Indian football team to test mettle in S. Africa By Krittivas Mukherjee, Indo-Asian News Service
Kolkata, July 17 (IANS) An Indian football team will tour South Africa this month to play two matches against a leading club side there. The Indian Football Association (IFA), which administers the game in West Bengal state, has named 22 probables for the matches against Manning Rangers FC. It will pick the final 16 on July 20. India was to send its senior national side to play against Manning Rangers, the 10th-ranking team of the South African premier league, but decided against it in view of preparations for the Asian Games to be held in September in South Korea. Instead, the IFA-XI, a team comprising Indian players playing club football in Kolkata, will make the trip. The IFA-XI, to be led by veteran defender Dulal Biswas, is a relatively young team with hardly any international experience. "But we are hopeful of faring well," IFA-XI coach Mohammed Habib said. The Indian side, which was to feature a few foreign players from Kolkata clubs including the Brazilian striker Jose Barreto, was dealt a blow after the IFA was reportedly told by the South African club that the team could have only Indian footballers. Habib said before flying out to South Africa on July 22, the team will play three practice matches with two Kolkata clubs. "This trip will boost the confidence of young players and give them international exposure," said Habib, who coaches the Mohammedan Sporting Club here. He said the absence of Barreto will be felt, "but we will fight without him". IFA sources admitted that because of the "haphazard selection process and unorganised nature of the whole venture", the team was not getting enough practice. Despite the coach and IFA officials' optimism, the Indians are expected to make little impression against the superior Manning Rangers FC, which once boasted of world cuppers. The All-India Football Federation (AIFF) is also facing criticism for not sending the country's champion club Mohun Bagan. The AIFF had earlier made a promise to that end. Also, the choice of players from only Kolkata clubs is attracting criticism. "This is not an Indian side. It's a Kolkata side. Why didn't the AIFF include players from clubs in other cities?" questions a former international. The first of the two matches will be played on July 26 at Pietermaritzburg while the second would be played July 28 at Chatsworth. The two-match tournament carries prize money of $20,000 and the Gandhi Cup for the winners. India is placed a poor 123rd on FIFA's rankings. An Indian side will travel to Vietnam next month for an eight-nation under-23 tournament as part of preparations for the Asian Games. The team: Goalkeepers Sandip Nandy, Sudip Sarkar, Tapan Karmakar; Defender Dulal Biswas (captain); Abhijit Khotal, Lolendra Singh, Manas Das, Hussein Mushtafi, Subhasis Roy Choudhury, Rabindranath Karmakar, Debkumar Sasmal. Midfielder Anit Ghosh, Sandip Das, Alberto D'Cunha, Mehtab Hussain, Malsawmthulanga, Sujoy Dutta. Forwards Ashim Biswas, Sandip Ghosh, Syed Rahim Nabi, Subhas Chakraborty and Dipendu Biswas. --Indo-Asian News Service =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-W-E-B---S-I-T-E-=-=-= To Subscribe/Unsubscribe from GoaNet | http://www.goacom.com/goanet =================================================================== For (un)subscribing or for help, Contact: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Dont want so many e=mails? Join GoaNet-Digest instead ! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Help support non-commercial projects in Goa by advertizing!! * * * * Your ad here !!
