Tag: Grassroots Football League (page 1 of 3)

U15 Nike Premier Cup India Final Round Kicks Off

The last match of the U15 Youth League Zonal Phase concluded almost two months ago and we’re happy to report that the Final Round of the U15 League, now known as the Nike Premier Cup India, kicked off this morning in Goa. The top 12 teams from the Zonal Phase have been put into three groups and will play 18 matches over the next week. The top team from each group will secure their place in the semi-finals along with the best second placed team across all groups.

While these are all teams that have done well in the Zonal Phase, the level of competition will be significantly higher with past results counting for nothing. Everyone starts off on a clean slate and, still in its inaugural season despite the many challenges, the U15 Youth League is now coming to a head! The time has come for the boys to show their mettle.

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Season 2 of Chennai’s Schools Premier League Kicks Off

The impact of Premier League, La Liga and Bundesliga broadcasts on cable television combined with the growing influence of the two-year-old Indian Super League have been instrumental in bringing football into India’s consciousness. Today, everybody from school children to office-going senior executives are enjoying a kickabout at the numerous 5-a-side football turfs popping up all over the country. Interestingly, football has captured the imagination of people in regions where it has traditionally played second fiddle to cricket.

In this context, it is encouraging to see greater numbers of grassroots programs taking off in cities like Chennai, home of defending ISL champs, Chennaiyin FC. The latest boost to grassroots football in Chennai has come from the launch of Schools Premier League – Season 2, which has been graciously sponsored by Radiance Developers. Started in 2014, this year’s league features 16 school teams split into two groups. All schools in a group will play each other once and the top two teams from each group go on to qualify for the semi-finals.

Schools Premier League Launch 1

Celebrating the start of SPL – Season 2
Source: Chennaiyin FC Facebook

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U15 Youth League – The Zonal Phase Ends

On Friday, the U15 Youth League zonal phase came to an end. The final12 matches were played over 4 days last week, and here’s a quick look at the scores:

I League U15 Group A Results Week 2

 

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1st Mumbai FC Masters League Season Ends on a High

After 6 weeks, the inaugural season of Mumbai FC Masters League supported by the MDFA came to an end yesterday. Over the past few weekends, more than 1700 children from over 40 different schools and 30 academies played football at three venues all over Mumbai. Matches were held at Andheri Sports Complex, St Xaviers Ground, Parel, and Kick Football Turf in Powai.

Mumbai FC worked together with the Mumbai District Football Association (MDFA) and For Young Indians (FYI) Sports to give the youth of the city a chance to play football competitively. Mumbai FC also used the league as a way to scout talented youth that they could train for their own youth teams. At the end of the league, 15 students from each age category (U8 boys, U10 boys, U12 boys, U14 girls and U14 boys) will be chosen to train with Mumbai FC for a whole year for free. As an open league, there were schools, academies and even NGOs who participated, with schools like Don Bosco and St. Pauls, and academies like Mumbai Sporting and Christ Academy sending in numerous teams.

U8 Boys Final

St. Pauls play Millat FC in the U8 Finals

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Anantapur U18 Girls League Is A Huge Success

In December 2015, Rural Development Trust’s (RDT) Anantapur Sports Academy (ASA) kicked off the first ever Anantapur Football League (AFL) for girls. Although the Girls AFL came to an end in the first week of February 2016, the initiative has given girls and young women in Anantapur a definitive and bright future in football in India.

In the group stages, each team had to play six games, with the top two teams in each group qualifying for the knock-out round to be played at ASA’s Anantapur Sports Village (ASV). The knock-out stage was scheduled in such a way, that the matches ended well before the athletes needed to prepare for their end-of-year exams. This meant that the players, their parents, coaches, and team managers could focus enough attention on the sport, without having to constantly worry about exam woes.

AFL Girls Final

Action from the 1st AFL Girls Final between Atmakur & Kalyandurg
Source: ASA

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U15 Youth League – Group A Off to a Great Start

Once Shillong Lajong FC U15 beat Gauhati Town Club U15 last Friday, we thought we were done with the U15 Youth League for a while, but a new Zone A started their matches on Sunday, and we’ve had three action-packed days of football since! Here’s a quick look at the scores of matches played this last week:

I League U15 Group A Results Week 1

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ASA Footballers Unbeaten in Maiden U15 Youth League Appearance

The 2015-16 season has been a great time for football at the Anantapur Sports Academy (ASA). The boys have been performing well, ever since the ASA joined hands with Fateh Hyderabad Associated Football Club (FHAFC) to support them in their I-League debut.

It all started when Fateh Hyderabad signed ASA’s senior-most player, S. Bhaskar Reddy to play for their I-League Division 2 team. This was followed by the signing of all the senior U18 ASA boys and U15 ASA boys to play in the IU18 I-League and U15 Youth Leagues for Fateh Hyderabad, respectively.

ASA Team Warms Up

Warming Up Before a Game
Source: ASA

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U15 Youth League – Zonal Phase Nears Conclusion

The zonal phase of the U15 Youth League is nearing its end. Over the past three weeks, Groups E and F played all their matches, and the last few matches of the Guwahati-Shillong Zone (Group D) were also played. Let’s take a look at some of the highlights of these matches, before we look back on how the first 6 groups ended the zonal phase.

SLFC U15 Celebrating

Shillong Lajong FC’s U15 Celebrate a Win
Source: Shillong Lajong FC Facebook Page

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Catching Up on the U15 Youth League – Weeks 9, 10 and 11

Christmas and New Year’s was a busy time for the U15 Youth League, and we found it difficult to keep up with everything going on in all four zones. Week 9 was the last of the season for the Goa Zone (Group C), while week 10 saw the last match of the Kolkata-Jamshedpur Zone (Group A) being played. This weekend, Week 11, saw the last match of the Maharashtra Zone (Group B) being played. Let’s catch up on everything we’ve missed, and see how Groups A, B and C ended the season!

Here’s a quick look at the scores of all the matches played over the last 3 weeks:

Week 9:

U15 Youth League Week 9 Match Results

Week 10:

U15 Youth League Week 10 Match Results 

Week 11:

I League U15 Results Week 11

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U15 Youth League Week 8

The action is heating up in the Hero U15 Youth League with just a handful of games left to be played in Groups A, B & C, Group D just underway and Groups E & F expected to start in January 2016. Here are all the Week 8 results from across the country:

GFI U15 Youth League - Week 8

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