Siliguri, Feb. 14: The 68th edition
of Santosh Trophy, a national championship of football, will commence
at the Kanchenjungha Stadium here from February 24.
North Bengal
development minister Gautam Deb today said 10 state teams would play in
the tournament and there would be two matches everyday, one during the
day and the other in the evening.
“Matches of
Santosh Trophy, one of the prestigious football tournaments in our
country, will start here from February 24. Teams from Uttarakhand and
Maharashtra will play the inaugural match. Bengal team will start its
quest for the trophy on February 27 when they will face Punjab,” Deb
said.
“The Railway team
has already arrived and other teams will reach very shortly. We have
proved our competence to host national level soccer matches and
considering it, the All India Football Federation has allowed Siliguri
Mahakuma Krira Parishad to host the event here,” he said.
The teams have
been divided into two groups. Group A has the Services team and teams
from Kerala, Mizoram, Uttarakhand and Maharashtra and in Group B there
are teams from West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Railways, Punjab and Goa.
“The first match will start at 2.15pm and the second from 6.15pm,” Arupratan Ghosh, krira parishad secretary, said.
Tickets cost Rs 20 and Rs 10 for the day matches and Rs 30, Rs 20 and Rs 10 for the night matches.(TT)