The latest IndianFootball.Com Guest Column comes from Laishram Thambal Singh titled "Identification of Young Football Talent". Laishram, who is a Lecturer at the Department of Physical Education & Sports at the CSJM University, Kanpur, looks at what India needs to do to spot young talent.
Read the complete article here >>IndianFootball.Com Guest Column - Laishram Thambal Singh .

In a guest column for IndianFootball.Com Gasper Crasto from Kuwait writes about "Hipolito Fernandes - A Physio for Indian players in Kuwait", homage to a man who has helped many expat footballers in Kuwait over the years.
Read the complete article here >>IndianFootball.Com Guest Column - Gasper Crasto .

Friendly Match - Jamshedpur: Tata Football Academy 4-2 Mohun Bagan AC

Goan Professional League: Corps of Signals 0-3 Dempo SC - Goals: 0-1 Nacimento Silveira (40'), 0-2 Clifford Miranda (49'), 0-3 Anthony Pereira (67').
Hutch Man-of-the-Match: Peter Carvalho (Dempo).

Guwahati Super Division - Championship-leg: Assam Dynamo Club 3-0 Jewel Star Club = points to Dynamo as Jewel Star Club decided to skip their match
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group A: Youth FC - GPS Chahal SC
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group A: GS Parmar FC - SGGSS FC, Jalandhar

::: Small Calcutta derby rescheduled & revised CPL schedule :::
Tomorrow's East Bengal Club - Mohammedan Sporting Club derby in the Calcutta Premier League has been postponed until September 8. This decision was taken by the IFA yesterday due to the Saltlake Stadium being unavailable due to an athletics event at the match venue.
The revised schedule of the Calcutta Premier League is now out with the league set to end on October 16 instead of September 27.
Here the revised >>Calcutta Premier League fixtures

::: East Bengal Club signs deal with Reebok :::
East Bengal Club have signed a three year deal with international sports brand Reebok India to kit its football team in the coming seasons. It is the second time that Reebok India has come forward to kit the red-and-gold brigade.

::: Airtel Corporate Futsal League starts in Bangalore :::
The Airtel Corporate Futsal League organised by Bangalore-based SPT Sports started off over the weekend. The league has two divisions, an 11 team A Division and a seven team B Division with teams participating from Bangalore-based corporates. The proper Futsal rules are followed in the league.
A Division League matches are held Fridays and Saturdays with the league spreading over three weekends. Last weekend August 25/26 the first round of matches where held with further matches set to be played on the weekends September 1/2 and September 8/9. The matches are held at the SPT Sports Academy campus on Sarjapur Road in Bangalore.
The prize distribution ceremony will be held on Sunday, September 17 when the prizes and cheques will be handed over to the teams. The A Division champions would receive a rolling trophy plus Rs 30,000 as prize money. The second-placed team would get Rs 20,000 the third-placed team Rs 10,000, while the fourth-placed team still would get Rs 5,000. Also the top teams in the B Division would get some prize money. The champions would get Rs 20,000, the second-placed team would get Rs 10,000 the third-placed team Rs 5,000. The top goalscorer and best goalkeeper plus the Fair Play Trophy winners of each division would get Rs 3,000.
After the first weekend of matches HP lead in the A Division with 12 points from four matches closely followed by On Mobile with nine points from three matches. Progeon are third with seven points from four matches. With each team playing 10 matches in the league all is still possible. In the B Division Genpact and TESCO lead with six points out of two wins from two matches.

::: Goa FA announce State U16 squad :::
The Goa FA has announced the Goa State U16 team for the West Zone qualifiers of the 29th Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy to be held in Betul, Madhya Pradesh from September 15 to 24.
GOA U16: Shallum Pires (Captain), Paul Soares, Angelo Fernandes, Paresh Korgaokar, Neskeen Pires, Jesvil D'Souza, Lenstan Afonso, Mandar Dessai, Melkholm Fernandes, Parsaram Kaddinawar, Vijay Karmalkar, Pandhari Chopdekar, Calver Fernandes, Marshal Fernandes, Melvin Lobo, Domingos D'Cruz, Vishnu Singh, Jeovito Fernandes, Raymond Rodrigues, Joaquim Pacheco.
Coach: Francisco Bruto da Costa; Manager: Minguel Miranda.

August 28

RESULTS & NEWS

Guwahati Super Division - Relegation-leg: Guwahati Town Club 1-1 Northern Frontier Railway SC - Goals: 0-1 Swister Momin (11'), 1-1 Prasanta Bharali (33').
Guwahati Super Division - Relegation-leg: SAI SC, Guwahati 3-0 Sunrise Club = points awarded to SAI, Guwahati as Sunrise Club decided to skip their match
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group B: International FC - Mahilpur FC
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group B: Harcharan SC - Sikh National SC

::: National League to turn fully pro from 2007/08 :::
PTI report: Decks have been cleared for the introduction of a fully professional National Football League from the 2007-08 season after six clubs agreed to incorporate at least six out of 15 necessary clauses, a top official said here today.
The agreed clauses include transparency in the payment of fees to the footballers and transfer fees, according to Mahindra United president Alan Durante.
"The fully professional NFL has become a reality and it's going to be introduced from the 2007-08 season by the All-India Football Federation. It is 100 per cent bound to happen and the only question is how many clubs will take part in it in the first season," said Durante.
"Mahindra United are one of the clubs along with five others (who he preferred not to name), who have agreed to implement at least half a dozen clauses, including transparency in the payment of fees to the footballers, transfer fees etc," Durante told reporters on the sidelines of the launch of the 14-team Mahindra Mumbai Football League.

::: Kerala's 2005/06 Season's awards have been announced :::
Kerala's 2005/06 season's awards were announced in Kochin. Indian international defender NP Pradeep has been named as the best player of Kerala state, a step further then last season when Pradeep had been named best U21 player.
List of Awardees:

::: Soccer player Thomas Sebastian dead :::
IANS report: Former Indian soccer player Thomas Sebastian died at his residence in Thiruvananthapuram early on Monday. He was 46. Sebastian, who passed away in his sleep, had suffered a heart attack. The funeral takes place in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday, family sources said.
Born into a poor family in a coastal village in this Kerala capital, Sebastian began playing football on the streets when he was a schoolboy. A local club spotted his talent and helped him become a better player.
Sebastian's great achievement was that he donned the Indian jersey first in the early 1980s and was selected to the Kerala team later.
He played for India for four years and for Kerala for seven years. In 1988, he led Kerala in the Santosh Trophy final at Kollam where the state finished runners-up to Punjab.
Sebastian, who was known to move the ball with lightning speed, played for a club in Bahrain. He retired from active football in the early 1990s and was often seen giving tips to the Travancore Titanium team where he worked.

::: Manipur name Santosh Trophy probables :::
The All-Manipur FA has named Ch Shantikumar Singh as chief coach, Dr Ksh Birbal Singh as coach and Aleng Shimray as manager of the Manipur state team for the 61st Santosh Trophy.
The AMFA would hold selection trials and a probables coaching camp from August 29 at the Khuman Lampak sports complex, Imphal. In total 28 probables have been invited for the camp, 15 players from within the state and 13 Manipuri players plying their trade across India. Amongst the probables are Indian internationals Renedy Singh and Sukurmar Singh.
MANIPUR Probables: Goalkeepers: Gobin Singh (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited SC), Lalit Thapa (NEROCA), O Ingobi Singh (Manipur Police SC), S Narakanta Singh (Southern Sporting Union), A Imojit Singh of (Eastern Sporting Union); Defenders: I Surkumar Singh (Mahindra United), Y Raju Singh (East Bengal Club), N Samananda Singh (Sporting Clube de Goa), Benjamin Kamson (YWC, Thambalkhong), H Devan Singh (USA), Y Priyo Singh (Southern Sporting Union), Priyokumar (AMOFA); Midfielders: Bungo Thokchom Singh, Chitrasen Chandam Singh (both Churchill Brothers SC), M Gouramangi Singh (Sporting Clube de Goa), P Renedy Singh (JCT Mills), S Farid (Food Corporation of India, Guwahati), David Kamson (Southern Sporting Union), S Manimohon Singh (NEROCA), Ninja Kabui (TRAU), Helun Singh (TRAU), S Manglemjao Singh (NEROCA). Forwards: Kumar Samson Singh, T Narendra Meetei (both Air-India), Luminlal Khongsai, Saikholal Tuboi (both TRAU), Ch Sushil Kumar Singh (Mohun Bagan AC), Reisangmi Vasum (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited SC).

August 27

RESULTS & NEWS

Calcutta Premier League: Mohammedan Sporting Club 0-0 George Telegraph SC - Goals: none.
MOHAMMEDAN SPORTING: Gopas Das; Rajib Ahmed, Subhashish Roy Chowdhury, Madhab Das, Mir Farooq Hyder; Bijen Singh, Noel Anthony Wilson, Kalia Kulothungan, Jamir Ali Mondal (74' K Muhammed Nisam); Mike Okoro, Raman Vijayan (59' Surojit Roy).
GEORGE TELEGRAPH: Swarup Das; Mohan Chakraborty, Gour Naskar, Shyam Mondal, Deepak Singh; Manik Barman (81' Raju Ghosh), Amit Biswas, Shubho Kumar, Ashim Das, Gautam Thakur (90+' Sheikh Sanjib); Yousuf Ibrahim Tijani (89' Paban Das).
Chirag Man-of-the-Match: Swarup Das (George Telegraph).
REFEREE: Biswajit Kar.

Calcutta Premier League: United SC 1-0 Calcutta Port Trust SC - Goal: 1-0 Ashim Das.
20th Punjab State Super League: Border Security Force 1-0 JCT Mills - Goal: 1-0 Surjit Singh (47').
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group A: GS Parmar FC - Youth FC
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group A: SGGSS FC, Jalandhar - GPS Chahal SC

::: Calcutta derby pictures now online :::
IndianFootball.Com has uploaded some pictures from the Calcutta Premier League match between East Bengal Club and Mohun Bagan AC, which was held yesterday.
Go to IndianFootball.Com's Calcutta Premier League picture gallery

::: Chandigarh State camp from September 2 :::
The Chandigarh FA will hold selection trials and a probables camp for the State Seniors from September 2. The trials will be held at the DAV Senior Secondary School, Sector 8 at 16.30 h.
Narinder Singh has been named in-charge of the coaching camp for the selected 30 probables.

August 26

RESULTS & NEWS

10th South Asian Games, Colombo - 3rd Place Playoff: INDIA U20 0-2 Nepal U23 - Goals: 0-1 Jumanu Rai (4'), 0-2 Pradeep Maharjan (13').

Calcutta Premier League: East Bengal Club 0-1 Mohun Bagan AC - Goal: 0-1 Baichung Bhutia (40').
Before the arch rivals Mohun Bagan AC and East Bengal Club met at the Salt Lake Stadium in the first leg derby of the Sahara Calcutta Football League Premier Division, there was a striking contrast in the pictures of the two camps. One team was flying high with a hundred percent record and four clean sheets off their first four games, while the other team was struggling with their points equaling the number of matches they played. The latter could, however salvage their pride and managed to end their rivals' unbeaten run by winning the derby 1-0. The win provided oxygen for the team and a relief to their coach, for the time being. It will also be a sweet memory for the Indian football captain Baichung Bhutia who ended his goal-drought that had been on for the past matches of the league
But however the result doesn't prove everything. It could have been markedly different. There was an indication of an East Bengal goal-feast in the very second minute when Bagan custodian Sangram Mukherjee snatched off the ball from the feet of Freddy Mascarenhas. The Bagan coach started on a defensive note with five defenders, whereas on the other hand East Bengal started to launch series of attacks from the early minutes of the first half, thus enabling the spectators to witness the two aspects of "the beautiful game". The Bagan defence was tested time and again by the strikers of the red-and-gold brigade but all their efforts were either foiled by Sangram or went wide of the post. Meanwhile Syed Rahim Nabi scored in the 25th minute but was correctly ruled offside. Bagan's only positive chance in the first half-an-hour of the match was a Du header saved by the East Bengal goalie. The arrival of Dharamjit Singh in the Bagan midfield in place of Dulal Biswas at the half-hour mark provided some fresh energy in the Bagan attack as the wing started to operate. The next few minutes saw two Bagan chances going wide, and the East Bengal strikers failing to beat Sangram. In the 40th minute Bagan got their much deserved goal as Mehraj's centre from inside the Bagan half was chested by Baichung Bhutia halfway inside the East Bengal half and he got past Gurpreet Singh, entered the box from right and gently flicked past the onrushing goalkeeper. The ball hit the post and found the net. Minutes after, Bagan was denied of a genuine penalty when Vincent Pires handled the ball inside the box. Bagan totally faded away from the game in the second half as their opponents took full control of the game in the midfield. But however the scoreline remained intact, thanks to the lack of finishing ability of the East Bengal strikers and the never-say-die attitude of the Bagan custodian Sangram Mukherjee. The goalkeeper dived to save a Freddy shot, deflected Ashim's flick with his legs and continuously went on providing some amount of relief to the supporters. The red-and-gold coach went more attacking while the maroon-and-green coach went more defensive, and the game went on to be more and more one-sided. Gouranga Datta failed to provide a touch which might have been enough for a goal, Ashim Biswas side-netted and Sasthi Duley created repeated attacks from the left wing, but his crosses either went wide or were collected by Sangram. By the time the match ended, Freddy, Ashim and Nabi had missed at least two to three chances each. The scoreline can easily be guessed had those been converted. Even the East Bengal coach later regretted by saying that he would go to the church and ask Jesus why those didn't go in.
EAST BENGAL: 21-Abhra Mondal; 20-Vincent Brice Pires, 3-Luis Octavio da Silva, 27-Gurpreet Singh, 29-Soumik Dey; 14-Chandan Das (88' 30-Snehashis Chakraborty), 6-Dipankar Roy (70' 32-Gouranga Datta), 7-Jayanta Sen, 19-Syed Rahim Nabi; 25-Ashim Biswas, 22-Freddy Mascarenhas (57' 8-Sasthi Duley).
MOHUN BAGAN: 1-Sangram Mukherjee; 17-Dulal Biswas (29' 18-Dharamjit Singh), 28-Eduardo Chacon Coelho Lacerda, 5-Dhanraj Ravanan, 20-Sanjeev Kumar Maria, 4-Deepak Kumar Mondal (56' 29-Chinmoy Sarkar); 11-Subhash Chakraborty, 26-Mehraj din Wadoo, 32-Ndem A Guy Kiyeck Herve; 15-Baichung Bhutia, 8-Dipendu Biswas (73' 2-Bijay Basfore).
YELLOW CARDS: Syed Rahim Nabi (30'), Soumik Dey (72'), Gouranga Datta (90', all East Bengal); Sanjeev Kumar Maria (51'), Chinmoy Sarkar (69', both Mohun Bagan).
Chirag Man-of-the-Match: Sangram Mukherjee (Mohun Bagan).
REFEREE: Subrata Sarkar.
REFEREE ASSISTANTS: Udayan Halder, Kashinath Sen.
FOURTH OFFICIAL: Barun Saha.

click here for match pictures

POST-MATCH PRESS CONFERENCE:
After East Bengal suffered their first defeat under coach Carlos Alberto Pereira, he said:

After a much needed victory over arch rivals East Bengal, Mohun Bagan coach Biswajit Bhattacharya looked relieved in the post-match press conference. He said:

Goan Professional League: Salgaocar SC 3-3 Churchill Brothers SC - Goals: 1-0 Patrick Okonji Onyelo (10'), 1-1,2-2 Odafe Onyeka Okolie (25',58'), 2-1 Milagres Gonsalves (40'), 3-2 RC Prakash (74'), 3-3 Bernardo Pires (90+').
Hutch Man-of-the-Match: Patrick Okonji Onyelo (Salgaocar).

Goan Professional League: Vasco SC 3-1 Velsao Pale SC
Guwahati Super Division - Championship-leg: Assam Police Blues 0-1 Assam Dynamo Club - Goal: 0-1 Subair Muritala Ali (52').
Guwahati Super Division - Championship-leg: Jewel Star Club 1-4 Assam State Electricity Board - Goals: 1-0 Rahajuddin Ahmed (14'), 1-1,1-4 Zimi Singh (16',88'), 1-2 Jyotirmoy Ghosh (50'), 1-3 Manikanta Brahma.
20th Punjab State Super League: Rail Coach Factory 2-0 Punjab State Electricity Board - Goals: 1-0 Navjot Singh, 2-0 Harvinder Singh (60').
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group B: Mahilpur FC 3-0 Harcharan SC
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group B: Sikh National SC - International FC

::: Manipur U19 Inter-District in September :::
The All-Manipur FA will hold the 18th edition of the U19 Inter-District football tournament from September 17. The venue for the tournament hasn't been decided yet as the AMFA was asking District SAs and FAs to apply to the state FA to host the tournament.

August 25

RESULTS & NEWS

Goan Professional League: Dempo SC 5-3 Raia Sporting Club - Goals: 1-0,3-1 Anthony Pereira (6',21'), 2-0,4-1 Clifton Gonsalves (7',30'), 2-1,4-3 Wesley Coutinho (12',40'), 4-2 Wilfred Gomes (38'), 5-3 Peter Carvalho (57').
Hutch Man-of-the-Match: Peter Carvalho (Dempo).

Goan Professional League: Sporting Club de Goa 2-0 Corps of Signals - Goals: 1-0 Nicolas Borges (11'), 2-0 DP Chowdhury (56',own Goal).
Hutch Man-of-the-Match: Mauricio Freeman Peixoto (Sporting Clube).

Calcutta Super Division: West Bengal Police 1-0 SAIL
Guwahati Super Division - Relegation-leg: Guwahati Town Club 0-5 SAI SC, Guwahati - Goals: 0-1,0-2,0-3 Jayanta Basumatary, 0-4 Methew Thonzom, 0-5 Mintu Boro.
Guwahati Super Division - Relegation-leg: Sunrise Club 1-2 Northern Frontier Railway SC - Goals: 1-0 Mayang Meren (25'), 1-1,1-2 Prasanta Bharali (55',90+').
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group A: Youth FC 3-1 SGGSS FC, Jalandhar
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group A: GPS Chahal SC 3-0 GS Parmar FC

::: GFA names probables for 2006 Lusofonia Games :::
The Goa FA has released a list of 27 Goa state U21 probables for the preparatory camp for the first 2006 Lusofonia Games.
GOA U21 Probables: Drupesh Dessai, Donald Rocha, Ashley Fernandes, Cedric Fernandes, Rowilson Rodrigues, Tyson Caiado (all Churchill Brothers SC), Godwin Diego Franco, Roswelt Teles, Raymond Marques, Denzil Franco, Gerald D'Mello (all Sporting Clube de Goa), Agnelo D'Souza, Danny Dias, Queterio Pango, Laxmikant Kattimani (all Vasco SC), Edison Sequeira, Milagres Gonsalves, Francisco Fernandes (all Salgaocar SC), Samson Fernandes (Mahindra United), Joaquim Abranches (Dempo SC), Wesley Coutinho (Raia Sporting Club), Cavin Lobo (Velsao Pale SC), Stafford Pereira, Faisal Martins, Stanley Carvalho, Reagan Fernandes, Nicholas Rodrigues.

::: 47th APTA Shield to kickoff on September 2 :::
The 47th APTA Shield will kickoff on September 2 at the Jorhat Stadium. The Jorhat District Sports Association organised and Assam Tea Planters' Association sponsored tournament will see some of the best sides from the Northeast compete. Amongst them will be defending champions Nagaland Police and last year finalists Food Corporation of India, Guwahati besides Oil India Limited, Assam Police Blues, Assam State Electricity Board and Kuki FC from Nagaland.

::: Bobby Charlton Soccer & Sports Academy Camps in India :::
The Premier Indian Football Academy, Mumbai has announced that the Bobby Charlton Soccer & Sports Academy will once more hold football camps in India soon.
The PIFA has finalised dates for the third Bobby Charlton Soccer & Sports Academy camp in Mumbai, India
Mumbai will host two camps. The first October 15-18, at St Andrews - day camp 9.00 - 16.00 h; the second one between October 19-23 at The Retreat, Marve, which will be a Residential camp.
Further camps are being planning in Pune and Delhi. Last year the camps were a complete sell out, over 300 children benefited from the 5 camps organised all over India.

::: Manoranjan Bhattacharya appointed East Bengal U19 coach :::
Former East Bengal Club head coach Manoranjan Bhattacharya has been appointed East Bengal U19 coach for the season by the club. Manoranjan, who had coached the senior team in 1996-98 and 2000/01, had won the National League title for the red-and-gold the first time in the 2000/01 season.

August 24

RESULTS & NEWS

10th South Asian Games, Colombo - Semifinal: Sri Lanka U23 0-0,1-1,6-5 INDIA U20 [penalty shootout] - Goals: 0-1 Lalramluaha (97'), 1-1 Sadlan Perera (116').
INDIA U20: Shilton Pal; Rakesh Masih, Baljit Singh Sahni, Gobin Singh; Zaidinmawia Hmar [Captain], Hirohito Elangbam, Lalkamal Bhowmick, Th Naoba Singh, Lalmalswama (83' Lalramluaha); Branco Vincent Cardozo (Reisangmi Vasum), Sushil Kumar Singh.

Calcutta Premier League: Mohammedan Sporting Club 2-0 United SC - Goals: 1-0,2-0 Mike Okoro (36',68').
MOHAMMEDAN SPORTING: Gopal Das; Rajib Ahmed, Habibur Rehman Mondal, Madhab Das, Mir Farooq Hyder; Bijen Singh (84' K Muhammed Nisam), Douglas da Silva, Debjit Ghosh (78' M Sudeesh), Jameer Ali Mondal, Raman Vijayan (62' Subrata Guha), Mike Okoro.
UNITED SC: Santosh Goswami; Barun Oraon, Sajal Saha, Madhusudan Majumdar, Vanlalmawia Ralte, Prasanta Chakraborty (81' Sushil Karthak); Crispen Chetri, Narugopal Hait (79' Sumit Mondal), Surajit Chakraborty; Ratan Das, Abhishek Aich.
Chirag Man-of-the-Match: Mike Okoro (Mohammedan Sporting).
REFEREE: Udayan Haldar.

Guwahati Super Division - Championship-leg: Assam Police Blues 2-1 Jewel Star Club - Goals: 1-0,2-1 Amulya Das (62',88'), 1-1 Tamal Das (69').
20th Punjab State Super League: Punjab Police 0-0 Rail Coach Factory - Goals: none.
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group B: Mahilpur FC 2-0 International FC
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group B: Sikh National SC 6-0 Harcharan SC

::: 61st Santosh Trophy schedule :::
The fixtures of the 61st Santosh Trophy have been released by the AIFF. The 61st Santosh Trophy would be played in Gurgaon and Faridabad, Haryana spread across two phases. The eight group qualifiers would be held from September 14 to 30; while the quarterfinal league, semifinals and final would be held from October 14 to 25. The national state championships have to be in two phases as India face Japan on October 11 in an 2007 Asia Cup qualifier with a preparatory camp to be held before the match.
In total 33 state and institutional teams would be playing for the title. Defending champions Goa, finalists Maharashtra and semifinalists Kerala and Punjab have been seeded into the two group quarterfinal league.
For the fixtures go to >>61st Santosh Trophy statistical page

::: Anadi Barua to coach Delhi in Santosh Trophy :::
Anadi Barua, a former Indian international, has been appointed coach of the Delhi state team for the 61st Santosh Trophy which is set to be held in neighbouring Haryana. Delhi face Orissa, Jammu&Kashmir and Railways in Cluster VII. This was announced today by new Delhi SA president Subhash Chopra.
Barua would be assisted by Tarun Roy and Krishan Avtar; while veteran coach OP Malhotra will help with the preparatory camp.
The DSA has send messages to Delhi origin players - Sunil Chetri, Vinay Singh, Praveen Rawat, Avdesh Paul, Prashant Jaggi, Rajat Guha, Umar Rehmatullah and Adnan Rehmatullah - to be available for the state team. Meanwhile open trials would be held on August 28 at the Ambedkar Stadium.

August 23

RESULTS & NEWS

Calcutta Premier League: Mohun Bagan AC 1-1 Railway FC - Goals: 1-0 Dipendu Biswas (6'), 1-1 Suraj Mondal (26').
MOHUN BAGAN: Subrata Pal; Dulal Biswas, Sanjeev Kumar Maria, Dhanraj Ravanan, Bijoy Basfore, Lolendra Singh; Ndem Guy Herve, Subhas Chakraborty, Satyajit Bose (33' Palash Karmakar, 62' Surajit Bose); Dipendu Biswas, Pachau Lalampuia (68' Suman Dutta).
RAILWAY FC: Somnath Khara; Tapan Kumar Das, Surajit Chakraborty Sr (87' Abhijit Dutta), Sundar Mandi, Dipayan Majumdar, Biplab Naskar, Sandip Karmakar, Bablu Banik (80' Nilkamal Mondal), Tarak Nath, Nirapada Mondal (90+1' Swarnava Barua), Suraj Mondal.
Chirag Man-of-the-Match: Suraj Mondal (Railway FC).
REFEREE: Dilip Ghosh.

Guwahati Super Division - Championship-leg: Assam Dynamo Club 1-0 Assam State Electricity Board - Goal: 1-0 Subair Muritala Ali (65').
20th Punjab State Super League: Rail Coach Factory 3-1 JCT Football Academy - Goals: 0-1 Asim Hassan (5'), 1-1 Prabhpal Singh (23'), 2-1 Kuldip Singh, 3-1 Harvinder Singh.
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group A: SGGSS FC, Jalandhar 3-1 GS Parmar FC
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group A: GPS Chahal SC 1-2 Youth FC

::: 29th Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy (Under-16) Zonal Qualifiers schedule :::
The fixtures of the 29th Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy (Under-16) Zonal Qualifiers have been released by the AIFF. The qualifiers across the five zones will be held from September 15 to 30.
For the Zonal Qualifiers fixtures go to >>29th Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy (Under-16) 2006/07 page

August 22

RESULTS & NEWS

20th Punjab State Super League: Bassi FC 0-2 Punjab State Electricity Board
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group B: Harcharan SC 0-2 International FC
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group B: Sikh National SC 0-0 Mahilpur FC

::: IFA committee's decide :::
In two separate meetings the IFA today decided to ban Mohammedan Sporting Club ground secretary Iqbal Ahmed for three years from the technical area and inside ground fencing during IFA matches, and slapped a Rs 75,000 fine and a three match suspension on Muttath Suresh on signing for two clubs.
Iqbal Ahmed was suspended for his involvement in the incident in which Sporting fans attacked IFA secretary Subrata Dutta for his role in the player saga between Sporting and East Bengal. The fans and the club officials think that the IFA favoured East Bengal. Sporting has said that they would fight the ban.
Suresh received his punishment for his part which led to all this anger. Suresh like Chandan Das, Syed Rahim Nabi, Shylo Malswam Tulunga and Mohammed Mukhtar signed for both East Bengal and Mohammedan Sporting. Except for Tulunga, who is fighting a court case against East Bengal, all the other players have been cleared to play for East Bengal with fines and bans imposed on some of them.

::: Meeting on Calcutta Premier League schedule :::
The IFA will hold a meeting with all eight Calcutta Premier League clubs and the Calcutta Football League sponsors Sahara on Friday to discuss and decide on the further scheduling of the league. With the India camp for the Saudi Arabia away match starting on Thursday in Goa, the top clubs are set to be without many of their key players in the coming weeks. Also the IFA won't be able to finish the league by September 27 as originally planned as teams are reluctant to play with their players away on national duty.

::: Cooperage will host NFL: WIFA/MDFA official :::
PTI report: A top official of the Western India Football Association (WIFA) today brushed aside fears that the 2006-07 National Football League matches may not be held at the traditional home of the sport here - Cooperage ground in south Mumbai.
WIFA treasurer Commander Kehar Singh emphatically said the NFL league ties in the coming season would be conducted at the Cooperage ground, which is leased to the association only.
"Of course, they will be held at the Cooperge only," Singh said when his attention was drawn to news reports that the ties could be shifted elsewhere because of the poor infrastructure at the Cooperage.
This has drawn the ire of the AIFF as it did not conform to the standards laid down by the Asian body for the game, AFC.
The poor quality of the stands and the toilets for the spectators have been mentioned as the reasons for the possibility of the matches being snatched away from cooperage.
"We have already done repair works in the stands and we are definitely going to improve the toilet facilities for the spectators," Singh emphasised.
Cooperage ground hosts the home ties of NFL holders and Federation Cup winners Mahindra United and Air India, clubs based in Mumbai.

::: Navelim Youth Centre are crowned JP Memorial KIFF League in Kuwait champions :::
by Gasper Crasto: Kuwait: Navelim Youth Centre won the prestigious JP Memorial Rolling Trophy - KIFF League 2005-06 organized by Kuwait Indian Football Federation for a record third time defeating G.O.A Maroons 3-0 in the final played at Soor Grounds, Kuwait City.
The KIFF League, perhaps the only 11-aside league among expatriate Indians is played throughout the season. Eligible Indian players mostly from Goa, Kerala, Bangalore, Madras, Mangalore and Bombay are seen in action every year. This year, the league featured 16 registered teams.
The final played between traditional archrivals and top teams in the league -- Navelim and G.O.A Maroons was one of the best organized finals by KIFF in recent years. Although the match was played in scorching temperatures near to 50°C; 80% humidity (peak summer conditions in Kuwait), it attracted sufficient number of spectators. KIFF reciprocated by serving snacks and cool drinks to everyone around the ground.
Both teams had equal scoring chances and many attempts at goal. Navelim Youth Centre captained by medio Gasper Crasto displayed better stamina and control than G.O.A Maroons in the soaring morning heat. Navelim moves initiated right from their goalkeeper Britto Pereira (Ex-Churchill Brothers SC). Their midfield played a calculated game throughout - feeding the strikers at regular breaks, and when they lost the ball Simao Gauncar, Duarte Ferrao and Savio Furtado were quick to pounce and dispossess Maroons.
Maroons stood strong in defence in the first quarter of play wherein their defenders Ian D'Souza, Jerry Mello, Reggi Rodrigues and goalkeeper Ramon Anthony exhibited absolute expertise to thwart off any infiltration at the goal. NYC took the lead through overlapping right wingback Victor Fernandes whose rasping shot zoomed over Maroons goalkeeper to find the net (1-0).
In the second session, Maroons cheered by the crowd, twice came close to drawing level through Joseph Correia and Terence Carvalho - only to see the ball being cleared by NYC - both the times on the goal line. On another occasion Maroons hit the cross bar. Cruzedio Rodrigues and John Furtado sealed victory for NYC with breakaway moves, the latter scoring ten minutes from the final whistle.
Earlier, the players were introduced to Manuel D'Costa - KIFF President and chief guest on the occasion. Fr. Tony D'Souza, Director, Don Bosco - Kuwait was the guest of honour. Presidents of most participating clubs were among the distinguished guests in attendance.
G.O.A Maroons were awarded best discipline team of the season. AVC Association were crowned overall Season Champions for having won major trophies.
Ashton Fernandes of Kuwait Goans Association won the 'top scorer of the season' award. He scored 11 goals; NYC's Cruzedio was second with 9 goals. Incidentally, Ashton happens to be among the very few 'son-imitating-his-father' footballers to have played at Soor Grounds and at their best to that. Ashton is the son A. Veronica Fernandes - a former stalwart at Soor and an Ex-Sesa Goa player; and nephew of former stars Peter 'Cheddo' Fernandes of Goa Police, and late Jose Mari Fernandes - captain and team manager of Sesa Goa. Ashton was awarded with a gold medallion.
Hipolito (Doctor) Fernandes - well known at Soor Grounds for his voluntary medical aid and natural therapy was awarded by KIFF with a memento for yeomen services in Kuwait since 1978.
In another kind gesture, KIFF awarded Gasper Crasto (Captain, Navelim Youth Centre) for his contribution towards Indian Football in Kuwait.

In a unique presentation, all the KIFF Committee members gave away the prizes.
In his speech KIFF President Manuel D'Costa thanked all the affiliated clubs of Kuwait Indian Football Federation for their support and cooperation during the season. He also acknowledged appreciation of all Managing Committee members for their devoted commitment.
The President also thanked M/s Abdul Adi Al-Mailem Group of Companies - main sponsors of the League, and co-sponsors Mr. Lawry Pinto (Ex-President, KIFF), Raymond D'Sa (President G.O.A Maroons), Mr. Khaled, Glen D'Souza (President - Bombay Boys), Tony Dias (President, Santos Club), Luis Cardozo (KGA), Xavier Furtado (AVC), Braz D'Costa, etc.
Guest of Honor Fr. Tony D'Souza praised KIFF for the dedicated efforts in bringing Indian expatriates together. Merwyn Pereira compered the function and later proposed the vote of thanks on behalf of KIFF.

August 21

RESULTS & NEWS

Calcutta Premier League: East Bengal Club 2-0 Calcutta Port Trust - Goals: 1-0 Luis Octavio da Silva (8'), 2-0 Dipankar Roy (55').
EAST BENGAL: Abhra Mondal; Vincent Brice Pires, Gurpreet Singh (73' Covan Lawrence), Muttath Suresh, Soumik Dey; Sasthi Duley, Dipankar Roy, Luis Octavio de Silva (77' Bibiano Fernandez), Snehashish Chakraborty; Ashim Biswas, Freddy Mascarenhas (82' Gouranga Dutta).
CALCUTTA PORT TRUST: Sandip Guha (84' Goutam Das); Rabindranath Karmakar, Soumen Sarkar, Akshay Das (78' Subhas Banerjee), Srimanta Das; Avinash Thapa, Kausik Prasad, Stanley (85' Pradip Indu), Tapan Maity; Sujit Dey, Felix.
Chirag Man-of-the-Match: Sasthi Duley (East Bengal).
REFEREE: Rathin Mukherjee.

Calcutta Super Division: West Bengal Police - SAIL = abandoned due to rains
Calcutta Super Division: Tollygunge Agragami 1-0 Calcutta Customs
Calcutta Super Division: Peerless SC 2-0 Calcutta FC
Guwahati Super Division - Relegation-leg: SAI SC, Guwahati 1-2 Northern Frontier Railway SC - Goals: 1-0 Minto Boro (35'), 1-1 Sibendra Gayary (65'), 1-2 Basanta Teron (70').
20th Punjab State Super League: JCT Mills 1-0 Punjab Police - Goal: 1-0 Parveen Kumar (38').
20th Punjab State Super League: Border Security Force 1-1 Rail Coach Factory - Goals: 0-1 Kuldeep Singh (75'), 1-1 PH Boy Singh (90').
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group A: GPS Chahal SC 1-3 SGGSS FC, Jalandhar
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group A: Youth FC 2-0 GS Parmar FC

::: Invitational Mayor's Trophy Tournament in Aurangabad :::
The inaugural invitational Mayor's Trophy Tournament is to be held in Aurangabad from September 3. Mumbai Elite league teams Mahindra United, Air-India, Akbar Travels, and Maharashtra State Police will be representing the city, in the tournament that carries a winners' prize money of Rs. 300,000, with a total prizemoney of Rs. 650,000. Other top draw teams to be competing include NFL outfits JCT Mills and Mohammedan Sporting Club, amongst other up and coming teams like Tata Football Academy, Indian Bank, a Goa XI, Mohun Baga-SAIL Football Academy, State Bank of Travancore, etc.

::: Camp for the mentally challenged kids in Bhopal :::
UNI report: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan today inaugurated a football camp for the mentally challenged kids and said that the state would take initiatives for imparting sports training to such children.
"The government will encourage such children, training facilities will be made available in football and other sports and special instructors arranged," he said while inaugurating a three-day national football training camp organised for such children at the Tatya Tope Stadium by the Department of Sports and Youth Welfare.
Kids from Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, New Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Manipur, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal are among the participants. The best would find berths in the national team, an official release said.
Mr Chouhan hoped that the Indian team would give an outstanding performance at Shanghai's special Olympics next year.
"A special campaign is underway for the differently-able persons and 1,000 camps organised over the past year," said Social Justice Minister Rampal Singh.

::: Naga Boys Club coaching camp starts :::
by Xavier Rutsa: The Naga Boys Club, Kohima coaching camp formally kick-start on Friday here at local ground, Kohima. Over 70 boys are taking part in the two weeklong football camp.
Addressing the footballers, Congress MLA Shaboh Konyak advised the Naga Boys Club to set a paradigm and stand as a testimony in the field of sports and game and encourage youths from interior areas of the state to take part in sports and games. He further appealed to the Naga Boys Club to take up measures to impart special coaching to the youths so that they bring laurels to the state.
Dr. Thamsing Lamkang, International Sports Chaplin said that the Nagas are natural gifted and talented and emphasized that we should give our commitment so that we emerged as the best sports persons in our own fields. He also said that about 87% of the world populations plays a sports. He disclosed that football is the most popular game in the world, adding it also brings nations together.
Dr. Thamsing also urged upon the sports player to have discipline and asked them to do away from all bad habits. He also appreciated the Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio for promoting games and sports activities in Nagaland.
Congress MLA Subongmeren also exhorted the sportspersons and called for excelling their talents. He also lauded the Naga Boys Club for organizing the coaching camp.
NBC Advisor Khriengulie Theunuo said that the Club is a non-profit organization working for the betterment of the society.
Earlier Iringtie Karuing ,youth secretary ,NBCC prayed for the gathering, while Roko Angami, president NBC chaired the function. NBC Finance secretary Theja and ABCC Youth secretary Neiviluo-o also attended the function. The coaches are Aba, David Rutsa, Kevilebei Paphino, Akho and Azho Sophie will be training the boys.

August 20

RESULTS & NEWS

Calcutta Premier League: Mohun Bagan AC 1-2 Mohammedan Sporting Club - Goals: 0-1 Douglas da Silva (17'), 1-1 Dipendu Biswas (21'), 1-2 Raman Vijayan (52').
MOHUN BAGAN: Subrata Pal; Dulal Biswas, Sanjeev Kumar Maria, Deepak Kumar Mondal, Bijoy Basfore; Mehraj din Wadoo, Subhas Chakraborty (54' Pachau Lalam Puia), Satyajit Bose, Palash Karmakar (80' Suman Dutta); Baichung Bhutia, Dipendu Biswas.
MOHAMMEDAN SPORTING: Gopal Das; Rajib Ahmed, Madhab Das, Douglas da Silva, Habibur Rehman Mondal; Bijen Singh (82' M Sudheesh), Debjit Ghosh, Noel Anthony Wilson (39' Jamir Ali Mondal), Kalia Kulothungan, Mike Okoro, Raman Vijayan (77' K Mohammed Nisam).
Chirag Man-of-the-Match: Raman Vijayan (Mohammedan Sporting).
REFEREE: Dhanapati Roy.

Goan Professional League: Corps of Signals 0-4 Salgaocar SC - Goals: 0-1 Francis Andrade (1'), 0-2 Milagres Gonsalves (21'), 0-3 Patrick Okonji Onyelo (38'), 0-4 RC Prakash (71').
Hutch Man-of-the-Match: Francis Fernandes (Salgaocar).

Goan Professional League: Raia Sporting Club 1-1 Vasco SC - Goals: 0-1 Alvito Rodrigues (16'), 1-1 Agnelo Martins (29').
Hutch Man-of-the-Match: Mevilton Fernandes (Raia Sporting Club).

20th Punjab State Super League: Rail Coach Factory 2-1 Bassi FC - Goals: 1-0 Amandeep Singh (1'), 2-0 Kularjit Singh (4'), 2-1 Samuel Masih (21').
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group B: International FC 1-0 Sikh National SC - Goal: 1-0 Amarjit Singh.
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group B: Harcharan SC 0-5 Mahilpur FC

::: Subhash Chopra new Delhi SA president :::
Politician Subhash Chopra has been elected as the new president of the Delhi Soccer Association. Chopra was elected unopposed getting 79 of the 81 member votes after his only opponent Umesh Sood withdrew in his favour.

August 19

RESULTS & NEWS

10th South Asian Games, Colombo - Group B: India U20 2-1 Bangladesh U23 - Goals: 1-0 Sushil Kumar Singh (10'), 2-0 Branco Vincent Cardozo (23'), 2-1 Firoj (68').
INDIA U20: Shilton Pal; Rakesh Masih, Baljit Singh Sahni, Baldeep Singh; Zaidinmawia Hmar [Captain], Hirohito Elangbam (80' Ong Tshering Lepcha), Th Naoba Singh, Branco Vincent Cardozo (63' Vimal Pariyar, 90' Lalramluaha), Lalmalswama; Reisangmi Vasum, Sushil Kumar Singh.

Goan Professional League: Velsao Pale SC 2-1 Dempo SC - Goals: 1-0 Cavin Lobo (16'), 1-1 John Charles Dias (34'), 2-1 Terence Lobo (42').
Hutch Man-of-the-Match: Martin Dias (Velsao Pale).

Goan Professional League: Churchill Brothers SC 0-0 Sporting Club de Goa - Goals: none.
Hutch Man-of-the-Match: I Khelemba Singh (Churchill Brothers).

Guwahati Super Division: Jewel Star Club 0-3 Assam Dynamo Club = points awarded to Dynamo Club as Jewel Star Club decided to skip their match
20th Punjab State Super League: JCT Football Academy 2-3 Punjab Police - Goals: 1-0,2-1 Balraj Singh (14',51'), 1-1 Harpreet Singh (27'), 2-2 Parminder Singh (74'), 2-3 Harnek Singh (80').

::: India Probables for away Saudi Arabia match named :::
The AIFF has called 27 probables for the India Senior camp ahead of the away match Saudi Arabia match. The camp would start on August 23 in Goa with the match away to Saudi Arabia in Jeddah on September 6.
INDIA PROBABLES:
Goalkeepers: Sandip Nandy, Subhashish Roy Chowdhury (both Mahindra United), Subrata Pal (Mohun Bagan AC), Arindam Bhattacharya (Churchill Brothers SC).
Defenders: Irungbam Surkumar Singh, Manju Nanjangud Shivananju, Naduparambil Pappachan Pradeep (all Mahindra United), Deepak Kumar Mondal, Sanjeev Kumar Maria (both Mohun Bagan AC), Anupam Sarkar (East Bengal Club), Samir Naik (Dempo SC), Narinder Singh (JCT Mills), Habibur Rehman Mondal (Mohammedan Sporting Club).
Midfielders: Shanmugam Venkatesh, Steven Dias (both Mahindra United), Bibiano Fernandes, Alvito D'Cunha (both East Bengal Club), Mehraj Din Wadoo (Mohun Bagan AC), Renedy Singh (JCT Mills), Micky Fernandes (Salgaocar SC), Manjit Singh (Punjab), Joe Paul Ancheri (Kerala).
Forwards: Syed Rahim Nabi, Freddy Mascarenhas (both East Bengal Club), Baichung Bhutia, Sushil Kumar Singh (both Mohun Bagan AC), Sunil Chetri (JCT Mills).
Chief Coach: Bob Houghton (England).

August 18

RESULTS & NEWS

Calcutta Premier League: East Bengal Club 1-0 United SC - Goal: 1-0 Vincent Brice Pires (64').
EAST BENGAL: Abhra Mondal; Vincent Brice Pires, Gurpreet Singh, Covan Lawrence, Y Raju Singh; Dipankar Roy, Jayanta Sen, Chandan Das (C), Snehashish Chakraborty; Ashim Biswas, Freddy Mascarenhas.
UNITED SC: Santosh Goswami; Barun Oraon, Madhusudhan Mazumdar, Sajal Saha, Asto Karar; Vanlalmawia Ralte, Crispin Chetri, S Chakraborty, Narugopal Hait; Ratan Das, Avishek Aich.
Chirag Man-of-the-Match: Dipankar Roy (East Bengal).
REFEREE: Sunando Bose.

Calcutta Super Division: Peerless SC 2-0 Police AC
Guwahati Super Division: Guwahati Town Club 0-3 SAI SC, Guwahati - Goals: 0-1 Chandra Kanta Basumatary (7'), 0-2 Methew Thonzom (32'), 0-3 Jayanta Basumatary (60').
20th Punjab State Super League: JCT Mills 2-1 Rail Coach Factory - Goals: 1-0,2-1 Parveen Kumar (18',73'), 1-1 Harvinder Singh (44').
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group A: GS Parmar FC 0-0 GPS Chahal SC - Goals: none.
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group B: International FC 2-0 Harcharan SC - Goals: 1-0 Varinder Kumar (43'), 2-0 Amarjit Singh (70').
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group B: Mahilpur FC 0-0 Sikh National SC - Goals: none.

::: Durand Cup in November 2006 :::
The 119th Durand Cup will be held in New Delhi from November 5 to 28, 2006. The qualifiers will be held upto November 18, while the tournament proper will kick-off with the group stage thereafter.

August 17

RESULTS & NEWS

Calcutta Premier League: Mohun Bagan AC 1-1 George Telegraph SC - Goals: 1-0 Dipendu Biswas (43'), 1-1 Ashim Das (57').
MOHUN BAGAN: Sangram Mukherjee; Dulal Biswas, Sanjeev Kumar Maria, Deepak Kumar Mondal, Bijoy Basfore; Satyajit Bose, Suman Dutta (69' Chinmoy Sarkar), Mehraj din Wadoo, Subhas Chakraborty (87' Pachau Lalampuia), Surajit Bose (68' Baichung Bhutia), Dipendu Biswas.
GEORGE TELEGRAPH: Swarup Das, Mohan Chakraborty, Gour Naskar, Shyam Mondal, Dipak Singh, Manik Barman (73' Sheikh Sanjib), Achinta Saha, Amit Biswas, Ashim Das, Gautam Thakur (79' Paban Das), Yousuf Ibrahim Tijani (90+' Raju Ghosh).
Chirag Man-of-the-Match: Ashim Das (George Telegraph).
REFEREE: Debjit Das.

Guwahati Super Division: Sunrise Club 0-0 Assam State Electricity Board - Goals: none.
20th Punjab State Super League: Punjab Police 0-2 Border Security Force - Goals: 0-1 Gurjit Singh Atwal (16'), 0-2 Santosh Kujur (89').
20th Punjab State Super League: Rail Coach Factory - Punjab State Electricity Board = postponed due to bad weather
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group A: SGGSS FC, Jalandhar 3-5 Youth FC
Punjab State 2nd Division League - Phase I Group A: GS Parmar FC - GPS Chahal SC = postponed due to bad weather

::: Anticipatory bail for Vijayan :::
PTI report: Former India football captain IM Vijayan, wanted by police in connection with an assault case, was on Thursday granted anticipatory bail by the district sessions court here.
A complaint had been lodged against Vijayan and five others for allegedly assaulting the workers of a bar-attached tourist home here on August 13 midnight after trespassing into their lodge room.
Earlier in the day, police had said that Vijayan was absconding and all efforts were being made to nab the star footballer.

August 16

RESULTS & NEWS

AFC Asian Cup 2007 Qualifier - Saltlake Stadium, Calcutta: India 0-3 Saudi Arabia - Goals: 0-1,0-2,0-3 Yasser Al Qahtani (2',21',53').
INDIA: 1-Sandip Nandy, 17-Irungbam Surkumar Singh, 3-Manju Nanjangud Shivananju, 42-Deepak Kumar Mondal, 41-Naduparambil Pappachan Pradeep (73' 33-Alvito D'Cunha), 12-Steven Dias, 6-Shanmugam Venkatesh (87' 47-Anupam Sarkar), 4-Mehraj Din Wadoo, 53-Renedy Singh (68' 5-Samir Naik), 15-Baichung Bhutia [Captain], 9-Manjit Singh.
SAUDI ARABIA: 42-Mohammad Ibrahim Khojah, 2-Ahmed Al Dosari, 3-Redha Fallatah, 5-Naif Al Qadi, 12-Abdul Aziz Khathran, 14-Saud Khariri (64' 8-Abdullatif Al Ghannam), 7-Mohammed Haidar, 37-Omar Al Ghamdi, 24-Hussain Sulaimani [Captain], 43-Saleh Bashar Al Dosari (60' 32-Alaa Al Kwykbi), 20-Yasser Al Qahtani (77' 19-Eysa Al Mahyani).
YELLOW CARDS: Saud Khariri (33'), Yasser Al Qahtani (67', Saudi Arabia), Mehraj Din Wadoo (81', India).
REFEREE: Satop Tongkhan (Thailand).
ASSISTENT REFEREES: Prachya Permpanich, Chatchai Premsuk (both Thailand).
FOURTH OFFICIAL: Adunyachart Khanthama.
MATCH COMMISSIONER: Mindu Dorji (Bhutan).
REFEREE INSPECTOR: Sardar Nadjafaliev (Uzbekistan).
More information and pictures are available at the >>IndianFootball.Com AFC Asian Cup 2007 special

MATCH REPORT: India's losing streak in the Asian Cup qualifiers continued as they lost 0-3 to Saudi Arabia in a third round match in the Yuba Bharati Krirangan - Saltlake Stadium in Calcutta today on the 16th of August, 2006. But the difference in the story this time was that India played a more attacking game than they have played in the recent past. This match will also be remembered for some off-the-field incidents where two Indian reserves, an official accompanying the Indian team and the representative of the Indian team sponsor Nike, were prevented to enter the stadium by some overzealous police officials. However the matters were settled after a long period of arguments between the policemen and the organisers and the players and officials were allowed to enter the stadium, but leaving both the parties a bit offended.
Saudi Arabia, fresh with their World Cup memories, started the match with ten World Cuppers in the starting eleven. Before the spectators could settle in the rain-hit weather, the visitors got an early lead in the 2nd minute of the game. The goal was the result of a pathetic display of the Indian defence. Hussain Sulaimani's cross from the left flank was intercepted by Manju Nanjangud Shivananju, who in a half-hearted attempt to clear the ball deposited it in the legs of Yasser Al Qahtani whose cool shot found the back of the net. It seemed that it was just the beginning of a Saudi goal riot, but the Indians were desperate to prove that they are in the stage of transformation to a new team under the new coach. As a result of attempts to open the Saudi goalmouth, in the 12th minute of the game, Manjit Singh got the ball at about 25 yards from the Saudi goal and his brilliant left-footer ran just wide of the post after compelling the Saudi goalie to dive from his position. But the game of the Indians lacked co-ordination. The Saudis took full advantage of the weaknesses of their opponents and proved their superiority by doubling the lead in the 21st minute. Mohammad Haidar's cross from 20 yards in the right flank found completely unmarked Yasser Al Qahtani who added another international goal to his tally by netting in a cool header. Four minutes later Manjit Singh, running through the left, found Renedy Singh whose pass to Venkatesh saw a cross from the edge of the 6-yard box, but Steven Dias' shot on the free ball was blocked by the Saudi goalie. The visitors could have gone another goal up before the half-time but Al Dosari wasted the opportunity by shooting over the crossbar. India created two more chances in the last five minutes of the first half, but those ended in a Renedy free-kick flying over the bar and Baichung Bhutia side-netting a Steven Dias cross after it went out-of-reach for the Saudi goalie.
The second half seemed to be a repetition of the first from the very beginning. In the very first minute, Yasser Al Qahtani, already on a hat-trick, ran into the Indian box, beat the Indian custodian Sandip Nandy, but was denied of his hat-trick by the post. Manjit Singh missed again in the 48th by shooting wide a Mehraj Din Wadoo flick. The fate of the game was almost sealed in the 53rd minute when a through pass from a Saudi midfielder deflected off Manju and found Yasser Al Qahtani into the Indian box and the striker completed his hat-trick by firmly sending the ball into the far corner of the net. There was however a sparkling display of brilliant football in the 58th minute when Naduparambil Pappachan Pradeep ran through from the defence and took a shot from about 40 yards which was just tipped above the bar by the Saudi goalkeeper Mohammad Ibrahim Khojah. The goalkeeper rescued Saudi Arabia once again when he thwarted Manjit in the 65th minute. In the 83rd minute Baichung squandered perhaps the best opportunity of the match by hitting the crossbar. Six minutes later, Surkumar's shot from outside the post beat the goalkeeper but failed to beat the post and no other Indian player from the crowd in front of the goalmouth could push the ball into the open net. The rest of the match saw the Saudis restricting the game in the midfield. The final whistle was blown soon, signifying it to be almost the end-of-the-road for India as far this Asian Cup is concerned.
More information and pictures are available at the >>IndianFootball.Com AFC Asian Cup 2007 special

POST-MATCH PRESS CONFERENCE: Despite losing the match by 3 clear goals, India coach Bob Houghton did not look disappointed when he came to face the journalists.
Bob Houghton, India:

10th South Asian Games, Colombo - Group B: India U20 1-1 Nepal U23 - Goals: 1-0 Sushil Kumar Singh (70'), 1-1 Santosh Shahukhala (80',pen).
More information and pictures are available at the >>IndianFootball.Com's Indian national team section

10th South Asian Games, Colombo - Group A: Bhutan U23 - Maldives U23
10th South Asian Games, Colombo - Group B: Bangladesh U23 0-0 Afghanistan U23

Goan Professional League: Sporting Club de Goa 3-0 Velsao Pale SC - Goals: 1-0,2-0 Joe Rodrigues (11',29'), 3-0 Nicolas Borges (44').
Goan Professional League: Vasco SC 3-1 Corps of Signals - Goals: 1-0 Alvito Rodrigues (24'), 2-0,3-1 Agnelo D'Souza (85',90'), 2-1 Surajit Mondal (88').
Guwahati Super Division: Assam Police Blues 1-0 Northern Frontier Railway SC - Goal: 1-0 Anuj Gogoi (38').
20th Punjab State Super League: JCT Football Academy 2-2 JCT Mills - Goals: 0-1,0-2 Parveen Kumar (15',33'), 1-2 Balraj Singh (38'), 2-2 Sunil (70').
Punjab State 2nd Division League: City FC, Phagwara 0-0 Manjit Singh Memorial Football Welfare Club - Goals: none.

::: India climbs in FIFA World Ranking :::
The Indian national team has improved its ranking in the latest edition of FIFA World Rankings, although having played no senior international matches in the past few weeks. India is now ranked 128th in the world!
The Whitecaps Nations Cup will be not counted in the rankings, as the Indian team played the host club side and the Chinese U-20 national team. Only full international matches will used for the rankings!

::: IM Vijayan facing a case :::
A case of trespassing and assault has been registered against former Indian football star IM Vijayan by the Kerala police.
This follows after Vijayan's friends got into a brawl in a Thrissur bar on Sunday morning and later in the day, Vijayan allegedly broke into the staff quarters of the Thrissur bar and hit the staff members.
He has been absconding ever since. The Kerala police was trying to get in touch with Vijayan, but his cell phone is said to be switched off.

August 15

IndianFootball.Com wishes a Happy INDEPENDENCE DAY to all INDIANS

Goan Professional League: Dempo SC 2-2 Churchill Brothers SC - Goals: 0-1 Cedric Fernandes, 1-1 Clifton Gonsalves, 1-2 Khelemba Singh, 2-2 Stanley Fernandes.
Goan Professional League: Salgaocar SC 2-0 Raia Sporting Club - Goals: 1-0 Patrick Okonji Onyelo (10'), 2-0 RC Prakash (66').
20th Punjab State Super League: Bassi Football Club 1-1 JCT Football Academy - Goals: 1-0 Ramandeep Singh (62'), 1-1 Sehij Pal Singh (90'+2').
20th Punjab State Super League: Punjab State Electricity Board 0-3 Border Security Force - Goals: 0-1 Santosh Kujur (35'), 0-2 Surjit Singh (58'), 0-3 Harjit Singh (85').

3rd Independence Day Cup - Final: Western Railway 1-1,7-6 Akbar Travels (on penalties) - Goals: PV Vinoy (Western Railway), Joseph Pereira (Akbar Travels).
3rd Independence Day Cup - 3rd Place Match: ONGC 4-2 Maharashtra State Police (on penalties)

SOCCEREX NEWS: Federation names confirmed With Federations looking to build on their commercial programmes, improve their countries facilities and learn best practices in the industry, Soccerex is able to confirm the following senior figures in the world of football: Joseph S Blatter, FIFA President (FIFA), Mohamed Bin Hammam, President (AFC), Jack Warner, President (CONCACAF), Philippe Le Floc'h (Director of Marketing, UEFA), Mustapha Fahmy (General Secretary, CAF), John O'Neill (CEO, FFA), Mike Loftus (Marketing Director, OFC), Jonathan Hill (Group Commercial Director, The FA), Fabio Santoro (Marketing Director, Lega Calcio), Marcos Antonio Teixeira (General Secretary, CBF), Abbas Vaziri (International Relations, IRIFF), Chris Anderson (CEO, Major League Futbol), Christopher Green (Chairman, Rivers State FA), Burak Gurkan (Marketing Manager, Turkish FA), Ivan Gazidis (Deputy Commissioner, MLS), Salihu Abubakar (Executive Secretary, Nigerian Football League), Phil Lines (Head of Media Operations, FA Premier League). Representatives from many other Leagues and Federations have also confirmed their attendance. These includes: Deutsche Fussball Liga GmbH, South African FA, Paraguay FA, Singapore FA, Football League, Ligue de Football Professionnel, UAE FA, Bahrain FA and Premier Soccer League. For more go to Soccerex website

::: Bibiano Fernandes and Habibur Rehman Mondal left out :::
India coach Bob Houghton has decided to drop midfielder Bibiano Fernandes and defender Habibur Rehman Mondal from the final squad list. The initial 22-member squad had to be reduced to 20, as the official competition rules only allow 20 players on the final roster.

::: AFC Asian Cup 2007 Qualifier - India vs Saudi Arabia - Press Conference :::
Prior to their meeting in the Asian Cup qualifier at the Yuba Bharati Krirangan - Saltlake Stadium on Wednesday, August 16, the coaches of the Indian and the Saudi Arabian teams met the press at Hotel Hindustan International, Kolkata (Calcutta) on Monday, August 14.
Here are the excerpts from the comments made by the national coaches at the press conference:
Bob Houghton, India:

10th South Asian Games, Colombo - Group A: Sri Lanka U23 1-0 Maldives U23
10th South Asian Games, Colombo - Group B: Bangladesh U23 1-1 Nepal U23

Guwahati Super Division: Guwahati Town Club 0-0 Assam Dynamo Club - Goals: none.
20th Punjab State Super League: Rail Coach Factory 0-2 Punjab Police - Goals: 0-1 Harshdeep Singh (22'), 0-2 Harpreet Singh (90').
Punjab State 2nd Division League: Youth FC, Rurka Kalan 2-0 Manjit Singh Memorial Football Welfare Club - Goals: 1-0,2-0 Devinder Singh (24,52).

3rd Independence Day Cup - Pre-Quarterfinals: Central Railway 3-0 Bengal Mumbai FC - Goals: Kasif Jamal (3x).
3rd Independence Day Cup - Pre-Quarterfinals: Mumbai United 0-3 Maharashtra State Police - Goals: S Chavan, V Wagh, Pankaj Deshmukh
3rd Independence Day Cup - Pre-Quarterfinals: Indian Navy 2-1 Mumbai Customs - Goals: S Horid, CT Sajith (both Indian Navy); Nitin Shetty (Mumbai Customs).
3rd Independence Day Cup - Pre-Quarterfinals: Bank of India 3-0 Union Bank of India - Goals: Shahnavaz Ansari, Hassan Rizvi, Steven Gupta.

::: Rains slash Calcutta, disrupt trainings... :::
The Indian national football team had a one hour cut short training session at the Saltlake Stadium main ground today. The training session had to be cut short due to very heavy rains, thunder and lightning in Calcutta. When the national squad started their training session it was cloudy but it didn't look like such a heavy shower was coming. 15 minutes into the training the rains started, and got stronger and stronger.
Chief Coach Bob Houghton laid stress on deadball situations today. After warming-up the players of the likely first eleven worked on the deadball situations with Houghton guiding the players on where to stand and how to run. Midfielder Renedy Singh is set to take most of the deadball situations, be it freekicks or corners. After working on set piece freekicks, Renedy worked on specific corners. Houghton also worked on the rebounds but numerous shots went wayward. While the first eleven worked on their set pieces the others of the squad trained under the guidance of assistant coach Mauricio Afonso. The longer the session last the heavier the rains got. While Sandip Nandy worked alone with goalkeeper coach Marcus Pacheco, the rest of the squad was split into two teams. They played against each other across half the field. And the rains were so heavy that the ground was not only heavy but the water started to acculumate on certain parts of the ground.
And who are set to be in the first eleven? As off today's training INDIA are set to start with Sandip Nandy - Surkumar Singh, NS Manju, Deepak Kumar Mondal, NP Pradeep - Steven Dias, Shanmugam Venkatesh, Mehraj din Wadoo, Renedy Singh - Baichung Bhutia, Manjit Singh.
Meanwhile the Saudi's, who arrived in Calcutta last evening, didn't like the wet conditions. Only a few minutes after the rains started into their training at the SAI Eastern training centre the Saudi's went back to their hotel.
More information and pictures are available at the >>IndianFootball.Com AFC Asian Cup 2007 special

::: Baichung Bhutia named captain :::
Baichung Bhutia has been reappointed as the Indian national team captain by national coach Bob Houghton. Houghton said the team was unanimously in its choice of Bhutia for captain while Shanmugam Ventakesh, who led in the last tournament, is said to be happy to be the vice-captain of the team.
Ventakesh had been appointed national skipper, after Baichung opted to skip the Whitecaps Nations Cup a few weeks ago.

August 13

RESULTS & NEWS

Calcutta Premier League: Mohammedan Sporting Club 2-0 Eastern Railway SC - Goals: 1-0,2-0 Mike Okoro (13',78').
MOHAMMEDAN SPORTING: Gopal Das; Subhashish Roy Chowdhury, Madhab Das, Douglas da Silva, Mir Farooq Hyder; Debjit Ghosh; Bijen Singh (85' Surojit Roy), Kalia Kulothungan, Jamir Ali Mondal; Mike Okoro, Raman Vijayan (74' Subrata Guha).
EASTERN RAILWAY: Tapan Kumar Karmakar; Babun Kar, Barun Kundu, Subhankar Maity, Bijoy Das; Mohammed Nadeem (31'Kunta Biswas), Pervez Alam, Bapin Bera, Niladri Shekhar Chakraborty, Farid Ali Mollah (49' Ashish Das, 82' Samrat Roy Choudhuri), Henry Chukwere.
Chirag Man-of-the-Match: Mike Okoro (Mohammedan Sporting).
REFEREE: Dilip Ghosh.

Calcutta Premier League: United Sports Club 0-0 Railway FC - Goals: none.
20th Punjab State Super League: Punjab State Elec Board 1-1 Rail Coach Factory - Goals: 0-1 Navjot Singh (28'), 1-1 Dalip Kumar (75').
20th Punjab State Super League: Bassi Football Club 0-1 JCT Mills - Goals: 0-1 Rakinderjit Singh (34').
Punjab State 2nd Division League: City FC, Phagwara 0-4 Youth FC, Rurka Kalan - Goals: 0-1,0-4 Devinder Singh (13',70'), 0-2,0-3 Ranjit Singh (35',51').

::: ZEE Sports to broadcast India match live :::
ZEE Sports will be showing the AFC Asian Cup 2007 qualifier India vs Saudi Arabia live. The match to be played at Calcutta's Saltlake Stadium on Wednesday will kick-off at 15.00 IST, while Zee Sports will start its coverage at 14.30 IST.
Additionally ZEE Sports will air the complete match once again deferred live on the same day at 19.30 IST.
Football fans in the Middle East will be able to enjoy India's qualifier live through ART Sports channel.

::: Football Players Association of India officially formed :::
The Football Players Association of India (FPA) was officially formed today in Calcutta. The new body of footballers aims to ensure the rights and welfare of current and retired players.
The announcement was made by Indian star skipper Baichung Bhutia at a press conference. Baichung will be the president of the FPA. Sumit Mukherjee, chief executive officer-cum-director, besides three other directors - Baichung Bhutia, Shanmugam Venkatesh and Raman Vijayan, will head the association. Deepak Kumar Mondal and Alvito D'Cunha will members of the executive commitee.
Baichung Bhutia addressing the press gathering said: "The FPA will act as a parent body for the players, looking after their welfare in all aspect. The association will educate and counsel players on things like transfers, health, injury and insurance. We will function as the parent body of the players. We want to work with the national and state associations for the game's development. At the same time we want fair treatment for footballers. We want players to only concentrate on their game without worrying about their finances or injury. We will also come out with post-retirement options including pension plans for the footballers. We will see to it that future generation players grow up under a better support system. We will conduct local coaching camps both in urban and rural areas all over the country."
Baichung further added: "It would be nice if FPA representatives are called by the federation while the team selection process is on. We have a first hand knowledge of the players and would be able to give valuable inputs."
Indian international and FPA Goa unit head Samir Naik said: "The response is huge in Goa. We are sure to have several members there. We will slowly spread to other parts of the country."
The association is also open for foreign players playing in the local clubs.
Jo Paul Ancheri, Manju Nanjangud Shivananju, Mehraj Din Wadoo, Jose Ramirez Barreto, Dipankar Roy, Manjit Singh and Renedy Singh were also present at the inauguration.

August 12

RESULTS & NEWS

GFA Charity Match: Dempo SC 0-2 Sporting Clube de Goa - Goals: 0-1 Bello Rasaq (90'), 0-2 Nicolas Borges (90'+).

20th Punjab State Super League: JCT Football Academy 0-2 Border Security Force - Goals: 0-1 Gurjit Singh Atwal (50'), 0-2 Harjit Singh (67').

::: INDIA senior squad announced :::
The AIFF has released a 22-member India squad for the upcoming AFC Asian Cup 2007 qualifier against Saudi Arabia on Wednesday. Announcing the list, team manager PK Chowdhury said two other players would be dropped before the final list of 20 players is announced a day ahead of the match.
A decision on the captaincy will be taken in the next two days. Mahindra United midfielder Shanmugam Venkatesh was the India capatin during the recent Whitecaps Nations Cup in the absence of regular captain Baichung Bhutia, who is back with the team for the qualifier.
INDIA SQUAD:
Goalkeepers: Sandip Nandy, Subhashish Roy Chowdhury (both Mahindra United), Subrata Pal (Mohun Bagan AC).
Defenders: Irungbam Surkumar Singh, Manju Nanjangud Shivananju (all Mahindra United), Anupam Sarkar (East Bengal Club), Deepak Kumar Mondal, Sanjeev Kumar Maria (both Mohun Bagan AC), Habibur Rehman Mondal (Mohammedan Sporting Club), Naduparambil Pappachan Pradeep (State Bank of Travancore), Samir Naik (Dempo SC), Narinder Singh (JCT Mills).
Midfielders: Shanmugam Venkatesh, Steven Dias (both Mahindra United), Bibiano Fernandes, Alvito D'Cunha (both East Bengal Club), Mehraj Din Wadoo, Manjit Singh (both Mohun Bagan AC), Renedy Singh (JCT Mills).
Forwards: Baichung Bhutia (Mohun Bagan AC), Sunil Chetri (JCT Mills), Freddy Mascarenhas (East Bengal Club).
Chief Coach: Bob Houghton (England).
To go to the >>IndianFootball.Com Indian National Team special

::: AIFF Players Status Committee clears and rejects transfers :::
The AIFF Players Status Committee held a meeting today to decide on a number of pending transfers. Here the decisions:

::: Goa Pro League to kicks-off on August 15 :::
The Hutch sponsored eight team Goa Professional League will kick-off on August 15 with two matches on the opening day. Defending champions Dempo SC take on Churchill Brothers SC at the Duler ground; while former champions Salgaocar SC face Raia Sporting Club at the Tilak Maidan.
For the fixtures go to >>Goa Pro League 2006 page

::: 29th Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy North Zone Qualifiers :::
The groups and the schedules for the North Zone of the 29th Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy qualifiers have been announced today. The groupings draw was released by All India Football Federation general secretary Alberto Colaco.
Group A: Uttranchal, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh
Group B: Punjab, Delhi, Jammu&Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh
For the North Zone qualifiers fixtures go to >>29th Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy (Under-16) 2006/07 page

August 11

IndianFootball.Com's crosses 750.000 HITs!

IndianFootball.Com, India's Premier Football Website, earlier today crossed the 750.000 single User HITs mark!!!
Another milestone for India's oldest football website...

IndianFootball.Com was launched on April 10, 1998 by Arunava Chaudhuri and since then our team has grown into an editorial team of nine members, which is set to further grow in the coming weeks and months. Since it's start IndianFootball.Com has been working to bring to you the latest on Indian football, be it news, schedules and results, and that not only from the high profile National League, but also from the 2.Division, local leagues, youth football; on the numerous national teams - men/women, junior/senior; and from the expate communities across the globe. We try to cover as much of Indian football as possible.
We only started with the counter on the site in 1999 and we had crossed the 100.000 barrier on May 9, 2002; the 200.000 barrier on July 18, 2003; the 300.000 barrier on March 29, 2004; the 400.000 barrier on November 16, 2004; the 500.000 barrier on May 18, 2005; the 600.000 barrier on December 21, 2005; while we crossed the 700.000 HITs just before the start of the 2006 FIFA World Cup. We have been seeing with delight the HITs going higher and higher now with an average of over 800 with more than 150.000 HITs this year alone. Sadly we have to add that the counter hasn't always worked, so we actually will have crossed the 750.000 HITs mark a few days ago.
IndianFootball.Com is India's Premier Football Website and the success of the site also proves for us that our hard work and dedication pays off with the return of the visitors/users in search of Indian football news and results. And we happily see that we are getting more and more HITs everyday!
We would also like to take this opportunity to thank those of you, who have helped us with our work and have supported us over the years!!!

::: IFC launches TV Listings for Indian football page :::
IndianFootball.Com would also like to also announce the addition of a new feature to our site. The TV Listings for Indian football page as part of the IFC Interactive section on the main page.
Click here for the available >>TV listings on Indian football

::: IFC starts Feature Series on football Youth Development projects in India :::
IndianFootball.Com today starts a Feature Series on football Youth Development projects in India, where we look at different projects across India. As part of the series we will bring you story, interviews and more from these youth football projects.
At IndianFootball.Com since our founding, we have been an ardent supporter of the view point that youth development is the key to Indian football's future success. In keeping with our stand, we chose to be active participants in the development of football talent in India, rather than just objective, third party reporters.
To start off the series IndianFootball.Com's Harmit Singh Kamboe conducted an interview with the SEPT project founder Arun Nanu, a project in Calicut which IndianFootball.Com has supported since it's start.
Click here to read the complete >>Arun Nanu interview


20th Punjab State Super League: Rail Coach Factory 0-3 JCT Mills - Goals: 0-1 Jaswinder Singh (67'), 0-2 Parveen Kumar (75'), 0-3 Baldeep Singh (85').
20th Punjab State Super League: Punjab State Electricity Board 1-0 Punjab Police - Goal: 1-0 Amarjit Singh (85').

::: Haryana will host the 61st Santosh Trophy :::
The 61st Santosh Trophy will be held from September 14 in Haryana, in the two cities of Gurgaon and Faridabad.
After a meeting between AIFF president Priya Ranjan Das Munshi and Jammu&Kashmir Chief Minister Gulam Nabi Azad both where of the opinion that Srinagar's infrastructure would not be ready to conduct the Santosh Trophy in September 2006.
The infrastructure was reviewed by the AIFF and the Jammu&Kashmir state officials after the Goa FA and IFA (West Bengal) had questioned Srinagar hosting the national state tournament due to security aspects.
Gulam Nabi Azad assured the AIFF President that the work on improving the infrastructure would continue and requested that the 62nd Santosh Trophy to be conducted in Srinagar next year.
The detailed fixtures of the 61st Santosh Trophy will be released next week.

::: Goa season kicks-off tomorrow :::
The Goan local football season is set to kick-off tomorrow with the yearly GFA Charity Match between the Goa Pro League champions Dempo SC against Goa Governors's Cup winners Sporting Clube de Goa to be played at 16.00 IST at the Nehru Stadium, Margao.
Ticket have been priced at Rs 20 with no passes valid for this game as it is a charity match to support the "Players Benevolent Fund".

::: MDFA Elite Division Modification :::
The Saran-MDFA Elite Division for the Harwood Trophy, 2006/07 has had its format modified, to decrease the number of preliminary games that would have been played. From a 14 team preliminary league involving matches between all teams, there will now be two groups of 7 teams each, which therefore play a 6 match round-robin league amongst themselves. The top three teams from both groups advance to the 6 team championship play-off round-robin league, the winners of which are awarded the Harwood League. The bottom four teams in the preliminary league groups, will contest an 8 team relegation league, with the final bottom 4 teams to be relegated to the Super Division.
As a result of this shortening, and desire of the other Elite teams to have the opportunity to compete against tough opposition, Mahindra United have confirmed their participation right from the Preliminary stage, something that was in doubt earlier. The fact that foreigners will be allowed to compete in the league according to AIFF stipulations, would have been an added incentive to a team like Mahindra's.
The Groups are as follows:
Group A: Air-India, Maharashtra State Police, Central Railway, Mumbai United, Bengal Mumbai FC, Indian Navy, ONGC.
Grouo B: Mahindra United, Western Railway, Mumbai Customs, Rashtriya Chemicals & Fertilizers, Bank of India, Akbar Travels, United Bank of India.

::: Muttath Suresh also signs for East Bengal :::
Defender Muttath Suresh signed on the dotted line for East Bengal Club at the IFA office today. He is the third of four players who had signed for East Bengal and Mohammedan Sporting this summer to sign for the red-and-gold. Syed Rahim Nabi was the first player to do so a few weeks ago, then earlier this week Mohammed Mukhtar signed the papers now Suresh followed him.
When asked why he finally signed for East Bengal? Suresh said his signing for Sporting was "a mistake" and he took the decision to sign for East Bengal in the interest of his career and his family.

August 10

RESULTS & NEWS

Manchester United Premier Cup - World Finals - 17-20 Place Playoff: Mohun Bagan AC U15 0-1 FC Brussels Molenbeek - Goal: 0-1 David Franck.
Manchester United Premier Cup - World Finals - 19th Place Playoff: Universidad Católica 7-0 Mohun Bagan AC U15

Guwahati Super Division: Assam Police Blues 2-1 Assam State Electricity Board - Goals: 1-0 Manoj Boro (15'), 2-0 Arun Daimary (36'), 2-1 Manikanta Brahma (44').
20th Punjab State Super League: Border Security Force 6-0 Bassi FC - Goals: 1-0,2-0 Gurjit Singh Atwal (17',37'), 3-0 Surjit Singh (50'), 4-0 Sarabjit Singh (73'), 5-0 PB Ekka (76'), 6-0 Santosh Kumar (81').

::: Tata Indian Sports Journalism Awards 2006 :::
Dhiman Sarkar of the Hindustan Times, Calcutta has been named as the best sports writer in the Tata Indian Sports Journalism Awards 2006 in Mumbai on today.
We at IndianFootball.Com would like to congratulate our friend Dhiman Sarkar on the award, which is a great honour! While we would also like to congratulate the other winners!!!

The list of Awardees:

::: Saudi Arabia beat Bahrain in friendly :::
Last night in an international friendly Saudi Arabia beat West Asian rivals Bahrain 1-0 at the Mohammed bin Fahad Stadium in Dammam. The Brazilian Marcos Paqueta coached Saudi's won through a goal by striker Yasser Al-Qahtani in the 17.minute. The match was in preparation of the 2007 Asia Cup qualifier Group A match against India in Calcutta on next wednesday.
Harmit Singh Kamboe has taken an indepth look at Saudi Arabia which you can read in our Asia Cup Special's news section.
To go to the >>IndianFootball.Com Asia Cup special

::: INDIA U20 squad announced :::
A 20 member INDIA U20 squad for the 10th South Asian Games has been named by the AIFF. Mizoram's Zaidinmawia Hmar has been named captain of the team with Islam Akhmedov as chief coach.
INDIA U20: Goalkeepers: Shilton Paul (Mohun Bagan AC), Premjit Singh (Salgaocar SC), Souvik Mondal (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited SC); Defenders: Rakesh Masih, Hirohito Elangbam (both Tata Football Academy), Baljit Singh Sahni, Baldeep Singh (both JCT Academy), Gobin Singh (Manipur); Midfielders: Zaidinmawia Hmar (Mizoram, CAPTAIN), Th Naoba Singh, Ong Tshering Lepcha (both Churchill Brothers SC), Lal Kamal Bhowmick (Mohun Bagan AC), Branco Vincent Cardozo, Lalramluaha (both Tata Football Academy), Lalmalswama Hmar (Mizoram), Malsawmdawngliana (Mizoram); Forwards: Vimal Pariyar (East Bengal Club), Sushil Kumar Singh (Mohun Bagan AC), Reisangmi Vasum (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited SC)), Beevan D'Mello (Goa).
OFFICIALS: Chief Coach: Islam Akhmedov (Uzbekistan); Goalkeeper Coach: Hemanta Dora (Bengal); Manager: B Diengdoh (Meghalaya); Physiotherapist: Dipti Kumar Ghosh (Bengal).
To go to the >>IndianFootball.Com Indian National Team special

::: Md Sporting officials called by IFA Disciplinary Committee :::
Mohammedan Sporting Club coach Subhas Bhowmick and ground secretary Iqbal Ahmed have been called by the IFA Disciplinary Committee to appear before it on Saturday to give their version of events when IFA secretary Subrata Dutta was manhandled on the club premises. IFA secretary Subrata Dutta and assistant secretary Swapan Dutta appeared infront of the committee today.

::: Punjab State 2nd Division League 2006/07 kicks-off :::
The third edition of the Punjab State 2nd Division League will kick-off with a three team qualifier round at the Guru Nanak College (Football Ground), Phagwara on August 13. Playing in the qualifiers are City FC, Phagwara; Manjit Singh Memorial FWC, Patiala; and Youth FC, Rurka Kalan.
One of the three teams will qualify for the First Phase league, where eight teams split into two groups play to each other to make it to the second Phase.
For the fixtures go to >>Punjab State 2nd Division League 2006/07 page

August 9

RESULTS & NEWS

Manchester United Premier Cup - World Finals - Group A: Mohun Bagan AC U15 0-1 Ferencvarosi Budapest TC - Goal: 0-1 Richard Vernes (38').
Manchester United Premier Cup - World Finals - Group A: Athletic Club Bilbao 3-0 Mohun Bagan AC U15 - Goals: 1-0 Inigo Rodrigues, 2-0 Erik Moran, 3-0 Ion Etxaniz.

Calcutta Premier League: Railway FC 1-1 Calcutta Port Trust SC
Calcutta Premier League: Eastern Railway SC 1-0 George Telegraph SC - Goal: 1-0 Henry.
Guwahati Super Division: Jewel Star Club 2-1 SAI SC, Guwahati - Goals: 0-1 Minto Boro (1'), 1-1 Utpal Das (13'), 2-1 Partha Bakshi (40').
20th Punjab State Super League: Punjab Police 2-0 Bassi FC - Goals: 1-0 Parminder Singh (30'), 2-0 Harpreet Singh (80').
20th Punjab State Super League: JCT Football Academy 1-0 Rail Coach Factory - Goal: 1-0 Kulwinder Singh (55').

::: SBT appoint K Sethumadhavan as coach :::
In a surprise move State Bank of Travancore have now appointed K Sethumadhavan has their new coach, while K Rajeev has been appointed as their manager. SBT had to look for a new coach as TK Chathunni, who originally was supposed to be the new SBT coach had rejected the offer from the SBT management.
K Sethumadhavan, who is an AFC B coaching licence holder, has played for India at Junior and Senior level plus Kerala state as a goalkeeper. He coached the Kerala state team from 1982 to 1985. He has also coached the Tamil Nadu Sub-Junior, Junior, Under-21 and Senior teams from 1987 to 2002. He was the Kerala Team Technical Instructor for the 2005 Santosh Trophy.

::: IFA names state coaches :::
Former international Prasanta Banerjee with coach the Bengal state team in the upcoming 61st Santosh Trophy. Tanumoy Bose will be the goalkeeping coach. The other state sides will be coached by:
Bengal U21 - Coaches: Raghu Nandy and Kajal Chatterjee with Goalkeeping Coach Debashish Mukherjee; Bengal U19 - Coach: Krishnendu Roy with Goalkeeping Coach Biswajit Das; Bengal U-16 - Coach: Sujit Chakraborty with Goalkeeping Coach Nasir Ahmed; Bengal U13 - Coaches: Chinmoy Chatterjee and Prasanta Guha with Goalkeeping Coach Pratap Ghosh.

::: Bentla to officiate at FIFA Under-20 Women's World Cup :::
Indian female referee Bentla D'Couth has been chosen by FIFA to officiate at the FIFA Under-20 Women's World Football Championship in Russia, from August 17 to September 3. For Bentla it is another milestone in her refereeing career. Bentla had earlier officiated in the 2002 Busan Asian Games and the 2004 Athens Olympics.

::: 7th NSF MM trophy from September 22 :::
by Xavier Rutsa: The 7th edition of the NSF Martyrs Memorial Trophy (Lt. Kekuojalie and Vikhozo), organized Angami Students Union will be held from September 22 at local ground, Kohima. Apart from favourite local teams, contact are bring made with reputed teams from outside the state to participate in the tournament, said a release issued by Thejavituo Rio, ASU secretary for Games and Sports.
Entry forms, bye laws and other necessary instructions are available at the fowling outlets - Web Trap (PR Hill), Sports World (Taxi stand), Belho and Co (opp. Kohima College) in Kohima and ADIDAS (Circular road), King Sports (Nyamo Lotha road) and United Sports Agency (Nyamo Lotha road) in Dimapur. The last date for the submission of forms is on September 10.

August 8

RESULTS & NEWS

Manchester United Premier Cup - World Finals - Group A: Mohun Bagan AC U15 1-4 Manchester United U15 - Goals: 1-0 Lalrinmuana (1'), 1-1,1-3 Evandro de Carvalho Brando (5',30'), 1-2 Ajose Nicholas (23'), 1-4 Norwood (34').
Manchester United Premier Cup - World Finals - Group A: São Paulo FC U15 4-0 Mohun Bagan AC U15

::: Manchester United Premier Cup: Mohun Bagan U15 drawn in Group A :::
The Mohun Bagan U15 Boys have been drawn into the tough Group A of the Manchester United Premier Cup tournament. The Green-and-Maroon Juniors face hosts Manchester United and Brazilian side São Paulo FC today; while they play Hungarians Ferencvarosi Budapest TC and Spanish side Athletic Club Bilbao tomorrow in the group stage. The top two teams from each of the four groups make it to the quarterfinal knockout stage.

Calcutta Super Division: West Bengal Police 3-0 Tollygunge Agragami
Calcutta Super Division: Calcutta FC 2-4 SAIL
Calcutta Super Division: Calcutta Customs 2-0 Howrah Union
Guwahati Super Division: Sunrise Club 2-0 Northern Frontier Railway SC - Goals: 1-0 Surjoy Das (32'), 2-0 Mayang Meren (39').
20th Punjab State Super League: Rail Coach Factory 0-0 Border Security Force - Goals: none.
20th Punjab State Super League: JCT Mills 4-0 Punjab State Electricity Board - Goals: 1-0 Amarinder Singh (44'), 2-0 Sakatar Singh (46'), 3-0,4-0 Parveen Kumar (69',72').
20th Punjab State Super League: Punjab Police - Bassi FC = match abandoned at half time due to heavy rainfall; will be replayed tomorrow.

::: Dhorasoo retires from Le Blues :::
"Player of Indian Origin" Vikash Dhorasoo, who plays his club football for French Ligue 1 team Paris St. Germain, said today in pAris he no longer wanted to play for France. 32 year old Dhorasoo, who was part of the French national team squad at the 2006 World Cup, earned the last of his 18 caps as a late second-half substitute in the 1-1 draw against South Korea at the World Cup in Germany.
"If you ask me if I'm still interested to play for France I'll answer you that I'm not," Dhorasoo said in an interview run by French daily Le Parisien.
"I'm not interested in playing for Les Bleus anymore. It's over. That's it," he said.
Dhorasoo, who made his international debut in March 1999, became a regular first choice under coach Raymond Domenech but only made two substitute appearances for France at the FIFA World Cup finals.

::: Nabi, Mukhtar fined & suspended :::
The IFA's Players' Status Committee met today to decide the fate of Syed Rahim Nabi, Shylo Malswam Tulunga, Muttath Suresh and Mohammed Mukhtar. While Nabi and Mukhtar were fined and suspended, the cases of Tulunga and Suresh are still pending as the two players have placed a police complaint.
Indian international Nabi has been suspended for two matches along with a Rs 50,000 fine; while Mohammed Mukhtar received a Rs 10,000 fine and a one month suspension.
The Players' Status Committee had to take action as all four players signed and had taken an advance for two clubs - East Bengal and Mohammedan Sporting. Mohammedan Sporting meanwhile claim that the IFA is biased in favour of East Bengal.

::: Tech Mahindra to partner UEFA :::
Tech Mahindra, part of Mahindra&Mahindra Group of Companies, has signed a contract with European football governing body UEFA to develop mobile content for handheld sets for them.
Mahindra&Mahindra vice-Chairman and MD, Anand Mahindra told CNN-IBN, "As a country, we don't want to be content merely to be purveyors of entertainment of soccer to the world. We want to be one of the countries who are worthy of being shown on that content."
But Mahindra&Mahindra is not only look to do business within football, they are also looking at developing young talent within India. The company is set to spend upto Rs 2 million in the coming season for it's Mahindra United U19 team as well as to scout for talented players in and around Mumbai.

::: JP D'Mello Trophy KIFF League Final in Kuwait :::
by Gasper Crasto: The Kuwait Indian Football Federation League, the only competition of its kind among expatriate Indians in the Middle East promises a spectacular finale when two of the established teams and traditional rivals - last year's runners-up Navelim Youth Centre and the formidable G.O.A. Maroons clash on August 11, 2006 at Kuwait's famous Soor Grounds for the coveted JP D'Mello Memorial Rolling Trophy.
The League which commenced in September last included 16 teams. The teams were divided into two groups of 8 each initially, played in a round robin League. The matches are played every Friday and are officiated by Indian Football Referees Association .
SemiFinal Results: Navelim Youth Centre 1-0 Santos FC; GOA Maroons 1-1,4-3 Kuwait Goans Association
In the semifinals played in soaring temperatures of near to 45°C, Navelim Youth Centre scored a solitary goal victory over spirited Santos FC. Midfielder Duarte Ferrao scored the all important goal to deny Santos a place in what could have been their first League final.
Kuwait Goans Association has been one of the best teams this season and was favorite to win the semis. However, the experienced GOA Maroons beat them 5-4 (1-1) in the tie-breaker. KGA failed to hold on to a first half lead taken by striker Ashton Fernandes as Maroons' defender Ian D'Souza drew level in the second session.
Both the finalists are traditional arch-rivals in Kuwait and matches between the two sides are always exciting and classic. Presidents of both Navelim and Goa Maroons, Agnello Fernandes and Raymond D'Sa still recall the dramatic finals of 11th NYC Trophy in 2002-03 in which Navelim YC came from behind after trailing 1-3 to beat GOA Maroons 4-3.
The League Final this time too is expected to be hot and challenging as NYC President, currently on holidays in USA, expectantly put it in his good wishes to his team, "People have a short memory... By next year no one will remember who were in finals, however, the Champions are always remembered..."
Meanwhile KGA scored an easy 5-1 victory over Santos in a match played last Friday for the third and fourth place respectively.
AVC Overseas Association, last year's League Winners are already declared KIFF Season Champions having won major trophies this season. A prestigious Fair Play Trophy (based on points) and a Top Scorer of the season will also be awarded according to an official note by KIFF President Manuel D'Costa. Hipolito Fernandes (Cavelossim-Goa) would be felicitated at the finals for yeomen services over the years towards football at Soor Grounds - Kuwait.

The myth of football here among Indian expatriates in Kuwait holds that the spectators are the clubs and it's their collective memory which remains constant as players, officials and clubs come and go.
One may not certainly see huge crowds and players changing shirts with opposition teams after each match as seen on TV but the euphoria created during some games is nothing less than a 'World Cup' match. Football activities for Indians in Kuwait were started by the expatriate community way back in 1975. As years went by, these activities gained momentum and slowly flourished as more football clubs were formed and the sport became very popular.
The Kuwait Indian Football Federation established in 1984 controls all Expatriates Indians Football activities in Kuwait. Apart from the League, Four Regular; 7-A-Side and 9-A-Side Non-Regular tournaments are organized by clubs affiliated to KIFF.