Nepalese football is on the right track after a stellar showing at the 10th SAFF Championship, even though the hosts bowed out in the semi-final.
Despite the 1-0 defeat against Afghanistan on Sunday in the last four, Nepal have a bright future ahead of them after an impressive performance in the regional football competition.
Nepal opened their SAFF campaign with a morale-boosting 2-0 win over Bangladesh before being held by Pakistan to a 1-1 draw. Their last group match against India also resulted in a 2-1 victory for Nepal.
Nepal finished Group A, which was billed the Group of Death before the tournament began, in top spot with seven points from three matches.
Nepal were the most enterprising team of the group stage, ahead of established names like India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
The chief source of revenue for the All Nepal Football Association is the $250,000 provided to them annually by FIFA to run the game. Apparently, the ANFA does not have sufficient sponsors.
To make up for the shortage of sponsors, the ANFA runs three youth academies to produce football talents. Besides the academies, the governing body has been scouting footballers across the country on a regular basis.
The ANFA spends close to rupees 45 lakh per year on each of its youth academies.
Six national team players have graduated from the academies, including strikers Anil Gurung and Bharat Khawas.
Rising Nepalese star Bimal Gharti Mager is also a product of the Central Academy, which is at the ANFA headquarters in Kathmandu.
Bimal started his international career at the age of 15 against Bangladesh at the AFC Challenge Cup qualifiers in February.
The Central Academy is home to 46 boys in Under-12, Under-14 and Under-16 categories.
The academy students are not eligible to engage themselves in domestic football for any top flight club before turning 19.
‘The academy players occupy the first two floors of the building. The topmost floors are reserved for the national team and age-level teams,’ said Bal Gopal Maharjan, head coach of Central Academy.
ANFA official Gakul Thapa said that the academies have affiliation with different schools and colleges that help to unearth more talent.
The Bangladesh Football Federation, which also receives financial support from FIFA and has no dearth of sponsors, could certainly take a leaf out of Nepal’s book but has yet to open its own proposed youth academy in Sylhet.
The National Sports Council handed the Sylhet BKSP over to the BFF to use for its academy in December 2011 and also promised to renovate the infrastructure.
However, leadership changes at the NSC have meant that there has been little progress despite the Tk 1.94 crore in government funds and $700,000 in FIFA support available for the project.
-With New Age input
