The Durand Cup is in its 135th edition, yet questions are raised about the relevance of Asia’s oldest – and the world’s third-oldest – football tournament.
According to critics, the competition loses a huge amount of significance if the two powerhouses of Indian football – Mohun Bagan Super Giant and East Bengal – don’t participate. Also, some of the teams like South United, Defenders FC (of Sri Lanka) and Uttar Pradesh’s FC Banaras Baghpat, were drubbed in most of their clashes this year.
But at the end of the day, the Durand Cup, born in Shimla in 1888 and Indian football’s season-opener, sets the tone for the rest of the calendar year, giving players the necessary push in expediting their preparation.
That’s not all. The competition also embodies promotion of new teams and giving the youngsters in those sides a much-needed opportunity to prove their mettle against the stronger clubs of the country.
Manipur’s FC Raengdai impressed one and all in their debut season reaching the quarter final, where they lost to Sporting Club Delhi. Raengdai were the only team among the eight first-timers in this edition to advance into the last-eight.
The Meghalaya-based Langsning FC and Nongkseh SS & CC, too, caught the eye of many with their tenacious display, only to miss out on the quarter-final stage by a whisker. Langsning remained unbeaten in the group stage with a win and a couple of
draws, but missed out on the quarters as East Bengal and Jamshedpur FC took the two best slots instead.
The organisers are keen about getting stronger overseas teams from next year. “Central Asian republics are another option where we can reach out as they have good teams. So, we’re thinking about it, and this process actually starts about six months before (the competition),” Major General Dinesh Kumar Singh, SM VSM, General Officer Commanding, Bengal Sub Area, and vice-chairman of the Durand Cup Organising Committee, told The Telegraph on Monday.
In terms of boosting youngsters, the organisers have introduced the emerging players category. Eleven players have been picked as emerging players and awarded ₹1 lakh each.
“It was just our way of saying that he has done well and he needs a little bit of support,” Major General Singh said.
There’s also plans to expand the tournament to other parts of the country next year. “We’ve been told that next year, one group will move out of the Northeast to another part of the country, as it should not remain centric to the Northeast. We’re in talks with a number of state governments as to what support we need and what infrastructure is available,” Major General Singh added.