Manipur witnessed the birth of its first Baby League in the Bishnupur district, home to many a football club.
The Young Legends’ League, Bishnupur, will have three age groups, Under-6, Under-8 and Under-10 with local players hailing from different parts of the host district participating in the tournament under the aegis of 8 unique teams across the aforementioned age groups.
The 5-aside league is based on the All India Football Federation’s Baby Leagues
model, wherein 8 teams will be competing against each in a three legged league format.
Matches will be played once every weekend with the league expected to run between 4
and 6 months. A total of 252 matches will be played with all teams in a particular age
group playing 21 games each throughout the season. Each squad will consist of 10
players and team managers will be encouraged to register girls in their teams.
Toubul Youth & Development Association (TYDA) and 8one Foundation joined hands in this venture. It is 8one’s second Baby League in the Northeast, after conducting India’s first one in Chhampai, Mizoram. The YLL, which witnessed more than 40 games per team in its first season, is currently in its second.
“Young Legends’ League is not a short term engagement but a five to eight month long
intensive programme. YLL aims to instil social values such as respect, honesty and
teamwork amongst the children alongside football development,” said Vikram Rajkumar, one of the officials involved with the league.
Bale Takhel, a football enthusiast from Manipur, shared his thoughts on why such initiatives are important to take Indian Football to the next level. “Manipur has always been a talent hub for passionate and skilled football players especially those hailing from rural areas. The ask has always been to hone their capabilities both from a social and technical aspect. It’s good to see 8one supporting a community based engagement in Toubul.”
The first match day also witnessed the attendance of former Indian internationals Renedy Singh and Gouramangi Singh.
Renedy emphasised on how such leagues are important for talent development. “This is exactly what we need; going to the grassroots in remote parts and creating structured avenues for kids. Back in our days we didn’t have this and had to go through an arduous route to success. It is very important to expose children to the game at a younger age. We all know that Manipur has produced a lot of national team players based on their sheer talent. With such an initiative, that guarantees a lot of games for kids across age groups, I am sure Manipur will be producing more and more talented players in the years to come.”