AIFF Media Team

NEW DELHI: The SAFF Championships has traditionally been a happy hunting ground for India. And by Head Coach Maymol Rocky’s words India are ‘confident of a good performance’ at the inaugural SAFF U-15 Women’s Championship being held in Dhaka, Bangladesh from December 17 to December 24, 2017.

“We are confident of a good performance in Dhaka. The girls have given their 100% and the best 23 are in the team”, sounded off the Coach.

Being confident is one thing but being overconfident can be dangerous for any side, and Rocky certainly knows that. “Even though we are confident in our abilities, we cannot take any team for granted. Bangladesh being the home team will certainly come strong at us.”

Coach Maymol’s assessment of Bangladesh is certainly not wrong as the young girls in green and red have 11 players among their ranks which made it to the final of the AFC U-16 Women’s Championship in Thailand, four months ago.

“Anything can happen in football. Some of the girls are from the U-14 team while few are new to the national setup, but they are all equally excited to represent the nation”, quips Rocky.

The team is not short on preparations. A 45-day long camp with 35 girls was held in Kolkata to help the girls train under the watchful eyes of the Coaching staff till they were narrowed down to the 23 travelling to Bangladesh.

“We had the camp in Kolkata because the weather is quite similar. The food is also similar, thus the girls had ample time to get used to the conditions they might face in Bangladesh.”

Along with the U-15 side, Maymol Rocky is also the Head Coach of the Senior Women’s National Team, and she believes this is a ‘perfect platform for the young girls to prove themselves’.

“The talent is there and I believe a few of them can come up through the various age group teams up to the national level. This is certainly a perfect platform for the young girls to prove themselves”, signs off Rocky.

The India U-15 Women’s side square off against Bhutan in the tournament opener on Sunday, December 17.