Despite defeat, eyes set on Santosh Trophy

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An early exit from the E.K Nayanar Memorial tournament was something that was not expected from Kerala XI, the Santosh Trophy probable team of the state. But, the team walked away without a victory.
However, all hope is not lost. There is still room for the team to fix the problem, as “we have some of the best youngsters,” says the coach.

“We got only four days to train as a team. Apart from this, we were up against all first division teams and second division teams, who had already set themselves up as teams. Still, our players did a good job and we were able to draw two matches,” said M.M. Jacob.

“The idea of participating in the tournament was to facilitate an early entry into the tournament mode and be ready for the Santosh Trophy. It was a good start for us as we have participated in a tournament before the season kicked off,” he said.

He has already identified the pros and cons of the youngsters. “We faltered in the defense. Altogether, we received eight goals in three matches, which is not a good sign. We have to work a lot on it before the Santosh Trophy and get ready for the tournament,” he said.

One of the major problems of the Kerala XI was that the defender of the team, Rahul, who played really well, was not able to play up to the mark because of his injury. When the defence faltered, the goalkeeper got tensed up, and made blunders, that led to early goals in the last match against MEG Bangalore,” he said.

However, in attack and wing play, we have performed well, he said. “Usman, Sumesh and Kannan played exceptionally well. These talented players were the main aces of the team. They played brilliantly and scored goals. We scored six goals in the tournament and this shows our quality in attacking,” he said.

He added, “About five or six players will be selected from the State Club football, which begins on March 28 in Palakkad. Our aim is to set up the best team for the Santhosh Trophy.”

The coach said the tournament was very important as it gave them an opportunity to analyse their strengths and combinations so that, by the time of the Santosh Trophy, a set team would be ready.