TFM feature - Interview with Goa U-18 Girls Team Coach

Goa’s girls team won their last quarterfinal league match in the ongoing Junior National Football Championship for Girls.The Goan girls were drawn with Telangana and Jammu and Kashmir in the preliminary league. After getting the better of both teams by thumping margins, the team was drawn into the quarterfinal league stage with Delhi, Orissa and Mizoram. Goa lost to Delhi 0-2, lost to Orissa 1-2, and beat Mizoram 4-0, and consequently bowed out in the quarterfinal stage.

The team was coached by Mr. Shekhar Kerkar, AFC B License coach. Mr. Kerkar shares his thoughts on Goa’s performance, and puts the whole tournament in perspective.

Please share your assessment of Goa’s performance in the tournament.

It must be said that the team has improved from where we had started. We started our preparation with a 20 day camp of which the girls stayed together for 10 days before the tournament. There has been a marked improvement in their performance right from day one.

The matches against Jammu and Kashmir and Telangana were relatively easier, but we met with stiff competition against the stronger teamsin the quarterfinal league.

The one match that cost us was the Delhi match. We missed a lot of chances. We should have scored at-least 3 goals, if not more. Conceding an own goal just before half time changed the tempo for our girls. Orissa, had 10 internationals, and our girls fought bravely against their strong defence. We did not capitalise on our chances and we paid the price. The Mizoram side we beat 4-0, was a depleted side, due to injuries. However I would give full credit to the girls for their much improved display.

Looking back, I feel our best match was the one against Orissa. We put their team under pressure right from the start and we continued it till the end. Eight of the 20 players in the squad are born in 2000 or 2001, and all the girls got a chance to play in the tournament, with players who were much more accomplished and born in 1998 and 1999. Considering that the team was a young side, and that 14 of the players would be eligible to play in the same tournament, if held next year, the experience has been highly rewarding and fruitful.

All the girls have played to the best of their abilities, and we must give full credit to their coaches and teachers for their development.

How good are the other teams in the competition as compared to Goa?

I would say that of the 24 teams in the competition, about 10 teams are more or less on par. The two teams that got eliminated in the preliminary rounds, who were good enough to be among the 8 quarterfinalists, would be Haryana and Sikkim. For me, Maharashtra and Goa were the ones who could have gotten far, but lost out closely.

It is a good sign to see that teams like Orissa, Bihar, Jharkhand are producing such quality players, and competing with the traditional powerhouses from the North East like Manipur and Mizoram. This gives Goa a lot of competition, and a lot of work, to be done. Goa has not made it to the semifinals, but we should take this as a challenge and this should spur us on to do better in the next outing.

Competition is good for us. The better the other teams, the more we have to work hard to improve ourselves.

Going forward, what should be the next step?

Like I mentioned, fourteen from the current squad would be eligible to play in the same tournament, next year if it is held. The girls need competition, and it would be a good idea to have an U16 League for schools, and an U18 League for higher secondary schools.

Also, the elite girls, who have represented the state or are on the verge of representing the state should be regularly called for practices, and allowed to play together, so as to develop better coordination and understanding. This will improve the technical and tactical development of the team for the future nationals.

The women’s national football team is ranked 56 in the world, while the men are ranked in the 150s. If we are dreaming about India in the World Cup of Football, we have to focus on our women. They will get us to the World Cup faster than the men would. Thailand played the Women’s World Cup in 2015. India’s turn will come soon, if all the different states unitedly work together, and a comprehensive programme is developed to enhance the performance of the best girls of the tournament, just like it is done with the boys team.

- Team coach Shekhar Kerkar