New Delhi, September 13 (MTNews): Manipur defeated Nagaland 2-0 in the semifinal match of the ongoing U-14 Subroto Cup on Tuesday morning in New Delhi.
Heirok Higher Secondary School Imphal, Manipur scored two goals to defeat Greenwood School Dimapur in the semifinal match. Manipur’s A.Devo scored in the 24th minute, and L Bikramjit added a second goal in the 45th.
Nagaland had to settle with becoming the tournament’s losing semifinalists, while Manipur advanced to the final. Jharkhand defeated Chandigarh 3-1 in the other semifinal match to advance to the final. Manipur will now face Jharkhand in the championship match on September 15.The team for Nagaland was led by Kechi as the team coach and Kevilebei as the manager.
After the game, Team Coach Kechi Kulimbe stated that the lads battled hard during the game, but that the power and physical contrasts of the Manipur players prevented the players from penetrating them.
“It’s disappointing not to make the finals, but I’m confident since the lads gave their all,” the coach said. “We could only have gotten this far because of God’s grace and blessings. We’d also like to thank everyone who has been pulling for us at home,” he added.
The coach also complimented the squad’s manager, Kevilebei Zashu, an experienced football coach, for taking the team to the tournament’s semifinals.
On his experience, he stated that it was an enriching experience and an excellent platform for an amateur coach. “I was shocked and humbled to witness so many experienced coaches with AIFF ‘A’, AIFF ‘B’, and AIFF ‘C’ licenses humbly coaching their young players,” he shared.
The coach also said that there was also a minor difference in fundamental tactics and approaches between our state players and players from football-producing states like Goa, Manipur, and many others, which he said is due to a lack of proper foundation, resulting in poor basic understanding of the sport.
Nagas have the aptitude and talent for the game, according to the coach; nevertheless, more focus should be placed on fundamental football instruction from an early age, and more platforms should be provided.
While Nagaland U-14 captain Limathung stated, “We all fought extremely hard to win the match but were unable to do so.” He stated that the Manipur players were physically large and muscular. Despite the loss, he was pleased to have played a challenging match against Manipur in this competition.