Heart break for Kerala in the finals (Tier II) of Junior National Football Championship
Image Courtesy : Kerala Coach Purushothaman Thekkathara T G’s facebook profile.
Kerala lost to Sports Authority of India team 5-2 in the finals ( Tier 11) Junior National Football Championship for B.C Roy Trophy that was held at Bokaro in Jharkhand.
Kerala was in fine form throughout the championship, scripting huge margin wins against Jammu Kashmir, Rajasthan and then edged out Arunchal Pradesh on a solitary goal in the group stages. In the semifinal Kerala pipped a strong Chandigarh team 3-0.
By the time the kerala team reached the finals, they had scored over 26 goals and conceded none. However, when it came to the final Kerala fell short and lost to the SAI team. The last time Kerala won the Junior National Football Championship was in 1973. This defeat quashed Kerala’s effort to clinch the title again after 30 years. Even though not an excuse, the ground was almost unplayable due to the torrential rain that lashed in Bokaro the day before the finals.
The silver lining however is that by qualifying for the finals of Tier II, Kerala has secured a place in the Tier I of the next edition of tournament. Kerala’s dismal performance during the recent years had them demoted to the Tier II of the tournament.