Deepankar Sharda
Chandigarh, October 26
Held back for two years, the only all-India invitational football tournament ndash; UT Administrator’s Challenge Cup — of the UT Sports Department is likely to be organised next month.
The championship, which is conducted in August or September, had been postponed for one reason or another this year. The last time the championship was conducted in winter was in November, 2017.
“We are yet to take necessary approvals from the higher authorities, following which we will initiate the process of inviting entries by teams. This year, we have decided to invite teams from the nearby states,” said a senior functionary of the Sports Department. He said, “The budget is yet to be finalised and the award money will be announced soon. It is likely to be on a par with the awards given last year, but nothing has been finalise yet.” However, sources claimed the budget for organising this championship had been reduced.
In September, 2019, the department had hosted the last edition of the tournament. However, instead of the under-17 age group, it was organised for under-14 players. The hosts Chandigarh Football Academy (CFA) had won the last edition by defeating Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools (BBFS), New Delhi, 3-0.
“This year, the championship is likely to be organised in its older format ndash;under-17 age group. The hosts (CFA) team has recently claimed second position in the International (U-17) Subroto Cup and the same batch will play in the UT Administrator’s Challenge Cup. The hosts are looking forward to taking advantage of their current performance and win this home tournament.
“In the past years, the host team had won many editions of this championship and a majority of times, did not face any tough challenge. During the league stage, the hosts are usually kept in a safe zone,” claimed a senior coach of the department.
As the department is yet to take over the Sector 17 Urban Park football ground, the tournament is likely to be held at the Sector 7, Sector 42 and Sector 46 sports complexes.
