Winning Santosh Trophy like a dream fulfilled, says Karnataka team member Satyajit

GUWAHATI : Still a few days ago he was almost unknown to everyone. But after the Santosh Trophy Satyajit Bordoloi, hails from Morigaon, now a much discussed name in the State football fraternity. Satyajit was the member of Karnataka team who won the Santosh Trophy beating Meghalaya in the final recently. In a conversation with The Sentinel the goalkeeper shared his experience to become the member of Santosh Trophy champion team. Here is the excerpt.

The Sentinel (TS): Share the winning moment.

Satyajit: Oh! It’s beautiful. Can’t describe it in words. Winning this trophy is a dream for many footballers and it is really nice to feel that my dream has been fulfilled.

(TS): How was your experience playing the semi-final and final on foreign soil?

Satyajit: It was a good move from the part of the All India Football Federation to take all those games to Riyadh. The event was organized nicely and it looked like we were playing an international tournament. It was more memorable for me because I played at the same venue where very recently top stars of the world performed for their respective countries.

(TS): Your comments on Meghalaya’s stunning performance in the competition.

Satyajit: We weren’t surprised at all to see them in the final as the side played good football throughout the tournament and beat several top teams of the country. In the final also they looked very determined to win the cup. I should say Meghalaya achieved the runners up trophy only because of playing good football throughout the entire tournament.

(TS): Your best moment in the competition.

Satyajit: Our team played good soccer this time and even managed to make a good comeback after conceding a goal in a few games in the early part of the meet. One such game was against Punjab where we were once trailing 0-2 but we returned both the goals within scheduled time. That match was one of the best moments for me in the meet.

(TS): Share your journey in football.

Satyajit: I started to play football around 2010 in Morigaon. Although I didn’t represent Assam, I managed to attract the different out station clubs including Gokulam Kerala. Later, I joined Sporting Club - a Super Division team of Bengaluru.

(TS): You played football both in Assam as well as in Karnataka. What differences have you noticed?

Satyajit: I feel a better involvement of the football administrators with the players in Karnataka than Assam and there is no interference in team selection. I was playing for Sporting Club of Bengaluru last season and I was shortlisted for the Santosh Trophy probable list on the basis of the performance in the local league. In the camp I also did well and the selectors picked me in the team. In Karnataka getting selection in the State team is a very simple procedure if you can perform.

(TS): Do you feel Assam can emerge champion in Santosh Trophy?

Satyajit: Yes. We have the players who can equally compete against any State team. We just need to ensure that top performing players should be in the team.

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