Anupam to lead Bengal in Santosh Trophy

KOLKATA: Bengal will launch their defence of the Santosh Trophy in Guwahati with a whole new set of players but coach Shabbir Ali has insisted that his team is still capable of regaining the glory.
There will be no Snehashish Chakraborty who led Bengal to a remarkable triumph at the Salt Lake Stadium last year, breaking the state's 11-year trophy drought. Nor will be there Denson Devadas, who was deservedly adjudged Man of the Tournament, whose remarkable performance throughout the tournament culminated in a brace in the 2-0 win over Punjab in the final.
With most of Bengal players busy in the business end of I-League, Anupam Sarkar will lead Bengal in the tournament while Ali has to rely on as many as eight CFL second-division players to deliver the goods.
"There is no point of crying over this. In fact, all teams will suffer similarly in the tournament. Some of the boys have played in the IFA Shield and have done well. We will go to Guwahati full of confidence and with determination to repeat the success" Ali said.
The Squad:
Goalkeepers: Naseem Akhtar, Debjit Majumdar, Shibram Dey; Defenders: Anupam Sarkar, Mohon Sarkar, Sourav Chakraborty, Snehasish Dutta, Safar Sardar, Suman Dey, Avinaba Bag, Gurprit Singh; Midfielders: Santosh Oraon, Surabuddin Mollick, Goutam Kujur, Mumtaz Akhtar, Jamir Ali Mondal, Francis Xavier; Forwards: Budhiram Tudu, Bikash Narzaray, Branco Cardozo. Coach: Shabbir Ali, Assistant coach: Debashis Mukherjee.