AIFF Coaching Seminar gets positive Feedback from Participants

After getting off to a slow start the ongoing All India Football Federation Coaching Seminar in Navi Mumbai came in for praise from the participating Coaches and Instructors. The facilities at the seminar hotel, the food and the arrangements, the logistics and most importantly, the knowledge being passed on have simply bowled over the 65 participants.

Former India Captain, creative midfielder Prasanta Banerjee says, "I came here expecting value addition. Rob Baan, Wim Koevermans and Scott O'Donell are laying emphasis on building from the back. Modern football is all about looking forward. The finer aspects of 4-3-3 is being stressed upon," he says.

"The Seminar is a fantastic initiative which was long overdue," commented Pradhyum Reddy Shillong Lajong's Scottish born coach. "I only hope this is the first of many more such Seminars. There has always been a disconnect between the National Coach and the Coaches at the top level with the Club Coaches and Coaches at the development level," he adds.

"In the UK and the US, such Coaching Conventions stay common where the philosophy is taught and told and the participants become more responsible learning the finer aspects."

The Seminar which comprises of both theoretical and practical sessions is being held at the Royal Orchid Hotel in Navi Mumbai and the Father Agnel School Ground, respectively.

There's a buzz every morning. The participants look smart in their kits, sign the attendance sheet, take their seats and then the notes. "It reminds me of my school days," smiles former India winger Gautam Ghosh. "We need to be flexible to envelope the extra bit of knowledge. If you have any ego, you will not learn."

Ghosh's room partner Tanumoy Basu, a former India goalkeeper presently the Goalkeeping Coach of the India Under-22s and Pailan Arrows feels, "the Seminar reflects the positive mindset of the All India Football Federation."

"The Academies promise us the future; Pailan Arrows builds up towards the future; Seminars like this explain to us what is needed to get to the future. And mind you, all of them are being stitched in one thread. The YDP is in full flow and there's synchronisation among all. I credit and thank (Kushal) Das for his efforts," Basu maintains.

You reflect for a moment and understand Basu is right. Former National Coach Savio Medeira complements Basu. "As a Coach you need to enhance yourself and stay updated. The handbook provided is very useful indeed," he opines.

"There's no more confusion. The Technical Director has told us what he wants us to do with our clubs," Godfrey Pereira, newly appointed Air India coach and also a former India International says. "The practices need to be match centric. There can't be any static movements. You always need to move and run with the ball. There's a more realistic and definite approach. I need to thank AIFF for arranging such a seminar."

You move around. There's a team working 24x7 supervising the facilities at the Hotel, the food, the daily needs and taking care of the logistics. "I'd say here's quality all around. The clothing provided to us have been good and I appreciate the treatment and the pain taken to make us comfortable," Ajit Braich, someone who has come all the way from Canada, explains. Braich stays the Head Youth Coach at Vancouver Whitecaps.

"I have attended many such Seminars and I need to tell you the sessions have been informative. In Football you can't beat around the bush and that's what is being stressed upon. I credit the AIFF for the initiative," he comments.

Syed Shabir Pasha, also a former India International adds, "Every theory is being backed and demonstrated in the practical sessions. That's what enlightens a Coach," Pasha echoes.