India Seniors held by Under-23s to draw

The India Under-23s held their senior counterparts to a one-all draw in a practice game at the Ambedkar Stadium, Delhi yesterday after they had lost to the seniors three days back. And though coach Armando Colaco is happy with the progress as he calls it, fans are getting more and more worried as once more the seniors had their problems with their junior.

Add to this the Under-23s were a weakened lot as a number of their first eleven players were on the other side playing for the Seniors. But still Snehahish Chakraborty gave the U-23s a first half lead, while after the break another junior in Anthony Barbosa equalised for the Seniors.

Armando Colaco once more tried out as many players as possible as he fielded two different set of players. The first half didn't go well for his team as Jewel Raja and Shilton D'Silva had their problems, but things changed after the break with the seasoned Mehtab Hussain and Lalkamal Bhowmick playing a more pro-active role in the midfield.

"I wanted to have a look at as many players as possible," Armando justified his decision after the practice game, referring to him fielding two entirely different starting XIs in the two halves.

"It's getting better day by day and I'm happy with the progress. The new Players (U-23) are adjusting to my style," Armando added.

Meanwhile Armando Colaco will cut his list of probables from 42 to 30 on Monday after having had a look at all the players for over two weeks. After the initial focus on fitness, now it shifts more and more to game plan and strategy. There working in a smaller group makes more sense.