KOCHI: Kerala has emerged as the champions in the Regional South and West Zone Blind Football Tournament defeating hosts Bengaluru in an exciting final held at the Fever Pitch Turfs in Bengaluru the other day. The tournament saw the participation of 70 blind footballers from different regional teams including Gujarat, Mumbai, Chennai, Madurai, Kerala and Bengaluru and served as a warm-up event ahead of the national selection trials to be held before the Australia blind football team’s friendly series in Kochi taking place later this month.
Falhan C S of Kerala was named the Player of the Tournament while Nirav of Gujarat was the top scorer in the tournament with 12 goals. Matches were officiated by recognised national referees.
“The tournament will also inspire more in the public to take up the game,” said Sunil J Mathew, sporting director of the Indian Blind Football Federation (IBFF). Chethan Rathore, DCP of Bangalore North, was the chief guest for the closing ceremony. IBFF and the Society for Rehabilitation of the Visually Challenged (SRVC), Kochi are running a blind football academy based in Kochi and promotes the game across the country.
