By Our Reporter
SHILLONG: The Meghalaya Football Association (MFA) will felicitate the Under-16 state football team for winning the Coca Cola National Football Championship 2013 (Sub Junior Nationals U-16 Boys), which recently concluded in Navi Mumbai, on June 15.
Informing this here on Tuesday, MFA general secretary Larsing M Sawyan informed that the decision to felicitate the team was taken during the executive committee meeting held last Saturday.
“We will give a cash reward of Rs 1 lakh to the team. At the same time, we will also be giving Rs 10,000 each for both the coach and manager for doing a wonderful job with the team,” Sawyan added.
Meghalaya had finished as joint champions of a junior national football tournament in 1999, but this year’s sub-junior triumph was a first outright victory for the state at any level.
Sawyan further stated that this impressive achievement by the sub-junior team is a step forward towards the growth and development of football in Meghalaya in the years to come.
“I am pretty confident that the young budding talents will make the state proud in the years to come by achieving a higher level of excellence,” the MFA general secretary said.
When asked for the reason as to why the young footballers who had done well in the sub-junior level in the past could not achieve the same thing at the senior level, he said that while it is true that that was the case in the past, things are changing for the better in the state.
“But now things have changed. Football in Meghalaya is seeing a major transformation in the last five years.
“Many of the players now are making a career by playing the game,” Sawyan said.
He also said that the MFA will also take steps to nurture these young, talented footballers.