Our Correspondent
Kohima | July 17
Nagaland Youth Resources & Sports Advisor, Er. Zale Neikha, who accompanied the under-15 team for the Gothia Cup, today stated that the level of football in Sweden is undoubtedly top level.
“We have visited a few clubs in Sweden including one of the top European clubs FC Rosengard. Interacting with them and witnessing their matches, I feel in Nagaland we need more community support. In Sweden, the community shares the same passion of promoting football. They reflect a collective mindset of football as being more than just a game.”
“Our girls displayed a great performance inspite of their loses because what we need to keep in mind is that they have never played in a league before and they were matched against teams that are ranked in the world top 10,” he stated. “What we need to work on is the real time experience which can only be achieved with greater participation in leagues and longer professional training.”
“With their limited experience some of our girls have already been spotted for future endeavors viz, imlimerenla, Neke Konyak and Medokhono. This is just a start and with the right guidance our Naga players be it boys or girls can have a bright future in sports,” Neikha added. While SC Nagaland lost their first two games, he said the players “won the hearts of the public with their determination, skill and humble background.”