WOMEN’S NATIONAL TEAM GO THROUGH THE PACES AHEAD OF ASIAN GAMES


AIFF Media Team

With the Incheon Asian Games on the horizon, the India Women’s Senior National Team Preparatory Camp is in full swing at the Cooperage Stadium in Mumbai.

The duration of the Camp is from July 11 till August 25, 2014. A total of 35 girls are attending the Camp. Newly appointed Head Coach Tarun Roy is presiding over the sessions which include core training in the mornings and match related with the ball training in the evenings.

From here the Team would be travelling to China for an International Exposure Tour from August 25 to September 10. The squad would be advancing to Incheon for the Asian Games from China. The Incheon Games start from September this year.

Talking to www.the-aiff.com, Roy informed, “stress will be given on fitness and match related practice.” “The girls need to get back in shape first as some of them were not part of the Women’s Nationals in Assam. They need to be fit first and we are working hard at it. Fitness is key to success,” the Coach added.

Roy was one of the chief scouts in the Women’s Nationals held in the districts of Golaghat and Dibrugarh in Assam this May. “The list of probables has players who have done well in the Nationals. We are looking at a bigger pool and the very best will be making the final cut.

“At present we are focusing on match related training sessions in the evening and all of it is with the ball. I am trying to inculcate a fluid 4-2-3-1 formation and the girls are taking time to adjust. I am glad that we have sufficient time to fine tune ourselves before it is show time.”

The Team which has won two SAFF titles till now will be aiming for a quarter final finish in the Asian Games in which they are taking part for the second time. “A quarterfinal finish is the least we expect. Of course we want to go the distance, that’s what everybody plays for but we are setting our goals. Quarterfinal is a must and we take it forward from there.”

The most recent tournament played by the Senior Team was the AFC Women’s Asian Cup (Qualifiers) last year in Palestine.

The list of 35 Probables is as follows:

GOALKEEPERS: Okram Roshni Devi (Manipur), Aditi Chauhan (Delhi), Tikina Samal (Orissa), Pushpa Tirkey (Jharkhand).

DEFENDERS: Romi Devi, Radharani Devi, Umapati Devi (all from Manipur), Ashalata Devi (Delhi), Suprava Samal (Railways), Tuli Goon (West Bengal), Lako Bhutia (Sikkim), Nirmala (Haryana), Sumitra Marandi (Jharkhand),

MIDFIELDERS: Kamala Devi (Railways), Premi Devi, Bembem Devi, Mandakini Devi (all from Manipur), Supriya Routray, Manisa Panna, Montesori Chanu (all from Railways), Amoolya Kamal (Karnataka), Swati Rawat (Delhi), Neha Kumari (Bihar), Dorothi Oriya (Assam), Margaret Castanha (Goa), Manpreet Kaur (Railways), Indumathi Kathiresan (Pondicherry).

FORWARDS: Parmeshwori Devi, Rinaroy Devi, Dangmei Grace, Bala Devi (all from Manipur), Jyoti Burrett (Delhi), Pinky Magar, Sasmita Malik (both from Ralways), Jabamani Soren (Orissa).

STANDBYES: Durva Vahia (Goalkeeper — from Maharashtra), Paromita Sit (Midfielder — from Karnataka), Kavita Devi (Froward – from Haryana), Gita Das (Forward – from West Bengal), Nandhini Munusamy (Forward – from Tamil Nadu).