20/11/2016 … PANAJI: The Goa Football Development Council (GFDC) unveiled the trophy and announced the qualifying teams for the Inter Centre League of ‘GFDC Rising Stars Football Festival’ Edition IV at the hands of GFDC Chairman, Dr. Rufino Monteiro, in the distinguished presence of GFDC council members, Shantaram Naik, Agnelo Fonseca and Socorro Vaz at GMC Stadium, Bambolim, on Sunday.
This festival will kick off this week with over 1,500 budding footballers aged under-13 vying for top honours. In the course of time, 120 matches will be conducted by GFDC with 91 teams across 38 centers. The grand finale will be held after the students finish with their final examinations of the academic year.
GFDC Council member, Shantaram Naik while addressing the trainees felt great pride in seeing young boys and girls in football attire and thanked GFDC for working so hard towards development of football and the young trainees. “We are in the fourth year and are promising that this initiative to promote football at the grassroots will be taken forward. I wish the trainees all the best in the inter centre tournament,” he said.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr Rufino Monteiro expressed pleasure over the success of the intra centre tournament. “As we kick off the GFDC Rising Stars Football Festival next week, I am very happy to see the skill and competitiveness displayed by my GFDC trainees. It augurs well for the future course of this tournament and for the rising standard of our state sport,” said Dr. Rufino.
“It is not an easy task to organise a tournament with 3,500 trainees and find the best. I would like to give credit to the coaches who have been successful in doing so. From the previous edition few trainees have got into our academy and we do not stop at those 30. We have to now select a few more and spot the best talent,” he added.
