Music, vuvuzelas and a dollop of football

BANGALORE: The mood was electrifying. Cheerleaders danced to the tune of high-voltage music, sounds of vuvuzelas reverberated across the stadium, video cameras caught the action on the field from different angles and beamed it on the giant TV screen.
Adding spice to the gala was the expert commentary that energized thousands of youngsters assembled at the Bangalore Football Stadium to catch a glimpse of the final day's action of the Parikrma Champions League.
The fight for supremacy at the artificial turf was even more entertaining, with teams from Bangalore, Kerala and Goa showcasing their footballing prowess in front of their friends and relatives.
But the action shifted to the gallery when former Indian football captain Baichung Bhutia descended on the venue. A thunderous applause followed and the security guards had a tough time handling autograph hunters who made a beeline towards the football icon.
When he took the seat flanked by Indian athletics star Ashwini Nachappa and former international hockey player Ashish Ballal, the whole stadium sang in unison 'Bhutia.. Bhutia'.
Soon, the star player was in for a surprise when he was greeted by the 10 players from the Bangalore's Indian Telephone Industries who won the inaugural Federation Cup football tournament in 1977.
"We were honoured by the Parikrma Foundation's invite to attend this function. The only accolade we got before this event was the tea party hosted by the Karnataka Football Association on our triumphant return from Kochi," said Thomas, who coached the team. "We are happy to meet Bhutia, the heartthrob of millions of Indian football lovers," said Kantharaj, one of key players of the side.
When the hullaballoo settled, Bhutia began watching the matches seriously. "I was impressed with the concept when Ashwini briefed me about the event. So I decided to come here and see the youngsters in action," he said.
He later shook hands with the players lined up for the final match between Farooq Higher Secondary School, Kozhikode and ASC Boys School, Bangalore. "The event is conducted in a professional way. We need more and tournaments like this to unearth talents," he said.
He watched the final and left the stadium after distributing the trophies and other prizes.
'We need more academies'
Bhaichung Bhutia, who was in the city for the Parikrma Humanity Foundation's Champions League final, said it was important to have more school-level tournaments. "Inter-school tournaments will benefit children. In a vast country like ours, it is difficult to conduct age-group football tournaments," he said while interacting with the media. Excerpts
On the importance of academies
We should encourage top clubs to set up football academies to nurture talent. To achieve this goal, the structure and system of Indian football have to be changed. Sadly, our clubs are not interested in setting up youth academies. It is high time clubs focused on youth development plans like Barcelona FC.
On United Sikkim Football Club
Ours is a seven-month-old club and I love to have a youth academy under our club. We have played in the second division I-League. We expected to qualify for the I-League, but unfortunately we could not make the cut.
On the proposed North East Division League?
It is good to have separate regional divisions. It will give more opportunities to local talent. United Sikkim Football Club players, despite being one of the best sides in India, did not get adequate opportunities to showcase their skills. So we need more tournaments.
On playing on artificial turf
We have a limited number of quality grass grounds in India. It is difficult to maintain grass turfs. So artificial turfs are good for us, although they are not the ideal situation. I agree that many of our players get injured playing on artificial turf. But we must understand that Indian grounds can be more injurious to players due to lack of proper maintenance.
On Standard Players Contract
United Sikkim have set a standard by implementing the Standard Players Contract as suggested by the Football Players Association of India (FPAI). The association is working with the All India Football Federation to ensure that all clubs implement the contract system.