Youth team in last phase of preparations

SAFF U-16 Football Championship

KATHMANDU, Aug 3: Nepal's U-16 football team looked lively on Sunday during a friendly match against A division outfit Armed Police Force (APF) at the Halchowk ground. As soon as the referee blew the whistle, the two sides started to play like rivals.

Winning the match was a matter of pride for APF while U-16 team's purpose was different. The youth team was under final phase of preparations for SAFF U-16 Football Championship to be held in Sylhet, Bangladesh from August 9-18.

Although, APF coach Krishna Thapa was watching the match patiently, his U-counterpart Upendra Man Singh was loud enough to make his voice heard across the ground.

The U-16 players, 28 in numbers for the closed camp training, had to be careful not to make mistakes. Coach Singh assisted by Rajesh Manandhar made numerous changes in various positions.

After more than three weeks of closed camp trainings, the U-16 team gave a tough fight to heavy weight before going down 1-0. However, Singh expressed satisfaction with the way the young colts played against the departmental team.

"We are at the end of training and it is also a foundation phase of the team. We were focused on fitness trainings for last three weeks but now we are looking for match fitness and that players live up to our expectations," commented coach Singh after the match. "We will focus on team settings from tomorrow [Monday]," he added. "We played the match to test our improvements," said Singh, adding that his side has realistic chances of winning the championship.

Nepal, which finished third in first edition of the championship in 2011, settled for runner up position in the previous competition in 2013 after going down 1-0 against India in the final.

"Players are fighting for their positions in the team, so we can hope that the team comes up with good results," Singh said. He also announced the final list of players on Sunday evening. "The match is a kind of exposure to players who have been training at the artificial turf of ANFA Complex, Satdobato, and played in the natural turn against APF at its home."

"The tournament will be played over grass and there are chances that we have to play on muddy ground," he said.

The youth team also impressed opposition players with the tactics and approaches. "The boys are really good, they made us difficult throughout the match with the approach and tactics," said AFP goalkeeper Amrit Chaudhary.

Coach Singh believes that his side was strong in attacking, especially midfield attacking. But he was little bit cautious about defenders and said that he will adopt corrective measures for the lapses.

Meanwhile, team manager Madhu Sudan Upadhyay informed that Nepali squad comprised of U-16 and U-14 teams of ANFA Academy and was a balanced side. He also added that team has been provided every facility, including senior coaches and enough time for trainings.

Nepal is drawn in the Group B along with Afghanistan and Maldives, while Group A comprises defending champion India, host Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Bhutan and Pakistan pulled out of the tournament.

Nepal will play its first match of the championship against Maldives on August 10 and take on Afghanistan on August 14 in group stage.

Final squad announced Sunday

Goalkeeper: Arpan Karki, Akash Ranabhat, Sandesh Gurung.

Defender: Roman Limbu, Laxman Pariyar, Rajan Gurung, Pawan Karki, Anosh Magar, Suman Aryal, Aashish KC

Midfielder: Abhishek Rijal, Dewas Urau, Manish Karki (C), Sesehang Angdembe, Anil Maharjan, Bikash Ale, Ashok Thapa.

Forward: Rajiv Lopchan, Rejin Subba, Dinesh Henjan, Prezen Tamang, Rajesh Pariyar, Kshitiz Raj GT