India to organise 20 Grassroot Football Festivals

Twenty grassroots festivals will be organised by the All India Football Federation across the country in conjunction with the celebrations of the AFC Grassroots Year 2013 and Grassroots Day which falls on Wednesday, May 15.

The AIFF plans to hold the festivals in 20 districts to kick off simultaneously and to be conducted by Grassroots Leaders trained under the FIFA and AIFF grassroots programmes over the past year.

An AIFF Grassroots Course will also be held from May 20 to 24 in the state of Manipur to be managed by the All Manipur Football Association to celebrate AFC Grassroots Day.

The AIFF also aims to spread the grassroots programme to five states this year in collaboration with the respective state FAs. They will introduce the AIFF grassroots programme in each state through the grassroots centers and a comprehensive grassroots development plan to reach every district in the state. FIFA is also supporting the AIFF with a grassroots course in Mumbai this year.

The AFC has designated this year as the AFC Grassroots Year, aptly themed 'Let's Play!', and is encouraging Member Associations to organise activities to promote and emphasise that football is accessible and socially beneficial to everyone and that a strong foundation will allow players to progress to the elite level.

The AFC Grassroots Day on May 15 coincides with the International Family Day and will be celebrated throughout the week or other times suitable for the MAs.

Toal: Two-month long camp awaits the selected U-14 kids

Colm Joseph Toal, the Head Coach of the AIFF Youth Development, is one of the most underrated persons working in Indian football. Since he has come to India over four years back, he has done his job in Indian football youth development quietly. Now with the four Regional Academies soon to be set-up and the AIFF U-14 Football Fest being used to spot talent for these Academies, it marks a new era in Indian football. The AIFF Spoke to Colm about the U-14 Fest, the selection process and the future of Indian football.


There were nine selectors in the AIFF U-14 Football Fest in Kalyani, West Bengal. How many boys have they spotted?

The nine selectors have had a close look at all the boys and we have spotted 75 boys from different state teams who would be a part of a future Coaching-cum-Selection Camp beginning in March.


How long would the Camp last? Would you have a look at more boys in the Camp?

We intend to begin the Camp from the second week of March. The 75 boys chosen from the Fest would be there for three weeks from which 30 boys would be shortlisted. The shortlisted 30 kids would represent India in the AFC U-14 Football Festival scheduled to be held in Kathmandu, Nepal.

The 30 boys would then be joined by a new bunch. The lot would comprise of boys chosen from the Subroto Cup, the U-16 Nationals (boys born in 1998) and the set of boys chosen by Scott O'Donell from Open Trials. The Camp would go on till mid-May from which the batches for the Regional Academies would be finalised.


Are you satisfied with the quality of the boys you have chosen from the AIFF U-14 Football Fest?

The boys are good but are not necessarily the best in the country. The same pertains to the set of boys who were shortlisted from the U-16 National Championship. It's unfortunate the State Associations are not selecting and sending their best teams for such Championships.


Could you elaborate?

I can give you an example. The Meghalaya State Football Association had a three-week Preparatory Camp ahead of the AIFF U-14 Football Fest. They had 18 district teams playing against each other from where they selected the best boys. And it's evident in their play in Kalyani. Had all State Associations addressed it likewise, we could have got the best boys playing here.


Are you happy with the manner the AIFF U-14 Football Fest has been conducted?

Kalyani is a small suburban town and arranging a fest of such a magnitude without any hiccups speaks volumes for the organisers. We shouldn't forget we had 590 boys from 27 State Teams staying, eating, travelling and playing together.

I wish we had more fields of the same quality in other States as the two playing fields at the Kalyani Stadium. The infrastructure here is magnificent!

Under-14 Football Fest: Groupings for Format 2 finalised

The Format 1 is over and it's time for Format 2 at the AIFF Under-14 Football Fest in Kalyani, West Bengal. Under it, the 27 Participating Teams have been divided into five groups. Format 2 kicks-off today.

Group A and B which consists of five teams each have been comprised of stronger teams based on sustained performance in the first couple of days.

All matches in this Format would be of one-hour duration which would have two halves of 30-minutes each. The teams would be fielding two different Playing XI in both the halves.


The Groups

Group A: Meghalaya, Mizoram, Manipur, Assam, West Bengal

Group B: Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Karnataka, Chandigarh, Goa

Group C: Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, Bihar, Jammu&Kashmir, Tripura

Group D: Punjab, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Orissa

Group E: Delhi, Chattisgarh, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh

Scott O'Donell: I have spotted some exceptional boys!

Even as 590 kids from all over the Country play football in the best ground of the country in the AIFF U-14 Football Fest, the AIFF spotters keep a close eye on all of them.

Scott O'Donell, the Technical Manager of the AIFF's Regional and Elite Academies spoke at length to the AIFF on the significance of the Fest, the plans ahead and other related issues like the upcoming Premier League Soccer in Bengal.


What is the significance of the AIFF U-14 Football Fest?

The Fest forms an integral part of the selection for the future (Indian) National Team. At the moment, we would be recruiting boys for the Regional Academies from the (AIFF U-14 Football) Fest. There are State Teams who are making a significant progress on the field as we are progressing. The momentum is picking up.


Are you impressed with the quality of the boys?

This is just the second day of the Fest. As we progress, we would be having stronger teams playing against each other. That would be fun. But yeah, the quality of some boys from Mizoram and Meghalaya, have been exceptional.


Do such Fests form the bedrock of developed Footballing Nations?

Not always. For example, in Australia, the National Championships form the platform for the future. In an ideal situation, the best talent was supposed to be at such a tournament. But I understand that doesn't always happen here. Hence, we are looking for more options.


What's your take on the Premier League Soccer?

I am amazed at the amount of money that's involved in it. The salary being offered to a single player can give us a few turfs for the kids to train. If there's any future of football in India, it lies in the Youth Development Programme. It needs to be a long-term plan. But sadly, not all realise that. I personally believe, if you invest in such a concept, it won't help Indian Football at all.

Under-14 Football Fest kicks-off in Kalyani

The Under-14 Football Fest conducted by the AIFF kicked-off at the picturesque Kalyani Stadium Ground in Nadia district of West Bengal on Tuesday, January 31 morning. The Fest, aimed in spotting players for the various AIFF-FIFA Regional Academies and the National Age-Group Teams was inaugurated by Minister for Food Processing and Horticulture, West Bengal, Mr. Ujjwal Biswas.

Mr. Biswas marked the opening with the traditional lighting of the lamp in presence of Dr. Pradip Kumar Sur, Chairman, Kalyani Municipality, who is also the President of the Organising Committee.

Scott O'Donnell -- Technical Manager, Regional Academies; Colm Toal – Head Coach, Youth Development Programme and Shubhankar Mukherjee, Director, National Teams, were also present on the occasion. Mr. Gobinda Chandra Naskar, Member of Parliament, Bongaon, was also part of the proceedings.

The 27 teams represented by 594 kids participating in the Fest which concludes on February 4 were also treated to a Cultural Programme. Besides, Guinness Book record-holder Uttam Das demonstrated his juggling skills on a motorbike, much to the appreciation of the boys.

The teams have been divided into 7 groups of four-teams each. Each team would be playing three matches of 30-minute duration after which they would again be classified in separate groups – for stronger teams and weaker teams.

AIFF's spotters for the Fest: Scott O'Donnell, Savio Medeira, Colm Toal, Marcus Pacheco, Aqueel Ansari, Francisco Bruto da Costa, Gautam Ghosh, Tarun Roy and Hilal Rasool Parray.


THE GROUPS

Group 1: Meghalaya, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Delhi

Group 2: Haryana, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat

Group 3: Uttarakhand, Manipur, Pondicherry, Goa

Group 4: Maharashtra, Kerala, Chattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh

Group 5: Rajasthan, Punjab, Jammu & Kashmir, West Bengal

Group 6: Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Tripura, Sikkim (did not turn up)

Group 7: Orissa, Mizoram, Bihar, Chandigarh