4th Dr. T. Ao Memorial Football Tournament: Manipur champions!

Manipur beat rivals and defending champions Mizoram 4-3 on penalties at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Shillong tonight to lift the trophy of the fourth edition of the Dr. T. Ao Memorial Football Tournament, which was played from March 18 to 27.


RESULTS

Group A
18-Mar-2013: Meghalaya 3-0 Arunachal Pradesh
18-Mar-2013: Assam 2-0 Nagaland
20-Mar-2013: Assam 0-2 Arunachal Pradesh
20-Mar-2013: Meghalaya 4-0 Nagaland
22-Mar-2013: Nagaland 1-2 Arunachal Pradesh
22-Mar-2013: Meghalaya 3-0 Assam

Group B
19-Mar-2013: Mizoram 4-3 Sikkim
19-Mar-2013: Manipur 1-1 Tripura
21-Mar-2013: Manipur 3-1 Sikkim
21-Mar-2013: Mizoram 3-0 Tripura
23-Mar-2013: Sikkim 2-2 Tripura
23-Mar-2013: Mizoram 0-0 Manipur

Semifinals
25-Mar-2013: Mizoram 1-0 Arunachal Pradesh
25-Mar-2013: Meghalaya 0-1 Manipur

3rd Place Playoff
26-Mar-2013: Meghalaya 6-2 Arunachal Pradesh

Final
27-Mar-2013: Mizoram 1-1,3-4 Manipur [penalties]

VIDEO: Dr T Ao Football Tournament TV Promo

Here the television promo of the Dr T. Ao Memorial Football Tournament which is currently being held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Shillong with all the Northeastern states taking part.

67th Santosh Trophy: Assam name final 20 players squad

The Assam Football Association has named their final 20 players squad for the 67th edition of the National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy which is being played from February 1 to March 3 in Kerala and Uttar Pradesh.

Assam have been drawn in Cluster C alongside Andaman&Nicobar, Jammu&Kashmir and Rajasthan with the matches to be played in Uttar Pradesh from February 2 onwards.


ASSAM

Goalkeepers
Daoga Brahma (Guwahati), Sukhdeb Ghose (Guwahati), Mantu Mallick (Guwahati)

Defenders
Shishuram Chutia (Dibrugarh), Moneshwar Mushahary (Guwahati), Tridip Hazarika (Guwahati), Amal Boro (Guwahati), Jyotish Basumatary (Dibrugarh), Biplob Sonowal
(Dibrugarh)

Midfielders
Gerramsha Basumatary (Guwahati), F. Wary (Dibrugarh), Mathew Thomson (Dibrugarh), Mendala Ranghmai (Guwahati), Minto Boro (Dibrugarh), Syed Ansar (Guwahati), Sabir Ali (Guwahati)

Forwards
Chayaram Basumaary (Dibrugarh), Jayanta Basumatary (Dibrugarh), Shyam Murah (Guwahati), Manas Manjit Chetia (Dibrugarh)

Officials
Ratan Singh (Coach), Bikash Borah (Assistant Coach), Duyu Nipa (Physio), Plabon Baruah (Manager)

Meghalaya set to host Dr. T. Ao Memorial Football Tournament

The Union Minister of DoNER and Chairman of the North East Council, Pawan Singh Ghatowar has announced that the 4th Dr. T. Ao Memorial Football Tournament will be held in the state of Meghalaya. Tentatively the tournament has been scheduled from November 15 to 23 in Shillong.

According to DIPR NEC official release, it states that in order to promote healthy spirit of competition and camaraderie amongst the youth and players of the North East states, the North East Council (NEC) instituted the NEC Dr. T. Ao Memorial Football Tournament to be hosted by the Northeastern states in turn annually.

Nagaland, the home state of former India captain Dr. Talimeren Ao, hosted the inaugural Dr. T. Ao Memorial Football Tournament while Manipur and Mizoram hosted the second and third editions respectively.

Cash award for the tournament has been announced as following:

- Winner Rs. 700,000 (7 lakhs)
- Runners-Up Rs. 400,00 (4 lakhs)
- Third Place Rs. 200,000 (2 lakhs)
- 4th Place Rs. 100,000 (1 lakh)

- Fair Play Award Rs. 50,000
- 3rd/4th place finish in league stage @ Rs. 50,000 each

- Player of the Tournament Rs. 20,000
- Highest Goalscorer Rs. 10,000
- Best Goalkeeper Rs. 10,000
- Champion Team Coach and Management Rs. 20,000 and Rs. 40,000 respectively
- Runners-Up Team Coach and Management Rs. 10,000 and Rs. 20,000 respectively

Bordoloi Trophy kicks-off on Friday in Guwahati

The 61st edition of the Bharat Ratna Lokapriya Bordoloi Trophy in Guwahati was once the biggest tournament of the Northeast with even the Kolkata Maidan giants coming to the tournament and teams who were part of the old NFL (now I-League). But like many tournament across the country with the I-League being played for most of the season these top teams cannot make a trip to Guwahati.

The tournament used to also attract teams from abroad mainly from Thailand, Bangladesh and Nepal; but this year it will be completely Northeast affair as the organisers the Guwahati Sports Association is facing financial problems due to which clubs from the I-League Division 2 cannot be contracted to participate.

Still three teams from Shillong - Royal Wahingdoh FC, Langsning FC, Rangdajied FC; besides Nagaland Police, Oil India Limited and Assam Rifles plus six local teams from Guwahati will participate.

The tournament would kick-off on Friday with all matches set to be played at Guwahati's Nehru Stadium.

66th Santosh Trophy - Day 6: Mizoram & Haryana qualify

The 66th edition of the National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy on its six day today played matches only in Cluster VI and VII in Cuttack and Bhubaneswar with Mizoram and Haryana making it to the next round.

Mizoram after their 12-0 demolition of Rajasthan the other day, also trashed Uttarakhand this time only 6-0 to ensure their easy passage into the quarterfinal league from Cluster VI.

In Cluster VII Haryana took on Assam in a match-up of two sides who both came into this game with six points each and the aim of topping each other to reach to the quarterfinal league stage. In the end Haryana prevailed with a 2-0 victory.


Day Six Results

Cluster-VI - Cuttack
16-May-2012: Mizoram 6-0 Uttarakhand
[24 Lalchhawnkima, 53,84 F. Lalrinpuia, 71,74 Malsawmdawngliana, 80 Lalrinfela]

Cluster-VII - Bhubaneswar
16-May-2012: Daman&Diu 1-4 Sikkim
[D: 21 Rahul Barath; S: 12,29 Bir Bahadur Pradhan, 81 Sanjay Chettri, 88 Bijay Subba]
16-May-2012: Haryana 2-0 Assam
[31 Abhisek, 81 Ajay]

66th Santosh Trophy - Day 4: Another high scoring day

The 66th edition of the National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy on its fourth day today with matches only in Cluster VI and VII in Cuttack and Bhubaneswar.

Interesting is the fact that all matches today saw a high number of goals with 23 scored in only three games.

All were one-sided encounters. The biggest win of the day was scored by a talented Mizoram, 12-0 against a hapless Rajasthan, while fellow Northeastern side Assam won 6-0 against minnows Daman & Diu. The closest of the encounters was between Delhi and Sikkim, which Delhi won 4-1.


Day Four Results

Cluster-VI - Cuttack
14-May-2012: Rajasthan 0-12 Mizoram
[11,17,41 F.Lalrinpuia, 12,77,79 Zico Zoremsanga, 42 David Lalthansanga, 55, 84 Malsawmdawngliana, 63 Lallawmzuala, 74 H. Malsawmtluanga, 87 David Lalrinmuana]

Cluster-VII - Bhubaneswar
14-May-2012: Daman&Diu 0-6 Assam
[7,17 Sayaram Basumatary, 12 Jayanta Basumatary, 19,41 Khirod Das, 59 Manas Manjit Chetia]
14-May-2012: Sikkim 1-4 Haryana
[S: ?; H: 14,74,77 Abhisek, 26 Pankaj Sura]

66th Santosh Trophy: Assam name final squad

The Assam Football Association has named their final 20 players squad for the 66th edition of the National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy which will be played from May 11 to 27 across Orissa. The selection trials were held at the Nurul Amin Stadium in Nagaon from April 20 onwards with close to 50 players taking part.

The team will be coached by Tasen Boro with midfielder Monoj Boro has been named captain of Assam, while F. Wary was named as the vice-captain.

Assam have been drawn in the preliminary round Cluster VII along with Haryana, Sikkim and Daman&Diu playing their matches on May 12 (vs Sikkim), May 14 (vs Daman&Diu) and May 16 (vs Haryana).


ASSAM

Goalkeepers
Daogah Brahma, Satish Singh, Dulu Gogoi

Defence
Hemanta Kumar Brahma, Maseswar Mushahary, Tridip Hazarika, Biplab Sonowal, Sishuram Chutia, Jyotish Basumatary, Raju Konwar

Midfielders
Monoj Boro (Captain), Sabir Ali, Nitu Narzary, F. Wary (vice-captain), Bijoy Borgohain, Mandila Rongphi

Forward
Jayanta Basumatary, Sayaram Basumatary, Khirod Das, Manas Manjit Chetia

Stand-byes
Biplab Kundu, Mintu Boro

Officials
Tasen Bora (Coach), Ramesh Phukan (Manager), D. Nita (Physio)

66th Santosh Trophy: Assam name probables

The Assam Football Association has invited a total of 45 probables for the selection trials of the Assam state team for the 66th edition of the National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy will be played from May 11 to 27 across Orissa. The selection trials will be held at the Nurul Amin Stadium in Nagaon from April 20 to May 8.

Assam have been drawn in the preliminary round Cluster VII along with Haryana, Sikkim and Daman&Diu playing their matches on May 11 (vs Sikkim), May 13 (vs Daman&Diu) and May 15 (vs Haryana).

The selected players have been asked to report in Nagaon on April 19 with players who stay away without submitting a valid reason supported by documentary evidence through the respective District Sports Associations will be suspended for a period of six months. The AFA is taking this drastic step as often players have stayed away from such selection camps in recent years but played for their clubs or company teams in the meanwhile.


ASSAM Probables

Daoga Brahma, Satish Singh Reddy, Bilifung Narzary, Marcus Basumatary, K. Naoba Singh, Mitradev Swargiary, Devendra, Jenga Rongmei, Biplob Sonowal, Sishuram Chutia, Raju Konwar, Raghu Singh, Krishna Pandey, Rajib Boro, K. Somen Singh, Moneshwar Mushahary, Hemanta Kumar Brahma, Ajit Singh, Biplob Kundu, Tridip Hazarika, Abdul Khan, Priya Kumar Singh, Th Thaiba Singh, F. Wary, Mathew Thomson, Dhaneswar Daimary, Khirod Das, Monoj Boro, Syed Ansar, Chayaram Boro, Sibra Narzary, Nitu Narzary, Partha Pratim Chakraborty, Bijoy Borgohain, Apurba Phukan, Manas Manjit Chutia, Shyam Murah, Thomson Langthasa, Dipankar Sarkar, Jelendra Brahma, Bulu Jigdung, Jayanta Basumatary, Sachin Basumatary, Durga Boro

U-16 Nationals - Final Phase: The Results

The 34th edition of the Sub-Junior Under-16 National Football Championship for the Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy ended yesterday with the final which Assam won 2-0 against Chandigarh. For the Northeastern state it was their first title since 1981, when they had jointly won with Kerala. Now it was the fourth title for Assam.

The Coca Cola sponsored Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy saw more then 40,000 children participate in the district, then state and zonal levels with the best 10 Under-16 state teams playing in the final round in Goa.


FIXTURES & RESULTS

Group A
Goa, Karnataka, Meghalya, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh

08-Mar-2012: Meghalaya 2-4 Karnataka
08-Mar-2012: Goa 1-0 Orissa
10-Mar-2012: Uttar Pradesh 3-3 Karnataka
10-Mar-2012: Orissa 1-0 Meghalaya
12-Mar-2012: Uttar Pradesh 1-0 Goa
12-Mar-2012: Karnataka 0-5 Orissa
14-Mar-2012: Uttar Pradesh 2-1 Meghalaya
14-Mar-2012: Karnataka 1-5 Goa
16-Mar-2012: Orissa 2-1 Uttar Pradesh
16-Mar-2012: Goa 0-1 Meghalaya

Group B
Assam, Chandigarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu

09-Mar-2012: Tamil Nadu 0-1 Madhya Pradesh
09-Mar-2012: Jharkhand 3-1 Assam
11-Mar-2012: Chandigarh 7-1 Madhya Pradesh
11-Mar-2012: Assam 6-1 Tamil Nadu
13-Mar-2012: Chandigarh 4-2 Jharkhand
13-Mar-2012: Madhya Pradesh 2-2 Assam
15-Mar-2012: Chandigarh 8-0 Tamil Nadu
15-Mar-2012: Madhya Pradesh 2-1 Jharkhand
17-Mar-2012: Assam 1-0 Chandigarh
17-Mar-2012: Jharkhand 6-2 Tamil Nadu

Semifinals
19-Mar-2012: Orissa 0-5 Assam
20-Mar-2012: Chandigarh 3-1 Uttar Pradesh

Final
23-Mar-2012: Assam 2-0 Chandigarh

Under-16 Nationals: Assam champions!

Assam has caused a big surprise by winning the 34th Sub-Junior National Football Championship for the Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy. In the Under-16 National finals played at the Nehru Stadium in Margao, Goa today the Northeastern side defeated Chandigarh 2-0 with a goal in each half.

Assam seized the initiative right from the kick-off. After muffing two easy opportunities in the first ten minutes itself, they were eventually rewarded in the 11th minute when Milan Basumatary slotted home from close range after being fed by Lalzeiram Hmar from the right, a one goal lead which Assam maintained till the interval.

In the second half, Chandigarh came back with more purpose and had it not been for Assam goalkeeper Danswrang Basumatary who kept Samuel Lalmuanpuia's shot at bay in the 50th minute, the story could have been different. Chandigarh pressed hard but were not able to restore parity, the bast chance was Vikram Singh's long ranger hitting the post. At the other end Assam's Robin Chhetri failed to finish it off following his solo burst, but then Zeherui Islam sealed the game for Assam as he chipped the ball over rival goalkeeper Zothanmawia following a Rafel Narzary pass.

The chief guest was AIFF Player-of-the-Year Sunil Chhetri, who distributed the prizes while former India team mates Climax Lawrence and Mahesh Gawli were also present on the occasion along with Goa Football Association president Srinivas Dempo.

4th Assam State Premier League: Oil India champions!

Oil India Limited from Duliajan are the champions of the 4th 'Airtel' Assam State Premier League!

In a closely contested final at Guwahati's Nehru Stadium, Oil India Limited beat Assam Rifles 1-0 through a Jayanta Basumatary goal in the 21st minute. The new champions received a cheque of Rs 100,000 (1 lakh).

But the Assam Football Association will surely not be happy then two teams pulling out of the 10 team Assam State Premier League. Just before the start of the league Gauhati Town Club closed down their senior team, while Food Corporation of India (Guwahati) pulled their team out after two matches due to lack of players.


FIXTURES & RESULTS

Group A - Diphu
Assam Rifles SC (Tezpur), Morning Star FC (Diphu), Assam Police Blues (Guwahati), Public Health & Engineering Recreational Centre SC (Silchar), Gauhati Town Club [pulled out]

06-Mar-2012: Assam Rifles 4-0 PHERC SC
07-Mar-2012: Assam Police Blues 0-0 Morning Star Club, Diphu
09-Mar-2012: Assam Police Blues 2-1 PHERC SC
??-Mar-2012: Assam Rifles - Morning Star Club, Diphu
??-Mar-2012: Morning Star Club, Diphu - PHERC SC
??-Mar-2012: Assam Rifles - Assam Police Blues

Group B - Guwahati
Sports Authority of India (Kokrajhar), Oil India Limited (Duliajan), Assam State Electricity Board (Guwahati), Green Valley SC (Guwahati), Food Corporation of India (Guwahati)

06-Mar-2012: Green Valley SC 4-0 FCI, Guwahati
07-Mar-2012: Oil India Limited 9-0 SAI, Kokrajhar
08-Mar-2012: Assam State Electricity Board 0-0 FCI, Guwahati
09-Mar-2012: Green Valley SC 2-0 SAI, Kokrajhar
10-Mar-2012: Oil India Limited 1-1 Assam State Electricity Board
11-Mar-2012: SAI, Kokrajhar 3-0 FCI, Guwahati (walkover)
12-Mar-2012: Oil India Limited 1-0 Green Valley SC
13-Mar-2012: Assam State Electricity Board 4-0 SAI, Kokrajhar
14-Mar-2012: Oil India Limited 3-0 FCI, Guwahati (walkover)
15-Mar-2012: Green Valley SC 0-0 Assam State Electricity Board

Semifinals
17-Mar-2012: Oil India Limited 1-0 Morning Star Club, Diphu
18-Mar-2012: Assam Rifles 1-1,4-3 Green Valley SC

Final
20-Mar-2012: Oil India Limited 1-0 Assam Rifles

Dr. T. Ao NorthEast Football Trophy: Mizoram champions

Mizoram are the new Dr. T. Ao NorthEast Football Trophy champions after beating Sikkim 9-8 on penalties yesterday at the Paljor Stadium in Gangtok. The match had ended one-all in regulation time. The Dr. T. Ao NorthEast "DONER" Football Trophy was played at the Paljor Stadium from March 2 to 9 with the seven Northeastern states plus hosts Sikkim taking part. The tournaments aim is to promote football in the Northeast.

Mizoram received the champions trophy and Rs 700,000 (7 lakhs) while Sikkim were awarded Rs 400,000 (4 lakhs) and the runners-up trophy. Other prizes were handed out to the players, who performed throughout the tournament.


FIXTURES & RESULTS

Group A
Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Mizoram, Sikkim

02-Mar-2012: Sikkim 2-2 Arunachal Pradesh
03-Mar-2012: Mizoram 3-1 Assam
04-Mar-2012: Sikkim 1-3 Mizoram
05-Mar-2012: Arunachal Pradesh 1-2 Assam
06-Mar-2012: Sikkim 1-0 Assam
07-Mar-2012: Arunachal Pradesh 1-1 Mizoram

Group B
Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura

02-Mar-2012: Manipur 4-2 Nagaland
03-Mar-2012: Meghalaya 1-3 Tripura
04-Mar-2012: Manipur 1-0 Tripura
05-Mar-2012: Nagaland 0-0 Meghalaya
06-Mar-2012: Manipur 1-0 Meghalaya
07-Mar-2012: Nagaland 1-1 Tripura

Semifinals
08-Mar-2012: Manipur 0-1 Sikkim
08-Mar-2012: Tripura 2-4 Mizoram

Final
09-Mar-2012: Sikkim 1-1(8-9) Mizoram [on penalties]

4th Assam State Premier League to be held next month

The fourth edition of the 'Airtel' Assam State Premier League will be organised by the Assam Football Association simultaneously in the capital Guwahati and in Diphu from March 3 to 20.

The top 10 teams of the Northeastern state have been divided into two groups of five teams each with Guwahati and Diphu both hosting a group before the semifinals are played on March 17/18 and the final is slated for March 20.

In Diphu the following teams will be seen in action - Assam Rifles SC (Tezpur), Gauhati Town Club, Morning Star FC (Diphu), Assam Police Blues (Guwahati), Public Health & Engineering Recreational Centre SC (Silchar).

In Guwahati defending champions Sports Authority of India (Kokrajhar) will face Oil India Limited FC (Duliajan), Assam State Electricity Board FC (Guwahati), Green Valley SC (Guwahati) and Food Corporation of India (Guwahati).

Sikkim to host Dr. T. Ao NorthEast Football Trophy

Sikkim is set to host the next edition of the Dr. T. Ao NorthEast "DONER" Football Trophy will be played at the Paljor Stadium in Gangtok from March 2 to 9, 2012. The tournament will be organised in the state by the Sikkim Sports and Youth Affairs Department (S&YA) with financial support from the North Eastern Council (NEC) and Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DONER).

The aim of the Dr. T. Ao NorthEast Football Trophy is to promote football in the Northeastern region. The tournament would see all the eight Northeastern states take part besides hosts Sikkim there would be Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura in action.

The champions would received Rs 200,000 (2 lakhs), the losing finalists Rs 100,000 (1 lakh) and the semifinalists would get Rs 50,000 each. Besides these there would be a Fair Play Trophy with a cash reward of Rs 50,000, Player of the Tournament (Rs 25,000) plus Highest Goalscorer and Best Goalkeeper (Rs 10,000 each) of the tournament. The coach and manager of the champions will be given Rs 20,000 each, while the coach and manager from the runners-up team would get Rs 10,000.

The tournament was first held in May 2003 in the Assamese capital Guwahati with the hosts winning 4-1 on penalties against Manipur. The first edition had been organised by the Sport Authority of India, Guwahati then, while the last edition had been played in Manipur.

North-East Premier League set for March 2012 launch

The ambitious North-East Premier League (NEPL) is set for a March 2012 launch. It is an AIFF initiative being pushed by the federations vice-president Ankur Dutta, who hails from the Northeast. The NEPL is an effort to promote football in the region with Calcutta-based Celebrity Management Group set to organise the league. The overall prize money would be Rs 10 Million (1 crore) with the clubs set to earn further potential revenues from TV rights and sponsorship sales.

The NEPL will feature the state champions from Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura. There had been an earlier proposal to include the champions of Sikkim as the eight team, but that idea has been dropped due to logistical reasons. Now a pre-tournament will be held amongst the state league runners-up of the seven states to determine the eighth team.

As per plans the eight participating teams will be split into two groups of four teams each with all playing each other home-and-away in the group stage. From there the top two teams will qualify for the semifinals with the winners moving on into the finals.

As per the NEPL rules only commercial entity football clubs will be allowed to participate meaning Public Sector Undertaking clubs, which are common in the Northeast will not be allowed to participate; while winning the league will open opportunities in the I-League Division 2.

The NEPL is set to be played over a nine week period from March 2012 onwards with travel and fatigue a potential problem which the organisers would have to look into.

North-East Premier League on the cards

To further promote club football across the Northeastern states the All India Football Federation is working on plans with the regions state football associations to launch the North-East Premier League. Kolkata-based Celebrity Management Group is set to partner the AIFF to organise and raise sponsorship for the league.

The NE Premier League is set to feature the top teams from Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura along with a team from Sikkim. It will be an eight team league. The format has not been finalised yet, but the AIFF is pushing for a start during the ongoing 2011/12 season.

It has been decided that a clubs participating squad could include upto three foreigners, but it would be mandatory to have no less than six local players and the same number of Under-21 players. The rest of the team could be from anywhere in India with no Northeast restrictions.

From this set of players the three foreigners, two local players and one Under-21 would have to be in the starting eleven, while also having such a combination amongst the playing eleven throughout the game.

The aim of the league is to not only promote club football in the North-East, but also talent from the region and bridge the gap with the rest of the country.

Goa announce Santosh Trophy squad

The Goa Football Association has announced their 20 member squad for the ongoing 65th Santosh Trophy in Assam. The former champions have named Nicolau Colaco as their captain, while Peter Vales will be their coach.

With the I-League currently on Goa like other states won't be able to field their strongest team, but it is a mixture of youth and experience, so the team is expected to post a challenge.

Having been a semifinalists last season Goa have been given a bye into the quarterfinal league. They are in Group B along with Punjab and await the winners from the matches Services vs Delhi & Tripura vs Railways.


GOA

Goalkeepers
Bruno Colaco (Sesa Football Academy), Shayan Roy (Sesa Football Academy), Joseph Clement (Margao SC)

Defenders
Nicolau Colaco (Sesa Football Academy, Captain), Samson Fernandes (Dempo SC), Vivek Kaira (Sesa Football Academy), Augustino Fernandes (Sesa Football Academy), Gagandeep Singh (Sesa Football Academy)

Midfielders
Brian Mascarenhas (Churchill Brothers SC), Daniel Vales (Salgaocar SC), Joshua Rebello (Churchill Brothers SC), Rowllin Borges (Margao SC), Savio Diego Carneiro (Churchill Brothers SC), Victorino Fernandes (Santa Cruz Club of Cavelossim), Cavin Lobo (Dempo SC), Joe Colaco (Mormugao Port Trust Sports Council)

Forwards
Francis Andrade (Salcete FC), Lavino Fernandes (Santa Cruz Club of Cavelossim), Valzino Fernandes (Sporting Clube de Goa), Gabriel Fernandes (Sesa Football Academy)

Officials
Peter Vales (Coach), Benjamin Silva (Manager), Satyendra Kumar (Physio), Uday Lingudkar (Chef de Mission)

Bengal announce Santosh Trophy squad

The Indian Football Association (West Bengal) has announced their 20 member squad for the ongoing 65th Santosh Trophy in Assam. Former Indian international Anupam Sarkar has been named captain of the squad, while coach Shabbir Ali has been given the task to defend the title.

The defending champions will have to rely on a lot of young talent with experienced players like Naseem Akhtar, Anupam Sarkar and Gurpreet Singh set to lead the team as Bengal miss their best players who are in action in the I-League, but with the 2nd Division having finished yesterday Bengal can draw players from their three clubs having played in the league which does give the side some quality and strength.

The 65th edition of the Santosh Trophy is being held from May 6 to 30 across Assam in the seven cities of Guwahati, Nagaon, Mangaldoi, Tinsukia, Shivsagar, Kokrajhar and Bongalgaon. Bengal as defending champions have been given a bye into the quarterfinals league games scheduled from May 17 to 24.


WEST BENGAL

Goalkeepers
Naseem Akhtar (East Bengal Club), Debjit Majumdar (United Sikkim FC), Shibram Dey (Techno Aryan Club)

Defenders
Mohan Sarkar (Techno Aryan Club), Suman Dey (Mohammedan Sporting Club), Avinaba Bag (Kalighat Milan Sangha), Gurpreet Singh (Southern Samity), Anupam Sarkar (Chirag United SC, Captain), Safar Sardar (Mohammedan Sporting Club), Snehasish Dutta (Techno Aryan Club), Sourav Chakraborty (Techno Aryan Club)

Midfielders
Jamir Ali Mondal (Southern Samity), Santosh Oraon (Mohun Bagan AC), Gautam Kujur (Mohammedan Sporting Club), Mumtaz Akhtar (Mohammedan Sporting Club), Francis Xavier (Southern Samity), Surabuddin Mollick (Mohun Bagan AC)

Forwards
Budhiram Tudu (United Sikkim FC), Bikash Narzinary (United Sikkim FC), Branco Vincent Cardozo (Chirag United SC)

Officials
Shabbir Ali (Coach), Debasish Mukherjee (Assistant/Goalkeeping Coach)

Delhi announce Santosh Trophy squad

The Delhi Soccer Association have named forward Mahender Kumar as the captain of the Delhi state senior team for the ongoing Santosh Trophy. His deputy as vice-Captain would be Monu Choudhary while Anadi Barua and Ravi Rana have been appointed as the state coaches.

The DSA held open selection trials from April 20 onwards at the Ambedkar Stadium and then decided on the final 20 players. With no club from Delhi in the final round of the 2nd Division I-League the state is able to call on some experienced players.

The 65th edition of the Santosh Trophy will be held from May 6 to 30 across Assam in the seven cities of Guwahati, Nagaon, Mangaldoi, Tinsukia, Shivsagar, Kokrajhar and Bongalgaon. In this years edition Delhi have been placed in Cluster 6 along with Nagaland, Orissa, Himachal Pradesh in the preliminary stage.


DELHI

Goalkeepers
Vikrant Sharma, Rajat Guha, Sandeep Bisht

Defenders
Vikas Rawat, Pushpender Kundu, Deepak Kumar Singh, Nitin Choudhary, Bijender Bhardwaj, Anil Bara

Midfielders
Ashish Pandey, Monu Choudhary (vice-Captain), Bhuwan Chandra Joshi, Golmei Akhonmei, Nirmal Deep, Ashu Nathani

Forwards
Prahlad Rawat, Mahender Kumar (Captain), Kamal Rawat, Parveen Rawat, P.K. Thingling

Officials
Anadi Barua, Ravi Rana (Joint Coach), Ishwar Singh Brar (Goalkeeping Coach), Bhola Nath Karmakar (Manager)