time of landing in Calcutta said his team would aim for a point from their away match but he seems to fear what could come on his team...
Baichung Bhutia said on his club's prospects in the AFC Cup outing, "We are playing well. We need to continue our good showing." Asked whether East Bengal looked favourites for gleaning full points, Bhutia said "It is not enough to plan that we will win. What's important is that we should play well on the day of the match." Bhutia also admitted East Bengal has already played their toughest match of the group against Singapore's Geylang United. "In tournaments of this stature, all games are tough. Moreover, we do not know much about this Malaysian outfit, save they have three foreigners. Generally speaking I know that the standards of club football in Malaysia are quite good," Bhutia said.

23. February
The demonstration of football lovers infront of the Doordarshan Kendra Calcutta in Golfgreen was held today with more than a 1.000 people taking part, be it footballers, coaches, administrators, journalists and football fans. The demonstrators blocked the road infront of the Kendra for around 90 minutes to present their demands, which included that at least all Indian national team home matches and all major tournament be shown live on DD.
A memorandum was handed over by former players Surajit Sengupta and IFA secretary Subrata Dutta to the Doordarshan Calcutta Director Pankaj Saha, who accepted the memorandum and said, "Its not that Doordarshan was apathetic to football, but there were several bottlenecks many of which were related to economics that had to be sorted out. I will send the papers to Delhi and we can only hope for the best." Sadly Mr. Saha gave an answer like a politician but hopefully something positive will come out of this.
The organisers of the demonstration were happy to see such large numbers turn-up, though it was all at very short notice.
IFA secretary Subrata Dutta said at the protest, "This is a great movement and for the benefit of football. We are there along with the soccer lovers and hope we will only go forward from here."
The Calcutta football fraternity was present, be it past - Sailen Manna, Chuni Goswami, Santo Mitra, Subrata Bhattacharjee, Aloke Mukherjee and Satyajit Chatterjee or present - internationals Debjit Ghosh and Deepak Kumar Mondal plus Malswam Tulunga, Bijen Singh and Dipendu Biswas.
Even others joined-in like Executive Editor of Bengali daily "Aajkal" Ashok Dasgupta, Bengali singers Indranil Sen and Saikat Mitra plus stars from Tollywood (Bengali cinema) and even cricketers like Sambaran Banerjee and Gopal Bose. All genuine football fans.
But some will say missing from the protest was India captain Baichung Bhutia but he afterwards explained his absence, "I support the cause. But I would rather answer against the discrimination on field." Baichung was supportive of the protest but also questioned if such a protest would yield any result, if DD would change its stance any bit on showing football.
We from indianfootball.com can only hope that this does change something and others in the football centres in Goa, Kerala, Mumbai and the Northeast take a leave out of this and organise similar protests! Maybe if the DD top-brass get more such letters from across India they would change their stance.
As things stand at the moment with India playing Cricket against Pakistan at the end of March, the India-Oman match from Kochin is unlikely to be shown live. So we need to change that. Ideas on how in the coming days...

8th Assam Club Championships - Quarterfinal: Assam State Electricity Board 3-0 Netaji Subhash Sports Academy, Karimganj
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Semifinal: Manipur 5-0 Kerala - Goals: 1-0 N Geeta Rani (32'), 2-0 K Dhanpati (42'), 3-0 B Maichon Devi (53'), 4-0 A Sakhitombi Devi (68'), 5-0 Shanti Devi (71').
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Semifinal: West Bengal 4-0 Bihar - Goals: 1-0 Sapna Gudiya (21'), 2-0 Sujata Kar (54'), 3-0 Papiya Ghosh (57'), 4-0 Rinku Ghosh (78').

Note-1: Good news for Indian football fans!
Doordarshan will be showing the AFC Cup: East Bengal Club Vs Negri Sembilan (Malaysia) live on their DD Sports channel on wednesday from 14.30 h onwards.
Though the demonstration has held today infront of the DD Kendra in Calcutta, the live coverage of this specific match has nothing to do with it as the decision was taken by DD over the weekend and the decision only announced today. Also good news for East Bengal is that DD is charging the club Rs 75,000 instead of Rs 350,000, which was the production cost for the match.

Note-2: Football is among 17 sports disciplines given an "A" ranking out of 33 different sports disciplines by the Government of India to provide top class facilities with a view to achieving medals at various international, world and Olympic competitions. Good to see that football is among the sports, which will get infrastructure support from the Government of India. This is what Indian football needs, as cities don't even have proper training facilities for the national team nor for top football clubs.

Note-3: Howrah will not be allowed to play in the final round of four teams in the inaugural Bengal State Football League. As per the regulations the teams were allowed to field five players from either the Calcutta Super Division or first division but against South 24 Parganas they mistakenly fielded six players and have been scratched from the tournament. South 24 Parganas along with Hooghly, Chandannagar and Bardhaman would play out title in the final round.

22. February
indianfootball.com calls on all football fans in Calcutta to go to the Doordarshan Kendra in Golfgreen, Calcutta tomorrow to protest along with footballers - past and present, coaches and sports journalists against the state-owned broadcaster's 'indifference' to the lovely game of football.
It is a shame that last wednesday DD did not show live India's 1-0 victory against Singapore in the World Cup qualifiers. There was only live coverage on All-India Radio and our indianfootball.com live updates, which weren't easy but we managed and hope you all enjoyed but that shouldn't be the way to keep uptodate...
"We have planned this protest in the interests of football," East Bengal coach Subash Bhowmick, a prime mover of the idea, said. "We will gather in front of the DD office here in silent protest on Monday."
Bhowmick has the support of past footballers like Sailen Manna and Surajit Sengupta. Even the likes of star striker Bhaichung Bhutia are expected to join the demonstration.
The protestors will carry placards and poster urging the media and the authorities to be a bit more 'caring towards football'.

8th National League - Calcutta: Mohun Bagan AC 1-1 Mohammedan Sporting Club - Goals: 0-1 Chidi Edeh (52'), 1-1 Manitombi Singh (83').
Former National League champions Mohun Bagan AC got away with a one-all draw against debutants and city rivals Mohammedan Sporting Club at the Saltlake Stadium, Calcutta. For Bagan the defence will remain a worrying factor until the end of the season but the loopholes need to be filled, if the team doesn't want to get into greater trouble in the NFL.
The refereeing today was terrible as Gokulanand Sharma seemed to have no real control of proceedings as typical in Calcutta derbies players had a go at each other more than just once and Sharma also made some crucial mistakes, though in the end it didn't effect the game as he committed one major mistake on both sides. First he disallowed Sporting a genuine penalty and then overlooked a goal from Bagan's Mehtab Hussain, whose 30 yarder crossed the goalline just a couple minutes before the breather.
Sporting took the lead in the 52.minute when Bagan defender Palash Karmakar fumbled with the ball with Sporting's opportunstic Nigerian Chidi Edeh lurking around, to take the ball and then put it in. Thereafter one expected Bagan to fight to at least get a draw from the match but the young team seemed doomed for a loss, when in the 83.minute a cross from the right from Manitombi Singh unintentionally curled into the goal as it caught Sporting keeper Gumpe Rime out of position. In the last minutes Bagan tried to score the winner but they couldn't use the chances.
MOHUN BAGAN: Prasanta Dora, Manitombi Singh, Sanjeeb Kumar Maria, Palash Karmakar (Harpreet Singh), Lolendra Singh (Abhay Kumar), Mehtab Hossain, Basudeb Mondal (Sunil Chetri), Noel Tafadzwa Kaseka, Rocus Lamare, Renedy Singh, Ashim Biswas.
MSC: Gumpe Rime, Syed Hussain, Satish Kumar Bharti, Madhab Das, Amandeep Singh (Amjad Ali Khan), Bhuvan Krishna Joshi, Khalid Siddique, Bungo Singh (Hamza Zaheer Abbas), Dipendu Biswas, Chidi Edeh.

Note-1: East Bengal Club's opponents in the AFC-Cup Malaysian FA-Cup winner Negri Sembilan, a Malaysian Premier League team (second tier of Malaysian league) arrived late on Sunday in Calcutta via Chennai. East Bengal's reputation in SouthEast Asia has risen dramatically since their ASEAN Club Cup triumph last July in Indonesia and their 3-2 away win two weeks ago in Singapore against Geylang United has been the proper follow-up. Negri Sembilan know that East Bengal will be a tough opponent away and hope to fly back to Malaysia with a draw, which would suit them well after their 5-0 trashing of Maldives-side Island FC.
East Bengal are organising and hosting the match on their own as has now become usual in AFC organised Asian club competitions with organisational help from the IFA. East Bengal expect the costs to be in the region of Rs 800,000 and hope to cover the costs with the help from sponsors. Gates aren't expected to make a great turnover.
Would the match be shown live on Doordarshan??? The live coverage of matches has become a major issue in Indian football, after the India-Singapore World Cup qualifier wasn't shown. But East Bengal have taken a bold step and have send a proposal to Doordarshan that they would cover the production costs of around Rs 350,000 themselves to ensure live coverage. A decision from Doordarshan is expected tomorrow and hopefully this time it would be in the interest of the football fans in Indian.

Note-2: Five Goan footballers are among the 17 sportspersons who have been recommended for the Goa state Bakshi Bahaddar Jivabadada Kerkar Award for the years 1998-99, 1999-2000 and 2001-02, which is conferred by the Sports Authority of Goa. The five footballers are men's footballers Lector Mascarehas, Roberto Fernandes and Franky Barreto, along with women's footballer Blanka Barreto and Maria P Rebello.

Note-3: Salgaocar have signed and registered striker Jules Aliba from the African country of Chad ahead of the second phase of the 8th National League.

Note-4: Assam Rifles striker Akum Ao has been signed by Mohun Bagan on loan ahead of the second phase of the 8th National League. Akum Ao is said to have impressed the Bagan management at the Durand Cup and then again, when Assam Rifles trained in Calcutta ahead of the All-India Police Cup. And Akum becomes the second Ao at Bagan, the first one being the legendary Dr. T. Ao from Nagaland who was the captain of the Indian football team at the 1948 London Olympics.

Note-5: On February 14 in Mumbai former Indian international and national coach, and current Goan club Fransa FC coach Shabbir Ali has been given the 2004 Zainabia Achievers Award for his contribution to football.

21. February
8th National League - Goa: Sporting Clube de Goa 1-1 Vasco SC - Goals: 0-1 Marcos Pereira (59'), 1-1 Alvito Rodrigues (90+').
Debutants Sporting Clube de Goa got away with a one-all draw in a Goan derby in the National League against Vasco SC at the Nehru Stadium, Margao. The match in the first half showed that the teams had been on a month long layoff as they needed time to settle down and missed a number of chances. But that changed in the second half as Vasco's on loan Brazilian striker Marcos Pereira shot his team into the lead in the 59.minute through a freekick. Vasco could have sealed the match 17 minutes from time but Marcos' shot sailed over the goal and Sporting Clube came back to equalise in injury time as substitute Alvito Rodrigues scored. Both Sporting Clube and Vasco now have 16 points but Sporting Clube remain ahead due a better goal difference.

8th National League - Calcutta: Tollygunge Agragami 2-3 Churchill Brothers SC - Goals: 1-0,2-0 Akeem Abul Alem (24',33'), 2-1,2-2 Yakubu Yusif (56',61'), 2-3 Noel Wilson (89').
The second phase of the National League kicked of in Calcutta at the Saltlake Stadium in spectacular fashion with Churchill Brothers SC scoring a 3-2 away victory against Tollygunge Agragami, after Tollygunge had had a 2-0 lead at half time. The young Tollygunge team went into the match with a wait-and-watch strategy but as the first half progressed they took more and more control as Churchill had problems in defence as they played with a make-shift defence as midfielder Noel Wilson was put into central defence. And a misunderstanding between Wilson and AS Firoze in the 24.minute enabled Sheikh Habeeb Ali to pass to Nigerian Akeem Abul Alem and slot home. Tollygunge doubled the lead in the 33.minute when a Jiten Rai freekick was tapped-in once more by Akeem. Tollygunge went into the lemon break with the 2-0 lead but came back into the second half with over-confidence and also Churchill Brothers came back with a changed strategy which worked. Noel Wilson was releaved of his defensive role, pulled-up into midfield and it worked. It was Churchill Brothers Ghanian sharp-shooter Yakubu Yusif who by the 61.minute with his two goals had restored parity for the Goans. In the 56.minute Yakubu scored of a penalty after Sandip Das had handled the ball in the area and only five minutes later Yakubu scored a gem of a goal, when he left his marker stranded and volleyed the ball past the Tolly keeper Samit Debnath. And it was a Noel Wilson 30-yard piledriver a minute from time which decided the match in Churchill's favour leaving Tollygunge with nothing from the match.
But after the match Tollygunge officials said that they would lodge an official protest against Churchill Brothers for playing Somatai Shaiza today. Shaiza was taken on loan by Churchill Brothers from Mohun Bagan but the Tollygunge officials claim that Shaiza never signed for Bagan this season.
TOLLYGUNGE: Samit Debnath, Kabijit Khotel, Isiaka Awoyemi, Ebi Bar Bar, Goutam Debnath, Gouranga Dutta (Chinmoy Sarkar), Sandip Das, Amit Das (Suman Dutta), Jiten Rai, Sheikh Habeeb Ali, Akeem Abolanle.
CHURCHILL: Mark Mascrenhas, Ferno Dame, SA Firoze, Noel Wilson, Rajesh Meetei, Somatai Shaiza, Santa Singh, John Kingsley (Riston Rodrigues), Tiken Singh (Pio Rodrigues), Benjamin Ansah, Yusif Yakubu.

8th National League - Ludhiana: JCT Mills 3-1 Indian Bank - Goals: 0-1 Mahendra Mani (20'), 1-1,2-1 Harvinder Singh (25',45+'), 3-1 Stephen Abarowei (58').
After the league break JCT Mills continued their good run in the National League with a 3-1 victory against bottom of the table Indian Bank at the floodlit Guru Nanak Stadium, Ludhiana. JCT missed two of their key players - IM Vijayan, down in Kerala due to a family matter and international Jo Paul Ancheri, who injured himself on wednesday in the World Cup qualifying match against Singapore, but it wasn't felt as others chipped in. But it was Indian Bank who took the lead in the 20.minute when young striker Mahendra Mani utilised a hole in the JCT defence to break free and shot past JCT keeper Mansuru Mohammad. But thereafter it was JCT all the way. Only five minutes later JCT striker Harvinder Singh equalised, when Bankmen keeper Sebastian Netto failed to collect a Daljit Singh throw-in. In injury time of the first half Harvinder Singh shot his team into the lead, when he saw that Bankmen keeper Netto was too far out of his charge and tried a long-ranger which perfectly dipped into the goal. JCT continued their attacks in the second half and their seasoned Nigerian striker Stephen Abarowei scored in the 58.minute of a cross from the left by Ram Pal.

12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Quarterfinal League Group II: West Bengal 7-1 Assam
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Quarterfinal League Group IV: Bihar 5-0 Tripura

Note-1: The body of Nigerian footballer Lawrence Enyilord was laid to rest today at the Bhowanipore cemetery, after a ceremony at the Assembly of God Church and 14 days of unsurity what would happen with the body.
The funeral service was held today at the Assembly of God Church with around 50 footballers and friends present. His friend Joseph Stanley, spoke at the funeral service remembering the footballer as a boy, a young man and footballer. Among those present were former players like Christopher Kem, Chibozor, Bernard Operanozie, Habib Adenkule and current ones like East Bengal's Mike Okoro, Tollygunge's Akeem Abul Alem and EverReady's Jemeriah Earnest plus two officials from Nigerian High Commission who flew in from New Delhi.
Financial crunch and legal hassles had prevented his friends from sending Lawrence's body back home.
Lawrence's friends had to run from pillar to post to raise Rs 100,000. East Bengal pitched in with Rs 25,000, and EverReady with Rs 10,000.

Note-2: The dates for four matches of the National League between Rounds 13 to 15 have been rescheduled. While we have reported that the Mohammedan Sporting Club-Indian Bank match has been pushed back by a day to February 26, another Round 13 match between JCT Mills-Churchill Brothers in Ludhiana would now be held on February 27. The Round 15 match between Mahindra United-Indian Bank in Mumbai has been pushed forward to March 1 from the original date of March 13. The Round 14 match between Churchill Brothers-Indian Bank meanwhile will be held on March 5, instead of March 1. The change of dates had been made necessary due to non-availability of grounds at the venues.

Note-3: Tollygunge Agragami might soon face serious problems with players at the club. The senior players claim that coach Krishnendu Roy isn't playing them as the coach is put under pressure from certain officials at the club.

Note-4: The second edition of the Dr. T. Ao NorthEast Football Trophy will be held in Imphal, Manipur from March 15. Assam, hosts of the first edition, are the defending champions.

20. February
The 8th National League restarts with Round 12 tomorrow after a month-long break for the World Cup qualifying camp and the match against Singapore. And an interesting return-leg of the NFL is on the cards and the fight to for the title and to avoid relegation is set to heat-up. The NFL will restart with three scheduled matches tomorrow and another match on Sunday. In Margao debutants Sporting Clube de Goa face Vasco SC in a Goan derby, Tollygunge Agragami host Churchill Brothers at the Saltlake Stadium, while former champions JCT Mills will take on bottom of the league team Indian Bank at the Guru Nanak Stadium, Ludhiana. On Sunday meanwhile an important Calcutta-derby will be held when Mohun Bagan AC face Mohammedan Sporting Club, as Sporting in 11th spot would like to close-in on and take one of the non-relegation spots.

12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Quarterfinal League Group I: Manipur 8-0 Jharkhand
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Quarterfinal League Group III: Kerala 5-0 Jammu&Kashmir

Note-1: TEN Sports will telecast the Mahindra United Vs Dhofar FC AFC Cup match tomorrow, February 21 at 1800 IST, while in the UAE the telecast would be shown an hour later (remember time difference) at 1730 UAE. The match was played on February 11 in Margao, Goa and the coverage would include the complete 90 minute match plus pre- and post-match interviews and match analysis.
A repeat of the match would be shown on TEN Sports on Sunday at 0040 IST and once more at 2110 IST.

Note-2: Finally the last rites for Lawrence Enyilord will be carried at the Assembly of God Church at 10 am tomorrow, before the body is taken to the Bhowanipore cemetery. Lawrence had died in a Calcutta nursing home on February 8 and until tomorrow his body will have been at a funeral parlour for 13 days. Lawrence is lucky that other Nigerian footballers, former and present, came to his rescue after death. Former player Christopher Kem went to Delhi to sort out everything with the Nigerian High Commission and also the family, who gave their okay to the burial via Fax. In Calcutta meanwhile Bernard Operanozie of Super Division side Mohammedan AC is looking into affairs with others but due to finance problems and legal hassles, the body couldn't be send back to Nigeria, which is really a shame.

Note-3: Ahead of their Round 12 National League match against Mohammedan Sporting Club on Sunday, Mohun Bagan have finally signed Zimbabwean Noel Tafadzwa Kaseka as their fourth foreigner. Kaseka has been on trials with the club for over month. He was signed on the last possible date and actually he is one of three Bagan foreigners as Brazilian Jose Barreto has left the team midway through the NFL.

19. February
Yesterday INDIA made a success start to it's World Cup qualifying campaign but we kept some bad news away from you, as in the latest FIFA ranking published also yesterday India was ranked only 139th, down one from the 138th spot from January. In Asia we slipped to 27th, down two spots. But next month when the win against Singapore will be taken into the rankings, we should move-up some places.

12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Quarterfinal League Group II: West Bengal 2-1 Orissa
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Quarterfinal League Group IV: Bihar 1-0 Goa

Note-1: Thanks to Noel da Lima for the following detailed infos:
GFA Executive Committee had an Emergency meeting chaired by Vice-President Vinod Parkot and passed the following resolution.
1. Office Bearers of all 4 Clubs (Curtorim Gymkhana, Wilfred Leisure, Sangolda Lightning, Dona Paula SC) to be suspended for one year. Executive Committee to recommend to the General Body of GFA their exclusion from football related activities for life. Each member to be fined Rs. 5000/-. These are maximum penalties that can be imposed by the Executive Committee of GFA under the present Constitution.
2. All four Clubs are suspended from GFA Membership for 1 year and fined Rs. 5000 each. The Executive Committee to recommend to General Body of GFA their permanent expulsion from GFA membership. This is the maximum penalty.
3. Coaches and Managers of all 4 teams to face the same sanctions as Club Office bearers
4. Players of all 4 teams to be suspended for 1 year. Among the banned players is Marcelino Dias from Sangolda Lightning, an India U18 player who recently represented India at the BIMST-EC Cup 2004 in Phuket, Thailand.
The General Body of GFA will take whatever action it deems fit and necessary to ensure that there is no future repetition of this vandalism of Goan football when it meets on the 3rd Sunday of July for the AGM.
Meanwhile all parties are free to appeal to the disciplinary committee of GFA or Jury of Appeal of GFA. However, the bans take immediate effect until served / overturned.

Meanwhile the AIFF has stated that the 118 Goals farcas was a local Goan issue which needs to be solved by the GFA and not the AIFF.
Also the GFA informed that four other teams, the losers from the quarterfinals, would vie for promotion to the first division Goa League. The teams are Benny XI, Cortalim Gymkhana, Bogmalo SC, Young Boys of Tonca. The matches are likely to be played in 10 days time.

Note-2: Thanks to Novy Kapadia for the following infos!
TEN Sports will be showing highlights from the Mahindra United Vs Dhofar FC (Oman) match on February 21. The likely time for the highlights is going to be in the evening. Also the match will feature in the weekly Indian football show on TEN Sports this week.

Note-3: The charity match in honour of late Nigerian footballer Lawrence Enyilord between NFL champions East Bengal and an African XI has been postponed indefinately. The aim of the match had been to raise money for the family of the bereaved player. And the reason for the postponement is shocking as Bernard Operanozie, a Nigerian player in Calcutta and one of the people behind the idea of the match said that certain sections of the media had questioned the stay of the African players in India in legal terms and this was 'bad publicity' for a charity match and unworthy in such a situation.

Note-4: The Round 13 match of the 8th National League between Mohammedan Sporting Club and Indian Bank, which was supposed to be played on February 25, has been postponed by a day. The postponement was made as on February 25 East Bengal Club would face Malaysia FA-Cup winners Negri Sembilan in an AFC Cup match at the Saltlake Stadium in Calcutta.

18. February
2006 World Cup Qualifiers - Asia Zone - Group 3 - Nehru Stadium, Margao: INDIA 1-0 Singapore - Goal: 1-0 Renedy Singh (49').
INDIA won their inaugural match of their campaign in the 2006 World Cup qualifiers against Singapore at the near sell-out Nehru Stadium, Margao in Goa. Mohun Bagan captain Renedy Singh scored the decisive winner for INDIA in the 49.minute of a penalty to the right of the Singaporean keeper Hassan Sunny. The penalty was given by Iranian referee Farajollah Yasrebi after Ashim Biswas had been brought down in the area, which was later heavily criticised by the Singapore camp.

INDIA: Sangram Mukherjee; Deepal Kumar Mondal, Debjit Ghosh, Mahesh Gawli; Sameer Naik, Climax Lawrence, Jo Paul Ancheri (Shanmugam Venkatesh), Alvito D'Cunha (Tomba Singh), Renedy Singh (Subhas Chakraborty); Ashim Biswas, Baichung Bhutia (CAP).
SINGAPORE: Hassan Sunny, Daniel Bennett, Aide Iskandar (Syed Fadhil), Baihakki Khaizan, S Subramani, Muhammed Ridhuan, Ahmad Latiff, Tan Kim-Leng, Sazali Salleh (Mustaqim Manzur), Indra Sahdan Daud, Noh Alam Shah (Agu Casmir).
Referee: Farajollah Yasrebi (IRAN)
Attendence: 26.000

Statements from coaches:
Constantine: India chief coach Constantine praised the brilliant fighting spirit showed by his boys and thanked the crowd for the overwhelming support after beating Singapore. Stephen Constantine: "It is a pretty good start and our boys should get prepared against Oman, who are tough opponents, for the home match on March 31 in Kochi."
Avramovic: Singapore coach Radojko Avramovic blamed the referee for awarding the penalty but said he was hoping the team to put up a better show in the next match. "We have to face the reality and hope the team does better in the home match against Japan," he said. He praised the Indian team for coming up with a good performance.

12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Quarterfinal League Group I: Manipur 2-0 Madhya Pradesh
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Quarterfinal League Group III: Kerala 3-0 Punjab

Note-1: Following By Rajarshi Ghosh, Calcutta: It is a terrible incidence that has happened to Calcutta Football. Lawrence Enyilord had came to Calcutta to play football for some of the local clubs, a few years ago. However, he died in Calcutta. Now the worst thing is he had died more than a week ago, but his body is still lying in a morgue because he is still regarded as an illegal immigrant in the eyes of the law. He had never officially registered as a foreigner in the city. Moreover, he had stayed on illegally even after he failed to get a contract with a club since last year. So, the Nigerian High Commission is not entirely willing to take back his body back to Nigeria.
Lawrence's parents are not economically sound, so it is not possible for them to afford the money they need to pay the passage for their son's body. So, Lawrence's burial will have to take place in Calcutta, and even for that the cemetery needs the permission of his family. But his family lives in a remote village from where it is impossible to send a fax or any other communication. Therefore, Lawrence's burial is totally dependent on his other African footballer friends in the city. What is ridiculous to see is that none of the clubs had taken the responsibility to ensure that he had proper papers while the clubs employed him.
This incident points to the problematic grey area in terms of immigration laws and emplyment contracts - in which foreign players work and live in city. The influx of African players from Ghana, Nigeria and Kenya is not new for the Clubs of Calcutta. But neither the clubs, especially the small clubs (as Lawrence rather played for small clubs) nor their regulatory bodies have any clear-cut and standarized rules of contracting players.
In my opinion other than forming a Foreign Players' Associaltion the solution is to standarize the legal and contractual aspects of their professional status in the country according to strictly professional international guidelines. Otherwise stories like Lawrence Enyilord will happen again. Lawrence's incident should be a good lesson for both African Players and the Local Clubs.

Note-2: On Friday East Bengal Club will play an exhibition match against an African XI - a team comprising of African players who play in India - in memory of Nigerian footballer Lawrence Enyilord, who died last week. The match will be played at East Bengal's ground on the Calcutta Maidan.
So football fans in Calcutta, pay your last respect to a football who has come a long way from home to play football in Calcutta and sadly had to die young.

17. February
Indian star skipper Baichung Bhutia and "India's Player of the Year 2003" Tomba Singh are likely to start in tomorrow match against Singapore. Bhutia may have to take a routine fitness test as late as Wednesday morning to see whether he has fully recovered from a slight hamstring strain he picked up in the AFC Cup match against Geylang United last week. According to chief coch Stephen Constantine, midfielder Tomba Singh is also fit.
Meanwhile Ashim Biswas will team up with Baichung Bhutia in the attack, trying to fill the breach caused by I.M. Vijayan's retirement. Constantine: "You can not compare Ashim with Vijayan. It is rather unfair at this stage. Ashim is only 19 and if he can go half the way down Vijayan's path it would be an achievement. If he can go beyond that then sky is the limit."
The likely INDIA line-up: Sangram Mukherjee; Deepak Kumar Mondal, Mahesh Gawli, M Suresh; Sameer Naik, Tomba Singh, Jo Paul Ancheri, Alvito D'Cunha, Renedy Singh; Baichung Bhutia, Asim Biswas. Baichung Bhutia and Tomba Singh unsure. If Tomba out, then Climax Lawrence in.

8th Assam Club Championships - Round 1: Assam Police Blues,Guwahati 8-1 Jyanodoi Sangha, Udalguri
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Quarterfinal League Group II: Orissa 3-2 Assam
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Quarterfinal League Group IV: Goa 5-1 Tripura

16. February
We still haven't been able to find out, if Doordarshan or anyone else would show the INDIA Vs Singapore match live on TV on wednesday but what we have been able to find out is that All-India Radio (AIR) would broadcast live commentary from the 2006 World Cup qualifying match from Margao, Goa.
The live commentary would start from 15.55 h, five minutes before the kickoff and would continue until the end of the match and it would be alternatively in Hindi and English.

17th All India Postal Football Tournament - Calcutta - Final: West Bengal 1-0 Kerala
39.Dr BC Roy (under-19) Trophy - South Zone Qualifiers: Andhra Pradesh 1-1 Tamil Nadu
39.Dr BC Roy (under-19) Trophy - South Zone Qualifiers: Pondicherry 0-7 Kerala
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Quarterfinal League Group I: Jharkhand 1-0 Madhya Pradesh
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Quarterfinal League Group III: Punjab 13-0 Jammu&Kashmir

Note-1: The Indian team is looking forward to take on Singapore on Wednesday. Captain Baichung Bhutia and chief coach Stephen Constantine on Monday said they were hoping for a good start. Constantine: "We respect them as a team, but we don't fear anyone. The team is relaxed and looking forward to a good game on Wednesday. We are going in with a positive attitude and want to make it difficult for the other teams." Superstar Baichung Bhutia also sounded optimistic: "The team was playing well and was focussed. A good start would be crucial in deciding the result of the match. I prefer Goa as a venue because the crowd support we get here is fantastic."
Meanwhile it was also known that Iranian Farajollah Yasrebi has been appointed referee for the India vs Singapore match.

Note-2: East Bengal Club will in the coming days request the local organisers of their National League matches, the IFA to consider to shift their NFL match against Salgaocar SC on February 29 to another venue in Calcutta as the night earlier the Saltlake Stadium ground would be mis-used by a musical soiree, which as past history tells would leave the ground in a not matchfit condition. But East Bengal fear their request would fall on deaf ears.

Note-3: Mohun Bagan and their foreigners, the saga continues.
Bagan are trying desperately to fill their fourth foreigners slot ahead of the Friday deadline.
Bulgarian Valeri Stanikov who had arrived on Thursday left Sunday back for Bulgaria as his wife is said to have had an accident, but another reason is that Stanikov failed the Chuni Goswami test, as the Bulgarian couldn't impress the former Olympian.
Meanwhile Zimbabwean Noel Tafadzwa Kaseka continues his long-term trial at the green-and-maroon brigade with still no decision taken if to sign him or not, as another player in Ghanaian under-17 World Cupper Seth Albade is set to arrive but if he would survive the test and directly help the team for their first match against Mohammedan Sporting on Sunday has to be questioned.
Also Brazilian Eduardo Ribeiro is returning to the club in a couple of days.

Note-4: East Bengal had some very good news on the injury front as Brazilian Douglas da Silva had his plaster taken off today and was ready to go. Douglas like a small child seems too eager to get back onto the ground and maybe coach Subhas Bhowmick will have to cool him down, as Douglas are important for East Bengal's campaign in the National League and the AFC Cup. Douglas himself thinks he would need eight to 10 days to get back into shape, so guesses the AFC Cup match on February 25 against Malaysian side Negri Sembilan would be too early but the NFL match on February 29 against Salgaocar would be an ideal match for a second half return. But Douglas added it was upto the coach to make the decision.

Note-5: Football in Punjab enters a new era this coming Saturday, as the JCT Mills-Indian Bank match of the 8th National League will be held under floodlights at the Guru Nanak Stadium, Ludhiana. This would be the first time that an NFL match in Punjab would be held in the evening and it is the second football match at the Guru Nanak Stadium to be held in the evening. The first match was on November 30, 2001, the final of the 31st National Games between Punjab and Goa. The stadium had a sellout crowd then and the Punjab FA hopes that the good crowd support in Ludhiana would be given another boast with the evening matches. The match would kickoff at 18.00 h.

Note-6: In the 2.Division League of the Goa FA today the highest-ever score in a match in Goa but maybe even in Indian football was scored but not only that in another match nearly as many goals were scored to decide the promotion to the 1.Division. But all four involved clubs - Curtorim Gymkhana, Wilfred Leisure, Dona Paula SC, Sangolda Lightning - have been suspended by the GFA.
While Curtorim Gymkhana trashed Sangolda Lightning 61-1 at CRC grounds, Chinchinim; Wilfred Leisure defeated Dona Paula SC 55-1 at the Duler grounds. So in total 118 goals where scored in only two matches. Just to make a comparison in 66 matches of the National League so far 140 goals have been scored.
Curtorim Gymkhana and Wilfred Leisure were fighting ahead of the last match for the promotion to the 1.Division with Curtorim having a better goal difference of six more goals. But in today's matches the fight for promotion got out of control as such scores are just unrealistic and match fixing charges are sadly going to be the reality. The GFA has already suspended the clubs and will take necessary in the coming days and weeks.
Disgusted by his team and officials Arnaldo D'Costa, general secretary of Curtorim Gymkhana, resigned after the match.

15. February
The Singapore national team made a quiet entry in Goa today with Serbo-Montenegrian coach Radojko Avramovic insisting that his young side was good enough to grab all three points at stake.
Singapore, 107th in the latest FIFA rankings, will lock horns with India in the 2006 World Cup (Asian Zone) qualifiers, on Wednesday, February 18, at Nehru Stadium, Fatorda, 16.00 IST.
"We are here with a single-minded objective of winning three points. India is a fast-improving side but we have the wherewithal to score lots of goals and turn the tide in our favour," Singapore coach Avramovic said at the Dabolim Airport, this afternoon.
Upon arrival, the 32-member squad led by Football Association of Singapore assistant general secretary P Sivakumar were accorded a traditional welcome. They were received by GFA executive committee member Sanjeev Nagvenkar, former India captain Lawrence Gomes, Kenneth Pereira and Jacinto Fernandes.
Avramovic saw the Indian team from close quarters during the Busan Asian Games 2002 and has been following India's progress ever since. "Ever since the Asian Games, India's game has improved a lot," he maintained.
"I have collected enough information about the Indian squad and have got a fair idea of what to expect when we meet them on Wednesday. We are prepared for the challenge," the coach disclosed.
During East Bengal's AFC Cup match against Geylang United, in Singapore, Avramovic said he made his own notings about the likes of Baichung Bhutia, Deepak Mondal, Mahesh Gawli and Debjit Ghosh, all of whom are expected to play a crucial role for the home team.
The coach, who has been with the team for the past six months, said his immediate task was to find a balance between attack and defence by the time when the real test comes on Wednesday. "Our defence has been inconsistent. It differentiates from match to match and that is a concern. Our team, however, can score a lot of goals and it is ultimately goals that win you matches. Football is all about scoring goals," he stressed.
India last played Singapore a long while ago, 1984 to be precise, with Singapore scoring a fluent 2-0 win infront of a partisan crowd.
"Ours is a tough group. We know that. But, we also believe in the ability of the Singapore players. Japan is a strong side but in football anything can happen," the coach maintained adding that Manchester United's loss to little-known Middlesbrough in the English Premier League, was a fine example of how things can go seriously wrong with the best of names in football.
In the evening, the Singapore squad underwent a training session at Don Bosco grounds, Panjim, under the watchful eyes of Avramovic and his assistant Fandi Ahmad, a football icon back home in Singapore. The emphasis, not surprisingly, was on attacking.
Singapore's moment of glory came in 1998 when the National team won the prestigious Tiger Cup as they got the better of Vietnam by a solitary goal.
Ever since Singapore football is grappling to meet the high expectations but off-late the team has showed signs of steady improvement.

All India Mayor's Trophy - Aloka, Maharashtra - Final: Fransa FC 2-1 Sporting Clube de Goa
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group D: Goa 2-0 Haryana
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group E: Assam 1-0 Tamil Nadu

Note-1: Tickets for the INDIA Vs Singapore match at the Nehru Stadium, Margao on wednesday will go on sale tomorrow at 10.00 h across Goa and will be sold until 17.00 h on Tuesday at those places, while they continue to be sold at the Nehru Stadium until the match starts.
Sale points: BARDEZ: Champs, Mapusa; Jaiprakash Poulekar, Mapusa Market; FC Siolim Club, Siolim; Gajanan Kerkar, Calangute. PANJIM: Champs, Panjim. VASCO: Champs, Vasco. SALCETE: Champs, Margao; Nehru Stadium, Fatorda; Mayfair Bar and Restaurant, Dando; Patson Wine Store, Benaulim; Jose Rebelo, Opp Church, Chinchinim.
Besides the invitees and complimentary pass holders the following persons will be given free admission for the match. WEST STAND: All merit card holders (former national and international football players); GFA committee and sub committee members; officials of clubs affiliated to GFA; Members of the Sports Authority of Goa; SAG and DSYA officials; Players registered with the NFL Clubs', stadium staff.
North/South and East Stands: All other players playing in the various leagues and age group tournaments organised by the Goa FA; DSYA; SAG staff.
Admissions will be subject to presentation of valid identity cards.

Note-2: While sources close to the AIFF Doping Committee claim that two NFL clubs, one of them from Calcutta, have been found to have irregularities with the medicine that has been prescribed by doctors to their players, the AIFF secretary Alberto Colaco told the "Times of India", "I don't know why a section of the media is trying to create an issue out of nothing. We have done dope tests for national footballers and all players have been cleared."
Doping has become an issue in Indian football after Arun Malhotra had to be left at home before the Busan Asian Games 2002 after it was found out that his local doctor in Kashmir had given him a medication, which was on the anti-odping list. Also last year at the ASEAN Club Cup East Bengal's Debjit Ghosh had been given Decadron (a banned drug) to safe his live after a serious head injury.
We will follow the matter and see what comes out of it.

14. February
A 33-member strong Singapore squad, led by Football Association of Singapore general secretary P Sivakumar will set foot on Goan soil on Sunday, February 15, for their 2006 FIFA World Cup (Asian) qualifier against India, at Nehru Stadium, Fatorda, on February 18.
In the true sense of the word, Singapore are not exactly a power in Asian football but is among the fast-improving sides of Asian football. Ranked 107, 31 places above India, Singapore, as India coach Stephen Constantine rightly says, cannot be taken lightly.
"Singapore is a tough side but we are ready for them," Constantine maintains.
Singapore has a Serbo-Montenegrian coach Radojko Avramovic - popularly known as Raddy - at the helm of affairs while he is being assisted by Fandi Ahmad. Lee Bee Seng is the goalkeeping coach.
The Lions - as the Singapore football squad is nicknamed - have a suspect defence as evident from their defeats to Norway (2-5) and Iran U23 Olympic team (2-3). "My team tries its best for every match but somehow they always lose concentration at crucial moments and concede goals," Singapore coach Avramovic says.
The Lions have set both short-term and long-term targets for themselves. While in the short-run the Lions are hoping to reach the Tiger Cup Final, later this year, Singapore's realistic aim is to qualify for the 2010 World Cup.
The Singapore coach is in the process of re-building the team with long-term goals in mind. 12 of the current senior National squad has players below 23 years and the FAS is believed to be harvesting a crop of young talents from the National Football Academy.
According to acting Goa FA secretary Schubert Furtado, the Singapore squad will be put up at The Majestic Hotel in Porvorim with practice sessions slated at the Don Bosco High School grounds, in Panjim.
"We are set to host the match," says Schubert Furtado. "Ticket sales will start Monday, February 16," he added.
Team Singapore: Md Rezal Bin Hassan, Z Zainal, Tankim Leng, Kamarezanam, Rudy Khairon, Hasrin Bin Julani, Md Noh Bin Rahman, Lewis Lione, Bahakki Bin Keazan, Sayed Al Yahya, Md Bin Ishak, Mustaom Ahmed Khan, Ridhuabin Muhd, Md Bin Jurami, Agu Casmie, Benett Daniel Mark, Aide Bin Sahak, S Shanamugham, Indra Sahcan Bin Daud, Amhad Latif Bin Kahmaruddin, Sazali Salleh, Md Rafi Un Md Ali, Hassan Sunny.

8th Assam Club Championships - Round 1: Chamata AK Sangha, Nalbari - Thermal Club, Kokrajhar
39.Dr BC Roy (under-19) Trophy - South Zone Qualifiers: Kerala 1-0 Andhra Pradesh
39.Dr BC Roy (under-19) Trophy - South Zone Qualifiers: Tamil Nadu 3-0 Pondicherry
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group A: Jharkhand 7-0 Rajasthan
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group B: Orissa 9-0 Chandigarh
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group C: Punjab 9-0 Uttaranchal
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group G: Madhya Pradesh 1-0 Maharashtra

Note-1: The IFA's plans to launch a professional league in Calcutta might also make Calcutta football more interesting for the IFA's television partners, US sports broadcasting giants ESPN. Like this season ESPN only has done capsules of the most important matches and shown them on their channel but if the new league takes shape, then it might be of interest to ESPN to maybe even show matches live. This would be the needed boast for Calcutta football and maybe also enable it to attract new sponsors to the game.

13. February
India chief coach Stephen Constantine has named his final squad of 20 players for the first 2006 World Cup qualifying Asian Group 3 match against Singapore on February 18 to be played at the Nehru Stadium, Margao in Goa. Indian superstar Baichung Bhutia has been named captain of the team. With eight members from East Bengal Club in the squad, they have by far the largest contingent in the squad.
SQUAD: GK: Sangram Mukherjee (East Bengal Club), Naseem Akhtar (Mahindra United). DF: Deepak Kumar Mondal, Mahesh Gawli, Debjit Ghosh, Muttath Suresh (all East Bengal Club), Satish Kumar Bharti (Mohammedan Sporting Club). MF: Tomba Singh, Climax Lawrence, Jatin Singh Bisht (all Salgaocar SC), Shanmugam Venkatesh (Mahindra United), Subhas Chakraborty, Alvito D'Cunha (both East Bengal Club), Renedy Singh (Mohun Bagan), Sameer Naik (Dempo SC), Jo Paul Ancheri (JCT Mills) FW: Baichung Bhutia (East Bengal Club - CAPTAIN), Ashim Biswas (Mohun Bagan AC), Abhishek Yadav (Mahindra United), Sheikh Sanjeeb (Mohammedan Sporting Club).
Standby: Prasanta Dora (GK, Mohun Bagan AC), Selwyn Fernandes (DF, Vasco SC), Gurjinder Singh (MF, Salgaocar SC), Ishfaq Ahmed (FW, Dempo SC).

If Stephen Constantine's 20-member team, named this evening, is any indication, Indian football has got a lot to do with the mind. And the emphasis, quite obviously, is on the midfield.
Constantine named nine midfielders in the 20-member squad for the 2006 World Cup Asian Zone qualifiers. India take on the might of Singapore in the first match, on Wednesday, February 18, at Nehru Stadium, Fatorda.
There were no surprises as such and the inclusion of two new faces in the team - striker Sheikh Sanjeeb (Mohammedan Sporting) and medio Subhas Chakraborty (East Bengal) - was on expected lines.
Sheikh Sanjeeb caught Constantine's attention when he scored a brace against Dempo SC in the only practice game India played while Subhas Chakraborty has been rewarded for his consistent performance for East Bengal this season.
Mahindra United captain Khalid Jamil, who played a stellar role in the last World Cup qualifiers is a notable omission while Vasco SC's Selwyn Fernandes, a regular for the Afro-Asian Games along with US-based footballer Ebbie Kodiattu has also been dropped.
Selwyn has been named among the reserves which also include goalkeeper Prasanta Dora (Mohun Bagan), Gurjinder Singh (Salgoacar) and Ishfaq Ahmed (Dempo).
Mahindra goalkeeper Kalyan Chaubey, who limped out of the match against Omanese Dhofar Club in the AFC Cup, on Wednesday, could not be considered. His place is being taken over by another Mahindra keeper Naseem Akhtar, who incidentally, was simply outstanding against Dhofar.
Speaking to reporters, Constantine said India will find the going tough at the World Cup qualifiers but was quick to add that the Indians were ready for the challenge. "We will have no easy games," Constantine said, "Singapore is a tough side but we have the ability to knock them out. I have all information about the team ready."
None of the juniors have found a berth in the squad but Constantine said he was impressed by their performance. "Maybe some time later in the competition, you will find some juniors making it to the team," he maintained.
"We will have to play to our strengths," maintained Baichung Bhutia, who has been retained as captain. "Football is all about teamwork and no individual can work wonders. Every players will have to play its part in the team's success," he added when reminded that he has been identified as the key player for India by the Singapore Lions.

Ebbie was low on fitness
Fitness, or the lack of it, was one factor that went against US-based footballer Ebbie Kodiattu when India coach Stephen Constantine sat down to finalise the squad for the fast-approaching World Cup qualifier against Singapore.
Ebbie Kodiattu, who plays for New Hampshire Phantoms in the US-A League told Herald he was off-football since last September and that perhaps explains his drop in fitness level. "An injury to the groin was also troublesome," he informed.
Coach Stephen Constantine was all praise for Ebbie's commitment and said he was open to the idea of inviting those with Indian passports, from any corner of the world. "Any positive influence should be welcomed," he maintained.
Players of Indian origin with the likes of Michael Chopra (Nottingham Forest), Vikash Dhorasoo (Olympique Lyonnaise), Harpal Singh (Bury FC) and Ranvir Singh (USA), have made a big name for themselves.
"Perhaps, Ebbie was a bit surprised with the standard of Indian football. He gave glimpses of his good abilities but that was not good enough to seal an Indian team berth," Constantine told reporters this evening.
In a touching gesture, India captain Baichung Bhutia later presented the new Indian team jersey to Ebbie, as a mark of appreciation.
"I've become a lot more wiser participating in the camp," said Ebbie who has trained under Englishman Steve Nicol, a Liverpool veteran. "I am a proud Indian citizen. I hope I will get an opportunity, sometime, to play for India. I believe I still have the time for that and that is my goal," maintained Ebbie.

8th Assam Club Championships - Round 2: Everest Club, Karbi Anglong 4-3 SAI Sports Club, Golaghat [on penalties]
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group E: Tamil Nadu 3-1 Mizoram
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group F: Tripura 3-0 Karnataka

Note-1: The schedule of matches for the Rounds 12 to 16 of the 8th National League has been released by the AIFF. The NFL starts into the second phase of the league on February 21 with three matches across India.
for the 8th National League schedule

Note-2: East Bengal Club coach Subhas Bhowmick yesterday received the letter to inform him on his suspension by the IFA. Today the letter was forwarded by Bhowmick to his club, and East Bengal Club have requested the IFA to go soft on their coach.
Subhas Bhowmick today put together his reply to the IFA on his suspension with the help of East Bengal Club secretary Kalyan Majumdar and the letter was even received by the IFA today but no comment from their side on the reply.

12. February
As the moment of truth draws near for Indian football, chief coach Stephen Constantine remains a picture of confidence.
"We are ready for Singapore," a confident-sounding Constantine said at the Nehru Stadium, Fatorda. "Singapore are rated above us and are a very competitive side, but we are no weaklings either. We have the wherewithal to take the bull by its horns," he added.
India lock horns with Singapore in the first 2006 World Cup qualifying match, on February 18, at Fatorda.
The highly-respected coach has done his homework on the Singapore team for the World Cup qualifiers - nicknamed The Lions - and is confident that his Nasty Boys can turn things around. "I had a man watching them play twice and I've got all the handy feedback," he disclosed.
Singapore recently participated in the Tiger Hill series where it lost both its matches but not without giving their superior opponents - Norway and Iran under-23 - a scare. The Singapore Lions' malaise in incompetent defending largely contributed to their defeats in the warm-up to the 2006 World Cup qualifiers.
While Norway steamrollered Singapore to script a 5-1 win, the Iran Olympic team survived some anxious moments before scurrying to a 3-2 victory.
Coach Constantine, understandably, is not willing to neither disclose his team combinations nor the team strategy. Little wonder he is among the shrewd tacticians who love keeping the cards close to their chests. "Wait until you see us on the field. The boys have prepared hard for the qualifiers and are raring to go," he informed.
Singapore coach Radojko Avramovic on the otherhand has openly admitted that the main weakness lies in the defence. "There is nothing I can do about the defence at the moment. My team tries its best for every match but somehow they always lose concentration at crucial moments and concede goals," he lamented. The eight goals conceeded in the two test matches as a prove.
Avramovic said his immediate task was to find balance between attack and defence by the time the World Cup qualifiers commence against India.
Meanwhile, the Singapore coach is reported to have quietly taken notes from the stands on the likes of Baichung Bhutia, Deepak Mondal, Mahesh Gowali and Debjit Ghosh during East Bengal's AFC Cup tie against Geylang United, in Singapore.
The Serbo-Montenegrian coach has already done his pickings and is said to be impressed by Bhutia's striking prowess. But like Constantine says, "there are many others who can do the job."
Constantine will announce the final Indian team for the Singapore qualifier on Friday evening.

8th Assam Club Championships - Round 2: Railway SC, Tinsukia 4-0 Radhabari Tea Estate Club, Bokakhat
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group A: Uttar Pradesh 5-1 Rajasthan
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group B: Chandigarh 5-1 Chattisgarh
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group C: Uttaranchal 0-0 Delhi
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group D: Haryana 1-1 Goa
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group F: Karnataka 3-1 Tripura
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group G: Jammu&Kashmir 2-0 Maharashtra

Note-1: East Bengal Club coach Subhas Bhowmick back from Singapore from his teams win in the AFC Cup match om Tuesday today received the IFA notification that he would be suspended for two years by the Bengal football governing body from May 16, 2004.

Note-2: Mohun Bagan AC are desperate to replace their run-away Brazilian striker Jose Barreto as soon as possible ahead of the start of the second phase of the National League. Since today morning Bulgarian Valeri Stanikov is on trial at the Maidan giants. Stanikov is a 26 year old striker, who plays for a second division club back in Bulgaria. In the afternoon Stanikov was already out on the ground to show his skills to the coaches Aloke Mukherjee and Satyajit Chatterjee.
If Stanikov would be signed, would be decided in the coming days.

11. February
AFC Cup 2004 - Group B: Mahindra United 2-1 Dhofar FC - Goals: 1-0 Shanmugam Venkatesh (21'), 1-1 Farajallah Al Seem (55'), 2-1 Abhishek Yadav (66').
MAHINDRA UNITED: Kalyan Chaubey (Naseem Akhtar), Falguni Datta, Covan Lawrence, Odartey Lawson, Arun Malhotra, Shanmugam Venkatesh, Jules Alberto Dias (Hekmat Singh), Khalid Jamil, Jinto Jose, Abhishek Yadav, Raphael Patron Akakpo (Steven Dias).
DHOFAR FC: Ahmed Al Kaaf, Omen Al Kathiri, Farajallah Al Seem, Umeh Gabrail (Ali Al Rawas), Ahmed Bait Said, Saif Al Ghafri, Salim O Al Kathiri (Ahmed Ba Alwi), Obenwa Joseph, Ahmed Bait Al Marzooq, Amin Ba Rashid, Salah Al Amri.
Referee: Ramachandran Krishnan
more details at the indianfootball.com "INDIAN CLUBS IN ASIA" section

8th Assam Club Championships - Round 1: SAI Sports Club, Golaghat 1-0 Sanjibani Samaj, Nagaon
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group E: Assam 1-0 Mizoram

Note-1: The National Football League (NFL) will resume on February 21. Three matches will be played on the day - Sporting Clube de Goa take on Vasco SC, JCT play Indian Bank in Ludhiana while Tollygunge Agragami will host Churchill Brothers in Calcutta.

10. February
AFC Cup 2004 - Group E: Geylang United FC 2-3 East Bengal Club - Goals: 1-0 Hafiz Rahim (40'), 1-1,1-2 Cristiano Junior (45',76'), 1-3 Bijen Singh (83'), 2-3 Jeykanth Jeyapal (90')
GEYLANG UUNITED: Shahril Jantan, Mohd Noh Rahman, Daniel Hill, Jeykanth Jeyapal, Jerry Bartholomeusz, Aleksandar Duric, Hasrin Jailani, Milan Blagojevic, Rudy Khairon (Razaleigh Khalik 86'), Hafiz Rahim (Razali Johari 78'), Nahar Daud.
EAST BENGAL: Sangram Mukherjee, Deepak Mondal, Mahesh Gawli, Debjit Ghosh, Surkumar Singh, Sasthi Duley, Alvito D'Cunha (Bijen Singh 70'), Subhas Chakraborty, Mike Okoro, Baichung Bhutia (Shylo Malswam Tulunga 76'), Cristiano Junior.
Referee: Albert Chiu (HK)
more details at the indianfootball.com "INDIAN CLUBS IN ASIA" section

12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group A: Jharkhand 2-0 Uttar Pradesh
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group B: Orissa 15-0 Chattisgarh
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group C: Punjab 4-0 Delhi
12.Women Nationals - Bhopal - Group G: Madhya Pradesh 2-0 Jammu&Kashmir

Note-1: A couple of Indian footballers are observed by the football's world-governing body FIFA for possible use of steroids. The footballers, who have not been identified, belong to a top Calcutta-based club sources connected to the All India Football Federation's doping committee said. Committee chairman Nisith Ranjan Choudhury, a FIFA medical officer, reportedly came across prescriptions of some players that recommended the use of steroids.The AIFF has also reportedly warned the concerned club so that the players can be asked to mend their ways.

9. February
39.Dr BC Roy (under-19) Trophy - North-East Zone Qualifiers - Final: Manipur 1-0 Assam
Assam Club Championships: Bloodmouth Club - Radhabari TE Club

Note-1: A 20-member Dhofar FC team of Oman arrived in Goa for the AFC Cup match against Mumbai's Mahindra United on Wednesday. The young Dhofar FC side was welcomed by Mahindra Group of Companies GM Cedric Shackelton, R Natarajan, GFA executive committee member Sanjeev Nagvenkar and former India captain Lawrence Gomes. Dhofar manager Salaah Mohammad Anrawas: "We have not seen our opponent playing and so we do not know their strength. It will be an interesting match and we are expecting a close fight. Our match against Mahindra should be a good contest. Playing under familiar conditions will give them the edge."
Furthermore Anrawas added that his team had trained hard for the AFC Cup and would treat Mahindra United as just another team. The Oman outfit has two Nigerian strikers, Joseph and Gabriel, in its ranks. And according to Anrawas they hold the key to Dhofar's fortunes. Forward Gabriel: "We have come here to collect full points and will settle for nothing more. Personally, I am looking at s coring a goal. That's my job here!"
Dhofar will miss five Oman internationals, which weren't realeased from the national camp by coach Milan Macala, and Dhofar and Oman captain Hani Al Dhabat who is nursing a serious injury.

Note-2: The Goa FA announced a 18-member squad for the 12th Women National Championships. The team includes Indian internationals Blanca Barretto, Uvena Fernandes, Maria Rebello, Vandana D'Cruz and Maymol Rocky.
The squad: Vandana D'Cruz, Teena Volvoikar, Fianna Fernandes, Juliet Miranda, Uvena Fernandes, Soccorina D'Costa, Reshma D'Souza, Jennifer Galdinho, Monica Miranda, Maymol Rocky, Maria Rebello, Sharon Fernandes, Pratiksha Khandolkar, Arcanhela Cabral, Mareena Fernandes, Gracy Costa, Filda Andrew, Ramona D'Souza. Coach: David D'Souza. Manager: Fatima Rodrigues.

Note-3: Ajoy Bose, a former footballer and cricketer plus a very popular Bengali radio commentator in football and others sports, who was also a sports journalist, died in a Calcutta nursing home today. He was aged 84 and had been suffering of ailments for quite some time.
Bose was known across Bengal for his unique style of commentary, which made him uniquely popular.

8. February
BIMST-EC Cup 2004 - Final - Phuket, Thailand: India U18 0-1 Myanmar U18 - Goal: 0-1 Tun (76')

8th Assam Club Championships - Round 1: Everest Club, Karbi Anglong 7-1 Udayan Club, Jorhat
Kerala State League - Final: State Bank of Travancore 2-2,4-2 FC Kochin (on penalties)
Assam Club Championships: Udayan Club - Everest Club

Note-1: Mahindra United gear up to take on Oman's Dhofar FC in the AFC Cup clash on Wednesday at Nehru Stadium. Mahindra United manager Henry Menezes, has asked Goan football fans to paint the stadium red, literally, and intimidate their rivals, who are currently second in the Oman Football League: "We would love to see red splashed all over. It would be great to see all supporters wearing red for the match. That should be an exciting affair. We have come here because of the passion Goans show towards their football. It is this passion that we are looking forward to at Nehru Stadium (Fatorda) when we tackle Oman's Dhofar FC. Essentially, we need a good start. We need to pick-up maximum points in the home matches to keep our rivals under pressure. Both teams know nothing much about each other and that's what makes the match an interesting one. But knowing Oman and its football, we are leaving nothing to chances."
Meanwhile Dubai-based Ten Sports channel has agreed to telecast the AFC Cup tie between Mahindra and Dhofar at Nehru Stadium, Goa. According to Henry Menezes, the match will be telecast deferred live in a two-hour slot.
more details at the indianfootball.com "INDIAN CLUBS IN ASIA" section

Note-2: Newcastle United's PIO Michael Chopra has been loaned to Nottingham Forest. The 20 year old striker checked-in at The City Ground and made his debut in yesterdays home clash with Coventry City. Chopra: "Forest have had a problem scoring goals and hopefully I'm the one that can resolve that situation. I'm looking to get a few goals for myself and for the Club and I'm looking forward to showing the Forest fans what I can do. Newcastle are a big club with so many strikers that I just felt it was time for me to go out on loan and gain some experience. People have called me the next Alan Shearer, which is some compliment particularly in the north east, but that sort of pressure doesn't get to me. There's a lot of pressure in football at any level and I'll just try and do my very best."

7. February
BIMST-EC Cup 2004 - Semifinal - Phuket, Thailand: India U18 3-0 Thailand U18 - Goals: 1-0,2-0 Malswama, 3-0 Jerry Zirsanga
Our U18 boys reached sensationally the final of the BIMST-EC Cup 2004, where they will face the Myanmar U18.

Friendly match - Duler Ground, Goa: India 3-0 Dempo SC - Goals: 1-0,2-0 Sheikh Sanjeeb, 3-0 Jo Paul Ancheri
The Indian senior national team scored a fluent 3-0 win over Dempo SC in a warm-up match for the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifiers at the Duler Ground, Goa. Indian chief coach Stephen Constantine had to field a weakened team out of a pool of 17 players, while the East Bengal and Mahindra United players have been realeased for the AFC Cup next week. Constantine started with Mohun Bagan's Ashim Biswas and Mohammedan Sporting's Sheikh Sanjib upfront and the two instantly struck a deal. Both combined well and occasionally ran into open spaces.
Egged on by a vociferous crowd, India held the initiative right from the start. Sheikh Sanjeeb gave India the lead in the 22nd minute, when he coverted a superb run by Indian player of the Year Tomba Singh. India dominated the match, but had to wait for the second goal untill the second half. Sanjeeb increased the lead in the second half when his low header of a Sameer Naik centre, sailed into the nylons. Jo Paul Ancheri hammered the final nail in Dempo's coffin with a gem of a strike. The genial footballer collected a ball from the centre, worked his way into the Dempo territory and chipped the ball over onrushing Dempo goalkeeper V.P. Satish Kumar, even as Dempo defenders jostled for attention.
Chief Coach Constantine sounded very happy on this first test before the World Cup qualifier match against Singapore on February 18: "The players have been playing together for the first time and they shaped pretty well. I thought the players played hard, though the ground conditions, were not all that receptive."
INDIA: Prasanta Dora (Bilifang Narzary); Satish Kumar Bharti, Vinu Jose (Gurjinder Singh), Selwyn Fernandes; Jo Paul Ancheri, Renedy Singh, Tomba Singh, Climax Lawrence (Jatin Singh Bisht), Sameer Naik (Ebbie Kodiattu); Ashim Biswas (Ishfaq Ahmed), Sheikh Sanjeeb (Freddy Mascarenhas).
DEMPO SC: VP Satish Kumar; Valeriano Rebello, Majekodunmi Bolaji, Raju Singh (Johnny D'Cruz); Dominic Noronha, Wilton Gomes, Mario Soares (Mohammad Gaffar), Jose Colaco (Nacimento Silveira), Lazarus Fernandes (Savio Pereira); Alex Ambrose (RC Prakash), Francis Silveira (Desmond Noronha).

39.Dr BC Roy (under-19) Trophy - NorthEast Zone Qualifiers - Semifinal: Mizoram 1-2 Assam
Kerala State League - 3rd Place Playoff: Titanium XI 3-1 Kerala State Electricity Board

Note-1: The India U17 national team will tour England as part of their preparations for the AFC U17 Championships later this year. The tour is the result of the newly signed agreement between English Premier League club Leicester City and the All India Football Federation. The youngsters will play several friendly matches and get a training stint in association with Leicester City. AIFF secretary Alberto Colaco: "We have qualified for the Asian U17 Championship in Japan in September and will play with Leicester City and conduct training programmes before the meet."

Note-2: The Assam Football Association today announced a 22 members squad for the 12th Women National Championships. The team would be lead by Anjana Pegu.
The squad: Snehalata Baglary, Anjali Khaklari, Dipti Hazarika, Baby Borgohain, Jyotsna Dey, Mamu Chaudang Gogoi, Mamoni Gogoi, Lavita Kumar, Kanchi Narzary, Protima Gogoi, Rekha Boro, Kunti Dighal, Rajani Lakhra, Golapi Khaklary, Anjana Pegu (Captain), Reena Boro, Minakhi Borgayan, Anjana Saikia, Alma Minz, Juli Murari. Coach: Nabajyoti Basumatari. Manager: Pradip Kumar Dey.

Note-3: Mohammedan Sporting have decided to fine some of their senior players for not attending practice regularly. According to a club official, the players will be fined Rs 300 per day.

Note-4: Mohun Bagan are planning to host a residential conditioning camp at SAI before the second phase of the National League. A Bulgarian midfielder is also likely to join their ranks on Wednesday.

6. February
39.Dr BC Roy (under-19) Trophy - NorthEast Zone Qualifiers - Semifinal: Meghalaya 0-1 Manipur
Kerala State League - Semifinal: FC Kochin 1-0 Kerala State Electricity Board - Goal: 1-0 Akbar Singh (45').

Note-1: The INDIAN senior national team will be playing against National League leaders Dempo SC tomorrow at Duler grounds, Mapusa, 16.00 h. For our national team it is the only serious test ahead of the start of it's World Cup qualifying campaign on February 18 against Singapore. While Dempo will only miss Sameer Naik, who will play for the national team; the Indian team will miss players from East Bengal and Mahindra United, who are at their respective clubs for their clubs AFC Cup matches on February 10/11.

5. February
BIMST-EC Cup 2004 - Group B - Phuket, Thailand: India U18 4-1 Bhutan U18
The INDIA U18 team led by Gouramangi Singh qualified for the semifinals of the first BIMST-EC Cup 2004 on Phuket Island, Thailand.

39.Dr BC Roy (under-19) Trophy - East Zone Qualifiers: West Bengal 1-0 Bihar
Kerala State League - Semifinal: State Bank of Travancore 3-2 Titanium XI - Goals: 0-1 B Deephu (19'), 1-1 Abdul Basheer, (36'), 1-2 K Ranjith (38'), 2-2 Abdul Noushad (81'), 3-2 Mohammed Aslam (83').
B.N. Mullick Police Cup - Lucknow - Final: Border Security Force 2-0 Punjab Police - Goals: 1-0 Harvinder Singh, 2-0 Gurjit Singh Atwal.

Note-1: East Bengal Club's campaign for the AFC Cup tournament to kickoff on February 10 in Singapore against Geylang United is set to miss a number of key players. Brazilian Douglas da Silva hasn't recovered yet, but is likely to be ready for the second match of the Group E. East Bengal captain Ghanian Suley Musah could be out for as many as four month's due to a needed knee surgery, while another defender Muttath Suresh is to miss the trip to Singapore due to visa problems ans Surkumar Singh is also injured. Bhowmick has to rethink his plans for his defence, and one of the ideas he has spoken about is to maybe use Baichung Bhutia as a sweeper. But hopefully Bhowmick doesn't have to go so far.

4. February
BIMST-EC Cup 2004 - Group B - Phuket, Thailand: India U18 0-0 Myanmar U18

39.Dr BC Roy (under-19) Trophy - NorthEast Zone Qualifiers - Group A: Assam 3-0 Arunachal Pradesh
Kerala State League - Group B: Central Excise 0-3 Kerala State Electricity Board

Note-1: English Premier League club Leicester City FC, Indian NFL champions East Bengal Club and the All-India Football Federation officially announced two historic tie-ups at a press conference in at the Hyatt Regency Calcutta today. As part of a campaign to forge closer links with the Asian community in Leicestershire and abroad, Leicester City have officially twinned with East Bengal and signed a partnership agreement with the AIFF. The agreements are designed to promote the exchange of footballing, commercial and marketing information between the three parties.

Reactions:
Paul Mace (Leicester City Chief Operating Officer): "We are very excited about reaching these agreements with East Bengal and the All India Football Federation. These agreements will open the doors to a wide range of footballing and commercial benefits for all parties and promote the name of Leicester City throughout the Asian subcontinent. Given the ethnic diversity of Leicester, it is important that our club is at the forefront of the development of football in India. Members of our coaching staff will fly out to India to co-ordinate coaching programmes with the club and the association, and Indian club and national youth teams and individual players will also come to England to receive coaching here in Leicester. We also envisage an exchange of marketing and commercial staffs and, overall, we feel there is scope for the development of a variety of footballing and commercial initiatives."
Furthermore Mace added: "We have extended an invitation to East Bengal to play with us at the Walkers Stadium in late July or early August. Moreover, we'll extend all help regarding coaching of the U-17 national team before they play the final phase of the AFC Championship in Japan in September. John Rudkin, one of our chief coaches, will be visiting India very soon to work with the Indian juniors."

Kalyan Majumdar (East Bengal Secretary): "East Bengal Club has always played a pioneering role in the football history of India. During the last couple of years it has broken many barriers and explored sccessfully new horizons for the cause of Indian football that resulted in the coveted victory in the ASEAN LG Cup Championship. In keeping with the same tradition East Bengal Club, is now venturing into a new era of international cooperation for the growth and development of football in this part of the globe. For the first time an Indian Club - East Bengal, champions of India, - will have close co-operation with Leicester City, an English FA Premier League Football Club, in areas such as youth player development, development of coaching techniques and commercial revenue streams, franchising and sponsorship etc. We are extremely happy and thrilled to be associated with Leicester City and confident that with this Indian football will enter into a new epoch of unlimited possibilities. We look forward to the all out support, help and guidance of all concerned, including that of the ever-vigilant media."

Alberto Colaco (AIFF Secretary): "This is an ideal opportunity for Indian football, especially the training and development of youth players. We are grateful to Leicester City for their interest and support and very much look forward to working with them to the benefit of our young players particularly."

Stephen Constantine (National coach India): "I think its about time that one of the Premier League Clubs in England has had the vision to forge a relationship with India, given the size of the Indian population in England. Leicester City should be applauded for their forward thinking ideas to unite two sets of people for the same purpose – football."

Note-2: AIFF secretary Alberto Colaco informed in Calcutta today that the Indian senior national team would play in the LG Cup in Vietnam this year, the tournament which India had won in 2002 but couldn't defend last year due to schedule problems. When the LG Cup would be held this year isn't sure yet.

3. February
39.Dr BC Roy (under-19) Trophy - NorthEast Zone Qualifiers - Group A: Meghalaya 1-0 Tripura
39.Dr BC Roy (under-19) Trophy - East Zone Qualifiers: West Bengal 3-0 Orissa
Kerala State League - Group A: State Bank of Travancore 4-0 FC Kochin

Note-1: India will not be playing any international friendlies ahead of the 2006 World Cup qualifier due to different reasons. The key one is that some Indian internationals will be busy ahead of the qualifiers for their clubs - East Bengal and Mahindra United - in the inaugural AFC Cup league on February 10 and 11.
So as a test the Indian national team would face National League leaders Dempo SC on February 7 at the Nehru Stadium, were the rest of the squad would play, as East Bengal and Mahindra United players would be away on club duty.

Note-2: English Premier League club Leicester City FC today appointed London-based Football Marketing & Management International (FMMI) as their Marketing and Business Management Partners for India in a deal for the next 3 years. FMMI will be responsible managing all aspects of Leicester City's involvement in Indian Football during that time.
Likely activity includes the development of a club partnership between Leicester and an Indian club, development of coaching clinics in India, and joint commercial exploitation by Leicester and their Indian partners.
Commenting on the appointment, Leicester City Chief Operating Officer, Paul Mace said, "Development of the Leicester City brand in India is a logical step given the make-up of our local community. We had a number of options to consider in taking our first steps into India, and FMM International were the outstanding choice. They are a thoroughly professional company, with unparalleled experience and contacts in the Indian market. We look forward to working closely with Nigel and his team over the next 3-years to develop a strong and beneficial presence for Leicester City in India"
FMMI CEO Nigel Empson said, "We are delighted to be asked by Leicester City to help develop their brand in India. We believe that FMMI can help them put in place a strong and committed programme of involvement with Indian football that will benefit not just Leicester City but also genuinely improve the football infrastructure, coaching and commercial side of the game in the sub-continent. Leicester City have a long term view of their involvement in the territory and I'm confident that FMMI can help establish the links that will benefit both football communities."
Good to see that an English club is interested in Indian football. But the question has to be asked, if a smaller Premiership club like Leicester is the right partner for the development of Indian football. The likely Indian partner club is East Bengal, though initially Leicester showed more interest in Mohun Bagan but the troubles at the club turned then away. Also a deal with the AIFF is set to be signed, though also here more interest was shown in another body of Indian football.
Lets hope this deal brings Indian football something!!!

2. February
39.Dr BC Roy (under-19) Trophy - NorthEast Zone Qualifiers - Group B: Manipur 0-1 Mizoram
Kerala State League - Group B: Titanium XI 1-1 Kerala State Electricity Board

Note-1: The IFA's decision to ban East Bengal coach Subhas Bowmick has been much criticised on the Calcutta Maidans - be it veteran soccer player, rivals Mohammedan Sporting, the press or us at indianfootball.com. Today it was the turn of India captain and Bhowmick's player at East Bengal Club, Baichung Bhutia to speak his mind on the issue. Baichung called the IFA decision as "too harsh" and like us at indianfootball.com earlier, compared the ban to the suspension of England/Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand.
Bhutia said, "what great offence has our coach committed so as to be handed out a two-year ban? He has only uttered a few words... The IFA has not taken a right decision on the issue. The punishment has been too harsh."
Also today Subhas Bhowmick meet the top brass of his club, who after the meeting stated that they would stand by their coach. But at a press conference in Calcutta today, Subhas hinted that he could stop coaching at the end of the season, which East Bengal don't want to see...

Note-2: Former long-time Mohun Bagan player and Indian international, Satyajit Chatterjee, has been named as assistant coach of the Mohun Bagan AC football team. Satyajit signed a contract today and would have his first working day on wednesday. Chief coach Aloke Mukherjee was supposed to be at the Indian probables camp for the World Cup qualifiers in Goa, but that is so far not the case, then in that case Satyajit would have been in charge of the rest of the team and their training.

1. February
39.Dr BC Roy (under-19) Trophy - NorthEast Zone Qualifiers - Group A: Assam 0-1 Meghalaya
Kerala State League - Group A: Keltron FC 0-1 FC Kochin

Note-1: The foundation stone for the IFA-CSF (Bengal) Academy was laid by the West Bengal sports minister Subhas Chakraborty in Haldia today. On the occasion of the foundation Subhas Chakraborty announced a grant of Rs 1 million.
The two key persons behind the project IFA secretary Subrata Dutta and County Sports Foundation chairman, MP Laxman Seth, who will also be the president of the board of governors of the academy, were also present on the occasion.
The Academy would be inaugurated on April 14 with 24 boys aged 13/14, selected from Calcutta nursery league teams and districts nursery coaching centres from across Bengal. Later on also trials for boys from across India would be held. The yearly costs would be Rs 2,5 million and exposure trips have been planned for the future.
The chief coach post is still isn't decided. After Amal Datta also Syed Nayeemuddin turned down the offer. Now former Tata Football Academy coach Mohammed Habeeb has been approached. Habeeb has given his verbal okay but he has to get the clearance from TFA, where he had a contract which didn't allow him to coach any other academy in the future. Bengal under-16 coach Sujit Chakraborty will be the assistant coach, no matter who becomes the chief coach.
Along with the foundation stone of the Academy, also the foundation stone for the three-storeyed IFA-CSF Football Bhavan was laid. It would be the home for the trainees once the construction is completed.

Note-2: The 8th Assam Club Football Championship will kickoff on February 8 in Diphu, with Udayan Club (Jorhat) taking on Everest Club (Karbi Anglong). Altogether 20 teams will take part in the championships.