Malad-Borivali - Steadfast to the cause of football, Sports,

The Under 17 side at Steadfast Sports and Adventure Academy (SSAA) is set to get its first exposure outside Mumbai. The squad is Chandigarh- bound to play the 6th Administrator's Challenge Cup organised by the Development of Sports initiative of the Government of India from September 1 to 9, 2008.

Says coach Maloy Sengupta, "We, along with the Mahindra United junior squad, are the only two teams invited from Maharashtra. This will be a good experience for the boys as 12 of the 20 participating teams are state teams." The former Mohameddan Sporting keeper took up the task as coach, after a five-year memorable stint as Chief Coach of Madhya Pradesh, with the sole intention to develop football at the grass root levels.

Brimming with confidence: Eighteen young players of the U-17 squad going to Chandigarh

Five years back, SSAA decided to scout players at local tournaments and mould them into professional footballers. These selected players are put through a vigorous training regime that involves sessions on physical training, techniques and tactics, game plan, video class, first aid, and diet plans are handed out. "The current squad comprises of players from all over Mumbai. We had organised an exposure camp in Goa for the boys this summer. Eminent footballers like Bhaichung Bhutia, Mario Fernandes, Technical Director of the Indian National Squad, Bob Houghton, and referee Maria Rebello were called upon to give the teenagers sessions on game play. Salgaocar has shown interest in two of our U-14 boys," says Vinod Nalawade, the Director of SSAA.

The academy, established in 1989, has not had it easy over the years. The sole funding for them comes through friends, families of the boys and a few well-wishers. The costs of kits, travel, food and boarding for the players are borne by SSAA. "We also try and help a few of our players with their education, as they cannot afford it. Our sole aim is to produce fine footballers that can go ahead and represent the country. We are lucky to avail grounds for training in Bandra, Juhu, Vile Parle and Kandivali, thanks to the cooperation of the concerned authorities," says Nalwade.

"We have a yearly schedule planned out for our teams to ensure that the boys get to play different styles of football. The U-17 boys go to Dhaka in November to play an invitational tournament organised by the Bangladesh Kriya Siksha Prasthan. In addition, the U-13 and U-14 sides head out for their first national tournament to Sikkim and Ooty, respectively," says Nalawade.

"Football is the centre of the universe, for these boys. One of the parents was concerned when they found their son standing at the door in the middle of the night. In his sleep, he mumbled that he had to go for practice. Such is their love for the sport and they should only be taken to the highest levels of Indian football," ends a passionate Sengutpa.

wsp@timesgroup.com

Squad: Ghulam Shahid, Alok Yadav, Rehaan Qureshi, Nishikant Bile, Sachin Dhekale, Azeem Khan, Rahul Yadav, Sayed Altamash, Navnit Singh, Rohit Sawant, Navin Lata, Ashis Das, Pramod Pandey, Baldev Singh, Utpal Das, Pratik Rawool, Abhishek Patkar, Ajinkya Narkar