Tags:
Journalism of Courage
NEW DELHI, August 30: Last years8217; runners-up Indian Air Force New Delhi will challenge formidable Hindustan Club in the title clash of the Delhi Soccer Association-SAIL Senior Division Football League Championship which is slated for tomorrow at Ambedkar Stadium.
With the completion of preliminary league and Super League matches which began on June 23, the final match has already generated a tremendous amount of interest among the followers of the game in the Capital. However, the exit of the two traditional rivals, City Club and Indian Nationals, at the semifinal stage, has come as a disappointment for soccer-lovers of the Walled City.
IAF8217;s main strength is the fitness of its players. They have a well-trained defence and an imaginative forward line in Priyadarshan, Biswajit Das and S.K.A. Hossen. Their ability to score from penalty kicks was evident in the semifinal against Indian Nationals when they were successful in converting four of the five spot-kicks. IAF8217;s custodian Arobindo Bandopadhyay is dependable under the bar while emerging as the hero against Indian Nationals as he showed brilliant reflexes in the penalty shoot-out.
Hindustan Club will mainly rely on the experiences of their star-studded players. But, they will definitely miss the services of their mercurial forward Amarjit Singh Sahani, following two yellow cards. With Modh. Mobin, Biswanath Kundu, Sanjay Siddhu and Arjun Negi in the defence line, Hindustan will not allow their opponents to take any territorial advantage.
Both mid-fielders Bhupinder Rawat and Mohd. Khalid are capable of feeding well to their upfront players Hitender Rawat, Walid, Neeraj Choudhary who have proved their mettle in the Super League and semifinal matches. In Deepak Bisht, Hindustan have the most dependable goalkeeper.
The winners will receive Rs 10,000, while the runners-up will get Rs 5,000. The two losing semifinalists will be given Rs 2,500 each. Top two teams each of A8217; and B8217; divisions league will be awarded trophies dedicated to the memories of S. L. Ghosh and Chuni Lal Sharma, former secretaries of DSA.
Sunit Pal Singh, president, Sports Foundation of India, has announced a cash prize of Rs 2,500 each to four best players of the league. The best disciplined team will receive the Dharamvira Fair Play Trophy donated by Mughals Club.
