Nagpur, Oct 28
Football is one of the popular sports in Orange City. However, due to Covid infection and lockdown the football lovers, as well as players, were deprived of the real action on the field as no tournament was conducted for almost two years.
But here is good news for the players and their supporters. Since Covid curbs have been eased, Nagpur District Football Association is all set to start its Elite Division Football Tournament after Diwali and the preparation for that is in full swing.
Talking to Lokmat Times NDFA president Haresh Vora said, “ We have decided to start the season with Elite Division tournament after Diwali and for that our preparation is in full swing. After elite division, other leagues including senior and super divisions will be conducted at our Suyog Nagar ground.”
Vora has also informed that to conduct the league smoothly other venues will also be considered. “Daily two matches will be played. Therefore we will require another venue. We are looking for the options”, he said.
NDFA secretary Iqbal Kashmiri said, “ We have distributed the entry forms to the team and 10 teams are expected to participate in the league. We organisers and players are quite excited as our premier league will take place after two years.” The readers may recall that Rahul Sanskritayan Club had emerged champion in November 2019 defeating Young Muslim.
Fully vaccinated players to be allowed
The NDFA has taken enough precautions to avoid the Covid infection during the tournament. Kashmiri said, “ Only fully vaccinated players will be allowed to play. The teams will have to produce such certificates. The oxygen level of the players will be checked daily.” Kashmiri also informed that the crowd will be allowed to witness the matches.
Quote
“Being a defending champion we the Rahul Sanskritayan Club are quite excited to defend our title. We have started our preparations. As the players are out of action for the last two years, they may face some difficulties to come back into the rhythm. They have been playing and practicing on small grounds. Therefore they will have to adjust themselves while playing on the big ground in the league.”
Stanley Gregory, Coach