When a long kick from Satwik, a 13-year-old trainee at the Chandigarh Football Academy (CFA) hit the woodwork, an annoyed coach Harjinder Singh shouted from the dugout “Pass the ball, don’t go for glory.” The venue was the Sector 42 football ground in Chandigarh, where around 40 budding footballers were going through the paces under the watchful eyes of Harjinder, 62, who was reappointed by the UT Sports Department, in April as the head coach of the CFA. Dedication and passion personify the man who has been relentlessly training his boys at the prestigious academy.
Conducive ambience
If we look at the success story of the CFA, it is quite enviable. Since 2004-05 when the first batch graduated from the academy, around 40 of its trainees have represented India in various age-groups. The successful journey started in 2005 when four trainees made it to the
India U-15 SAF Cup squad. There was no looking back after that.
“Our trainees make it big in the top professional league. Most of our trainees are from humble background and football gives them hope for a better life. It is these achievements that have been a source of motivation for others,” said Harjinder.
So, what is the key to CFA’s success? “In CFA we have developed a competitive football culture over the years and that has helped a number of players don the national jersey. We are doing better than others because the standard of coaches in India has declined over the years and the All India Football Federation (AIFF) has to face the flak for it," he said.
The former defender, who has played for JCT and East Bengal and was also part of the Asian All-Star team in 1974, is of the view that one cannot produce champions overnight. “Producing champions on a regular basis is a long process. We framed a road map way back in 2000 and this is the reason why CFA has had such a strong presence in Indian football in various age-groups. Currently, most of the Indian coaches are mediocre and we need to first work on this area so as to produce more Chhetris (Sunil)," he added.
Continuing with his swipe at AIFF, he said, “They (AIFF) are dreaming of being part of the football world cup but trust me, I cannot see this happening in the next 30 years. The federation will keep talking about the grass-root structure but where are the coaches?”
Back home
The former Indian player who had been heading the academy since its inception in 2000, left in July last year after alleging mismanagement. And he couldn’t be happier having returned to the place he belongs to. “I have returned home. The Sports Director (Capt. Karnail Singh) and the Chandigarh Administration have been very supportive. Things are on course and with the positive approach of the higher authorities, we will restructure this academy,” said Harjinder who left CFA in July 2017 and joined the Delhi United Club in Noida.
Looking ahead The veteran coach, who has produced more than 50 professional footballers during his previous tenure at the academy, wants to rope in more players from the region. “The focus will be on enrolling more players from the region in the academy. We have a good lot of footballers who will be ready to play in major championships within four months. The Administrator’s Cup and Subroto Cup will be two of the major events for this season," he said. And his plans don’t end here as he will travel to Pune to give his boys more exposure. “In May or June I will be travelling with my team to Pune to play some friendly matches against the Indian Super League (ISL) side Pune FC. It will be a good exposure for these kids,” said Harjinder. Elaborating on the future of the academy, Singh added the UT administration had started registering players, a good step towards holding back players. “We lost many of our players as other academies lured them in one way or the other. We are not like other academies which are into poaching. We believe in making a settled team,” he signed off.
Chandigarh, being a Union Territory, has their advantage of using Sports funds effectively. In bigger states, funds get diverted to other priorities. Chandigarh administration has done a wonderful job in Tennis also-hosted Davis Cup and coaching many young players. Less politicians and more sports loving Administrators.
How 'A' licence holding Indian coaches are nothing but puppets
India have several A licensed coaches but unfortunately, most of them work as assistants to foreign coaches in ISL or become puppets in I-League...
East Bengal recently roped in former ATK assistant coach Bastab Roy as their new head coach for the upcoming 2018/19 season. Roy, who has been the assistant coach in the Indian Super League (ISL) franchise since 2015, will replace Khalid Jamil at the helm of affairs.
While it may seem that Bastab has got an upgrade in his role, in reality, he will perform the exact same duties which he used to do at ATK.
East Bengal had earlier announced that Subhash Bhowmick will continue to serve as the technical director of the club. With someone like Bhowmick in the dressing room, it is highly unlikely that Bastab will have any say in the running of the team, which was more or less the same role he performed at ATK.
This is a normal practice among the I-League clubs since the All India Football Federation (AIFF) made it mandatory for the clubs to appoint head coaches with AFC ‘A’ Licences. ISL also makes it mandatory for Assistant coaches to have an A License. While several coaches underwent the test and grabbed the required licences, the ‘legends’ decided to give it a skip. Two of the most successful coaches in the history of Indian football, namely Subrata Bhattacharya and Subhash Bhowmick, did not feel the need to get the licences done.
Subrata Bhattacharya’s last major head coach stint was with East Bengal back in 2007 where he did not last even a season. Bhowmick last worked with East Bengal in 2009 where he lasted for only 10 months.
But the lack of necessary coaching license did not mean that their coaching careers ended. Clubs found loopholes in AIFF’s rules and appointed them as technical directors.
Subrata Bhattacharya took charge of Mohun Bagan in 2011/12 season with former player and ‘A’ licence holder Prasanta Banerjee as the head coach. While Prasanta was the boss on paper, Bhattacharya controlled proceedings in reality.
The same thing happened in 2012/13 when Churchill Alemao appointed Subhash Bhowmick as Churchill Brothers’ technical director with Mariano Dias at the helm of affairs. Under Bhowmick’s guidance, Churchill won their second I-League title.
The above instances clearly show how the AFC ‘A’ licence coaches are mere puppets who are controlled by the ‘technical directors’ who haven't got the coaching degrees. In the ISL, most of the Indian Assistant Coaches do not have any say with regards to the first team decisions. Insiders in several ISL clubs have informed that many of the assistant coaches are not even present at the training sessions.
In one of the ISL franchisees in the earlier seasons, a foreign coach refused to take his Assistant Coach for away games. Also, in another franchise, the Indian Assistant coach had not watched the I-League matches and the team had to rope in a consultant to pick their Indian contingent.
While one cannot doubt the abilities of coach’s like Bhowmick, Bhattacharya, it has to be kept in mind that there is a reason why the parent bodies of world football have made it mandatory for the football coaches and managers to have licences.
Across the world, coaching license is mandatory. The stardom of a footballer from yesteryears does not matter when it comes to coaching. However, one also has to question the clubs as to what is the role of such coaches in the first-team process. Do assistant coaches have any say in choosing players in India?
In fact, in the ISL, the club CEOs seem to be more proficient in picking players rather than qualified assistant coaches!
India have a huge pool of A licensed coaches but unfortunately, most of them work as assistants to foreign coaches in ISL or become puppets in the hands of ‘technical directors’ in I-League. At the end of the day, Assistant Coaches are just doing youth development or heading grassroots programmes.
To take an example, renowned coach Bimal Ghosh, who does not have an A license, has produced many notable players. How many players have these licensed coaches produced? All this raises questions as to how effective is the A License coaching course in India and whether the clubs have any confidence in handing these coaches responsibility of the club.
Someone like Khalid Jamil was an exception when he refused to acknowledge Bhowmick’s authority in the team. After the veteran coach took charge as the club’s technical director, it was expected that he would take the responsibility from Jamil. But the former I-League winning Aizawl FC coach did not let that happen as he remained the boss of the side until his last assignment that was the Super Cup. That was the very reason Bhowmick never liked Khalid and he was sacked at the end of last season.
This year in East Bengal it will be a repeat show of what happened in Mohun Bagan and Churchill Brothers. Bhowmick will be the boss and Bastab Roy will be his yes-man.
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http://m.hindustantimes.com/football/aiff-coaching-licence-exception-for-employee-not-for-ex-india-player/article1-1366888.aspx
>:P
Please coach the coaches!
Dedication and passion personify the man who has been relentlessly training his boys at the prestigious academy.
Conducive ambience
If we look at the success story of the CFA, it is quite enviable. Since 2004-05 when the first batch graduated from the academy, around 40 of its trainees have represented India in various age-groups. The successful journey started in 2005 when four trainees made it to the
India U-15 SAF Cup squad. There was no looking back after that.
“Our trainees make it big in the top professional league. Most of our trainees are from humble background and football gives them hope for a better life. It is these achievements that have been a source of motivation for others,” said Harjinder.
So, what is the key to CFA’s success? “In CFA we have developed a competitive football culture over the years and that has helped a number of players don the national jersey. We are doing better than others because the standard of coaches in India has declined over the years and the All India Football Federation (AIFF) has to face the flak for it," he said.
The former defender, who has played for JCT and East Bengal and was also part of the Asian All-Star team in 1974, is of the view that one cannot produce champions overnight. “Producing champions on a regular basis is a long process. We framed a road map way back in 2000 and this is the reason why CFA has had such a strong presence in Indian football in various age-groups. Currently, most of the Indian coaches are mediocre and we need to first work on this area so as to produce more Chhetris (Sunil)," he added.
Continuing with his swipe at AIFF, he said, “They (AIFF) are dreaming of being part of the football world cup but trust me, I cannot see this happening in the next 30 years. The federation will keep talking about the grass-root structure but where are the coaches?”
Back home
The former Indian player who had been heading the academy since its inception in 2000, left in July last year after alleging mismanagement. And he couldn’t be happier having returned to the place he belongs to. “I have returned home. The Sports Director (Capt. Karnail Singh) and the Chandigarh Administration have been very supportive. Things are on course and with the positive approach of the higher authorities, we will restructure this academy,” said Harjinder who left CFA in July 2017 and joined the Delhi United Club in Noida.
Looking ahead
The veteran coach, who has produced more than 50 professional footballers during his previous tenure at the academy, wants to rope in more players from the region. “The focus will be on enrolling more players from the region in the academy. We have a good lot of footballers who will be ready to play in major championships within four months. The Administrator’s Cup and Subroto Cup will be two of the major events for this season," he said.
And his plans don’t end here as he will travel to Pune to give his boys more exposure. “In May or June I will be travelling with my team to Pune to play some friendly matches against the Indian Super League (ISL) side Pune FC. It will be a good exposure for these kids,” said Harjinder.
Elaborating on the future of the academy, Singh added the UT administration had started registering players, a good step towards holding back players. “We lost many of our players as other academies lured them in one way or the other. We are not like other academies which are into poaching. We believe in making a settled team,” he signed off.
How 'A' licence holding Indian coaches are nothing but puppets
East Bengal recently roped in former ATK assistant coach Bastab Roy as their new head coach for the upcoming 2018/19 season. Roy, who has been the assistant coach in the Indian Super League (ISL) franchise since 2015, will replace Khalid Jamil at the helm of affairs.
While it may seem that Bastab has got an upgrade in his role, in reality, he will perform the exact same duties which he used to do at ATK.
East Bengal had earlier announced that Subhash Bhowmick will continue to serve as the technical director of the club. With someone like Bhowmick in the dressing room, it is highly unlikely that Bastab will have any say in the running of the team, which was more or less the same role he performed at ATK.This is a normal practice among the I-League clubs since the All India Football Federation (AIFF) made it mandatory for the clubs to appoint head coaches with AFC ‘A’ Licences. ISL also makes it mandatory for Assistant coaches to have an A License. While several coaches underwent the test and grabbed the required licences, the ‘legends’ decided to give it a skip. Two of the most successful coaches in the history of Indian football, namely Subrata Bhattacharya and Subhash Bhowmick, did not feel the need to get the licences done.
Subrata Bhattacharya’s last major head coach stint was with East Bengal back in 2007 where he did not last even a season. Bhowmick last worked with East Bengal in 2009 where he lasted for only 10 months.
But the lack of necessary coaching license did not mean that their coaching careers ended. Clubs found loopholes in AIFF’s rules and appointed them as technical directors.
Subrata Bhattacharya took charge of Mohun Bagan in 2011/12 season with former player and ‘A’ licence holder Prasanta Banerjee as the head coach. While Prasanta was the boss on paper, Bhattacharya controlled proceedings in reality.
The same thing happened in 2012/13 when Churchill Alemao appointed Subhash Bhowmick as Churchill Brothers’ technical director with Mariano Dias at the helm of affairs. Under Bhowmick’s guidance, Churchill won their second I-League title.
The above instances clearly show how the AFC ‘A’ licence coaches are mere puppets who are controlled by the ‘technical directors’ who haven't got the coaching degrees. In the ISL, most of the Indian Assistant Coaches do not have any say with regards to the first team decisions. Insiders in several ISL clubs have informed that many of the assistant coaches are not even present at the training sessions.
In one of the ISL franchisees in the earlier seasons, a foreign coach refused to take his Assistant Coach for away games. Also, in another franchise, the Indian Assistant coach had not watched the I-League matches and the team had to rope in a consultant to pick their Indian contingent.
While one cannot doubt the abilities of coach’s like Bhowmick, Bhattacharya, it has to be kept in mind that there is a reason why the parent bodies of world football have made it mandatory for the football coaches and managers to have licences.
Across the world, coaching license is mandatory. The stardom of a footballer from yesteryears does not matter when it comes to coaching. However, one also has to question the clubs as to what is the role of such coaches in the first-team process. Do assistant coaches have any say in choosing players in India?
In fact, in the ISL, the club CEOs seem to be more proficient in picking players rather than qualified assistant coaches!
India have a huge pool of A licensed coaches but unfortunately, most of them work as assistants to foreign coaches in ISL or become puppets in the hands of ‘technical directors’ in I-League. At the end of the day, Assistant Coaches are just doing youth development or heading grassroots programmes.
To take an example, renowned coach Bimal Ghosh, who does not have an A license, has produced many notable players. How many players have these licensed coaches produced? All this raises questions as to how effective is the A License coaching course in India and whether the clubs have any confidence in handing these coaches responsibility of the club.
Someone like Khalid Jamil was an exception when he refused to acknowledge Bhowmick’s authority in the team. After the veteran coach took charge as the club’s technical director, it was expected that he would take the responsibility from Jamil. But the former I-League winning Aizawl FC coach did not let that happen as he remained the boss of the side until his last assignment that was the Super Cup. That was the very reason Bhowmick never liked Khalid and he was sacked at the end of last season.
This year in East Bengal it will be a repeat show of what happened in Mohun Bagan and Churchill Brothers. Bhowmick will be the boss and Bastab Roy will be his yes-man.