New season, new hopes

The Mumbai District Football Association (MDFA) league’s new season is set to begin on July 1, just 24 days after the previous season ended. However, this time round, the officials claim that they have made some changes so that there is a longer break for them. The season will open with the third division.

This year, the MDFA has incorporated some new features into its structure to ensure that matches are not rescheduled according to the convenience of a player or a team. “Earlier we would impose a fine of Rs1,000 on the teams but nobody paid up. This year, however, if a team reschedules a match at the last minute, then we will award the team that has arrived at the venue, a forfeit,” said an MDFA committee member on condition of anonymity.

The relegation system will be back after a season’s gap. Unlike last year when the MDFA had decided against relegating any team, this season, the bottom-placed sides will face relegation.

The main problem for the MDFA has always been the unavailability of grounds. As reported by DNA earlier, the MDFA had to hire a few grounds across the city.

However, the one big feature of this year’s division matches is that all the finals would be held at the new look Cooperage grounds, provided the grounds are ready. “The basic idea is to give the players an idea as to how an artificial turf feels like when they play a football game. It’ll be a novel experience for them,” added Vaz.

Currently, the Cooperage ground is still undergoing renovation with the stands still being constructed. Vaz assured that it was in the final phase and the ground would be ready in three months.