Financial crisis forces premier Manipur football clubs to struggle; Neroca’s request for additional financial grant ahead of Durand Cup
After being relegated to the I-League Second Division this season, the state sports ministry of Manipur has reduced the financial grant to both Neroca FC and TRAU FC from Rs 1.5 crore to Rs 50 Lakh each. As TRAU has reportedly obtained donors for this season, it might not be difficult for them to continue with the grant to take part in the I-League Second Division this season. But Neroca FC has been passing through hard times, especially after facing the Fifa-ban for this season. The club had to face a Fifa-ban after two of their foreign footballers, Darius Perwood and Ibrahim Nurudeen sent their complaints to Fifa for not being cleared of their contract money. The club secretary Moirangthem Manimohon, when asked about the issue, lamented, “How can we survive without sponsorship or a proper investor? We have failed to clear the dues of 70 percent of the footballers. Naturally, they are unhappy and two foreigners have gone to Fifa. So, firstly we have to clear the dues of the respective footballers so that Fifa raises the ban. Then we have to start building up the squad. It is difficult for any club to build up a formidable side with a grant of only Rs 50 Lakh.” Neroca FC needs nearly Rs 15 Lakhs to clear the dues of two foreigners and an Indian footballer for the lift of the ban. This apart, ahead of their Durand Cup zone-one match, scheduled to be held at the end of July, the club secretariat seems worried about the building up of the squad. The club needs at least an additional financial grant of Rs approximately Rs 35 Lakh. Manimohon said, “We have made a request to the state sports ministry to issue an additional financial help of Rs 35 lakh for our participation in the forthcoming Durand Cup. If we do not receive that in time then it would be difficult for us to field the team in the Durand Cup. We will get time to find out donations before the I-League-2 as it is expected to be held in January.”
Neeraj says he needs to work on core muscles to make body stronger
Neeraj Chopra said he will need to work harder on his core muscles and make his body stronger to consistently log 90-plus distances in international competitions. Core muscles of the body play an extremely vital role in generating power in a sport like javelin throw. Chopra, the two-time Olympic medalist, clinched his first Diamond League title in two years on Friday with a throw of 88.16m but fell short of his personal best throw of 90.23m registered at the Doha Diamond League earlier this year. The 27-year-old javelin thrower explained, opining after winning the title in a star-studded field that had five throwers from the coveted 90m club on Friday, “Yes, I need some more control when I throw, like on the attack. We are working on it in training, but still, there are so many things we have to change, and I need maybe a stronger core and stronger body for throwing.” “It’s just a matter of time and rhythm to get more and more competition.” The ace athlete said he was happy with his run-up, but when it comes to the timing of the throw, he needs to put in some more effort. “…like timing, because I feel really good (in the) run-up, but the timing was not so good when I threw (the javelin). I quickly go left, and it is not good. I need to throw to the front, like with the chest, and go up with the javelin. We are working on it,” Chopra continued. Chopra, who is currently being coached by the legendary javelin thrower Jan Zelezný, said he was looking forward to the Ostrava Golden Spike athletics meet on 24th June, and the four days in between will give him time to recover.
Ajit Banerjee praises coach’s effort to revamp Kalighat MS this season
Sudeep Pakrashi: President of Kalighat Milan Sangha, Ajit Banerjee, is expecting Kalighat MS to secure a berth in the ‘Super-Six’ of the CFL Premier Division this season. The team that failed to qualify for the ‘Super-Six’ last season will start their campaign in the CFL Premier Division on June 30th against Suruchi Sangha. The president when asked about the preparation, revealed, “One key reason behind the team’s failures to qualify for the ‘Super-Six’ last season was the injuries of several key footballers. That is why, our new coach Dipankar Biswas took the initiative to organize a thorough fitness training program, inviting a professional fitness trainer Chiranjit Malakar and the team had undergone an extensive fitness training program for almost one month before the start of training with ball.” The club has also appointed former India international Amit Bhadra as the Technical Director. Banerjee stated, “I am sure Bhadra’s huge experience as a footballer and his ability to motivate the youngsters will add confidence to the boys and coach also.” Out of the 32 recruited footballers this season, Kalighat MS has 25 Bengalis while seven have been roped in from our states. Amidst the seven outstation footballers, coach Dipankar Biswas while commenting on the preparation, revealed, “We have one midfielder Vidyanand Singh who has experience playing in the ISL. He should play an instrumental role. We also have a striker named Debdatt who was the top scorer in the Kerala league last season. He is promising, a perfect box-striker. Along with them, we have a few promising local footballers who looked impressive also in the preparatory matches we played so far.” However, Biswas strongly objected to the rule set by IFA for the CFL Premier Division of playing six ‘son-of-the-soils’ mandatorily. “In the last CFL premier Division IFA set the rule of playing four ‘son-of-the-soils’ players in the league mandatorily and Bengal won Santosh Trophy. So, if you explore properly, and nurture them properly, you will have quality footballers. You need not impose rules on your own footballers.”
