Santosh Trophy may be held in Kolkata

Kolkata: India`s premier national football tournament, Santosh Trophy, may be held here this year although the IFA is yet to finalise the venue. According to sources, Goa which was scheduled to host the 64th edition of the meet in June, has expressed inability to do so with the monsoon hitting the state by that time. "GFA may not host the tournament due to monsoon, so Kolkata will be hosting the Santosh Trophy sometime in September after the IFA Shield. Dates are yet to be finalised," said a source. He said grounds like Howrah Stadium and Vidyasagar Krirangan in Barasat will be considered for the tournament. The IFA secretary, Utpal Ganguli, however said, "Nothing has been finalised as yet. We have expressed interest." Punjab were the champions and Bengal runner-up in the last edition of the meet, which gives an opportunity to those players who do not feature in the I-League and Federation Cup to showcase their talent and thereby be picked by several clubs in the country. PTI