Bengaluru: Both Chawngfianga Middle School, Siadan, Kolasib, Mizoram and Minerva Public School from Mohali, Punjab exuded confidence going into the summit clash of the prestigious Subroto Cup International Football Tournament. The 62nd edition of India’s marquee school football tournament, will witness the Boys Under-14 final at the Army Service Corps Centre Football Ground in the Garden City, tomorrow, in the presence of Air Marshal R. Radhish AVSM, VM, Air Officer Commanding-In-Chief, Training Command who has consented to be the Chief Guest for the occasion.
This is the first time that the tournament is being played outside the National Capital, as it has been the longstanding desire for the Subroto Mukherjee Sports Education Society (SMSES) to spread the reach of this iconic tournament to more corners of the country and the Sub-Junior Boys tournament in the Garden City is a start to the initiative.
Chawngfianga Middle School, Siadan, Kolasib, Mizoram will look to add to their title which they won in 2015 in New Delhi. After the inception of the U-14 category in 1998, schools from Mizoram have won the coveted title five times, making it the most successful state in the category. Holy Heart School, Aizawl won back to back titles in 2002 and 2003, while Govt. Middle School, Kolasib won in 2013, Saidan Secondary School,Saidan won in 2019 and tomorrow’s finalists won it in 2015.
“We are expecting a very good match tomorrow as both teams are equally matched. We have assessed the strengths and weaknesses of the opposition and I expect my boys to perform well and bring back the trophy home. We are happy with the facilities provided by the Indian Air Force and all the kids have had a wonderful time in the tournament”, said Lalthawmmawmia, Coach of Chawngfianga Middle School who was also the coach of Saidan Secondary School that won the title in 2019.
Chawngfianga Middle School defeated Army Public School 13-0 to qualify for the quarterfinals from Group B. In the quarterfinals, they edged out H.K Singh Memorial Secondary School, West Jaintia Hills, Jowai, Meghalaya by a solitary goal to secure their places in the semi-finals. In the semi-finals, they put out a dominant performance beating Manikpara High School, Jhargram, West Bengal 5-0 to book their places in the all-important finals. Isak Lalmalsawma is the top scorer for the team with five goals to his name.
On the other end, Minerva Public School, Mohali, Punjab who are representing the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) created history by being the first ever school to reach the finals representing CISCE. This is also the first time that a school from Punjab has qualified for the finals of the tournament and Minerva Public School will look to create history on both fronts.
“We have been preparing for the Subroto Cup for the past 3-4 months and the boys know each other’s game very well. The Mizoram side is very good and the match is going to be a very tough one for both the teams. It has been a wonderful experience for the kids who are participating in such a prestigious tournament”, said Ashu Kashyap, Coach of Minerva Public School.
Minerva Public School qualified for the quarterfinals from Group F, defeating Major Dhyanchand Sports College, Sefai, Etawa, Uttar Pradesh 5-2. In the quarterfinals, a last minute goal helped them overcome N.N.M.H.S.S Chelembra, Malappuram, Kerala for a place in the semi-finals. They defeated Bampatner Bengenabari H.S.S, Sibsagar, Assam 4-1 in the semi-finals to book their place in the summit clash. Sanathoi has scored three goals for the team while Bibash, Rokash and Azam have also found the net, scoring two goals each.
The final promises to be an exciting affair and there are many names that will be heard again in the years to come and their journey, like many others before them, as one team will take the field to reclaim their trophy and the other to create history.
