Subroto Cup comes back to Nagaland after 42 years

Pilgrim Higher Secondary School (PHSS), Dimapur, Nagaland, beat Government Model Higher Secondary School (GMHSS), Chandigarh 1-0 to win the 61st Subroto Cup International Football Tournament Boys Under-17 title here at the famous Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar Stadium in the national capital.

After the game kicked off, the boys from Nagaland played the more enterprising football. Captain Bapen and Thanglenngam combined well on the left flank where most of the attacks were created. Chandigarh had the best chance of the half when tournament top scorer Lemmet tested Nagaland goalkeeper Shotok, who saved well to keep the scores even.

The second half was an even affair with both teams not able to create any clear cut opportunities taking the game to extra time. Nagaland however, looked the more compact and organized in attack throughout the game.

The goal came early in the first half of extra time, when off a Tongtinlen corner, Setungchim, who had scored a hat-trick in the semi-finals, rose highest to deflect a header past Rohit in the Chandigarh goal.

The 61st Subroto Cup edition began on September 06, 2022, with the Boys Under-14 tournament starting off proceedings. After Manipur's Heirok HS won that category, the girls of St. Patricks, Jumla in Jharkhand took the Girls Under-17 crown on September 27, 2022.

In all, a total of 92 schools representing 25 States and Union Territories of India participated in the three (U-14 Boys, U-17 Girls, U-17 Boys) categories including a team from Bangladesh.

The winners received Rs 3, 50,000 while the runners up recieved Rs 2, 00,000. The semi-finalists and Quarter-finalists Rs 1, 50,000 and Rs 1, 00,000 respectively. The Fair play trophy winners received Rs 50,000 while the Best Player and Best School received Rs 40,000 each. The Best Goalkeeper and Best Coach received Rs 25,000 each.

Speaking at the prize distribution, Air Chief Marshal V.R. Chaudhari, PVSM AVSM VM ADC, Chief of Air Staff, said, "It was heartening to see two fine young teams battle it out so intensely for what is undoubtedly the premiere school football prize in the country."

Olympic silver medalist wrestler and Guest of Honour Ravi Dahiya also shared his thoughts and emotions saying, "Sport in itself is a great guru for kids. It imbibes discipline and focus at a very young age. I congratulate all the winners of today and wish them a bright future ahead."