Football Fans Manipur

IMPHAL, May 3 : AMMA earned a 3-2 win against PLL, Churachandpur in a high scoring league match of the 1st Sub-Junior Girls Inter Club Football Tournament being organised by All Manipur Football Association at Mapal Kangjeibung today. YWC-Langthabal also beat WFA, Kakching  by 2-1 goals in another match of the tournament staged today.

The first match of the day witnessed AMMA enjoy most of the possession and scoring chances against PLL which made a late return to the game but failed to draw level during the given time.
PLL took off the game positively with Esther Tinjoukim netting the first goal in the 5th minute but the lead was cancelled by S Anjulika of AMMA in the 19th minute to make it 1-1 till the break.
AMMA which were relentless in their attempt got the lead in the 48th minute through Ch Anjali while Ph Abema extended the lead to 3
-1 at the stroke of the hour mark.

Sarah of PLL pulled back a goal in the 67th minute of the match but their comeback effort failed to yield result rendering AMMA sealed all three points.

Meanwhile in the second match of the day, first half goals from Thoibisana and Remi gave YWC, Langthabal a 2-1 edge over WFA, Kakching.

Thoibisana put her team ahead early in the 5th minute with a rasping shot only to be equalised by Ambika of WFA 8 minutes latter. The parity however could not last long as Remi came up with a fine goal to help YWC regain the lead in the 28th minute of the match.
The scoreline remained unchanged till the final whistle despite frenetic attempts in the latter part of the game.

Eventually YWC sealed all three points.

NEW DELHI: The All India Football Federation (AIFF) is conducting three Grassroots Leader Courses in Imphal, Manipur organised by Tata Trusts in collaboration with Department of Youth Affairs and Sports (YAS), Govt. of Manipur. The project will conclude with the AFC Grassroots Day celebrations on May 15th.

The courses are slated to be conducted as per the following schedule which will see a total of 60 coaches and 300 players being guided by 6 AIFF Grassroots Instructors:

1st Course - 2nd to 5th May, 2019

2nd Course - 7th to 10th May, 2019

3rd Course - 12th to 15th May, 2019

 "I would like to thank Tata Trusts for taking this initiative for Grassroots Development in Manipur. The initiative will enhance the growth of Grassroots football in the region,” said Mr. Kushal Das, AIFF General Secretary.

 “Earlier, we had undertaken significant steps in association with Tata Trusts in Meghalaya for development of the Baby Leagues,” Mr. Das informed.

The AIFF aims to increase playing opportunities for young players between 6 and 12 years of age for the long-term development of the sport and so as to create a strong base at the Grassroots level.

"It's important to educate Coaches on why Grassroots development is essential as a whole in the game. The initiative will help us to streamline and have systematic approach in the existing initiatives," said Anju Turambekar, Head of Grassroots and Instructors, AIFF, who will also oversee the entire implementation process in Manipur. 

Mr. Rajesh Siwakoti, Senior Executive, Tata Trusts is managing the organisation of all courses.

NEW DELHI: It’s that time of the year again! The Hero Indian Women’s League is back and the top female players of the country and from abroad are raring to go as the tournament is set to kick-off at the Guru Nanak Stadium in Ludhiana, Punjab on Sunday, May 5.

Defending champions Rising Student’s Club kick-start the 2018-19 Hero IWL edition as they face-off against Gokulam Kerala FC on Sunday.

As many as 12 teams, who are divided into two groups of six each, are set to participate in the tournament. Group I consists of Rising Student’s Club, Gokulam, FC Alakhpura, Hans Women Football Club, Central SSB Women Football Club and Panjim Footballers. Meanwhile, Group II consists of Manipur Police, Sethu FC Bangalore United FC, SAI-STC Cuttack, FC Kolhapur City, and Baroda Football Academy.

“Women's football in our country is going through an exciting phase. We have seen the Indian Women's Team produce some great results at the International front,” said All India Football Federation General Secretary Mr. Kushal Das.

 “We are sure to see the rise of more talented players in the third season of the Hero Indian Women's League. I would like to thank the Punjab Football Association for their support in hosting the IWL, and wish the participating clubs all the best for the tournament in Ludhiana,” he further said.

HERO INDIAN WOMEN’S LEAGUE GROUPS

GROUP I

Rising Student’s Club
Gokulam Kerala FC
FC Alakhpura
Hans Women’s FC
Central SSB Women’s Football Team
Panjim Footballers
GROUP II
Manipur Police SC
Sethu FC
Bangalore United FC
SAI-STC Cuttack
FC Kolhapur City
Baroda Football Academy

NEW DELHI: A selection committee meeting was held in Kohlapur immediately after the conclusion of the Hero Junior Girls National Football Championship 2019-20 to analyse the performances of scouted probables from the tournament.

The committee also took into consideration the scouted players from various state trials, and drew up a preliminary list of 35 probables, all of whom have been summoned for a preliminary coaching camp for India’s FIFA Women’s U-17 World Cup India 2020 campaign.

The probables will be reporting to Goa from Thursday (May 2, 2019), under former India International Alex Ambrose, as the Coach. Amrbose, was earlier in charge as Head Coach of India U-19 National Team last year.

The list of the 35 probables stay as follows:

 GOALKEEPERS: Tanu, Thoudam Devi, Adrija Sarkhel, Manisha, Manju Ganju.

DEFENDERS: Purnima Kumari, Phanjoubam Devi, Sudha Tirkey, Antrika, Kritina Devi, Nisha, Daisy Crasto, Naketa, Kamna, Vaishnavi Chandrakant.

MIDFIELDERS: Martina, Aveka Singh, Priyanka Devi, Astam Orain, Anju, Poonam, Salomi Minj, Drishti Pant, Manisha, Priyanka Sujeesh.

FORWARDS: Kiran, Amisha Baxla, Mariyammal, Sumati Kumari, Manisha Naik, Lynda Kom, Shilky Devi, Sai Sanke, Lalnun Siami, Karen Estrocio.

RESERVE PLAYERS:
GOALKEEPERS: Anjali Barke, Anshika.

DEFENDERS: Gia Sundaram, Lhingneilam Kipgen, Saraswati Kri, Shilpaben Thakur, Ritu, Fulmani Oran.

MIDFIELDERS: Ishita Mathew, Gladys Zonunsangi.

 FORWARDS: Sanika Patil, Malavika P, Santoshi Kumari.

HEAD COACH: Alex Ambrose.

NEW DELHI: India suffered their second defeat of the 2019 MU-15 Tournament at the hands of Mexico by a 1-3 margin on Monday, April 29, in Palmanova, Italy.

This was India’s second defeat in as many games, after they lost 0-3 against Mexico’s neighbours USA on Sunday.

Jesus Hernandes Moreno opened the scoring for Mexico early on, before Carlos Eduardo Guillen added another.

Aula Siba came inches close to pull one back for India, when he got an opportunity to tap it in from inside the six-yard-box. However, he sent his shot agonisingly wide. Eventually, Sridarth won and converted a penalty towards the end of the first half of this 70-minute match to give Coach Bibiano Fernandes’ team a fighting chance.

However, Moreno scored again, just after the changeover, to secure the three points for the Mexicans.

It was a second half to forget for the Indians who knocked hard on the Mexicans’ door but to no avail. Ashu, Amosa Lalnundanga and Ratanbi Singh combined well to create a few chances, but it was too little, too late, as Mexico ran away with the win in the end.

India are now set to face-off against Slovenia on Tuesday, in their last Group Stage game of the MU-15 Tournament.

India Starting XI: Ayush Deshwal (GK), Rajan Soren, Abdul Hannan, Halen Singh, Ashu, Amosa Lalnundanga, Eric Lalsangzuala, Maheson Singh, Ratanbi Singh, Aula Siba, Sridarth.

IMPHAL, April 28 : Goals galore as NEROCA FC notched up an emphatic 13-1 win against FC Imphal City in their last match at the ongoing Hero Junior (U-15) League Imphal Zone organised under the supervision of All India Football Federation at Football Turf Ground, Khuman Lampak. The last crucial match played between BMSC and TRAU was however put on hold after an unexpected storm followed by rain played spoilsport.

Giftson Kamei did the star turn today for the NEROCA FC as he scored a record 6 goals alone, 4 in the first half and two in the second half. Lairenjam Sushil also scored twice in this 13 goal barrage.
NEROCA FC led the first half 8-0 with Giftson Kamei opening up the floodgate in the 19th minute before striking three more goals (33′, 45’+1′, 45’+2′).

Lairenjam Sushil struck the second goal for the team in the 28th minute before striking his second in the 45th minute of the match while Lawrence Thangchinlen Manlun who substituted Khuraijam Sinthoiba in the 29th minute struck the fourth goal in the 39th minute of the match. The other goal of the first half came from the feet of Thokchom Bablu in the second minute of the additional time (45’+2′) of the first half.

NEROCA FC continued to pile up more pressure on FC Imphal City despite the huge lead and it was Ipham Imtiyas Khan who opened up the second half scoring in the 48th minute before Giftson had his 5th goal in the 69th minute to make it 10-0.

Yumkhaibam Amit then extended the lead to 11-0 when he converted a penalty kick in the 86th minute. FC Imphal City’s condition went from bad to worst as they were reduced to 10-man after Malemnganba Hawaibam saw a straight red.

Janggouhao Khongsai who came in place of Ronaldo Ngashpam then struck the 12th goal in the first minute of the stoppage time before Giftson Kamei had his final say in two minutes latter.
FC Imphal City had the face saving goal through Leitanthem Robinson during the stoppage time (90’+2′).

Meanwhile the match that will decide the fate of the zonal league was put on hold with ten minutes left to play after a sudden storm followed by rain interrupted the proceedings and the remaining portion of the game will be played tomorrow at 2 pm.

BMSC, Taobungkhok were leading 3-2 before the game was put on hold.

BMSC need to win the game by difference of three or more goals in order to top the table. Otherwise NEROCA FC will cruise into the final round of the competition on the back of today’s huge win.

KOLHAPUR: The Oxford dictionary defines the word momentum as 'the ability to keep increasing or developing' and in order for anything to grow or improve, it is of paramount importance to generate a good swing of momentum and capitalize on it.

Women's football in India has seen a recent upsurge in the last few months thanks to the performances of the women's senior national team under coach Maymol Rocky and with the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup to be held in India next year, Maymol feels that hosting and playing in the biennial contest is the perfect step to build upon the impetus generated so far.

"It's an opportunity to play at the highest level for the young players and being a part of it all will be an experience they will enjoy and remember forever. I have always been one to place my faith in the abilities of youngsters and this tournament will be vital in rearing the next generation," she exclaimed.

The tactician talked about how the World Cup will "bring the entire nation together", saying, "We have seen what happened in 2017 during the U-17 World Cup. The whole country will come together for football and young children and parents will be motivated to get more involved in the sport."

She added: "We have a good amount of time to plan and the players have the potential to shine. We need to give the coach time and believe in the team. I believe we can put together a strong team and I am excited to watch them play soon – as everyone else will be too!"

Maymol has vast amount of experience when it comes to coaching age group teams. Since 2012, she has led the India U-15 and U-16 teams before taking up the senior team position. Currently in Kolhapur for the Hero Junior Girls' NFC, she is among multiple scouts responsible for identifying potential talents for the upcoming World Cup and has been impressed by what she has seen so far.

She said, "I have been with age-group national teams for a number of years and I can say that these girls (at the Junior Girls' NFC) are better. The current generation has improved a lot – for example, many players have shown that they are apt at using both feet. The coach will have a lot to work upon but there have certainly been a lot of positive signs."

Under Maymol's leadership, the Indian team lifted the SAFF Women's Championship title for the fifth consecutive time and almost upset Myanmar to reach the 2020 Olympic Qualifiers Round 3 – all this with a squad with an average of 21.4. Reflecting on the team's performance, the coach admitted that the challenge was a difficult one but declared that the players left no stone unturned.

"I found it difficult when the team first got together in December but we worked extremely hard to get on track. To their credit, the girls were open and disciplined, and never gave any problems off the field. On the field – we got the team together, stronger, fitter and more confident. The players slowly started believing in themselves and in the end, we stuck to our guns and played our hearts out," she expressed.

IMPHAL, April 27: Biaklian Paite netted a double to steer NEROCA to a 2-1 win over SSU in their semifinal encounter in the 11th Loktak Trophy at Moirang Multi-Purpose Ground on Saturday.

With the result, NEROCA are now only one win away from claiming record three titles this month.

The 61st CC Meet and the 12th Manipur State League champions didn’t have it easy in the first half that saw NEROCA fall behind before they turned things around after the break, thanks to Biaklian.

In the first few minutes, both the teams were unable to create clear-cut chances and the back-and-forth exchanges failed to yield results for the entire 45 minutes until SSU finally broke the deadlock just before the halftime whistle and went into the second half with a 1-0 advantage.

Just when it appeared the teams were heading for a barren first period, N Sanju worked his way through to send the ball into NEROCA’s net, sparking a loud celebration from the SSU supporters.
In the second half, NEROCA were in action mode right off, picked up the
pace and were dominant up front with waves of attacks that paid off.

Biaklian put his team on equal terms in the 69th minute and then he struck in his second goal in a span of 10 minutes that eventually proved to the winner.
NEROCA will be up against Sangolband United (SU) in the final on April 30.

Chaoba Devi

KOLHAPUR: Having guided the Indian Women’s Senior Team to an unprecedented Round 2 of the AFC Olympic Qualifiers earlier this year, assistant coach Chaoba Devi Langam has now turned her attention to the next big thing happening for women’s football in the country.

With India set to host the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup next year, the top women’s football coaches from across the country are busy scouting for the stars of tomorrow at the Hero Junior Girls' National Football Championship 2019-20 in Kohlapur.

“The U-17 World Cup will be huge for women’s football in the country. We are scouting for players in the Junior Women’s National Football Championship here, and we are hopeful that by the time they play the World Cup, they will reach a level where they can compete against the top teams from across the world,” said Chaoba.

Chaoba believes that the young girls currently fighting it out for their respective states will need to be made ready for the U-17 Women’s World Cup. However, once they are brought at par with teams at that level, they will already have enough experience of playing at the top level, even before they have set foot in senior football.

“And once the girls that will play in the U-17 World Cup come through to the senior level, they will automatically have a certain level of experience of playing at the top level, which will obviously be beneficial for our country in the long run,” she said.

The Indian national team Assistant Coach even went on to compare some of the talent on display with unpolished diamonds. “We have seen some girls who look like they have the quality and it’s our job to spot them and then train them for the top level. When you find diamond or gold in their natural form, they are not as shiny.”

Chaoba continued: “But you need to chisel and polish them before they shine. It is exactly the same with these talented girls.”


Over the last two years, the Indian Women’s National Team has created history under the mentorship of head coach Maymol Rocky and her aide Chaoba, when they qualified from their group in the first round of the 2020 Olympic Qualifiers for the first time.

To everyone’s surprise, the team went on to put up a great fight at the next stage too, an arena where the young outfit were playing for the first time.

Chaoba, who is also the only female coach from the North-east to have an AFC A License coaching badge, believes that the coaching staff’s approach of identifying the talented young players from an early stage and giving them enough preparation ahead of the Qualifiers helped them perform so well.

“We are very lucky that the AIFF and the government are providing the facilities for women’s football to grow. We have tried to lay more emphasis on the youngsters so that we can work on them and improve their performance over the course of time,” she said.

In Round 2 of the Olympic Qualifiers, the Indian team beat Indonesia and Nepal, before giving the higher-ranked home side Myanmar a real run for their money on the final matchday. The latter made it through due to goal difference, but the India girls had shown their mettle.

“The girls really responded well during the Olympic Qualifiers Round 2, where we only fell short on goal difference. Special credit goes to the players as they gave their 100 per cent and sacrificed a lot to get where they are now,” said Chaoba.