M’laya in the running
SHILLONG: The Dr T Ao Memorial Football Tournament will kick off in the Mizoram capital Aizawl on Wednesday and will run until February 15.
The tournament, named in honour of Nagaland’s Talimeran Ao, who captained India at the 1948 Olympic Games, will be in its fifth edition.
Meghalaya will take part in the North East competition, fielding the same squad from the recent qualifying round of the Santosh Trophy, also held in Aizawl.
Arunachal Pradesh, however, will not participate in the event, which usually features all eight states of the region.
Last year Shillong hosted the tournament, which is rotated among the North East states, and Manipur emerged the winners, beating Mizoram in the final on penalties.
The seven teams that will compete have been divided into two groups. Group A features Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura. Group B has Manipur, Sikkim and Assam.