Note-1: The confusion about the Super Cup tie between NFL champions Salgaocar and Federation Cup winners Mohun Bagan, to be held in Delhi on Dec 6, was finally cleared with the AIFF giving a formal letter to the Delhi Soccer Association to this effect. The AIFF, in their typical style, informed both the teams about staging the match but did not inform the DSA about it. Meanwhile, NFL chairman Alberto Colaco today said that the National League will start in Delhi on Dec 9 with defending champions Salgaocar taking on JCT. Colaco refused to spell out the name of the sponsors for the league, stating that it will be announced by the federation executives in a few days' time.

Note-2: Jas Bains and Raj Prohit are down in India and finalized a number of deals in New Delhi over the last few days.
With Baichung Bhutia now somewhat settled in England, his agents are changing the nature of the deals struck with him. While IMG have decided to handle the marketing of the player in India, Raj Prohit's Sapphire Enterprises will take care of his interests out of India. A formal agreement on this has been reached. Baichung's International partner is now Sapphire Enterprises. Rajprojit also wants to rope in Bijen Singh and Renedy Singh, both of East Bengal. Efforts are on to get professional contracts in lower division clubs in either Switzerland or England.
Meanwhile, Sapphire have arranged for the senior Indian team to tour England for a fortnight in the last week of July and early August. Three matches are said to have been lined up with Fulham, Bury FC and Crystal Palace.
The IMG-Sapphire agreement means that the formers' TV company TWI can now telecast their documentary on Baichung. Next week TWI also intends filming prominent Mohun Bagan players Samuel Omollo, Hemanta Dora, Basudeb Mondal and Dipendu Biswas in action in Calcutta. This is part of a promotional series for Bagan's sponsors.

29. November
Durand Cup - Group B: FC Kochin 0-1 Gorkha Brigade // Group C: East Bengal 3-0 Border Security Force

Asian Nations Cup Qualifiers - Group 3: India 2-2 Sri Lanka - goals: 0:1,1:2 Mohammed Alfaz (19',49'), 1:1 IM Vijayan (25'), 2:2 Jules Alberto (50').
On the concluding day, India came from behind twice to hold SAF Games champions Bangladesh to a 2-2 draw in their last encounter of the Asian preliminary qualifiers Group 3 championship. The two outfits finished the first session tied 1-1. This result helped India to finish the tournament in the third place. India were the only team among the South Asian teams taking part in this tournment to score thrice against two formidable squads, champions Uzbekistan and runners-up UAE. Mohammed Alfaz put his team ahead after 19 minutes. He received the ball inside the box, rounded past two Indian defenders before sending a powerful shot that went straight into the right hand corner. But six minutes later Indian captain Vijayan - the best player in the side - received the ball outside the penalty area and sent a rocket-like volley that beat the goalkeeper hands down. Supported by a big mass of spectators that packed half of the stands, the two sides continued their balanced display after the break. But after only four minutes the Bangladesh captain Mohammed Alfaz was back on target to make it 2-1. But their lead did not live long as Alberto levelled the score off a mix-up in front of the goal only one minute latter. The Indian team squandered a valuable chance two minutes into the injury time.
India: Prashanta Dora, Falguni Dutta, Roberto Fernandes, Deepak Mondal, Daljit Singh, Basudeb Mondal (Syed Shabir Pasha), Jo Paul Ancheri, Rennedy Singh (Hardeep Sangha), Jules Alberto, Bijen Singh, IM Vijayan.

At the end of the concluding day, the local and international newsmen covering the competition nominated the "Tournament Select" as follows:
Mutaz Abdullah (UAE) goalkeeper, Fyodorov Andrey (Uzbekistan) centre-back, Fahd Ali (UAE) centre-back, Lushan Sergey (Uzbekistan) centre-back, Gharib Hareb (UAE) left-wing-back, Shirshov (Uzbekistan) right-wing-back, Basudeeb Mondal (India), Kasimov Mirdzalal (Uzbekistan) and Kasum (Sri Lanka) midfielders, Maksim (Uzbekistan) and Vijayan (India) as strikers.

Note-1: With the IFA unlikely to let off Amal Dutta, Tollygunge Agragami could be forced to look for a coach sooner than expected. Whether Dutta should be barred for comments attributed to him could figure in this week's governing body meeting. It was learnt that Dutta's reply to the AIFF show-cause notice, to be sent by Tollygunge Agragami to the IFA tomorrow, denies the alleged personal attack on the AIFF president. A senior IFA official who did not wish to be named said the AIFF's notice, which asks why Dutta should not be barred from coaching in the National League, and the television clippings virtually makes it obligatory for the association to take punitive action. Tollygunge Agragami, it was learnt, is already thinking of a contingency. Sources said Shankar Moitra, a former Bengal coach who was also a part of India's pre-Olympic campaign, is being tipped as a front-runner.

28. November
Durand Cup - Group C: East Bengal 3-0 Punjab State Electricity Board // Group D: Mohun Bagan 2-1 Tata Football Academy

27. November
Asian Nations Cup Qualifiers - Group 3: United Arab Emirates 0-1 Uzbekistan - the central Asian country qualify for the Asian Nations Cup 2000 in Lebanon.
Durand Cup - Group A: Mahindra&Mahindra; 1-2 JCT Mills // Group B: Salgaocar 1-0 FC Kochin

Asian Nations Cup Qualifiers - Group 3: India 3-1 Sri Lanka - goals: 1:0 Basudeb Mondal (24'), 2:0 Rennedy Singh (40'), 2:1 Isuru Pereira (64'), 3:1 Syed Shabir Pasha (79').
The Indian national soccer squad played near top draw soccer to beat their South Asian counterparts Sri Lanka 3-1 in a Group 3 Asian preliminary qualifiers match. The win secured 3rd place for India in the standings. Interestingly India were the only side to net three goals against two of the tournament's most formidable teams, hosts UAE and Uzbekistan. The defeat compelled Sri Lanka to the bottom of the table, without a single win. They scored only two goals and conceded 12. India looked more organised and dangerous. Their attempts gave the Sri Lankans some difficult moments. Basudeb Mondal put India on lead 24 minutes into the start when he fired a powerful shot that beat the advancing custodian Mohammed Illyas. A minute later Bijen Singh came close to adding the second when he was sent clear but Illyas mananged a desperate late save. But Renedy Singh made up for his colleague's miss when he cashed in on a perfect pass from Bijen Singh to score five minutes before the break. Despite being down by two goals Sri Lanka produced some inspiring soccer after the break. They attacked with determination and were rewarded 19 minutes into play when Isuru Perera switched the ball from the right flank for Kasun to score following a mix-up in front of the Indian goal. While Sri Lanka searched for the equaliser Syed Sabir Pasha complicated things for them when he scored India's third 15 minutes later. Pasha received the ball inside the box to seal India's victory with an acrobatic goal. India's coach Sukhwinder Singh was pleased that his team played well despite having had a very hard game against the Uzbeks. He said the win would boost his team's confidence before they clashed with Bangladesh on the concluding day. He hoped India could improve their position on the table.
India: Prashanta Dora, Falguni Datta, Roberto Fernandes, Deepak Mandal, Dilraj Singh, Jules Alberto, Basudeb Mondal, Rennedy Singh, Bijen Singh, Jo Paul Anchery, IM Vijayan (Syed Shabir Pasha).

Note-1: Amal Dutta, never out of the news, may be in trouble again. The AIFF is angry with the veteran coach for making unsavoury comments about the federation and its president Das Munshi, and today it sent a 'showcause' notice to the IFA. The letter asks the state association to state why Dutta should not be barred from coaching in the National League for the comments he reportedly made during the recent IFA Shield. A copy of the letter was sent to Tollygunge Agragami, the team Dutta guided to the Shield final. Dutta was not available for comments.

26. November
Durand Cup - Group A: Mahindra&Mahindra; 3-1 Bhutan XI // Group C: Border Security Force 1-2 Punjab State Electricity Board

25. November
Asian Nations Cup Qualifiers - Group 3: Bangladesh 3-1 Sri Lanka
Durand Cup - Group B: Salgaocar SC 2-0 Gorkha Brigade // Group D: Tata Football Academy 4-1 Army XI

Asian Nations Cup Qualifiers - Group 3: India 2-3 Uzbekistan - goals: 0:1 Shukhratjon Rahmanonkulov (16'), 1:1 Jo Paul Ancheri (17'), 2:1 IM Vijayan (54'), 2:2 Bavshan Bazakov (76'), 2:3 Nikolay Shirshov (88').
Favourites Uzbekistan almost suffered a major setback against a spirited Indian side before coming away with a 3-2 win in the Group 3 Asia Cup Qualifiers. The Indians led 2-1 with 15 minutes left for the final whistle when Uzbekistan equalised and then with just two minutes left for the final whistle Shirshov Nikolay struck the match-winner to prevent an upset result. The thriller, which saw Uzbekistan for the first time, both yield goals as well as come under intense pressure, as a partisan crowd rooted in favour of the Indian team. In fact coach Rahimov Mahmood, who sat and watched his team cruise past Bangladesh and Sri Lanka by 6-0 margins, got up from his seat for the first time when India neutralised Uzbekistan's opening goal in the 17.minute. After that Rahimov was under so much tension that at the end of the match he had to take a couple of tablets as the pressure and tension got to him. In a very subdued manner at the post match conference, Rahimiv gave full credit to the Indian side, but said his team was ready for tomorrow's decider against UAE. The Indian players fell to the ground in despair when the final whistle went, as they had lost a game in the last five minutes for the second successive match. Goalkeeper Prashanta Dora came in to replace an injured Virender Singh, who was kicked in the head by an Uzbek forward when the game was tied 2-2 and with 10 minutes left. Earlier, the Indians served notice of their intentions with the very first attack coming from their side when Bijen Singh ended his fine run on the flank with a good shot that went wide. Bijen was outstanding both in speed and ball control and along with Vijayan and Joe Paul Ancheri, caused panic among the Uzbek defence. His brilliant display earned him the man of match award. The Indian coach Sukhvinder Singh fielded the same side that played against UAE while the Uzbeks went in without three of their two-goal scorers including skipper and play-maker Kasimov Mirdjalal. While striker Shatiskikh Maksim left the team to play for Dynamo Kiev in the Champions league, Davletov was serving a suspension. Rahimov said Shatskikh should be back for the game against UAE. The Uzbeks ran into rough weather early in the game as the Indians matched them in attack while defending strongly. Pouncing quickly for tackles and man to man marking made the Uzbeks feel choked and the absence of their three main players was also felt. Yet, they managed to take the lead following a freekick. Nikolay's attempt came off the defensive wall to an unmarked Shukhratjon, who found the roof easily. The large crowd of mainly Indian supporters were up on their feet the very next minute when a clever, long throw-in by Daljit Singh was headed across the goalmouth by Vijayan. Joe Paul Ancheri was on hand to shoot the equaliser which went in off the rival custodian. Stunned by that goal, their first after scoring 12 in two matches, Uzbeks knew they had a match on their hands. Suddenly the smooth flowing attacks of the Uzbeks dried up and for the first time their defence was being overworked by the speedy Bijen, Vijayan and Rennedy Singh. The Indians went 2-1 up nine minutes after the break when a Uzbek defender's back header was intercepted by Vijayan and the striker with the silken touch, lobbed the ball over the onrushing Safanov Evgene under the Uzbek bar. Rahimov was then forced to bring in Kasimov and he was soon in the middle of a series of attacks. Virender Singh kept his goal safe with a few good saves while the defenders continued their fighting display. The Uzbeks, definitely the superior side, got the equaliser when defender Fyodorov Andrey moved in to head home following a goal mouth melee. A little later more badluck was in store when Virender was carried off in a stretcher and then came the matchwinner for Uzbekistan with two minutes to go.
India: Virender Singh (Prasanta Dora), KV Dhanesh, Roberto Fernandes, Deepak Mandal, Daljit Singh, Jules Alberto, Basudeb Mondal, Rennedy Singh, Bijen Singh, Jo Paul Ancheri, IM Vijayan.

Note-1: The Durand Cup organisers included Punjab State Electricity Board in the draw after Nepal Youth XI had cried off at the last moment. It was little surprising to find that the Durand committee did not follow the normal practice of including the losing team in the qualifiers after a team withdraws at the last moment. Delhi's Hindustan Club are the losers in this particular case. The league fixtures released by the committee have also raised many eyeborws. The defending champions Mahindras and runners-up East Bengal are the only two teams who have been asked to play on two consecutive days. The two have also been drawn as possible rivals in the semifinals.

24. November
IFA Shield - Semifinal: Mohun Bagan 1-0 Badda Jagarani (Bangladesh)

Note-1: The long-awaited Super Cup match between the National League champions and Federation Cup winners is fast becoming a match of super confusion. The AIFF, at least thrice in the last seven months, have announced dates to stage the match at different venues, only to maintain silence thereafter. Delhi seems to be their latest victim as the federation is believed to have decided to host the match here on Dec 6, two days after the Durand Cup final. Though no official announcement has been made, the federation now seems determined to hold the match as both the teams - Salgaocar and Mohun Bagan - have been informed about the date and the venue. The AIFF, however, has not bothered to officially sent an intimation to this effect to the Delhi Soccer Association, hosts on behalf of the national body, thus creating yet another confusion. With just 10 days to go, the local association has no clue whatsoever about the terms and conditions of the match, which is more than just an ordinary match in the AIFF calendar. The Super Cup match is basically staged to please the sponsors. The match is always followed by a lot of fanfare and distribution of prizes and cash awards to all the National League teams. This match was scheduled immediately after the NFL last season, but was postponed basically to avoid distributing cash awards to the teams. Twice after that, the AIFF announced dates for the match only to backtrack at the last moment on both the occasions. While the Salgaocar management say they have been asked to stay back after Durand Cup to play the Super Cup as well as the opening NFL match against JCT at Delhi, DSA president Umesh Sood said his association is yet to be informed officially. "We know about it but they are yet to send us an official letter. Without the letter we cannot inform our executive about it," he said. The DSA, Sood said, has now taken a decision that it will not play host to any AIFF match without the prior approval of the executive members. "We have staged quite a few AIFF matches in the last couple of years and ended up suffering financial loss. Every time it happened, the office- bearers faced criticism in the executive meeting. Now, we will take permission from the executive and then only agree to host any AIFF match," Sood said.

23. November
Asian Nations Cup Qualifiers - Group 3: United Arab Emirates 3-0 Bangladesh, Uzbekistan 6-0 Sri Lanka
IFA Shield - Semifinal: East Bengal 1-4 Tollygunge Agragami [after penalties]

Note-1: Dempo SC's preparations for the National League suffered a severe jolt with the sudden resignation of its coach TK Chathunni. Chathunni, whose contract with the Goan club was due to expire only in March 2000, decided to quit as he was unhappy with the overall show of the club this season. "As a professional coach, I want good results from my team. Unfortunately, the results have been poor. So I felt there was no meaning in continuing," said the coach, when contacted in Goa on Tuesday. Chathunni also felt that the club management had lost its interest in the affairs of the football team. "There are no efforts on the part of the club to revive the team, despite my repeated pleas. It is quite impossible for this bunch of inexperienced juniors to stand up to superior challenge in the National League," said Chathunni. At the start of the season, the club had promised to recruit a few talented players from outside the state, and even from abroad, says the coach. "Unfortunately, the promise was not kept. The only player whose services were acquired by the club following the inter-state transfers was Ajay Acharya, who has proven to be an utter disappointment. He has not even played at the university level. The presence of such players will only spoil the team's gameplan," said Chathunni, who had guided Kerala Police, Mohun Bagan and Salgaocar to many a triumph before joining Dempo this year. "Believe it or not, the club does not have even a regular goalkeeper now. The team's only 'keeper Vikrant Sharma has left, after he got a job with the Reserve Bank of India. Besides, we had only two full-time defenders. It will be a miracle if this team survives the tough NFL field, where each club will have to play 22 matches." Chathunni claimed that despite all these drawbacks, he could guide Dempo into the final of the Goa Police Cup. "We beat the formidable Salgaocar on way to the final, and lost to Churchill Brothers 1-2," the coach recalled. "In the State League too Dempo had held both Salgaocar and Churchill to draw. The club management was also happy with the team's performance. But now they seem to have lost their interest." Dempo, meanwhile, have started their frantic search for a new coach, with the NFL just a few weeks away. Chathunni said he has not yet decided on his future. "There are a couple of offers on hand, but I have not come to a final decision. Mohun Bagan, after sacking Nayeemuddin, had sent an official to me asking me to take over. But I turned down the offer as I was not at all happy with the way they treated me last season," said Chathunni.

Note-2: Eight teams will participate in the Scissors Cup football tournament beginning from Dec 2. FC Kochin, SBT, Kerala Police, Titanium, Keltron, Fact, KSEB and Central Excise were the teams listed for participation.

22. November
IFA Shield - Group B: Tata Football Academy 0-1 Churchill Brothers

Note-1: A friend from England send me this short article from an english newspaper:
Blackburn United are planning an audacious bid to play the Indian national team. The Indians are coming to this country next year to play Bury as part of the deal that saw Baichung Bhutia become Britain's first Indian player. Bhutia is scheduled to hold a training session with United's junior members in the next few weeks and the club is hoping to use him as a stepping stone to stage the ambitious match with the senior side. Club director Salim Sidat said: "We have already arranged for Baichung Bhutia to come and coach our youngsters at the club but now we want to ask him if it will be possible to arrange the match with our senior side. "I think it is brilliant he has come to this country because it has really caught the imagination. Playing the Indian national team would be fantastic and would cause a lot of interest here."

21. November
Asian Nations Cup Qualifiers - Group 3: Uzbekistan 6-0 Bangladesh
Durand Cup Qualifiers - Semifinal: Hindustan FC 3-1 Youngmen
IFA Shield - Group A: Mohammedan Sporting walkover Pakhtakor FC (Uzbekistan)

Asian Nations Cup Qualifiers - Group 3: United Arab Emirates 3-1 India - goals: 0:1 IM Vijayan (20'), 1:1,2:1 Al Kas (60',85'), 3:1 Abdul Salam Jumaa (89').
MOMENTS of brilliance by UAE striker Saeed Al Kas turned the match UAE's way against India on the opening day of the Asian Cup Group 3 qualifiers at Al Ain Stadium. UAE confirmed its three-point credentials against India who led 1-0 at half time through skipper IM Vijayan. The Indian forward struck with a beautiful curling freekick in the 20.minute. In the second half, Indian coach Sukhwinder Singh was left to ponder over his team's inability to defend a slender lead against the dominating UAE team. Al Kas equalised 15 minutes into the second half from one of captain Mohammed Ali's many corner kicks that swerved outwards catching Indian keeper Virender Singh out of his line. The UAE hero for the night then headed in the second in a flash from an innocuous looking lob past Virender who rushed out unnecessarily. This strike in the 85.minute caught the overly defensive Indians on the wrong foot but the blue jerseyed visitors tried to come back into the game immediately with better approach work and ground passing. In the dying seconds, KV Dhanesh pushed Mohammed Ibrahim on the edge of the box and UAE converted the spotkick comfortably through Abdul Salam Jumaa.
India: Virender Singh, KV Dhanesh, Roberto Fernandes, Deepak Mandal, Dilraj Singh, Jules Alberto, Basudeb Mondal, Rennedy Singh, Bijen Singh, Jo Paul Anchery, IM Vijayan.

20. November
Durand Cup Qualifiers - Semifinal: Gorkha Brigade beat Indian National
IFA Shield - Group B: East Bengal 1-1 Tata Football Academy, Churchill Brothers 0-2 Badda Jagarani (Bangladesh)

19. November
Durand Cup Qualifiers - Round 1: Hindustan FC 2-1 MEG (Bangalore), Youngmen 2-1 Indian Navy
IFA Shield - Group A: Mohun Bagan 2-1 Pakhtakor FC (Uzbekistan), Tollygunge Agragami 2-1 Mohammedan Sporting

Note-1: FC Kochin's mercurial striker I M Vijayan will lead the 20-member Indian football team for the 12th Asian Cup qualifying tournament at Abu Dhabi, UAE beginning from Nov 21. India are placed in a difficult group 3 and the opponents are Uzbekistan, UAE, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Only one team qualifies for the finals to be held in Lebanon in 2000. Uzbekistan and UAE are the overwhelming favourites.

18. November
Durand Cup Qualifiers - Round 1: Gorkha Brigade beat Shastri Club
IFA Shield - Group B: East Bengal 1-0 Churchill Brothers, Badda Jagarani (Bangladesh) 0-0 Tata Football Academy

Note-1: The uncertainty through the past couple of months over the National League ended after the AIFF's two-day meeting at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium earlier this week with representatives of the 12 participating teams in the 1.Division meeting senior federation officials. This will be the 4th edition of the championship and, sponsored twice by Philips, it was last year propped up by Coca-Cola. But it is time the federation tried to make everyone realise that the National League was a cut above the country's other tournaments. But the difference has blurred, the meet spanning only three-and-a-half-months. Its purpose has been partially defeated as the players, including the foreigners, are forced into all tournaments. Local boys' opportunities are gradually diminishing. The AIFF president, Das Munshi, thinks the league is at an experimental stage. If it is so, then why does the AIFF not accommodate Air-India and Indian Bank in a 14-team championship? Last year, the format was changed and these two teams were the worst sufferers. Indian Bank representatives made their point in New Delhi without being able to convince the other clubs. But the question is: How were Mohun Bagan and Churchill Brothers, who hadn't qualified, lifted into the National League by increasing the number of participants? Indian Bank paid about Rs 400,000 for building Nehru Stadium at Chennai. In Calcutta, Mohun Bagan or East Bengal spent nothing on Saltlake Stadium. With Indian Bank demoted, there will be no soccer match in the stadium. The AIFF has decided to allow each state a team for the 2.Division to encourage the game's countrywide growth. Air-India, in the inaugural year, proved that they were much better than most without any foreign players. Their coach, Bimal Ghosh, was chosen best coach. Their striker, Godfrey Pereira, got the best footballer's prize from a committee headed by Chuni Goswami. It is office teams who can provide jobs to soccer players and both these two teams would doubtless improve their performance as Churchill Brothers did last year. They were relegated in l998 but, last year, they occupied 3rd position. Of the 12 National League teams, there are three each from Bengal and Goa while Punjab and Kerala have two each. Karnataka and Mumbai have one each. The AIFF executive committee should review the matter for the sake of football.

17. November
Durand Cup Qualifiers - Round 1: Indian National beat Indian Air Force
IFA Shield - Group A: Mohun Bagan 4-0 Mohammedan Sporting, Tollygunge Agragami 1-1 Pakhtakor FC (Uzbekistan)

16. November
IFA Shield - Group B: East Bengal 1-0 Badda Jagarani (Bangladesh)

Note-1: The AIFF secretary, KN Mour, does not know when the Indian team will leave for Dubai to take part in the Asian Cup. "I received a message from the organisers that India's match with the UAE would be held on 21 - instead of 20 - November but they have not yet sent us our air tickets," Mr Mour said. The team, to be led by IM Vijayan, have already been selected though no official announcement has been made. The AIFF's two-day meeting here decided that the National League's fourth edition would start on Dec 9, Salgaocar taking on JCT Mills at Ambedkar Stadium. The Super Cup match comes off at the same venue on Dec 6, Mohun Bagan clashing with Salgaocar and the cash going into a relief fund for Orissa's cyclone victims.
The AIFF has managed to keep intact title sponsors Coca Cola, who had earlier shown their reluctance to have any tie-up with the AIFF. The twelve participating teams are Salgaocar, Churchill Bros, Dempo SC, Mohun Bagan, East Bengal, Tollygunge Agragami, JCT Mills, FC Kochin, Mahindras, ITI, Bangalore, Border Security Force and State Bank of Travancore. BSF and SBT are the two new entrants having qualified from the 2.Divison NFL. The relegated teams are Air India, Mumbai and Indian Bank, Chennai. All 12 teams will play home-&-away matches against each other unlike last year when inititially the 12 teams were clustered into two groups. The source confirmed that last year's participants in the NFL were payed 70 per cent of the participation fees last week and the remaining 30 per cent would be paid before the start of this season's edition. The Federation was still locked in negotiations with Coca Cola over the sponsorship amount. Besides Coca Cola, the NFL will also have other co-sponsors.

Note-2: The appointment of IM Vijayan as the captain of the Indian team for the Asia Cup football at Abu Dhabi once again exposed the bankruptcy of a federation, whose officials are ready to sacrifice every discipline of the game for the sake of their own interest. Vijayan is arguably India's finest striker at this moment, but preferred to play for his club FC Kochin in the Rovers Cup instead of joining the national camp at Patiala as directed by the AIFF. He, along with his clubmate Jo Paul Ancheri, joined the camp on Friday last a day before the final team was selected. On Saturday, Vijayan was chosen captain by the project director (senior team) PP Laxmanan and the AIFF secretary KN Mour at Patiala. The appointment was reportedly endorsed by the AIFF president Dasmunshi before the selection was made. While FC Kochin have sent their two players a few days before the end of the camp, Salgaocar did not even bother to send two of their footballers, Venkatesh and Alvito D'Cunha, and played them in the Rovers Cup till the final. The AIFF officials did not even bother to question the two clubs, leave alone issuing show cause notices to the erring footballers, clubs and the state associations.

15. November
12.Asian Women's Championships - Group A: India 0-2 Chinese Taipei
Rovers Cup - Final: Salgaocar 1-0 Churchill Brothers
IFA Shield - Group A: Tollygunge Agragami 0-0 Mohun Bagan

14. November
It can't get better than this. The Mumbai District Football Association and the Mumbai City and Suburbs Football Association have decided to confine their differences with the Western India Football Association to the sin-bin. Thus both MDFA and MCSFA would come under the WIFA umbrella and come Apr 2000, the city's football league will be run by MDFA as in the good old days when the sport enjoyed some of its finest moments. The foundations were laid a month ago when the MCSFA dissolved into MDFA which has a new committee now. With the season over now, the new committee would start functioning from April 1 next year. Announcing the merger at a press conference, Commander Kehar Singh, the president of MDFA, said the two bodies had seven meetings and sought to ring out the differences. "Thereafter, we gave our proposal and handed it over to WIFA on Oct 24. They accepted the letter and have verbally assured of affiliation after putting up three conditions. "We agreed to WIFA's three conditions. Now the city's lower division football league can breath freely," said Kehar Singh. The conditions put up by WIFA are: MDFA drops all court cases against WIFA, agrees to only three votes per district and The Maharashtra FA, a body floated by MDFA, be dissolved. "We agreed to drop all the court cases because it was a no-win situation for everybody. We (MDFA) won it in the lower courts, the WIFA obtained stay in the higher courts," said Kehar Singh. With the constitution having stipulated one vote for 20 clubs and part thereof, the MDFA were left with ten votes. "The WIFA wanted to regularise the vote to all districts. With the MDFA and MCSFA having a total strength of 186 clubs, there were 10 votes from Mumbai," explained Kehar Singh. "We had started the MFA because after the MDFA was expelled in 1991, teams and players with us had no chance of representing the state. So the MFA came into being. The WIFA have plans to change their name to MFA later and with the name already existing with the charity commissioner, it was difficult for them. They asked us to dissolve the body and we agreed," said Kehar Singh. The merger means that teams playing in the MDFA will turn out in respective divisions. The Harwood league will be the Super Division with the elite division remaining untouched. "Even the grounds will be distributed. The Cooperage will be used for the top two divisions, the Goans grounds and Xavier's ground for the the lower divisions," informed Kehar Singh.

13. November
12.Asian Women's Championships - Group A: India 0-3 Vietnam
Rovers Cup - Semifinal: Salgaocar 1-0 Mahindra&Mahindra;

12. November
Rovers Cup - Semifinal: Churchill Brothers 2-0 JCT Mills

Note-1: The Sports Authority of India (eastern region) is still in dark about the proposed football academy of Indian Football Association. The IFA has earlier announced that IFA will start the academy in collaboration with SAI. The IFA, joint secretary Ranjit Gupta had told that the academy will be inaugurated on Nov 14 and start its work from Jan 23. The director of the SAI said that negotiation is on but nothing has been finalised yet. Meanwhile, the IFA sources said that they have got permission form Delhi and official formalities are to be completed added the IFA joint secretary.

11. November
Exhibition match - Siliguri: East Bengal 0-0 Border Security Force
Calcutta's Super Division League champions East Bengal drew goalless with Border Security Force in an exhibition football match at Kanchenjungha Stadium. Attacking right from the kick-off, the Calcutta giants dominated. In the first hour, they should have been three goals up, thanks to superb crosses from the flanks. The only remarkable performance on the part of BSF came from their goalie. Kalyan Mitra, who brought off some brilliant saves.

Exhibition match - Calcutta: Mohun Bagan 2-0 George Telegraph
Mohun Bagan played their first friendly football match against George Telegraph under the supervision of the new coach, Subrata Bhattacherjee, and won by a brace at home. The home team played well in the second half and scored two goals, Abdul Khaliq and Bastab Roy striking.

10. November
Rovers Cup - Group B: JCT Mills 1-0 Air India, Salgaocar 2-0 Md Sporting - Dhaka

09. November
12.Asian Women's Championships - Group A: India 3-0 Malaysia - Goals: 1:0,2:0 Tababi Devi, 3:0 Sujata Kar
Rovers Cup - Group A: Mahindra&Mahindra; 4-1 Bengal Mumbai FC, FC Kochin 0-4 Churchill Brothers

Note-1: Mohun Bagan today sacked coach Syed Nayeemuddin. Anjan Mitra, secretary of Mohun Bagan, handed over a letter to the club coach this evening which stated Subrata Bhattacherjee would take over as coach from tomorrow. The former national coach was kept in the dark all along and the dismissal came as a rude shock when he was leaving the ground after supervising a workout. In the morning too, he had conducted a training session. With a number of talented foreign players around, and two major tournaments in the offing - the IFA Shield starting next week, followed by the Durand Cup - the Dronacharya Award winner wanted his team to deliver the goods. Had he been able to stay full term, Syed Nayeemuddin would have been with Mohun Bagan till March 2000. This is the second time that Nayeem has been removed unceremoniously. On the first occasion, he had come to know of his sacking while returning home from the club tent.

08. November
Rovers Cup - Group B: Md Sporting - Dhaka 3-3 Air India, JCT Mills 1-2 Salgaocar SC

Note-1: The highest body of Bengal football, Indian Football Association is going to start a Football Academy soon. The Academy will be set up in assistance with the AIFF. "The academy will have a professional approach regarding the training programme and every coach will get monthly salary, while the young-campers will get all kind of assistance from the academy," said the IFA joint-secretary Ranjit Gupta. In the first lot 60 young footballers will be recruited in the academy, he added. He hoped, Bengal will get at least 10 footballers from the academy very year. Meanwhile, the ground problem for IFA yet to be sorted out, as they have already wrote a letter to the defence ministry. They already have a piece of ground beside the Fort William, which is in a precarious condition. The IFA asked Eastern Command to lease-out the Eastern Command Stadium to the organisation for the academy. But the Defence department showed no interest about the offer.

07. November
12.Asian Women's Championships - Group A: India 0-7 North Korea
Rovers Cup - Group A: FC Kochin 0-0 Bengal Mumbai FC, Mahindra&Mahindra; 1-1 Churchill Brothers

Exhibition match - Jamshedpur: TFA 2-0 East Bengal
Tata Football Academy defeated East Bengal 2-0 in an exhibition tie at the JRD Tata Sports Complex in Jamshedpur. Zaheer Abbas scored the first goal and then Mohammed Qisar increased the tally. Both the goals came in the first session.

06. November
Gurdarshan Memorial Football Tournament - Semifinal: Punjab State Electricity Board 2-0 Kapurthala DFA
Rovers Cup - Group B: Md Sporting - Dhaka 0-3 JCT Mills, Salgaocar SC 0-0 Air India
Sikkim Governor Gold Cup - Final: Army XI 3-1 Kerala Police

05. November
Gurdarshan Memorial Football Tournament - Semifinal: Punjab State Electricity Board 2-0 Punjab Police; BSF, Jammu 0-1 Kapurthala DFA
Rovers Cup - Group A: Mahindra&Mahindra; 1-1 FC Kochin, Churchill Brothers 1-0 Bengal Mumbai FC

Note-1: L Chauba Devi will lead on 18-member Indian women's football team for the 12th Asian Championship to be held in the Philippines from tomorrow. The team, accompanied by four officials, including former international Harjinder Singh, left for Philipines late last night.
The team: L Chauba Devi (cap), Rinashori Devi, Ranjeeta Mohanty, Bentla D'Coth, Maria Rebello, Sayanti Nandi, S Rani Devi, Madhu Kumari, Alpana Shil, Gurmeet Kaur, O Bem Bem, S Rani Chanu, Pampa Sarkar, Sujata Kar, Tababi Devi, Sradhanjali Samantaray, Grace Pereria, Geeta Devi.

Note-2: Mohun Bagan officials are always wonder-eyed, it seems. An official today said the club was "puzzled" by the show-cause notice issued by the Asian Football Confederation. The official expressed surprise at being asked to show cause for using the sponsor's name on both sides of their jerseys. The AFC has asked the club to explain why penalty should not be imposed for such "advertisements" during the Asian Club Cup match against Japan's Jubilo Iwata. The multi-crore budget Calcutta giants have also been asked to explain why they went to Japan for the second-round away match with just one set of jerseys. IFA secretary Ranjit Gupta said the letter, signed by AFC secretary Peter Velappan, is based on Match Commissioner KT Velu's (Singapore) report. No deadline, however, has been set. The club secretary is again out of station. The junior official said they had used the same set of jerseys in the first-round matches against Bangladesh's Mukti Joddha. The Match Commissioner for that match had not raised such questions. That, though, does not absolve anybody ignorant of the rules.

Note-3: The IFA governing body may meet next week to discuss the duration of Chima Okerie's suspension. Chima has been suspended till April and fined Rs 3 lakh.

04. November
Gurdarshan Memorial Football Tournament - Quarterfinal: Punjab State Electricity Board 4-0 Patiala Police; BSF, Jammu 2-0 Tigers Club, Patiala; Kapurthala DFA 3-1 HSB, Banga
Sikkim Governor Gold Cup - Semifinal: Kerala Police 6-4 Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council XI (after penalties)

Note-1: The Asian Football Confederation has issued a show-cause notice to Mohun Bagan over their Asian Club Cup Round 2 away match against Jubilo Iwata. The Indian Football Association received a letter this evening in which the AFC has reportedly asked Mohun Bagan to explain that why they went to Japan with only one set of jerseys. The AFC has also objected to the sponsors' name being printed on both sides of the jerseys. According to IFA joint-secretary Ranjit Gupta, who said he forwarded the letter to the club, Mohun Bagan has been asked for an explanation though no deadline has been set. Bagan officials were not available for comment.

03. November
Gurdarshan Memorial Football Tournament - Quarterfinal: Punjab Police 2-0 Fine Switchgear, Phagwara // Pre-Quarterfinal: Patiala Police 1-0 Youngsters Club, Chandigarh
Sikkim Governor Gold Cup - Semifinal: Mohemmadan Sporting 0-1 Army XI

Exhibition match - Agartala: East Bengal 0-0 Abahani Limited (Bangladesh)
Calcutta giants East Bengal were locked in a barren draw with Abahani Limited (Bangladesh) in a keenly-contested exhibition match at the Umakanta Academy ground. The match saw both the teams miss chances galore as the strikers failed to convert sitters. Dipankar Roy of East Bengal disappointed the spectators as his shot hit the post. Play was suspended for a while in the second session after the referee awarded a disputed penalty to East Bengal. Abahani Limited today donated Rs 10,000 for relief of the cyclone-hit Orissa and another Rs 10,000 to Tripura Football Association for the development of soccer in the state.

Note-1: Uzbek Rustam Akramov looks slandered when asked if Indians can match Europeans at football. "Of course," he booms. "A country of one billion cannot produce a dozen quality players ? What rubbish." Akramov, the technical director of the Asian Football Confederation, is in Bangalore to conduct sessions for U-19 state coaches and players. Along the way, he hopes to promote the need for having a youth football academy in every state. Akramov shot into prominence as coach after helping his country Uzbekistan to the 1994 Asian Games gold. A stint with the Indian National team followed in 1996. When he suddenly left for home, there was talk of problems between him and the All India Football Federation. He now evades that topic. "I had health problems," he says. "But yes, any political interference hurts." His new mantra ? "Develop youth football. All we need is 10-12 good players." But how do you cover the costs towards this ? "Well, the European clubs willpay." He talks of how foreigners in various European clubs are raking in the big bucks, of how a percentage of the contract sum will go to the native club, and how the economy of the nation will improve. "The footballers will start investing, which means employment. We should export our footballers, like we do the engineers and doctors." To Akramov, football isn't sport, it is life. Most East European footballers earn their bread at clubs in Italy, France, Spain and England. Which is how their native clubs sustain the contract money, running into millions of dollars, is sufficient to keep the youth programmes going. But why would any European club choose to hire an Indian, if it has enough players from its own youth programme ? Akramov tosses the question aside as negligible. "Any European club deals in billions of dollars. Provided you have the quality, what's a few thousand ?" But, he cautions, the programme should be run immaculately. "An ideal academy should have a school, accommodationnearby, gym. And yes, players should be given non-vegetarian food regularly. Training hours will be split into three sessions, which will be sandwiched with study and recreation time." "Look at what happened to Carlton Chapman. He was brilliant, but now he isn't half as good. That's because nobody is pushing for his slot in the team. He is pretty clueless right now." Akramov was in Nepal before he came down to India, and he raves about the response there. "In three years, they will overhaul India," he warns. "Even countries like Maldives have started an intensive youth programme. India will be left far behind if it doesn't start a solid programme now."

02. November
Gurdarshan Memorial Football Tournament: Tigers Club Patiala 6-5 ONGC, Dehra Dun (after penalties); Fine Switchgear, Phagwara 1-0 Nivia Club, Jalandhar; Kapurthala DFA 4-1 National Club, Patiala
Sikkim Governor Gold Cup - Semifinal: Nepal XI 0-1 Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council XI

Note-1: Pakhtakor Football Club of Uzbekistan has confirmed for the IFA Shield, beginning here Nov15. The former Soviet powerhouse has been clubbed with Mohun Bagan, Tollygunge Agragami and Mohammedan Sporting in Group A and will begin their campaign against Tollygunge Agragami at Rabindra Sarobar Stadium on Nov17. Pakhtakor's last played the IFA Shield in 1993 when they beat Kazakhstan's Pavlodar to the title. Group B comprises East Bengal, Churchill Brothers, FC Kochin and Badda Jagarani (Bangladesh). The meet kicks off with a group A tie between Mohun Bagan and Tollygunge Agragami, at Rabindra Sarobar where all group matches involving Tollygunge will be held. East Bengal will also play their first match at the Sarobar, on Nov16. The semifinals are scheduled for Nov 23 & 24 with the final on Nov26. The first few matches will be played at Rabindra Sarobar Stadium as Saltlake Stadium will not be available before Nov17. The first match there pits Mohun Bagan against Mohammedan Sporting. The champions will be awarded Rs 600,000 while the runners-up bag half that amount. The losing semifinalists will get Rs 75,000 each. Winners of group league matches will get Rs 25,000. No money will be awarded for a draw.

Note-2: A meeting of the clubs featuring in the National Football League has been conveyed on Nov16 at Delhi to discuss about the upcoming league. The Charity match between last year's NFL winners Salgaocar SC and Mohan Bagan which was twice postponed will now be held in Delhi on Dec5. Meanwhile some of the clubs featuring in the NFL have suggested to the AIFF that the visiting teams be allowed to use the ground one hour before the match. Further they have demanded that they be paid the appearance money in advance while the organisers inform the teams about the brand of ball well in advance. The clubs have also suggested that the gate collection be paid in time, in case the AIFF defers the payment of appearance money. The teams have also suggested that the teams be allowed to register 22 players and four officials including a physiotherapist. The AIFF has also been requested to take into consideration the standard of cost living at the venue while deciding on the allowance at different venues.

01. November
Gurdarshan Memorial Football Tournament: Kapurthala DFA 2-1 Chandigarh Police; ONGC, Dehra Dun 5-4 NEI, Jaipur (after penalties)
Sikkim Governor Gold Cup - Quarterfinal: Army XI 1-0 Brothers Union Club (Bangladesh)

Note-1: Sorry for no update over the last few days but I was very very busy. On Friday Jas Bains and Pavan Kumar Raj, both of Sapphire Enterprises, came over to Duesseldorf, Germany, mainly to meet me and discuss different matters related to Indian Football. They were here until Sunday evening. Both Jas and Pavan are now working as football agents and are looking mainly into matters related to Indian Football. Jas is looking into Indian Football matters in a broader basis, while Pavan is taking care of certain special matters. Pavan is taking care of Baichung Bhutia, the national jersey production and the trip of the national senior team next summer. The national senior team will tour England in July 2000. A match vs Fulham FC in London will be taking place on July 23, while after that a match vs Baichung´s Bury FC will take place at Gigg Lane in Manchester. The date for that match is not fixed yet. I will set up a site on the tour in a few weeks with infos coming directly from Pavan. We talked about a number of other matters but sadly I cannot inform you on them right now as they were told to me in confidence. If I write anything on those things it might jeopardise some possible deals. SO if anything comes about I will certainly post it here.
Talking on Baichung: According to Jas and Pavan, Baichung is currently doing fine at Bury but needs some more weeks to get into proper shape.
In regard to "The unofficial Indian Football Site" Jas has told me that he would talk to AIFF President Das Munshi, talking about the possibility of making this site the official Indian Football Site.

Note-2: The final women football team be selected on Nov 2. The national camp is in progress at National Institute of Sports, Patiala. Five girls, including two from Punjab, have been selected by the AIFF for the coaching camp. The team will participate in the Asian Women's Football Championship to be held in Philippines from Nov 7-21, 1999, according to Surinder Bhambri, camp director.