Red card for 7’s again
Last week, Kerala Football Association (KFA) suspended three players for playing in the unauthorised Sevens Football Tournament held in Kozhikode and gave a stern warning to other players, who take part in Sevens Tournaments.
As the sevens season has started in North Kerala, the age-old tussle between football associations and sevens organisers has again picked up heat.
Though several players have come to mainstream football through sevens football in Malabar region, what worries Kerala Football Association about the short format of the game is that it is not abiding any format or laws that stipulated by AIFF.
“We cannot allow the players to participate in a tournament that does not follow any kind of laws or format. Most of the sevens tournaments are public stunts organised for the people and it is not a professional game at all,” said P. Anil, KFA general secretary.
“The players are participating in these tournaments for monetary benefits. We cannot deny the fact that they are getting paid well but it is not the correct format to play and it will not improve football,” said Anil.
“Most of the organisers of Sevens Tournaments are bothered only about monetary benefits.
Besides, there are no camps or coaching sessions for the players and the player development is simply forgotten. Meanwhile, KFA is trying to promote the game by developing football players through various projects,” he said.
However, it is undeniable that the sevens tournaments in North Kerala are attracting a lot of spectators and players.
“As there are less association tournaments and players are getting more money they are attracted naturally to sevens tournaments.
All the other allegations are just to surpass the truth about our popularity,” said Mohammed Ashraff, the secretary of Kerala Sevens Football Association.
Lionel Thomas, former Santhosh Trophy player, who was recently suspended by the association, said that he opted for the shorter format due to the lack of tournaments and monetary benefits in the longer version.
“We are trying to incorporate the short form based on the rules of the association. However, our aim is not any financial benefits. We need to improve the game and for that we have to stick to the rules and format. We cannot change it to please the spectators,” said Anil.
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