State Sports Academy holds trials for nine vacancies

BIJOY GURUNG

Gangtok,: The two-day selection trials for induction into the State Sports Academy (SSA) concluded on Sunday at Paljor Stadium, with around 125 young footballers from across Sikkim showcasing their talent.

A total of 35 players were shortlisted for the final round on Sunday, out of which nine will be selected to join the academy under the State Sports department.

The trials for Under-16 players were supervised by Sports joint director JigmeYouzar and Paljor Stadium in-charge Navin Lama. The selection committee included former national footballers Chewang Paul, SanjuPradhan and BikashJairu, along with Sports department football coach PuspaGurung.

The selection process was conducted to fill nine vacant seats at the SSA after some of the previously inducted trainees withdrew for various reasons. Last year, the academy had inducted 30 footballers through a State-level selection process.

Speaking on the response, Sports joint director JigmeYouzar said the trials, despite inclement weather conditions on the first day, witnessed enthusiastic participation from across the State. He added that experienced former national players were brought in as selectors to ensure a fair and high-quality selection process. We want to ensure that the best talents of Sikkim football are selected for the SSA, he said.

Paljor Stadium in-charge Navin Lama informed that the final list of selected players provided by the selection committee will be released within a couple of days. Parents of the selected candidates will be called for document verification, followed by medical examination of the selected players, he said.

He further highlighted the progress of the academy in the past one year, stating that SSA trainees receive regular coaching from departmental coaches while continuing their education in local schools. It has been a year since the academy resumed, and we have achieved good results in competitions like the Subroto Cup at the State level and also won recent U-17 Army football tournament, he added.

Selector Chewang Paul said the panel carefully assessed each player’s technical skills, game intelligence and physical attributes to identify the best prospects.

SanjuPradhan and BikashJairu, both products of the SSA’s first batch who went on to represent the Indian national team and play in top ISL and I-League clubs, expressed their happiness at returning as selectors.

We were the first batch of this academy and it is our happiness to come here, and this time we have come as selectors, said the duo, thanking the Sports department for inviting them as selectors for the trials. They encouraged the young talents at the academy to work hard and push for excellence.

We are always there to support them and send them to clubs outside Sikkim as we, being ex-players, we have connections, they said.

The two former Indian international footballers from Sikkim, to a question, stressed the need to strengthen grassroots football in Sikkim. They noted a decline in junior-level tournaments, which they believe is affecting player development.

“There are fewer junior-level competitions compared to senior tournaments. While Sikkim continues to perform well at the senior level, the lack of exposure at the grassroots is gradually seeing our young players losing interest in the sport,” said Pradhan.

Both Sanju and Bikashemphasised the need for coordinated efforts by the State Football Association, the Sports department and other stakeholders to nurture talent from an early age.