It has been a warm homecoming for coach Tejinder Kumar, with his boys from the Chandigarh Football Academy winning everything on offer in the Subroto Cup so far without conceding a goal, as he calls the Ambedkar Stadium his home for having spent his best football years here.

But behind his playing days across the country — for JCT, Churchill Brothers, Dempo SC, FC Kochin and ITI — with the likes of Carlton Chapman, Bruno Coutinho, Bhaichung Bhutia, Jo Paul Ancheri and IM Vijayan, Kumar always dreamt of putting north India on the national football map. And with I-League players like Ravinder Singh (Air India), Pawan Kumar and Randeep Singh (both JCT) over the last couple of years, the former India midfielder says his mission has only kick-started.

“Even before retirement I had decided to take up coaching. As players from north India, we always felt the lack of recognition and fan-following that others used to enjoy. JCT was the only entity contributing to national football since the 1970s among the northern states,” the 38-year-old Kumar told Sportline.

“The Chandigarh Football Academy, which is funded by the government, was the perfect opportunity for me because it presented me with a chance to see players at a very young age. This team is the under-14 2006 team which lifted the Subroto Cup title three years ago.

“We are yet to make a mark at the national level but CFA has earned a name in the age-group competitions; we have fourteen players playing in the various national junior teams. This is just the beginning and I’m enjoying it,” he added.

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