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Little cheer for India, official accepts blame
KOLKATA: Even though entry is free, only 1200 watched India’s stirring fight against the UAE in the Asian under-16 finals at the Nehru stadium in Fatorda, Goa, on
KOLKATA: Even though entry is free, only 1200 watched India’s stirring fight against the UAE in the Asian under-16 finals at the Nehru stadium in Fatorda, Goa, on Thursday. And that is the official estimate.
The stadium can hold nearly 20,000 and has been packed to capacity for FC Goa’s games in the Indian Super League.
The turnout was as far removed from what India coach Nicolai Adam had hoped as his native Germany is from Goa. Speaking to HT here last January, Adam had said he expected a good crowd for India’s games. But he also said there must be a plan.
“Germany hosted the under-17 Euro final round in 2009…and we won it with full stadiums,” he said.
“But that doesn’t happen by itself. In Germany, people watch Bundesliga, Champions League and you have football almost every day on television. Would they then go to watch an under-17 match automatically? No. You have to work on that. School classes were brought in. And that is also my recommendation to the federation (AIFF). But we have smart people in the federation, they know this….”
Adam had said he hoped busloads of children would be brought. A limited budget for promotion has nipped that idea but Joy Bhattacharjya, project director of the local organising committee of the Fifa U-17 World Cup, said he’s not hiding behind excuses. “Whatever the constraints, we have not done a good job and I take full responsibility for this. This India team deserves better and we will do our utmost to get a better turnout for the next game, against Saudi Arabia, on Sunday,” he said, over the phone from Goa on Friday.
“We have reached out to schools and the Goa Football Development Council (GFDC) which has some 4000 students under it. Students with valid identity proof can come with their parents.”
“We are relooking at efforts to promote the competition,” said Kushal Das, general secretary of the All India Football Federation, speaking over the phone from Mumbai.
Requesting anonymity, an official connected with the tournament said schools aren’t willing to take responsibility to send students for matches in the evening. The location of the stadium also means that, with or without escorts, young ones from Panjim are unlikely to make the nearly 32km journey each way for India’s games.
