A major leap for FACT Football Academy
KOCHI:For a few months now, a football academy in Kochi has been gearing up for their biggest test since its inception. The FACT Football Academy (FFA) had been gunning for a berth in the Under-13 I-League and bearing the fruit of their hard work, they have finally got the mandatory accreditation requires to ply their trade in the national league. However, their journey to glory is far from accomplished.
The All India Football Federation (AIFF) declared the academy accreditation assessment results the other day and FF Academy one of the handful of academies from the state that were awarded a star rating by the football governing body.
According to AIFF, all academies were assessed on the criteria of technical support, training curriculum, facilities and infrastructure, age-group teams, medical provisions and existing management structure. Based on this assessment, FFA have now met the first requirement to participate in the under-13 age category of the I-League.
The players of FFA are trained on the FACT Ground. The academy functions in a computerised office and an official website is on the way. As per the AIFF regulations, a doctor and physiotherapist have also been appointed for the team.
Contracts are being signed the players, who were selected after conducting state-wide trials, for the under-13 team. “Almost 10 players are from the academy itself. But we are still scouting for players from different academies,” says Walter Antony, coach of the academy. The FF Academy was given a one-star rating in the AIFF’s academy rating programme. “Of the required 135 points to qualify the accreditation, FFA scored 138,” says Walter. In Kochi, three other academies also qualified in the academy accreditation.
The football academy still has a long way to scripting its success. “Though we have the support from FACT, we have a lot of financial requirements, especially when the team starts playing in the I-League,” says Walter. “What we immediately require is a title sponsor.”
Within five years of its inception, FFA has already sent many of its players to play in different professional clubs. Recently, an FFA player Athul Krishna got qualified to the Kerala state under-15 football team. Two students were given the opportunity to play and train abroad. And another two were picked to play in Mohun Bagan FC.The academy currently provides training to young players for a minimal or no charge at all, with former FACT players as coaches.