Mohamed Habib and Suman Dutta (Kolkata) and Lazim Ali (from Kerala) to visit Glasgow
The Mahindra Youth Football Challenge 2012-13 Intercity tournament concluded in Bangalore on Thursday with three players, two from Ashok Nagar Vidyasagar Bani Bhaban, Kolkata and one from St. Joseph’s HSS, Kerala being picked to travel and train with the Celtic Football Club in Glasgow, Scotland for ten days in mid-August this year.
This was announced by P N Sankaran, Director, Operations Procam International, the promoters of the event, in the presence of four coaches from Celtic Football Club, Greig Robertson (International Academy Development Officer & Youth Academy Coach), Mark Tobin (Centre of Excellence coach), Tom McKay (Academy Goalkeeping coach) and Michael Mcilroy (Grassroots Coach).
Mohamed Habib and Suman Dutta (both from Kolkata) and Lazim Ali (from Kerala) were selected on the basis of their performances in the Mahindra Youth Football Challenge Inter-City leg involving the champion schools from six cities, followed by a four-day camp involving the best 22 players. The selected three will enjoy the experience of a lifetime when they travel to Glasgow and stay and train at the Celtic FC Youth Academy, enjoying all the facilities available to junior players at the club.
Mufaddal Choonia (General Manager, Corporate Strategy, Mahindra Group), said, “We are extremely happy today as we have identified the three boys who will be sent to Celtic FC in Scotland for further training. The response that the Mahindra Youth Football Challenge has received in its three years of existence proves that we have achieved the objective we set ourselves at the start. We have aimed to promote football at the grass roots level and provide a platform for Under-14 boys to showcase their skills and play the game in a competitive and high class environment. I congratulate Mohamed Habib, Suman Dutta and Lazim Ali on being selected to go to Scotland and I wish them all the very best for a wonderful career ahead”.
“The Mahindra Youth Football Challenge has provided a platform to promote grassroots football in the true sense, with lesser known schools putting it across their fancied counterparts and propelling their players into the limelight. Procam International is indeed proud to be part of this novel initiative and is committed to evolve and improve it in order to help fructify the dreams of talented under-14 football players.” said P N Sankaran.
“Procam International commends sponsors Mahindra & Mahindra for their vision, partners Celtic Football Club for their commitment, and the District Football Associations in each of the cities for their guidance and support,” he added.
Greig Robertson, the Celtic Football Club coach said, “The Mahindra Youth Football Challenge has been a great success. The Mahindra organisation, in partnership with the Celtic Football Club, has put together an exciting project. With the help and expertise of Procam International the tournament has provided a platform and opportunity for young players from across India to showcase their talent and, hopefully, earn a chance to further enhance their skills when they visit Glasgow in August. Celtic Football Club is very proud to be part of such a project.”
“The enthusiasm and dedication of all the players, not just the selected 22, has been first class and a credit to the boys, their schools and their families. Hopefully, they have learnt something new and leave with lifelong memories,” he added
Explaining the basis for selecting the three boys, Greig Robertson said that, Mohammed Habib is a very quick left sided attacking player who is strong in a 1v1 situations, beating defenders and creating chances for himself and others. He is also very competent on his right side allowing him to play in either flank or through the middle as the main goal threat. He possesses a very powerful shot and a good of range of passing.
Lazim is an industrious midfield player who gets himself from box to box supporting the play and getting back in to defend and cover. He is technically very good with the ball at his feet and can initiate attacking phases of play from the middle of the park. He has the ability to shoot very accurately from distance and also penetrate the opposition by playing passes through them or running in beyond himself.
Suman has played the majority of the games as a right full back although he has the ability and knowledge to play in a number of positions. He has incredible energy to get up and down the park particularly on the overlap. He is a very brave and courageous young player who plays the game with huge energy and enthusiasm. A wonderful range of passing and the ability to deliver a telling cross from the wide area.
The Mahindra Youth Football Challenge, promoted by Procam International, is India’s first grassroots level under-14 football tournament, aimed at identifying talented footballers who will get a chance to travel to Scotland and train with Celtic FC. This initiative is part of the Mahindra Group’s commitment to promote football at the grassroots level. The company has partnered with Scottish football giants, Celtic Football Club, who will take on the responsibility of training and developing young talent identified through the initiative.
The Mahindra Youth Football Challenge travelled to Bangalore, Delhi, Goa, Kerala, Kolkata and Mumbai, where 32 schools played the Intra-City leg to pick the champion schools from each city.
The six champion schools (Greenwood High, Bangalore; Delhi Public School, Vasant Kunj-Delhi; Don Bosco High School, Panjim–Goa, St. Joseph’s Boys HSS, Calicut-Kerala; Ashoknagar Vidyasagar Bani Bhaban High School, Kolkata and Don Bosco High School, Matunga, Mumbai) and their coaches underwent a four-day camp from April 13 to 16, conducted by coaches from the Celtic Football Club.
This clinic was a precursor to the Mahindra Youth Football Challenge Inter-City Championship, which was played from April 17 to 22 to decide the Champion schools of the Mahindra Youth Football Challenge 2013.
Ashoknagar Vidyasagar Bani Bhaban High School, Kolkata and Don Bosco High School, Panjim–Goa, qualified to contest the final of the Mahindra Youth Football Challenge and the Kolkata school emerged champions after a well-fought final to take home the winner’s purse of Rs 50,000, with the Goa school winning Rs 30,000.
Based on their performance in the Inter-City Challenge, 22 players were picked for the final four-day camp from April 23 to 26, conducted by Greig Robertson, Mark Tobin, Tom McKay and Michael Mcilroy.
Having watched the players carefully, judged their performances in match situations, assessed their physical conditioning as well as their technical acumen, the experts from Celtic Football Club have picked the most talented players who will travel to Celtic Football Club, Glasgow to train there for 10 days.
The third edition of the Mahindra Youth Football Challenge was received extremely well by the top 32 schools from each of the six cities it travelled to, and reached out to many others, spreading the message that Mahindra is committed to the promotion of grass roots football in the country.
Promoters, Procam International, will strive to evolve and improve the Mahindra Youth Football Challenge to provide a more fulfilling playing experience to each and every participant and the day will not be far when the Mahindra Youth Football Challenge will be the conveyor belt to churn out the most talented under-14 football players in the country.
Mahindra Youth Football Challenge 2012-13
Title Sponsor: Mahindra & Mahindra
Partnered by: Celtic Football Club
Radio Partner: 92.7 BIG FM
Promoted by: Procam International
About Mahindra
The Mahindra Group focuses on enabling people to rise through solutions that power mobility, drive rural prosperity, enhance urban lifestyles and increase business efficiency.
A USD 15.9 billion multinational group based in Mumbai, India, Mahindra employs more than 155,000 people in over 100 countries. Mahindra operates in the key industries that drive economic growth, enjoying a leadership position in tractors, utility vehicles, information technology and vacation ownership. In addition, Mahindra enjoys a strong presence in the agribusiness, aerospace, components, consulting services, defence, energy, financial services, industrial equipment, logistics, real estate, retail, steel and two wheeler industries.
In 2012, Mahindra featured on the Forbes Global 2000 list, a listing of the biggest and most powerful listed companies in the world. In 2013, the Mahindra Group received the Financial Times ‘Boldness in Business’ Award in the ‘Emerging Markets’ category.
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