'This is fresh beginning'

With the beautiful game getting the required support from all quarters, it is now left to the All India Football federation (AIFF) to do its bit and see the sport scale new heights in the coming years.

This was the general opinion of different panels such as the marketing, coaches and stake holders, who spoke at the two-day Goa International Football Table event organised by the Goa Football Development Council (GFDC) here on Saturday.

Even the Asian Football Confederation has extended support to this mission spearheaded by Dr Rufino Monteior.

“This is a fresh beginning and a new lease of life for football, but it will all depend on how the parent body (AIFF) leads us from front,” said Churchill Brothers CEO Valanka Alemao.

Salgaocar Sports Club’s Raj Gomes said, “Let us forget about what happened in the past and look forward to a brighter football in the country.”

Meanwhile, a galaxy of celebrities including Sunil Chhetri, Bollywood actor Suniel Shetty, Dronacharya Awardee Syed Naeemuddin, ex-Indian football players Magan Singh and Inder Singh took part in a parade. The winners of the first gold medal for Goa in 1978 were felicitated.

@joepune