Air Chief Marshal PV Naik gave away the coveted trophy and cash prize of Rs.1.5 Lakh to the winning team. The runners-up team received a trophy and cash prize of Rs.1 Lakh.
A 45th minute penalty spot kick by Lalrempuia put paid to the hopes of the gritty Danapur boys. Lalrempuia also was adjudged the best player of the tournament. Custodian of the Danapur team, Hemant K Gope, was adjudged the most promising player fetching them cash prizes and an ungeared scooter each.
Both teams displayed a high degree of flair and sportsmanship in reaching the finals. The Mizoram School defeated Tripura 4-3, in quarter-finals and NCC (North East region) 1-0 in semi-finals. In successive tie-breakers, Danapur boys defeated Bangladesh 5-4 in quarter-finals and Meghalaya 5-3 in semi-finals.
The win by Mizoram boys put behind the loss in the Sub-Junior category when Hmar Veng English High School, Mizoram lost 5-3, to Govt. Model High School, Chandigarh in a tie-breaker on Nov 24. The win this year by the Mizoram team comes after missing out on Winners trophy twice in previous two editions.
Mizoram team coach, R Lalmuankima won the prize for the best coach. The Fair Play Trophy was awarded to Vallabh Ashram, MGM Amin and VN Savani School from Valsad, Gujarat.
The three-week tournament was inaugurated on Nov 10. A total of 54 teams including 30 in Juniors (U-17) and 24 in Sub-juniors (U-14) including teams from Bangladesh and Nepal participated in the tournament this year.
The tournament is dedicated to the memory of Late Air Marshal Subroto Mukherjee with the aim to develop soccer at grassroots level. The first edition was held in 1960 with six teams from Delhi area only and has become today the symbol of National Integration.
--IBNS
