Kerala Playing Services in the 2013 Santosh Trophy Final
Source: spiderkerala.net
At the Santosh Trophy final in 2013, Kerala striker R. Kannan missed out on a beautiful opportunity to score, and the match ended up going into penalties with Kerala losing to Services 3-4. After the match, at a dinner hosted by their sponsors, Ramco Cements, R. Kannan lamented about the missed opportunity. However, instead of dwelling on how he could have possibly salvaged a game in the past, he told Balaji K. Moorthy of Ramco Cements that he intended on working harder and bringing home the cup in 2014!
Inspired by R. Kannan’s dedication to the sport, Ramco Cements decided to tie up with the Kerala Football Association again, and work towards boosting the sport in the state. They started the Ramco Kerala Premier League in 2014, which saw participation from 12 clubs across the state. In keeping with their commitment to football in Kerala, Ramco recently started a new youth league, the Ramco State Academy League. This one-of-a-kind U16 football competition is being held between the champion academies of each of the 14 districts in the state.
Boys from Eravil Coaching Centre Practice Drills
Source: Eravil Coaching Centre Facebook Page
The 14 teams have been divided into 4 groups, and will play in the U16 league-cum-knockout competition this week. The winner from each group will play in the semi-finals on 6th February with the winning teams going head-to-head in the finals on the 7th. While the schedule for the 7 days is quite rigorous, it will give the young footballers a good chance to get some competitive match experience while fine-tuning their skills.
Although a company that deals in cement, Ramco is doing amazing work to help boost grassroots football in Kerala, and we can only hope that other businesses across the country follow their lead. In India, numerous academies are still struggling to provide football training and facilities to the youth of the country, and with backing from successful corporates like Ramco, we hope the situation will change for the better!
Here’s a look at the four groups that will battle it out to reach the finals on 7th February. We wish all the teams the very best of luck!
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