Subroto Cup International Football Tournament: Last edition’s Runner’s up Govt. Model Senior Secondary School, Chandigarh and first-time finalists, Amenity Public School, Rudrapur, Uttarakhand exuded confidence going into the summit clash of the prestigious Subroto Cup International Football Tournament. The 62nd edition of India’s marquee school football tournament will witness the showpiece event, the Boys Under-17 final at the Dr. B.R Ambedkar Stadium on Monday in the presence of Air Chief Marshal V.R Chaudhari PVSM AVSM VM ADC, Chief of Air Staff, as well as Anju Bobby George, the first Indian athlete to win a medal at World Athletics Championships, who will be the Guest of Honour.
Govt. Model SSS, Chandigarh will look to upgrade their position from the last edition when they had lost to Pilgrim HSS, Dimapur, Nagaland in the final.
This is the third time the school from Chandigarh has qualified for the final of the tournament, the first time being way back in 2005 when they lost to Nobel Academy, Kathmandu, Nepal in sudden death.
The team which consists of players from the Chandigarh Football Academy will look to bring the title for the first time to Chandigarh. Goalkeeper Rohit and midfielder Bobby Singh are part of the Indian U-17 setup.
“We are really confident for the final tomorrow. The players are motivated to win the title this time which eluded us in the last edition. The opposition is good and we are expecting a 50-50 match. It all depends on the day on how the players play and the better team on the day will win”, said Sandeep Singh, Coach of Govt. Model SSS.
Govt. Model SSS breezed through the group stages of the tournament trouncing Shaheed Jawan Muthukoya Memorial SSS, Amini, Lakshadweep 14-0, a comprehensive 5-0 victory over +2 Durga Uchh Vidyalay, Shakti Nagar, Baanka, Bihar and defeated Ramakrishna Mission School, Aalo, West Siang, Arunachal Pradesh 4-1 to qualify for the knockout stages from Group A.
In the repeat of the previous edition’s quarterfinal, they overcame a tough challenge from M.I.C English Medium High School, Malappuram, Kerala 1-0 to reach the semifinals. An extra-time goal in the semifinal match against T.G English Medium School, Bishnupur, Manipur helped them book a place in the final of the tournament.
On the other hand, Amenity Public School, Rudrapur, Uttarakhand, who are representing the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), created history by being the first-ever school representing CBSE to reach the final of the prestigious tournament. This is also the first time that a school from Uttarakhand has qualified for the final of the most prestigious inter-school tournament in the country.
“The players are confident for the final and will look to create history. We have worked hard to reach here and we will like to go all the way and win the trophy. We are playing against a very strong team and we will play our best football tomorrow”, said Amit Verma, Manager of Amenity Public School.
Amenity Public School qualified for the quarterfinals from Group H, trouncing Kendriya Vidyalaya, Lokra, Shonitpur, Assam 15-0, overcoming Guru Gobind Sports College, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh 2-0, thrashing Greenwood School, Khelo India Centre, Nagaland 6-0 and comprehensively beating Sudarshanpur Dwarika Prasad Uchh Vidyachakra, Raiganj, West Bengal 3-0 in the final group game.
In the quarterfinal, they beat Bampather Bengenabari H.S.S, Aideobari, Assam 3-0 to go through to the semis.
In an exciting semifinal, they got the better of Govt. Haulawang High School, Haulawang, Lunglei, Mizoram in sudden death (8-7) after both teams were locked 1-1 in regulation time.
The final promises to be an exciting affair and many names will be heard again in the years to come and their journey, like many others before them, are likely to begin at the hallowed turf of Delhi’s Ambedkar Stadium.