After the online coaching refresher course came to an end, the participating coaches hailed the 'great initiative' saying that it opened a 'whole new dimension' in their thought process.
The course, jointly orgsed by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and the Sports Authority of India (SAI), began on April 20 and concluded on May 2. A total of 884 coaches from all over the country registered for the programme.
"I was literally struggling to find ways to spend my time during the lockdown. When I came to know about the course, I signed-up immediately. Topics discussed during the sessions have really refreshed me -- opening up a whole new dimension in my thought process," AIFF's official website quoted Bhawpore FC Head Coach Sankarlal Chakraborty as saying.
Praising the initiative, former custodian and India U-23 goalkeeping coach Tanumoy Basu said that it provided the coaches with "an opportunity to review their own coaching methodologies, enabling them to reflect and improve their own methods."
"We are normally busy at the grounds with our teams and do not have much time to revisit or rethink the way we train our players. It was a great initiative by the AIFF and the SAI to conduct this course during the lockdown. It helped us to reflect on our own coaching methodologies," added Basu.
Apart from AIFF coaching instructors, Indian men's team head coach Igor Stimac, AIFF Technical Director Isac Doru, and AIFF Head of Coach Education Savio Madeira also took part in the programme.
Zlatko Dalic, Croatia's coach in the FIFA World Cup Russia 2018, also enlightened the participants when he conducted a session from his home on 'How to handle Star Players.'
Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports Kiren Rijiju also joined the session with Dalic to encourage the coaches, highlighting the importance of grassroots football.
Former India and Mohun Bagan midfielder Msh Math believes this kind of programme will help all attendees broad-base such learnings.
"I have been working as a coach at the grassroots level for the last few years. I can now impart the knowledge that I've gained from these sessions. We can all implement these techniques at our academy. Just imagine -- so many coaches taking these teachings back home and spreading the knowledge to other coaches and players in their area will further boost technical knowledge among all," said Math.
( With inputs from ANI )